The potential and limitations of planning in advancing sustainability notions at the sub-national level: An introduction

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book highlights the challenges and constraints faced by planning in the sustainability context. It focuses on the possible contribution of metropolitan planning to the advancement of the sustainability agenda. Since the publication of the World Commission on Environment and Development report in 1987 and the promulgation of Agenda 21 at the United Nation Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro five years later, notions of ‘sustainability’ have been at the forefront of the environmental policy discourse. The book suggests that strategic plans can help go beyond the constraints imposed by planning legislation, but their actual effect is a function of the ability to find a ‘customer’ for their recommendations. It analyzes how sustainability is advanced in plans focusing on a single sector. The book also focuses on the interactions between authorities, citizens and local enterprises.