Social Sustainability in Spatial Planning – A Knowledge Overview

Spatial planning can potentially be a way towards a more sustainable Sweden. However, there is a lack of knowledge on what social sustainability means in Swedish spatial planning. The goal and aim with this project was to 1) bring forward a number of principles and definitions on what social sustainability in spatial planning is, 2) give examples on what social sustainability in spatial planning is in practice, and 3) identify a number of knowledge gaps emphasized by both researchers and practitioneers. As part of this work, a number of Swedish public sector organisations on municipal, regional and national level gathered in order to get a better understanding of recent research, practical examples and knowledge gaps. A report in the form of a knowledge overview was developed and a number of seminars and workshops where arranged.

The project resulted in a number of public presentations, a follow-up project (Social Innovation in Spatial Planning) and a knowledge network by the name of Social Sustainability in Transport Planning