Contributions of Social Capital to Best Practice Urban Planning Outcomes. Issue 3 (2nd July 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Osborne, Caroline; Baldwin, Claudia; Thomsen, Dana
• Is Part Of: Urban policy and research. Volume 34:Issue 3(2016)
• Page Start: 212
• Page End: 224
• Publication Date: 2016-07-02
• Subjects: Social capital -- urban planning -- community development -- sustainable development -- strategic planning -- quadruple bottom line; City planning -- Australia -- Periodicals; City planning -- New Zealand -- Periodicals; City planning -- Pacific Area -- Periodicals; Urban policy -- Australia -- Periodicals; Urban policy -- New Zealand -- Periodicals; Urban policy -- Pacific Area -- Periodicals; 307.7609905
• DOI: 10.1080/08111146.2015.1062361
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0811-1146

Abstract

Abstract: Sustainable communities prioritise health, safety and equity among residents. These interdependent dimensions of community well-being require an integrative developmental and evaluation framework to highlight the connections essential for their development. We examine the utility of the social capital construct as a connective framework with the potential to assist urban planners in enhancing these attributes and the sustainability of communities in new or existing developments. Concepts of social capital are already utilised in urban planning contexts, however, we chart a novel approach and demonstrate that a combination of the bonding, bridging and linking dimensions of social capital can provide a comprehensive and multidimensional framework that overcomes the limitations imposed by popular, yet narrower concepts, such as social cohesion and social exclusion. The strength of this combination is that it not only explores connections between individuals and various resources within communities but also includes relationships with broader networks and decision-makers. In this way, planning processes can contribute to more recent notions of sustainable development that include governance as a fourth and essential pillar in quadruple bottom line approaches to sustainable development.