Connecting Local to Global: Geographic InformationSystems and Ecological Footprints as Tools forSustainability

摘要

Tools that support public engagement with sustainability are essential for local sustainability planning. Thisresearch investigates the ability of two geographic information system (GIS)-based tools to promote discussionof sustainability in a suburban context. A local ecological footprint tool and a community environmentalatlas (an environmentally themed online mapping system) were created for seven suburban boroughs ofMontreal. Variations of both tools have been used to support sustainability efforts, but their use has not beenwidely evaluated. Working from a public participation GIS (PPGIS) framework that recognizes the powerfulinfluence of data representation, this research uses focus groups to evaluate how well these tools address threecriteria that have emerged from the literature on public engagement in sustainability: interdependency acrosssystems, reflexivity about personal and social decision making, and interactions across spatial scales. Whereasthe atlas remains advantageous for discussing local spatial specifics, it was found that the ecological footprinthelped people see the interconnections among systems, integrate local and global aspects of sustainability,and reflect on the values and assumptions underlying current social and economic structures.