A multidimensional decision-support approach to sustainable development planning |
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Authors: | M. J. Harte S. C. Lonergan |
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Affiliation: | 1. Department of Geography , The University of Waikato, Te Whare Wānangao Waikato , Hamilton, New Zealand;2. Centre for Sustainable Regional Development, University of victoria , Victoria, British Columbia, Canada |
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Abstract: | SUMMARY The concept of sustainable development has become widely accepted as an instrumental objective of resource planning and environmental policy analysis. Nevertheless, applied planning approaches appropriate to this task have been slow in forthcoming. This paper suggests that one avenue for the application of sustainable development principles to resource management problems may be through multidimensional decision-support models. This approach recognizes that contemporary decision problems in the field of environmental planning are characterized by a diversity of structures and processes, incommensurable variables, and conflicting development objectives and constraints. On the basis of the articulated approach to sustainable development, a case study centred on Clayoquot Sound, British Columbia, Canada is presented. The case study serves to illustrate the efficacy of a multidimensional decision-support approach to sustainable development. |
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Keywords: | sustainable development multicriteria analysis optimization Clayoquot Sound |
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