Equity and Sustainability

Roseland and Equity North/South comparison … fairness The developed nations need to consider ‘our own poor’ … Definitional: incorporates an ‘inescapable’ commitment to social equity …

Why Equity? Why is social equity a dimension of sustainability?

What is Equity? Normative: something we ought to have Distributional and rights-based ethics

Ethical Systems and Equity Equity is usually defined as fairness Two kinds of fairness –Procedure: procedural ethics (rights-based) –Outcome: consequential ethics (utilitarian and or distributive eg. Rawls)

Fairness in Procedure Participation in decision-making Democratic governance at the national level Representation at all levels, stakeholder participation at local levels

Fairness in Outcome Consequential idea of fairness Distributional Social systems with ethical consequence –Economics –Planning, public administration and law

Ideas of Equity Utilitarianism and equity … –Greatest good for the greatest number –But in most operational definitions, it is the sum not the distribution that is calculated Libertarian ethics also have distributional content e.g. Nozick (morally relevant) Rawl’s ‘Justice as Fairness’

Liberal Ethics Free, equal and autonomous person Kantian categorial: Do not do to another Individual ultimate object of moral concern – it makes a difference to choose to live a life worth living –There are different ideas of the good –The individual as source of change Procedural involvement, choice, equality

Rawls’ Principles Attempt to combine rights-based with consequential theories (can’t have one without the other) First principle: Each person is to have an equal right to the most extensive system of equal basic liberties compatible with a similar system of liberty for all

Rawls’ Second Principle Social and economic inequalities are to be arranged to the greatest benefit of the least advantaged … Equal distribution of both liberties and goods … unless an unequal distribution is to the advantage of those least favored

Question 1. What are the consequential and procedural norms in current planning and development practice? 2. What are the consequential and procedural norms in SC in the readings we have done so far?

Environmental Equity Currently, environmental equity and inequity approximates larger patterns of social equity and inequity Environmental justice movement, national and international Two elements to equity: participation and distribution

Intergenerational Equity Sounds solely utilitarian/consequential Where is the dimension of autonomy? ‘dictatorship of the present’ … Jefferson “the earth belongs in usufruct to the living” (implies no right to harm)

Next Class Presentations: Urban Community Redev. and Big Ideas Community: Readings for next week Putnam 1995 Bowling Alone –on reserve or online Blanco 1995 Community and the Four Jewels of Planning –On reserve (articles, from a book)