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Dynamic Language Demands for Ecological Transition of Cities

Outcomes of the Co-Lab

The overall thrust and message from the day, for all participants, was that: sustainable development cannot advance our cities and communities toward ecological transition so long as the policies and practices pursued are segregated from language, culture and context. Understanding the actions a nation, city, site or institution should take and understanding their impact on mobilizing sustainable development depends upon context –and sharing language and terminology are important pathways by which to come to terms with who, what, where, when, why and how to ecologically transition.

Invited presenters came from the Paris region and included researchers in disciplines of linguistics, political ecology, communication and urbanism, as well as professionals in official language policy, architecture, landscape design and planning, and the Arceuil vice-mayor for habitat. SAGA researchers from Canada, Finland, and Denmark joined our French colleagues and participants joined from a host of countries, disciplines and professions, both in person and on-line.

Taking the backgrounds of participants into account, and the high level of dialogue and interaction that we engaged in, it is perhaps not surprising that, based on our post-event survey:

100 % of respondents agreed that their appreciation of the effects of language and terminological differences on their work to advance sustainable development and ecological transition goals increased, as a result of their participation. This was equally true for participants who began the day with an advanced understanding of the significant role of language in their work, and had their views reinforced, as for those who were considering this for the first time.

80 % of respondents actively use more than one language in their work to advance ecological transition and sustainable development.

What is language to sustainable development?

The term ‘sustainable development’ is a political compromise given life in the English language although it does not have cultural or linguistic roots in English, or in any other language. As a result, the conceptualization and application of sustainable development – through the global forums, global Sustainable Development Goals, and other initiatives –needs a lot of ongoing effort in interpretation and translation. The English language has played an oversized role in the mobilization of the concept and operationalization of sustainable development. While this has resulted in certain advances in material forms, situations, and policies that have a place in sustainable developments although they require major technological and political shifts to bring them about, these have also come with costs. The cost of overreliance of sustainable development action on the English language is being paid in lost cultural and social understanding and meaning. Technical moves toward sustainable cities can be easy to visualize and place on the map –green buildings, green corridors, separated cycling routes—but these material substances of the sustainable city too often come without sufficient interpretation of their meaning to urban lives and trajectories as a whole. The role that policy and material changes to the city play in advancing ecological visions and development pathways depends on these interpretations, including how these visions and constructions are presented, justified, placed, contextualized. The words and language used to describe ecological transition and sustainable development pathways demand interpretation. This interpretation, in turn, depends upon understanding of cultures and politics in place. This interpretation is made all the more urgent and complex when more than one language is represented within the culture and context –which must be recognized as the majority of situations today.

The work of relating the languages of sustainability to urban practices constitutes a key component of rethinking urban planning and development in the context of environmental, social and economic challenges.

Thinking through the language of sustainable development demands a new kind of attention and effort. On the other hand, it also offers a new vector for social inclusion, local capacity building, and multicultural tolerance. Language is not a mere instrument for communication, in this respect, but a strategic lever for intercultural mediation to shift thinking and action toward sustainable development. Language and terminological choices do not only influence the way things are referred to and the specific connotations they hold; language also influences the overall story of ecological transition that takes shape in a city, the key elements of that story, including the opening scenario, the characters, the plot … and influences the climax and resolution of the story, too.

Across the presentations and discussions that took place over the course of the SAGA Paris co-lab, the following key language projects, uses, tensions, and turning points were offered up, and are explained in more detail in the full report.