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Citizens Participation: The Missing Link in Building Sustainable Cities?

Lessons from Living City, Santiago, Chile

For the things we have to learn before we can do them

we lea rn by doing them.

Aristotle.

Lake SagarisAntonia Lop ez de Bello 0251

Santiago, [email protected], [email protected]

Term Paper, 18 April 2005

Profe ssors And re Sorensen & Paul HessJPV 1554: Transporta tion and Urba n Design

Gradua te p rogram, Maste rs of Sc ienc e in Planning, University of Toron toSubmitte d t o the C TRF Stud ent Paper Comp et ition 2005, 23 May 2005


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Introduction

Way b ac k on the top floor of the University of Toronto law library there s an old issue o f theJournal of the Institute o f Americ an Planne rs,1 ded ica ted to p articipa tion. In tha t issue, SherryArnste in, Direc to r of Com munity Deve lopme nt Stud ies for The C om mo ns, a non-profit resea rc hinstitute in Washingto n DC and Chica go , desc ribed wha t she c alled a lad der of citizen

participation.

Thirty five yea rs late r, we ha ve c limb ed that lad der and pe eked ove r the top on ma nyoc c asions, only to feel ou rselves slid ing d ow n the slippery sna kes of d efea t, as spec ific goa ls fa ilto ge t met. Despite the frustrat ions, the ensuing yea rs have b roug ht a wealth o f expe rienc e tothe p lanning field, enric hed by theo ries abo ut d iversity, soc ia l ca p ital, environmenta l justice,pa rticipa tory p lanning and the othe r issues and movements that ha ve em erged since then.Tod ay, while empty land ma y still abound in some c ountries, conc erns ab out a finite supply ofna tural ga s and o il, a ir and wa ter po llution, ene rgy e ffic ienc y, rising ob esity and other issueshave inc rea singly brought these issues tog ether unde r an umb rella ca lled susta inab ility, nea tlyde fined by the Brundtland Co mmission s 1987 rep ort to the United Nations as meeting theneeds of the p resent w ithout com promising the a bility of future g ene rations to mee t their ow nneeds. 2

In te rms of transporta tion, Toronto s Ce ntre fo r Susta inab ility has defined a susta inab letransportat ion system as one tha t:

a llow s the b asic ac c ess needs of individuals and soc ieties to be me t safe ly and in ama nner co nsistent w ith huma n and e cosystem hea lth, and with equity within andbe tween ge nerations.

is afforda ble, op erates effic iently, offers c hoice of transpo rt m od e, a nd supp orts avibrant eco nomy.

limits em issions and wa ste within the p lane t s ab ility to a bsorb them, minimizesconsumption of non-renewable resources, limits consumption of renewable resources tothe susta inab le yield leve l, reuses and rec yc les its c om pone nts, and minimizes the use o fland and the p rod uction of noise.3

Despite ong oing de bate abo ut w hethe r sustainab ility is rea lly nec essary or wha t it wo uld involvein terms of transportat ion and urban design, as Brehe ny and Roo kwoo d so b rilliantly argue in oneof our co urse read ings, idea s abo ut how to b uild a wide rang e o f susta inable urban a rea s ofd ifferent sha pes, sizes, uses and nee ds are rich and rela tively co mp lete, while susta inab letranspo rta tion itself ca n g ene rally be boiled dow n into c ycling, walking, b uses and trains, andland use p olic ies based on a de nser or mo re c ompac t residents pe r hec tare ratio. How eve r,wh ile the solutions ma y see m relatively simple or at lea st possible to identify, how to rea c h them,or at least to b uild tow ard them, is a muc h toug her prospec t, as the o ften passiona te a nd

sometimes ang ry deba te over any mea sure tha t proposes to stop planning a round private c arsand sta rt p lanning for mo re sustainab le transpo rtat ion quickly revea ls. Undo ub ted ly, the p ublic slongstanding love affa ir with the p riva te c a r, fed by a c entury of a dvertising, expe rienc e,

1 Today, the Journal of the American Planning Associationxx.2 Also known as Our Common Future, Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development, 11 December

1987. A/RES/42/187. United Nations. http://www.un.org/documents/ga/res/42/ares42-187.htm3 Centre for Sustainable Transportation website,http://www.cstctd.org/CSTadobefiles/Definition%20Vision%20English%20Oct%202002.pdf, 30-November-04.


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longing, is a ma jor ba rrier to pouring substantial pub lic and private investment into more ene rgyefficient, sustainable transportation modes.

Rea lly imp ortant tools, be the se b etter buswa ys with seg rega ted lanes, mo re extensive subwa ylines, c ong estion pric ing o r othe r measures, have often fa ltered and fad ed when fac ed withmo de rn soc ieties passionate affa ir with the p rivate c ar. The w ay rea l estate de velopers build ,

the w ay reta ilers sell, the wa y fam ilies live a re a ll deep ly influenc ed by the c ar. As with smo kingor AIDS, peo ple s bo dies must b e to uched and their minds change d , if po litica l lea ders andtec hnica l experts are to suc c essfully imp leme nt more susta inab le transporta tion system s.

This fac t o f life, howe ver, is seldom dea lt with in the literature. Peo p les d ream s and desires, infac t their very existenc e, are often b arely ac knowledg ed in writing a bo ut transpo rtat ion a ndurba n design. When they are, as we saw in seve ra l of our rea d ings for this course, pe op lespreference s tod ay are used to a rgue ag ainst building the c ity that m any d eem essential fortomo rrow. In fac t, toda ys almost tota l dep end enc e o n the c ar is used to a rgue that c itiesshould g o on b eing b uilt around the highw ays, roa ds and othe r fac ilities this transportation mo derequires.

Partly this reflects a fa ilure of imagination: peo ple expec t the wo rld to remain the sam e, desp iteits increa singly vertiginous rate of c hange in the p ast c entury. Pa rtly it reflec ts the fac t tha ttransportation experts, and particularly engineers, are probably the professional group within theplanning te am that ha ve the least em pa thy for and lea st training in de aling w ith pe op le. Aboveall, it reflec ts the d ifficulties of p lac ing and keep ing comp lex issues on the pub lic age ndalong e nough for rea l cha nge to o c c ur.

This paper examines the role of c itizens participa tion in this p roc ess and argues that it is key tobuild ing susta inab ility, p rec isely bec ause it c an be so e ffec tive in pushing ne w issues toprominenc e o n p ublic ag enda s, and ensuring tha t some thing g ets do ne a bo ut them.

The next sec tion o f this paper de fines c itizens partic ipa tion, distinguishing it from informa tiona l orother simila r ac tivities. It then examines an expe rienc e w ith citizens participa tion in

transporta tion in Santiag o Ch ile, be foregoing o n to identify som e o f the lessons ofthis expe rienc e fo r build ing more susta inab lecities.

2. The Snakes and Ladders of Participation

In 1969, She rry Arnstein, Direc to r ofCo mm unity Develop me nt Stud ies for TheCo mm ons, a no n-profit resea rc h institute in

Washington DC a nd Chic ag o, de scribe dwhat she c alled a lad de r of c itizenparticipation.

Arnsteins ladder consists of eight rungs orversions of p articipa tion, sta rting from non-pa rticipa tion (ma nipulation and therap y)and moving upw ard through informa tionc onsultation and plac ation, to co nd itions in


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whic h c itizens exercise som e d eg ree of g enu ine pow er, wh ich she d efines as partnership,delega ted po we r and c itizen c ontrol. It is a useful sc heme a nd w ithout a do ubt , eve rywhere inthe w orld tod ay there a re still c itizens who are ba ttling their gove rnme nts in their a ttemp ts toc limb from o ne rung to the ne xt.

None the less, in the 36 yea rs since she first d esc ribed her lad der, these effo rts by c itizens and the ir

relucta nt or willing g ove rnments have p rod uced a ric h tap estry of expe rience s in the ca se o fhealth care, neighbourhood security, participatory budgeting 4 and o ther fields. Participa tion isnot simply an informa tional exerc ise, as som e ha ve ta ken it to b e, equat ing it with a p amp hlet, apub lic op inion survey, a foc us group , the ub iquitous sugg estion box, o r a 1-800 numb er. It m aybe a ma tter of routine, prac ticed throug h suc h mea ns as pub lic hea rings, briefs, or, inc rea singly,op inions subm itted ove r the internet throug h a web site. Or it ma y be trigge red by co nflic t, asd isc ussed below .

In this paper, I am referring to pa rticipa tion b y pe op le as c itizens, tha t is a process tha tsignific antly influenc es the w ay p eo ple p artic ipate po litica lly and the w ay p oliticians go vern. Inthis context, participation involves:

Soc iety as a who le, and different levels of g ove rnment, providing the resources and thespace in public debate necessary to build solid, well-informed citizens organizations.

Forma l pa rticipa to ry proc esses a t a ll sta ge s of d ec ision-making . A w ide rang e o f informal pa rticipa tory processes: open-do or po lic ies; mee tings,

assem blies, hea ring s.

Fund ing fo r qua lity c itizens participa tion. This builds long -term bene fits for c ity planningand d eve lop ment that arise largely from the c ontinuity afforded by an ongo ing proce ss,in which citizens organizations are capable of preserving the lessons and experienceacquired at e ac h stage o f pa rticipa tion, and share them w ith other individuals andc itizens orga niza tions.

Qua lity pa rticipa tion of this na ture brings enormous bene fits and invo lves costs tha t a re minorc om pa red to those involved in the errors, de lays, cha nge s and c onflic ts that c an ea sily arisewhen p artic ipat ion is poo r or non-existent, and c itizens have to d o b attle to ge t hea rd . It isd irec tly related to soc ial ca pital, in tha t p eople usually have few m one ta ry resources to rely onwhe n they ente r a pa rticipa to ry proc ess. Usua lly the suc cess of the ir effo rts will dep end on thehuma n a nd soc ial resources they c an mob ilize to drive the ir effort ahe ad . These often turn out tobe far richer than autho rities or the p rop onents of unp op ular projec ts eve r ima gined , as eventhe World Bank has d isc ove red in rec ent ye ars, with p rote stors c hasing it around the g lobe.

Soc ial ca pital as desc ribed by Putnam and othe rs,5 is key to p a rticipa tion, not o nly bec ause itma kes it p ossible, but a lso be c ause it p rovides unexpec ted rew ards that can offset t he b itterness

of rejec tion, insults, frustration o r even failure. In fac t, soc ial c ap ital represents a kind of g oo dtha t p eop le va lue highly. It is impossible to b uy, but it ca n leave pe op le m ore sat isfied than anypurcha sed goo d . This ma kes it vital to c itizens p articipa tion, since ge nuine c itizenship c annot b ebo ught, but rather must be prac tic ed .

4As practiced by several city governments in Brazil and instances such as the Toronto Housing Corporation in

Canada, among others.5 Putnam, Ibid.


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At its be st, this kind of p artic ipat ion c ontribute s to the c rea tion of w hat Evans calls ec olog ies ofac tors , that is netw orks in which ea c h type o f ac tor c ommunities, intermed iary orga nizations,and stat e a ge nc ies has a com plementa ry contribution to ma ke to the fight for livability. Thec ap ac ity of ea ch de pe nds on its internal co herenc e a s well as the a gg reg ated experienc e a ndab ility of its individua l memb ers, but the p owe r of ea c h to e ffec t c hange also d ep end sfundame nta lly on its relat ions to the others.6

It a lso ma kes po ssible the identificat ion of the c om plementa rities, forging a lliances, andbridg ing d ifference s tha t sep arate the multip le a ge ndas that a re p a rt of livab ility tha t Evansidentifies as essent ial to build ing the nec essary change. He a dds tha t there is nothingrevo lutionary ab out this vision of ag enc y. Ra ther it is bu ilt on the acc retion o f sma ll c hang es filling a ga p in a ne two rk so tha t it be com es more rob ust; using a netw ork to give a c tivists ahea d start on a conte sted issue b y sharing c ruc ial informa tion; d iscove ring which p ublic a ge nc yis likely to be vulnerable to p ressure a nd taking ad vanta ge of tha t vulnerab ility; find ing newwa ys to think abo ut the g ove rnanc e o f key c ollec tive good s, suc h as d rinking w ate r.7

It is also d irec tly related to wha t Patsy Healey refers to as g ene rat ing strate gic c onviction .8 Sheargues tha t this leads to a n interest am ong m any sta keho lders in the de sign of institutiona lproc esses whic h will fac ilitate c ollab orat ion, mutua l lea rning a nd c onsensus-building. Co nsensus-build ing thrives on o penne ss and trust. Expa nd ing ne tworks of c ollab orat ion and t rust provide aresource o f social and intellectual capitalthrough which ec onom ic knowledg e c an flowaround localities.

This knowledge a nd trust is important to susta inab ility for many reasons, one of the mo stimpo rtant b eing t hat while some po lic ies for building sustainab ility c an, a rgua bly, imp ose itthroug h spe c ific laws, many o f the sma ll, da y-to-da y att itude s and ac tions involved req uireindividua ls and c ollec tives to w illing ly app ly susta inab ility of the ir ow n acc ord. Like road sa fetyrules, the law provides an imp ortant founda tion for co rrec t b eha viour, but millions of individualsc onvince d tha t the law is be neficial ca n enforce it far mo re effec tively than hundreds of po liceofficers.

Current ly, mo st pub lic p articipa tion intervenes a t very limited m om ents in dec ision-ma king . Box 1outlines the typica l step s in a d ec ision-ma king c ycle (of c ourse, a lot of d ec ision-ma king cyc lesa re c onsiderab ly crude r or less c om plete, ofte n prod uc ing less tha n op timum results). It is c learthat in terms of p ub lic p olic y, citizens partic ipation is not usually involved in d efining the prob lem(step 1) or examining possible solutions (step s 2 and 3). Typ ica lly, it makes a brief ap pea ranc e a tstage 4, when a solution ha s alrea dy b een chosen a nd is abo ut to b e implemented . It thend isapp ea rs with impleme ntation, so that eva luations, rea d justments and the ne xt p hase o fprob lem -solving typ ic ally exclude c itizens p a rticipa tion, de spite the fa c t that m any evaluationsdo req uire som e knowledge o f what peo ple think of the solution impleme nted .

This input, howe ver, is usually obt ained throug h observation, ane c do tal evidenc e or, at themo st, a pub lic op inion survey or foc us group s. This lac k of pa rticipa tion throughou t the d ec ision-

ma king c yc le is a prob lem fo r an umb rella p olicy item suc h as susta inab ility for multiple reasons.One involves the tec hnoc ratic ap proac h involved in go vernanc e in trad itiona l demo c rac ies,whic h leaves little room for innova tion, and susta inab ility, above a ll, rep resents and req uires ama jor pa radigm change and c onsiderab le innova tion. Equa lly crucial is the fac t that c itizenspa rticipa tion as I have d efined it here, is, of essenc e, a p roc ess of p rofo und change, in which

6Peter Evans, ed. Livable Cities? Urban struggles for livelihood and sustainability, p. 244.

7 Evans, Ibid., p. 245.8 Healey, Collaborative Planning, Shaping Places in Fragmented Societies, p. 243.


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those w ho g overn, the b urea ucrac ies that serve them and the p olic ies c rea ted all chang e, butab ove all, c itizens themselves c hang e, g row ing a s they a cquire new knowledge , new skills andthe a b ility to put ide as and possibilities toge ther in new w ays. In a wo rld of spec ialists they ma y,in fac t, be the o nly ge neralists , that is, pe op le ac customed to d ea l with the c ity as c ity, ra therthan the ac c umulation of a spec ific set of pa rts.

Partic ipat ion in the identific at ion of the prob lem, alternat ive solutions and the ge neral strate gythat c ould b e employed to resolve it, is pa rticularly key, bec ause as Hea ley p oints out, Thearticu lation o f strategies req uires those involved to ta ke a m ajor leap in reflexive a c tivity, tosta nd b ac k from the ir particu lar c onc erns, to review t heir situation , to re-think p rob lems andc halleng es, to w ork out op po rtunities and c onstraints, to think throug h c ourses of a c tion whic hmight b e b ette r than c urrent p rac tices and to c ommit themselves to c hang ing things. Suc hc hang es are m ore tha n fine-tuning. They involve re-shap ing the frames of reference in whichissues are d iscussed and dec isions ta ken 9

Summarizing John Fried ma nns app roa c h to rad ic al planning a nd m ore rec ent w ork by DonaldSc hon, she notes tha t:

1. People lea rn through d oing: they d eve lop the ories in ac tion. It wo uld help the learningproc esses if peo ple we re mo re c onsc ious of this learning-in-ac tion, if they be c am e reflexive .

2. There are two d imensions to suc h lea rning : the first, or single -loop lea rning , invo lves workingout ho w to pe rform a task bette r within g iven p aramete rs; the sec ond involves learning a bo utthe p aram ete rs and thereby c hang ing the c ond itions unde r which ta sks are performed . Sc hon smod el of the reflect ive p rac titionerempha sizes doub le-loo p learning.

3. Suc h d oub le-loop lea rning c an take place in soc ia l situat ions, throug h d ialogue , throug hwhich p eo ple c an c ollec tively explore and lea rn ab out issues and ea ch others attitude s tothem.

4. Prob lems and ob jec tives, fac ts and va lues, em erge through suc h group processes; they are

not w aiting o ut there to be disc ove red by sc ientific inquiry.

5. Group discussion processes which reach double-loop learning can re-set parameters forsubseq uent a c tion, and in this wa y eng ag e in setting the frame for ac tion. This framingworkc an be eq uated with delibe rative strate gy-making.10

She d esc ribes this interac tive, strateg ic w ork of sto ryma king as going through three p hases:forums, whic h foc us on forging an ag reem ent to ac t am ong the key p layers ; arenas, whic hemphasize polic y deve lopm ent and imp lementa tion; and c ourts, whe re residua l wo rk ofa rbitrat ion takes p lace. 11

Healey notes that knowledg e a nd understand ing a re p rod uce d through c ollab orative soc ial

learning p roc esses, not b y the ma nipulation of ab strac t tec hniques by a utono mousindividuals. 12 Clea rly, for the p urpose o f bu ild ing susta inab le c ities, it is knowledge a ndunde rstanding tha t are req uired , and no t the ma nipulat ion so d eftly wielded by a dvertisingc am pa igns and shallow d eb ate.

9 Healey, Ibid., p. 244.10

Healey, Ibid., p. 257-258.11 Healey, Ibid., p. 259.12 Healey, Ibid., p. 263.


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Although she is spe aking prima rily a bo ut the benefits of p ow er-sha ring as a me thod forimp roving planning (the c ollab orative p lanning ap proac h d esc ribe d in her title) Healeysemp hasis on the imp ortanc e o f pa ying attention to loc al knowled ge, which has its ownrea son ing p roc esses, in w hich conc lusions a re d rawn from prem ises, but the line of rea soningma y not b e m ad e e xplicit and one g roup s premises ma y be quite different to another, 13 is

equally relevant to a strategy to build sustainability.

Participatory processes can create major opportunities for processes that, working from Healeys p rac tica l consc iousness and loc al knowledg e can build to wa rd d isc ove ries, c onc lusions andprop osals that contribute to a mo re susta inable c ity.

The experienc e o f a Chilea n orga niza tion, Living C ity (Ciudad Viva), wh ich sta rted life a s an anti-highwa y c oa lition (Coo rdinad ora No a la Costanera Norte) illustrates how participa tion throughc onflic t c an , on rare b ut significant oc c asions, give rise to do uble-loo p learning in favo ur ofmore sustainable solutions.

Typ ica lly, pa rticipa tion may a rise from routine, or forma l, p rocesses,14 or from c onflicts. Both typesof p a rticipa tion a re ve ry impo rtant. How eve r, precisely be c ause it is so unplanne d, so dyna mic,draining a nd rewa rding a t the sam e time , c onflic t-trigge red p artic ipat ion tend s to gene ratede ep er lea rning p ossibilities than routine pa rticipa tion. A third trigge r for pa rticipa tion will bed isc ussed in more d eta il in the last sec tion.

Undoubtedly conflict is a, if not the, great catalyst motivating citizens participation and

mobilization around a particular cause. They feel that the cause is just, that outrage is justified,

and that their contribution is vital if justice is to be achieved. They feel, and feelings are the fuelthat powers their participation, for all that many rational elements may also be involved.

Typically, whatever triggered action on the part of citizens groups, it is usually temporary and,

once the issue has run its cycle and a decision has been made, the groups tend to disperse,returning to their normal activities and leaving the public arena until another issue triggers a

similar debate. Occasionally, however, a group will evolve beyond the defensive stance commonin an initial conflict to become proponents of significant change in the urban arena, movingbeyond their own specific territory or initial issue. It is this step in the process that is particularly

interesting from the perspective of how to build sustainable cities in general, and more

sustainable transportation in particular. The next section explores a case from Santiago, Chile,

where this occurred.

3. From Anti-Highway Coalition to Living City: Citizens Participation for Sustainable Transportation

No to the Costanera Norte

In the 1990s, Chile was still recovering and rebuilding social organizations large and small, after

13Healey, Ibid., p. 264.

14Routine participation has been built into normal decision-making procedures, usually within a political system, over the

years. Compared to elsewhere in the world, the city of Toronto, for example (and Canada generally) has done an extraordinaryjob of building both formal and informal means of participation into the political system. Bylaw amendments, for example, mustbe presented and debated at public meetings that are duly announced through local signs and other methods to ensure that people

know what is coming. The lengthy lists of contributors to political campaigns provide a handy shorthand for the range of public,private and citizens organizations that have filed through the offices of local city councillors to discuss a wide range of localissues on a less formal, but equally important, footing.


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VivacetaaAv.

Loreto

Av.

Po

Nono

SanCristbalHill

North

Mapocho

Map: The different routes proposed for the Costanera Norte highway, severalthrough the San Cristobal Hill, Santiagos most important park. Eventually it

went under the river is this art o the cit .

17 years of brutal military rule (1973-1990) and radical economic reforms, which had torn itssma ll pop ulation o f 13.5 million asund er, divid ing ne ighb ours, families, friends, and c rea ting a pa llof fea r as pa ralyzing as the smog that typica lly chokes its c apital c ity of Santiago eve ry yea rduring the winte r mo nths (June-August).

With a ny p revious experienc e o f pa rticipa tion or de moc rac y virtua lly erased by the m ilita ry

years, it seemed an unlikely place for a significant experiment in building social capital or thekind of collaborative planning that Healey advocates. Local governments, neighbourhoodassociations, and the myriad of clubs, associations and other friendly groups that typicallyweave the complex social relations necessary for normal functioning were just beginning torebuild, while the country, from its constitution (passed during the military years and tailored toma ke the reg ime s chang es last) on do wn rema ined hea vily unde r the influence of authoritarianpatterns of relationships and decision-making.

Nonetheless, when Ricardo Lagos, then an ambitious public works minister on his way to thenational presidency, decided to build the first phase of his future campaign by launching aflagship p rojec t, the Costanera Norte highw ay, his announc ement trigg ered the artic ulat ion o f aseries of unt il then sma ll, isola ted c om munity orga niza tions.

The projec t w as to c onne c t Santiag o s upp er c lass subu rbs on the c ity s ea st side t o the c itycentre, where many residents worked, and the western edge, where the airport and importanthighways to the coast and the north are located. During the military years, speculators hadbo ught up muc h of the land to the ea st and west of the c ity, so the highwa y stood to b enefitthe construction industry, the company that ended up managing it, and the real estatedevelopment projects that were beginning to spring up in key points at both ends of thehighway.

In 1995, the g ove rnment ha d announc ed the p rojec t w ould c ost US$130 million, b ut b y Feb rua ry1996 this had risen to US$230 million. The highw ay wa s to be som ew here b etw ee n 30 and 34 kmlong, swee ping like a broad grin from the a irpo rt a nd pa name ric an highwa y c onnec tions on thec itys we stside, throug h the c ity centre and up into the wealthy neighbourhood s of Vitac ura , Las

Co nde s and La Dehesa. It wa s to ha ve three lanes in ea c h direc tion and a de sign spe ed of 80to 100 km/ hr.

Opposition arose first and took different forms in four communities: Pedro de Valdivia Norte,Barrio Bellavista, Patronato, Barrio de la Vega Central and Independencia. After gathering allthe information available, several groups concluded that the project would severely damageacc ess to a nd the e nvironme nta l qua lity of Santiag o s mo st important park, San Cristba l Hill; in

the Bellav ista neighb ourhood itwould destroy importantheritage areas, including oneof the Hills main entrances andthe access to the house-

museum of Chilean Nobelprize-winning poet PabloNeruda; in the market area itwould destroy low- and middle-income families way of life; inIndependencia it would wipeout several blocks of solid, low-income housing, banishing theelderly residents to a marginal


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existence on the citys periphery; and in general, it would stimulate more use of the car,increa sing Sant iago s de ad ly pollution and wo rsening the c itys intolerable (for som e a t least)social inequalities, by benefiting those with the most, at the cost of the majority of thepopulation.

When the c omm unities in the c entral area o f the highwa y route d ec ide d to op po se the p roject,

they did so with reluctance. Friend and foe alike advised them that there was no hope ofinfluencing the government on a project so crucial to the political ambitions of such animportant figure as Ricardo Lagos (today he is president of Chile). Nonetheless, their sense ofdignity led assembly after assembly of neighbours, small business and market people to decidethey ha d to o ppo se the p rojec t. By 1997, these 25 groups had sta rted to w ork tog ethe r.

The c oa lition they formed w as c alled the Coo rdinad ora No a la Costanera Norte(the No to theCo stanera Norte Coo rd inating Co mm ittee). To e veryone s surprise, its intelligent , forc efulcriticism attracted widespread public attention and support.15 The m inistrys a tte mpts to la bel ita small group of ignorant, selfish neighbours obstructing progress backfired, amidst a massivewave of hugs in which opponents to the highway project wrapped hundreds of metres ofc oloured ribb ons a round their hom es and businesses to p rote st the g ove rnment s intentions.

When the government reneged on its promise to submit the project to an environmentaleva luation a c ourt ac tion b y the Coordinad ora succ essfully forc ed it to obe y. The p ublicpa rticipa tion p roc ess during the Environmenta l Imp ac t Assessme nt (EIA) b ec am e a po werful toolin buying time and making the arguments concerning the projects benefits and social andenvironmental costs widely known. People began to take sides, with only a small minority, mostdirec tly assoc ia ted with the p rojec t, in favour. The go vernment used its tremend ous po wer to tryto suffocate the movement, threatening legislative changes that would have seen theCoordinadoras leaders forced to absorb the costs of any delays, private threats to projectop po nents in loc al ma rkets that they p eo ple w ould lose the ir sta lls, and quiet m oves to c ut someopponents off from the government contracts by which they earned their living. Fear of theconsequences of opposition swept through the communities, but was dealt with in collectivemeetings. It was a time of great pain and disillusionment, as leaders saw the newly elected

go vernment using some o f the tac tics assoc iated with the former milita ry reg ime.

Tab le 1 provide s a summary of the ma in c ha rac teristics of the organizat ions that c rea ted theanti-highway coalition, known as the Coordinadora No a la Costanera Norte. None of thegroups had any knowledge of transpo rta tion issues p rior to the conflic t.

Table 1 Ma in Cha racteristics of Founding Orga nizationsArea Identifying

characteristi

c

Main

type of

social

capital16

Ma in strengths Ma in wea knesses Other Characteristics

Independencia

Poor,working

classresidentialarea, manyelderly

Bond ing Ac tive involvement Fea r ofconsequences,

often paralyzed

Fea r response to the irsituation, vict imization,

inward turning foc us onbasic surviva l

Eventually community was

15See especially coverage in La Epoca during this period, which included a front page spread and many major articles, as well as

updates.16

Bonding social capital, as defined by Putnam, involves bonds within groups sharing strong commoncharacteristics, whereas bridging social capital involves links that reach across differences, bringing together groups

with widely varying characteristics.


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No previousknowledg e oftransportation orurban issues

dissolved, very painful

Mem orial event s held toreca ll and learn fromexperienc e, some hea ling

Recoleta Centralmarket

d istrict , littleresidential

Bonding,some

bridging

Strong ab ility tomobilize, sector

be loved b y the restof the pop ulation(bec ause of thema rket ac tivity andheritage)

Very mistrustful,hierarchical,

competitiverelationshipsamong differentgroups, easilydivided

Enormous power to mobilizeweakene d by mistrust,

rumour mongering,tende ncy for lea de rs to b eundem oc ratic, po pulist orauthoritarian, lessinformation sharing

Bellavista Artscommunity,mixedresidentialand muchcommercial, with ma nyrelatedproblems

Bridging,somebonding

Creative,co mmitted, friend lyand attrac tive tooutsiders, belovedsec tor among therest o f thepopulation(bec ause o f culturalactivity, night lifeand heritage)

Turno ve r inlead ership c ouldlead toinconsistencies

No previousknowledg e oftransportation orurban issues

Power centre with stronglead ership, muc h o f it highlyeduc ated , but mixedeco nomic b ase w ellintegrated , the hinge withothe r groups. Lots of mutua lsupp ort, ca pa city to b ringnew peop le in and educ atethem relatively quic kly,ove rcom e frustration.

Ped ro d eValdiviaNorte

Wealthyupper classneighbour-hood

Bonding,somebridging

High ly skilled , goo dlobbyistsSom e p reviousknowledg e oftransportation orurban issues

Hard to mobilizeKnowledgeconcentratedamong expertswho o ften workedon their own

Ec ono mic ally and soc iallythe m ost p ow erful sec tor,but less social capital.Com es and go es ac co rdingto the issue a nd howseriously they feel a ffec ted .

With an annual budget of less than US$3000, the Coordinadora successfully stalled the multi-million dollar highway project for five years. As academics, government experts, citizens andenv ironm enta l orga niza tions sc rutinized the p rojec t, its poo r p lanning b ec ame ob vious. Threeattem pts to a uction the p roject fa iled due to p ublic op po sition a nd even the a dvisory group tothe environmental commission (a council of ministerial appointees), which ultimately wouldap prove it, rejected the p roject on three oc c asions.

At the end of 1999, the highway project was shelved, at least temporarily. Exhausted, leaders ofthe 25 com munity orga niza tions me t to d iscuss the ir future. The figh t aga inst the p rojec t ha dbe en force d o n them, had hurt them and co st them d eep ly at a pe rsonal and co llec tive level.But it ha d also tra ined them in urban issues, plac ed new too ls in the ir hand s, and given the m aplace in public d eb ate abo ut the citys future. Their neighb ourhood s we re ha rd hit by typica lprocesses of urba n stress, strain and dec line. They w ere dete rmined to save a nd deve lop them .

They d ec ide d to remain toge ther, but on c ondition tha t they would not only de fend theirneighbourhoods, but also put forward their own proposals, rather than waiting passively for

offic ia l projec ts, that they might end up op posing. They found ed Ciuda d Viva (Living C ity) andwith it a new kind of c itizens orga niza tion.

Ultimately, the government approved its own project, but the companies that eventually wonthe b id to b uild it c hang ed the route in the sec tor where there had be en so m uch op po sition,pushing it und er the Mapoc ho River bed . This wa s a signific ant vic tory, as it saved the ir physica la rea s of the c ity whic h represent a substantial b od y of its urba n, cultura l and natural heritage .To save the river itself would ha ve required a muc h b roa der mob ilization o f the c ity as a who le, a


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movement tha t only rea lly ga thered streng th onc e c onstruc tion ha d sta rted .17

LIVING CITY (2000-PRESENT)

Throug h their informed , crea tive a nd stubb orn op po sition, the c ommunities of La Chimbasignific antly mo d ified a ma jor highwa y p rojec t. They a lso ac com plished som ething c onsidered

impossible in post-Pinochet Chile: they influenced public debate and saved theirneighbourhoods from destruction.18 As their struggle had unfolded, the importance of urbantransportation as a potentially vital tool in dealing with social inequality, exclusion, poverty,insecurity (including delinquency and danger from traffic accidents), environmentalimp roveme nt, heritag e p reservation and urba n de c ay be ca me increasingly clear.

Sinc e its found ing, Living City, the p ermane nt fed eration found ed by the c oa lition, has put thelessons learned about urban transportation and design to use in proposals to reshape theirhistoric, but also problem-ridden areas of the city, using the principles of sustainabletransportation, pa rticipa tory de sign, and c onsensus-building learned during the fight ag ainst thehighwa y projec t.

In 2000, it led the development of the first citizens transportation agenda and presented thecitizens perspective at the World Banks review of its urban transportation policy. In 2001, twoLiving City leaders visited Bogot, interviewing government officials, companies and othersinvolved in that c itys suc c essful Transmilenio bus p rojec t, the m ore tha n 300 km of high q ua litybike routes now built, and other projects that have improved social conditions and changedinfrastructu re. Their perspec tive, wide ly pub lic ized through Living City s we ekly rad io prog ramm e(Viva la Ciudad, 14,000 listeners), its periodical, La Voz de La Chimba (15,000 readers), itselectronic news service (c iudadv ivano ticias@yaho og roup s.com ), and its multiple activitiesra ised c rucial issues in debates about the future of transporta tion in Santiag o.

Two yea rs later, go vernment d elegations sta rted to visit Bog ot and the m ed ia rep orted on the Bog ata niza tion of Santiag o s transporta tion p roc ess. The c itys new bus system is c a lledTransantiag o, an obvious refe renc e to Bog ota s Transmilenio. Living C ity a lso p articipa ted in

Chile s Glob a l Environm enta l Fac ility (GEF) projec t to c rea te a netwo rk of b ike lane s in Santiag oand improve bus service , a long with t he GEFs Sc ientific and Tec hnica l Advisory Panel (STAP)meeting on urban transportation (2002) in Nairobi, and other meetings in Bogot (2003) andMexic o City (2004).

Ove rall, the o rga nization ha s pub lished two bo oks on susta inab le t ranspo rta tion and helped toraise public awareness, support technical reports and pressure politicians to consider moresusta inable transpo rta tion p olic ies, althoug h the c ountry and the c ity o f Sant iago still have along wa y to go.

17 Throughout the construction phase, especially 2002-2003, a heated letters campaign and debates at major architectural forahave maintained the controversy over the Costanera Norte, with critics led by architect Christin de Groote and transportation

engineer, Juan de Dios Ortzar. Sight of work in the river stirred passionate opposition among many Santiago residents. LivingCity is aware of the outcome of the 30-year controversy that accompanied San Franciscos Embarcadero highway project, part ofwhich was eventually dismantled, and believes the Costanera Norte may ultimately experience a similar fate.18 With one exception: Independencia suffered the destruction of two neighbourhoods and the displacement of their elderly

inhabitants (about 130 families) to the city edge. Their homes, some of which were included in heritage lists, were demolished,despite the river option and despite signed commitments (signed by concessions unit head, and later public works minister,Carlos Cruz) promising equivalent housing in the same area of the city.


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Table 2 summ arizes the ma in changes in the o rga niza tion d uring its two phases.

Table 2: Organizational Cha racteristics Compared

Coordinadora (1995-1999) Living City (2000-2005)

Attitude to

Participation

Forced Part o f lifestyle

Ma in feelings Humiliation, fear, being mistreated byautho rities, insec urity, mistrust ofeveryone

Friendly, supportive, rewarding, self-co nfidenc e, mutual co nfidenc e a ndtrust

Knowledge Inexpe rienc ed , seeking help,information

Experienc ed , sha res informa tion, helpsothers

Skills Vary wide ly Shared mo re evenly am ong st group ,more specialization

Member

organizations

Large num be r of forma l and informa lorga niza tions, som e o ppositionbe tween the two kinds of group

Large num ber of formal and informalorganizat ions, wo rking tog ethe r

Continuity Constant life and de ath o forganizations, as leadership changed

Co ntinuity of issues and support forcontinuity o f o rga nizat ions, a lthoug h

prob lem s remainResources Widely varying resources and ac c ess

to resourcesPossess mo re resources and have ac c essto ma ny more

Relationship

with authorities

Conflict and some allianc es Deba te and co nside rab le co op erationon spe c ific p rojec ts

Information Knowledg e ac c umulated Knowledg e ava ilab le, growing andbenefits shared within organization andwith othe r orga nizat ions

Type of

participation

Partic ipat ion forc ed throug h c onflic t Partic ipat ion wo n throug h c onc reteinitiatives and some conflicts that remainpending

Type of links Bond internally within own

orga nizat ions, beg in to ne two rk andestab lish contac ts and links with othe rorganizations

Bond internally, bridge throug h Living

City with a wide rang e o f autho rities,other organizations, institutions

In 2003, with US$40,000 funding from the Global Environmental Fund / United NationsDevelopment Programme, its 2003 project, Get Moving for a better city, managed to leverageabout US$100,000 worth of volunteer labour and other resources to raise the profile ofsustainable transportation much further. Multiple activities highlighted measures being taken inChile and ab roa d, a nd transpo rtations imp ortanc e to eq uality.

More tha n 200 peo ple a ttend ed a sem inar organized by Living City, with suppo rt from the WorldBank, the UNs Economic Commission and other organizations, many of them planners from the

c itys main munic ipal a rea s (20 of 34), distinguished ac ad emic s and rep resenta tives from a widerange of citizens organizations, ECLAC itself, and top-ranking officials from the ministries oftransportation a nd housing.

A vital part of this growth reflected the increased ability to accumulate scarce resources andma na ge them mo re e ffec tively, as Tab le 3 illustrates.


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Table 3. Resource Ma nagement Compared

Coordinadora Living City

Imp rov ised More orga nized

Ide ntity-based Ide ntity-based , but identity has broa dened

Emp ty poc kets , sense of pow erlessness Grow ing ca pac ity for fund ra ising, still period s of crisis

due to fluctua ting resourcesFrag mented resource s, No c apa c ity forma nag ement o f existing resources

Existing resources we ll ma naged and sha red

Transitiona l, temporary, ma in a c tivities: Art auction Req uest for d ona tions Oc ca sional events

Ongoing m ult ifaceted ap proac h Art a uction Mem be rs pa y monthly fee Friends contribute monthly or annua lly Monthly fundraising mea l Project financing Grants

Fund raising for spec ific g oa ls (eg . pa ylawyer)

Fund ra ising fo r spec ific go a ls, within ove ra ll p lan

No capa c ity to save or invest Ca pac ity to save and investAll resources belong to individualmemb ers, so mostly obta ined throug hloans for spec ific a c tivities Computers Telephone s and faxes Emails Web site Loudspea ker system All volunte ers

Organization now collectively owns or rents andma nage s considerab le resources Computers Resource c entre and offic es Amplific a tion system Sma ll pe rma nent sta ff, permitting integ rat ion oflarge r and m ore d iverse g roup of volunteers Digital c am era a nd rec orde r Professional video c am era a nd ed iting unitbeing set up at present

No thoughts for the future Plans to deve lop businesses c onsisten t with goa ls

to ac hieve financ ial autonomy Autoshare Bikeshare Bike renta ls Sustainable urban tourism Bike acc essory imp orts Unconventional real estate development Consulting and consortia AudioVisual Services Design a nd print services Equipm ent rental Advertising to suppo rt p rint and rad io media

The orga nizat ion ha s c ontinued its advo c ac y work with loc a l municipa l and na tional(pa rticu larly p ub lic wo rks, transportat ion a nd housing m inistry authorities), as we ll as prep aring fo rimplementation of its first major proposal: the partial pedestrianization of Pio Nono, the mainstree t in Santiag o s pop ula r cultural a nd rec rea tional neighb ourhood , Bellavista .

While c hang ing the ove rwhe lming supp ort of Sant iag o s sma ll but po werful elites for privateaut omob ile transpo rta tion und oub ted ly rema ins an uphill ba ttle, tec hnica l experts have found asignific ant a lly in the c itizens orga niza tions involved in Living City. Like any a c to r in urba n a ffairs,c itizens organizat ions have no m onop oly on b eing right , but Living City has demonstrate d that


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they do ma ke a substantial contribution to p ublic de ba te, despite the m any o bstac les to a ndprejudices ag ainst the ir pa rticipa tion.

5. Reflections

Som etime s it is ea sy to a rgue tha t c itizens p articipa tion in a c onflict b ene fits susta inab le urban

transportat ion, as wa s the c ase w ith Living City. Som etime s, how eve r, the positive side of thispa rticipa tion is not as c lear. Reg ard less of its bene fits, any c itizens initiative in op position to apub lic po lic y pub lic ized as mo de rn will typica lly be labelled Nimb yism (in referenc e to not-in-my-ba c kya rd t ypes of a rgum ents, for example ove r the p lac ement o f a wa ste d ump ). Theseconflicts often constitute opportunities for enriching citizens knowledge of sustainability throughincreased participation.

Figure 1 reflec ts the typ ica l Conflict-Triggered Participa to ry Cyc le. It is considerab ly riche r tha nforma l pa rticipa tion throug h hea rings or other routine instanc es, bec ause it tend s to b e long erand incorpo rate a muc h broad er range o f individua ls (with wide ly va rying levels of knowledg e)pa rticipa tory ac tivities. It o ften involves considerab le ed uc at ion in c ivic values, throug h theformation of a c oa lition of like-minded individua ls or group s, lob bying, and med ia-basedac tivities that bring the issue to a muc h b roa der pub lic , forma l hea rings, pa rticularly a s pa rt o fenv ironm enta l assessme nts, and the c rea tion o f skills and collec tive capac ities within thec ommunity that b ec ome increa singly sop histica ted the long er this pa rticipa tory cyc le lasts.

In the c ase of Living City during bo th pha ses it should b e note d tha t it inc orporated b oth a d ho cgroups set up to d ea l with the spe c ific c onflic t (the Bellav ista Ec olog ic al Committee and theCo mmittee to Defend the San Cristob al Pa rk) and formally c onstituted organizations(neighbo urhood orga nizat ions that we re w ritten into C hilean law in the 1960s and revived afte rthe e nd of the military reg ime , and vend ors assoc iations at Santiag o s central ma rket, La VegaCe ntral). This gave the orga niza tion enormous strength and resilienc e, since it co mb ined t hefierce , issue d riven energy o f the a d hoc groups with the p ermane nt orga nizat ions grea terc ap ac ity for respo nse, integ rat ion w ithin the leg al system and conne c tions both to their ow nmemberships and to formal players within the process, particularly municipal governments,

ma ny of which fe lt the c entral gove rnment wa s running roug hshod ove r them with itshighhanded ap proac h to the highway.


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Coalitionformed: Groupsstart to w ork togethe r,

build links with ac ad emic sNGO s, o the rs. Take

ac tions to force de cisions,generate m ore publicdeb ate, ie op tions toparticipate more fully.

Conflict moves to pea k

resolution: strengthensallianc e, b uilds supp ort,but does not necessarily

influenc e d ec ision-makers.

Initial c onflict resolved

1. Most ad hoc

organizations disba nd

- experienc e is d ispe rsed

-------------------

2. A few ca rry on together

2. Agreement vs. Conflict

Som e g roup s rea ch ow nag reement or simply

do nt ge t involved.

------------------------------------

1. NEWS

Reachesdifferentgroupsdifferently

Outp ut to offic iagroup s learn fromeac h other and ,ac ad emics andNGOs

Other actors bec omeinvolved , espe cia lly loca lgovernments,relationships form tha t wilbec ome ba sis of m orepermanent cooperationand a llianc es

In p ut from NGOs,and Academics

Figure 1

The Short-Lived Participatory CycleTwo outc om es (A and B) are p ossible, the m ostc om mon be ing that w ith the resolution of the

c onflic t (favourab le or othe rwise) the groups returnto the ir orig ina l dispersion. The sec ond possible

outc ome , howe ver, is that they c rea te a pe rma nentinstitution tha t permits ac cumulating the lessonslea rning and app lying the m to ne w p rop ositions.

See next Figure.

A

B


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As Figure 1 illustrates, wha tever the ou tc ome o f the p a rticipa tion, and whe ther it is rout ine orc onflic t-trigg ered, w hen deb ate ove r the immediat e issue end s, citizens group s often simplypa ck up everything they ve learned and go home . When this hap pe ns, public de ba te ove r thesusta inab le city has lost an inva luab le resource. Peo p le have lea rned just so muc h, thenstop pe d, ra ther than c a rrying the ir experienc e a nd the know-how a c quired onto the next issue.

This reflec ts the fa c t tha t bo th routine a nd c onflic t-trigge red pa rticipa tion are c ommonly seen asmo mentary, a single step in a p roc ess, ra ther than a who le p roc ess that should b e integ rate dinto the c omplete de c ision-ma king c ycle. A fo rum is held, c itizens ire explodes, a dec ision isma de and we all go ba c k to normal life. When w e d o this, how eve r, we a re missing out on w hatis prob ab ly the most impo rtant fea ture o f citizens partic ipat ion a nd w e a re w asting some of themo st importan t results from the w hole e ffort. Participa tion, be it routine or co nflic t-triggered ,planned or ac c identa l, is almo st a lways assoc iat ed with change, and not just any old kind ofcha nge, but impo rtant c hange. Undoub ted ly, building susta inab ility requires profound c hang esin how w e live, individua lly and c ollec tively.

As our ca se stud y illustrates, with the right enc ourag em ent a nd sup port, som e g roup s go on toc rea te p ermane nt institutions tha t bec om e ac tive p layers in the d eb ate ove r the future of thec ity. They c rea te a far-rang ing netw ork of allies within the po litica l system and am ong NGOs andothe r instanc es, and g ene rate c onsiderab le ca pa c ity to influenc e p ublic op inion. Figure 2illustrate s this cumulative p artic ipato ry c ycle , throug h w hic h e xperienc e, skills and knowledgega ined through the first c ycle b ec ome cum ulative, an ongo ing resource that e nab les andempow ers com munities to p lay an increasingly ac tive, informed role in c ity plann ing, eve nthoug h the individua l organizat ions tha t be long ma y form a nd d isap pea r c ontinually, inrespo nse to their c ycle o f lea de rship a nd renewa l.


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Academics

NGOs

Municipalgovernments

World Bank,UNDP, ECLAC,GEF

Housing,

Transporta tionand otherministries

Figure 2:A Cumulative Participatory Cycle

At this stage , a com mitted nuc leus of sta ff and volunteers provide the ba sicstructure for a permanent organization that brings together resources,

aspirat ions and the netw orks forme d during the conflic t, enriching a ll three,providing co ntinuity to loc al orga nizat ions, which c ontinue to function asindep end ent bo dies and collec tively throug h Living City. Ties with othe r

bo dies c onsolida te a nd be c ome ongo ing a nd relatively freq uent (thic kerarrow s) or infreq uent bu t mo re ongoing (thinner arrow s).


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Figure 2 illustrat es the va lue of a c hang e in the pa rticipa tory cyc le, which turns a tempo rary,issue-based orga niza tion into a mo re p erma nent institution, holding o n to the experienc e, skillsand knowledg e o bta ined through the first p artic ipa tory c ycle and ca rrying it on to ad ditionalpa rticipa tory cyc les. In Living Citys c ase this has mea nt tha t toda y it is bette r prep a red to ac t inresponse to forma l invitat ions to p articipa te o r when ne w c onflicts a rise, simila r to the o riginalhighwa y debate . Even more imp ortantly, how eve r, the o rga nizat ion has p roven ab le to

c onvo ke and provoke instanc es of p ub lic pa rticipa tion throug h its ow n initiatives.

The b est example of th is ha s bee n its p rop osa l for partial ped estrianiza tion o f Pio Nono street, aninitiative tha t be ga n entirely unde r the lea dership of Living C ity. The organiza tion broughttog ethe r seve ral d ifferent diag noses of the p rob lems with the Bellavista neighb ourhood drugtra fficking a nd relate d violence (including a d rive-by shoo ting, a d iscothe que be ing torc hed aspa rt of a ve nde tta b etw een different traffic kers), ge neral dete riorat ion of the physica l spa c e,and p rob lems with nuisanc es suc h as no ise. With p artic ipa tion from arc hitec ts, loc a l businesspe op le and the ne ighbo urhood assoc iations, it then p rep a red som e visuals of how a p ed estrianPio Nono c ould look a nd w ent on to p resent the p rop osal a t a series of forums, public d eb ate s,a rt expositions and other venue s. From there, as part o f its transporta tion p rojec t, it o rganized ac harrette on the subjec t, bringing tog ethe r all the ma jor stakeholde rs, inc luding high-ranking c itysta ff and ma yors of the two bo roug hs that share c ustod y of the Bellavista neighb ourhood . Bothma yors and their planning sta ff ultimate ly endo rsed a mo dified version of the p rop osa l, which isnow in the proc ess of b uilding financ ing.

Only well-orga nized , well-informed and prep a red c itizens groups can hop e to intervene a t theothe r points on t he d ec ision-ma king c ycle, de sc ribed ab ove . This ability to intervene throug houtthe c ycle is vital to p lac ing issues on the pub lic ag end a and keep ing them there. In his bo okab out how new issues ma ke it onto the p ublic ag end a, bec ome pub lic po lic y, and ac tuallybe co me implemented , John Kingd on notes the differenc e b etwee n a c ondition and a p rob lem. We put up with all kinds of c ond itions eve ry da y, and c ond itions do not rise to prominent p lac eson p olicy a gend as. Cond itions c ome to be de fined as problems, and have a be tter c hanc e ofrising on the a ge nda , when w e c ome to b elieve that w e should d o some thing to c hangethem. 19

To d a te, the fa c t tha t our lifestyle has bec om e inc rea singly unsusta inab le is p rimarily a c ond ition.For this cond ition to b ec ome a p rob lem requiring politica l ac tion, c onflic ts suc h as anti-highw ayc am pa igns or public de ba tes over where to dump wa ste c an be used to trigg er a strongc itizens respo nse, lea ding to muc h d eep er deb ate and the kind of d ouble-loop reflec tionHea ley de sc ribes, which is so imp ortant to bringing susta inab ility into foc us, and keep ing it there.To keep p ushing susta inab ility up wa rd o n the p olitic a l age nda req uires c onsta nt p ressure andc onstant re-framing of c ond itions as problems.

In the a bsenc e o f pe rma nent, ong oing pressure from c itizens, it is ea sy for po liticians, c aught upin the d ay-to-da y ad ministration o f pow er and the burea uc rat s who answer to them to e asilylose sight of the question o f susta inab ility.

Combining both the interest and the capacity for exercising this kind of political pressure requiresc onsiderab le resources on the part o f c itizens orga niza tions. Bec ause the ma ny issues invo lvedin susta inability are c omplex and req uire p rofound c hang e from individua ls and soc ietyc ollec tively, the c rea tion of more pe rma nent c itizens o rga nizat ions to p artic ipate and o ftenlead de bate on the d ifferent fa c ets/ issues involved c an put sustainab ility on the de c ision-ma king a ge nda, kee p it there, and e nsure tha t any dec isions a re c orrec tly imp lemented.

19 Kingdon, Agendas, Alternatives and Public Policies, p. 197-198.


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Earlier in this paper I me ntioned a third trigge r for pa rticipa tion. In the past 15 years, Hamilton,Ca nada , and othe r c ities a round the w orld have increasingly seen c itizens pa rticipa tion a s keyto the ir effo rts towa rd b uild ing susta inab ility. Through innova tive, pa rtic ipa tory proc esses theyhave p rod uced susta inable a ge nda s suc h a s Hamilton s Vision 2020, and ma nag ed to p ush theassoc iated issues eve r highe r on the public age nda .

Citizens build ing sustainab ility from the b ottom up need t o find a symp athe tic ea r and ac ommitted respo nse from the autho rities with whom they must d ea l. Undoub ted ly Hamilton sVision 2020 provides an inte resting examp le of how this c an be d one .

Three o ther mod els a re d isc ussed by Eva ns et a l.20 in the ir stud y o f three d ifferent styles ofsusta inab le transport strategy in Eng land . They d esc ribe c onvent iona l plann ing, by experts,based on p lans, rules and laws, tha t is, essent ially a n imp osed solution; p rog ressive p lanning ,ba sed on ene rgy a nd the urba n environment, involving responsib le c itizens and loca l autho ritiesac ting a s the hub at the c entre of relationships (which w ould be simila r to Ham iltons 2020approa c h); and they d isc uss the Nexus strategy, Tow ards 2000 , whic h they c ha rac terize a s neg otia tive p lanning , based on c onsensus, netwo rks, and a reflexive c ity. The first mo del, stillpreva lent in many c ities and countries, is unfriendly to the kind of p artic ipat ion fostered byHamilton s 2020, a lthoug h it typica lly provo kes partic ipa tion in the form of c onflict. Either wa y,pa rticipa tion tend s to b e o f a m ore short-term nature. How ever, the o ther two, argua bly moreconducive to sustainability, create environments in which quality citizens participation is at leastpossible. Sett ing the e xplic it goa l of enc ourag ing mo re long -lasting c itizens o rganiza tions wo uldnonetheless be a further step tow ard c rea ting a mo re susta inab ility-friend ly env ironm ent . In thissense it is impo rtant to be ab le to identify orga nizat ions in the c onflic t c ycle de sc ribed by Figure1 and enc ourag e their evolution to wa rd the a cc umulative mo del p ortrayed in Figure 2.

What is most imp ortant a bo ut the c onc ep t of partic ipation a s explored here is, on one ha nd, thede pth o f the experienc e a nd the am ount of c omm itment it dema nds from tho se involved, asevide nced by Living C itys experienc e, and , on the o ther hand , the longevityof the e xpe rienc e,tha t is, the a bility to c rea te a ruc ksac k filled with useful instrume nts and knowledg e tha t is

c arried a long, preserving the lessons from p revious sta ge s and , moreover, ma king themavailable to othe r orga nizat ions, new lead ers, forma l and informal p a rticipa tory proc esses alike.

While som e o f these c ond itions simply oc cur as a result of c ircumsta nc e, it is important forpolitic a l authorities, planners and others involved in these issues to rec og nize and va lue c itizenspa rticipa tion of the nature d esc ribed here, even w here it is not ne cessarily favo urable to theirplans and has indeed c rea ted controversy and c onflic t. This amount of c om mitment, reg ardlessof the immed iate issue, need s to b e nourished and ed ucate d , and involved in ongoingproc esses, so the lessons learned and the p erspec tives de veloped do no t g et lost a long thewa y. Otherwise, po liticians, bureauc ra ts and c itizens a like will c onsta ntly be reinventing thewhe el, a t least whe n it come s to susta inab ility. Only throug h this kind of p erma nent, ongoingparticipa to ry proc ess, wh ich fits we ll within Hea leys vision of c ollab orat ive planning,

incorpo rat ing bo th forma l and informa l orga niza tions and p roc esses, can we ho pe to b uild themo re sustainab le po lic ies and prog rammes, so impo rtant to our future.

20 Evans, Robert, Simon Guy and Simon Marvin. View of the City: multiple pathways to sustainable transport futures. Local

Environment, Vol. 6, No. 2, p. 124.


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