Join d.talks in partnership with the Calgary Public Library to discuss the role of design in shaping systemic inequity and the connection with sustainability. Julian Agyeman, critical urban planning and environmental social science scholar, will speak about the role of systemic inequity in creating sustainability.
The author of some 13 books on the effects of planning policies and urban design, Agyeman considers the fact that, “Our greatest challenges are not scientific or technological; they are deeper than that—they are spiritual and cultural.” Agyeman addressed the issue of systemic inequity in detail in his 2003 publication, Just Sustainabilities (MIT Press). Here he argues that environmental degradation, racial inequity, and economic structures are linked, and that policies for sustainable development must consider both social and environmental justice. His most recent publication, Sacred Civics, co-edited with Jayne Engle, explores the tension between belonging and becoming. As designers set their sights on cities that aim to become sustainable, smart, and resilient, Agyeman argues for the need to pay attention to who is allowed to belong in the city.