The Role of Sustainable Development Approaches in Addressing Urban Tensions in Cities

Abstract

In the stages of their development, cities become a grouping of different urban contexts as a result of development projects of all kinds, which generates, over time, spatial tensions at different levels and dimensions within cities in their different contexts.Previous literature have pointed out the phenomenon of urban tension, between the existing systems and the process of withdrawing them towards sustainability, or as a result of globalization and rapid urbanization that brought with it many tensions and contradictions in urban environments. The research has classified these tensions into: economic, such as the effects of the recent global financial crisis; social tensions that have been exacerbated by persistent poverty and discrimination worldwide; migration pressures and social disintegration as a result of economic restructuring; and environmental tensions due to ecosystems threatened by uncontrolled flows of energy and waste. The research indicated the tension between any two entities during the development process, where the tension occurs between what is added and what is existing of urban systems. The research aims to clarify and explain the urban tension, its causes and manifestations, and to present global experiences to reach a comprehensive theoretical framework for sustainable development approaches and ways to activate them to address urban tension in local contexts to achieve sustainable, safe, and livable cities.