Researcher–Planner Dialogue on Environmental Justice and Its Knowledges—A Means to Encourage Social Learning Towards Sustainability

Aino Rekola,Riikka Paloniemi

doi:10.3390/su10082601

Abstract

Societies aiming for a sustainable future need more effective and legitimate planning and decision making practices, in which various actors together find pathways towards a sustainable transition. In this paper, we approach sustainability and environmental justice as epistemological (and ontological) challenges for land-use planning, and empirically analyse how action research could support planners’ social learning and planning towards fair and sustainable development. We analysed qualitatively the evolution of the researcher–planner dialogue while co-designing and developing better methods, means and practices to improve environmental justice in regional scale planning in Kymenlaakso Region, South-East Finland. We found that researcher-planner dialogue developed during cooperation. While in the beginning, social learning related to approaching environmental justice as a fair distribution of power evolved incrementally, later, when dialogue became more focused, communicative and reflective as an outcome of mutual frames and trust, learning occurred in a more transformative way. Such transformative learning concerned recognising youth as a silent group in the planning process and the means to involve their perceptions in planning. In order to support sustainability transformation in the future, we conclude that it is essential to create opportunities for such incremental and transformative social learning through innovative modes of interaction in various contexts.

Highlights

Land-use planning represents the silent mainstream of sustainability transition policies and practices responsible for many strategic decisions concerning the environment
We explore empirically the dialogue between researchers and land-use planners and analyse qualitatively, how the planners’ epistemological positioning on environmental justice develops in a real world land-use planning case and how the researcher–planner dialogue can support planners’ learning in environmental justice questions central for sustainability transition
In the analysis of our research diaries and researchers’ reflections on the dialogue with the planners, we recognised two proceedings indicating learning and evolving epistemological positioning related to environmental justice during the action research process

Summary

Introduction

Land-use planning represents the silent mainstream of sustainability transition policies and practices responsible for many strategic decisions concerning the environment. In planning as well as in other policy areas, endeavours for sustainable development embrace a strong normative dimension while calling for a transition towards a society where social and natural systems are coupled in a fair and ethically sound manner. The normative nature of sustainability facilitates planning with epistemological and ontological questions requiring positioning from the planners. We explore empirically the dialogue between researchers and land-use planners and analyse qualitatively, how the planners’ epistemological (and ontological) positioning on environmental justice develops in a real world land-use planning case and how the researcher–planner dialogue can support planners’ learning in environmental justice questions central for sustainability transition

Objectives

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion