ABSTRACT

Social sustainability is a cultural value and, as such, is grounded in the richness of social interactions; thus, isolation is socially unsustainable. Isolation disrupts communities and results in societal decay. Civic engagement is the cornerstone of building sustainable communities; however, it has proved diffi cult to encourage public participation in the civic decision-making process (Portney, 2005). Here I describe a fi eld-tested and evaluated strategy, developed in Portland, Oregon, USA, to advance social sustainability. The strategy is based on the theory of social capital and employs a broad participatory process required to transform communities and push back unsustainable social, environmental, political, or business practices (Semenza and Maty, 2007). The motivation behind sustainable communities is the need to address the deleterious impact of social inequality, environmental degradation, political exclusion, and unrestrained economic growth (Semenza, 2007).