Sociologia Urbana e Rurale
Monographic number on Environmental gentrification (2/2019)
We invite paper proposals developing original investigations on the relation between urban
sustainable development and social/spatial inequalities in contemporary cities. Over the last
decades green infrastructures, ecosystem services, nature based solutions have become prominent
planning discourses and popular policy tools for cities around the world. They are often framed as
win-win approaches able to combine environmental protection, economic growth and wellbeing.
However, political ecologists have provided extensive critiques, demonstrating the possible
negative implications of urban greening for many vulnerable populations.
The investigation of the social implications of urban policies for sustainability has been largely
developed in North America and Asia. In Canada and USA a particular attention has been paid to
emerging processes of ecological gentrification in several global cities fostered by green urban
renewal1 (meaning, by that, with S. Dooling2, ‘The implementation of an environmental planning
agenda related to public green spaces that leads to the displacement or exclusion of the most
economically vulnerable human population’).
In Asia and in the Middle East a special focus of the investigations is on the emergence of the
development of new “Eco-Cities”, described as areas of self-segregation for the élite 3. Instead,
social consequences of green urban renewal and new urban development areas lead by sustainable
principles have been less investigated in European Cities4, and especially in Italy.
This special issue aims to contribute to fill this gap in the literature, analysing in a comparative
perspective, the social implication of green urban renewal in Europe, with a special focus on the
Italian case. We are seeking proposals investigating processes leading to new social/spatial
inequalities (displacement, housing unaffordability, spatial segregation and self-segregation, etc)
fostered by projects of green urban renewal (ecological retrofit, waterfront redevelopment, eco-
districts development, etc). We are also interested in research projects on alternative initiatives
pursuing both sustainability and socio-environmental justice in urban planning (promoted by
public institutions or civil society organizations). We would appreciate, moreover, any
contribution regarding not only the urban context but also the suburban one, the rural areas, the
fragile areas: so far we do not find that the international academic debate has focused on this.
The general aim of the project is twofold. The first is to discuss a theoretical framework, through
the analysis of case studies, in order to interpret processes of green gentrification and/or spatial
segregation in Europe and especially in Italy. The second objective is related to policy making; the
1
Barnes, T., and Hutton, T., 2009, “Situating the new economy: Contingencies of regeneration and dislocation in
Vancouver's inner city.” Urban Studies 46: 1247-1269; Checker, M., 2011, “Wiped Out by the “Greenwave”:
Environmental Gentrification and the Paradoxical Politics of Urban Sustainability”, City & Society, 23;2: 210–229
2
Dooling, S., 2009, Ecological Gentrification: A Research Agenda Exploring Justice in the City, International Journal
of Urban and Regional Research, 33:3, 621-639
3
Caprotti, F., 2014, Eco-urbanism and the eco-city, or, denying the right to the city? Antipode 46: 1285–1303
4
http://www.bcnuej.org/projects/greenlulus/
project aims to define criteria helpful to foster policies and programs oriented both to ecological
innovation and social inclusion in the city, avoiding unexpected consequences in terms of social
inequalities.
The positive answer to the invitation and the abstract must be sent to Ilaria Beretta
(Ilaria.beretta@unicatt.it) e Roberta Cucca (roberta.cucca@nmbu.no) by the 30th of August 2018.
Papers must be written in English.
The submission deadline for the final paper is the 31th of January 2019.
All papers will be subject to blind review by two reviewers; the referring process need to be
completed by the end of March.
The publication of the monographic number is scheduled for July 2019 (second issue of the year).
The paper length must be approximately 40.000 characters.
