Human Settlements Review - Parliamentary Monitoring Group

Human Settlements Review, Volume 1, Number 1, 2010
be analysed, evaluated and finally compared
to select the optimal variant according to the
given set of criteria. In reality, to develop such
a framework, built environment professionals
should be consulted throughout to capture
and reflect the value systems of various
stakeholders. However, many expert opinions
are in the public domain and therefore literature
was consulted in developing the framework
and using stakeholders to validate it.
The concept of sustainable development
was adopted in developing the framework.
This was because development processes
processes that seek to address social and
economic needs and concerns, and to facilitate
the economic empowerment of targeted
communities while minimising negative
impacts on the environment, have generally
been referred to as sustainable development
(Bowen and Hill, 1997: 223). Sustainable
development has also increasingly become a
central element of the urban planning process
(Choguill, 1995: 583). Building materials are
commonly selected based on functional,
technical and financial requirements. However,
with sustainability as the current key concept in
the urban planning process, the environmental
load of building materials has also become a
more important criterion (Van der Lugt et al.,
2005: 648; DuBose et al., 1995: 11).
The concept of sustainable development
and how it relates to the built environment
and building technology in general was
outlined, and then applied in developing the
framework. The framework utilises a set
of criteria generated based on the socioeconomic
environment of the urban poor and
expert opinions as reported in the literature. It
presents a multi-criteria optimisation problem
and the simple multi-attribute rating technique
was recommended in solving the problem.
4 Sustainable development
4.1 Definition and interpretation
The most widely used definition of sustainable
development in the literature is what was put
forward by the United Nations-sponsored
World Commission on Environment and
Development (WCED) in 1987. It states it as
the development that “meets the needs of the
present without compromising the ability of
future generations to meet their needs”. The
phrase “meeting the needs of the present” refers
to developmental aspects of sustainability,
which include economical and societal (social,
cultural and political) expectations. The phrase
“without compromising the needs of the future”
mostly refers to environmental degradation.
The key elements are thus to find a balance
between the human needs of improved
lifestyles and the feeling of well-being on the
one hand, and preserving natural resources
and ecosystems on which we and future
generations depend. This introduced the
notion of intergenerational equity, which
translates into a need to adopt to changing
circumstances. As stated by Sahely et al. (2005:
73), there is no way of knowing what future
generations will want, and the ability to adapt
to changing environmental or socio-economic
conditions is key to sustainable development.
Also implied in the definition is the need for a
multidisciplinary and holistic approach in the
development and decision-making processes.
64