Drivers and Barriers Leading to a Successful Paradigm Shift toward Regenerative Neighborhoods

Abstract

Regenerative sustainability is gaining great attention as an essential concept for a transformative process, a re-designed mindset shifting from the narrowed focus of considering particular aspects such as energy efficiency, renewable materials, or sustainable technology towards the creation of a self-regenerating social and ecological system. Apart from being a vision of the future, regenerative sustainability has already been implemented successfully in individual projects, plans, and extensive strategies. The goals of this research are (1) to set up the conceptual framework for regenerative sustainability principles in the built environment; (2) to investigate and identify the drivers and barriers faced during the implementation of regenerative principles in the built environment; and (3) to identify gaps in the paradigm shift towards regenerative districts and macro-level projects. A multi-stage methodology was implemented. First, an in-depth literature review was conducted aiming to understand regenerative sustainability state of the art and define the key principles. Then, quantitative data analysis was conducted aiming to identify drivers and barriers of regenerative implementation in buildings following by semi-structured interviews with the representatives of regenerative buildings or districts. The step-by-step methodology resulted in the identified drivers of applying the regenerative principles, which are available financial incentives; marketing and sales benefits; improved companies/investors market image and competitive market advantage; reduced building lifecycle costs/effective use of energy and resources; enhancement buildings’ users’ well-being; and receiving building certification. The main barriers identified were lack of knowledge and experience working with regenerative materials and technologies by employees, consultants, and construction companies and usage of the available tools that enable such constructions; overall stakeholders’ culture and their resistance to changing their mindset toward a regenerative approach; inadequacy of national and international standards and legislation to address regenerative policies; and increased construction cost and time and lack of financial incentives. Ultimately, during the broad examination of the case studies, regenerative qualities served as a valuable insight to understand barriers and drivers at neighborhood and macro levels.

Financial Support for Neighborhood Regeneration: A Case Study of Korea

“…Fourth, social economy entities such as community, private, or social enterprises can ignite sustainable neighborhood regeneration. The local economy needs to be rooted in underdeveloped areas and be self-sufficient [37]. Kwak, Bae, and Kim [38] examined problem-solving for underdeveloped local society through local community vitalization.…”

Regenerative economics for planetary health: A scoping review

“…Connectedness and care relate to concepts of reciprocity and mutualism and how they have the potential to repair community, restore lost connections, and re-join the web of life (Alves et al 2022;Goerner 2019;Sheldon 2021). Designing with and for nature was a principle that emerged, in contrast to control over or controlling for complex variables (Haselsteiner et al 2021;Vineis and Mangone 2022).…”

Developing a Decision-Making Framework for Regenerative Precinct Development

“…A systematic review of key literature in this field by [15] suggests that regenerative development's strong philosophical basis clearly highlights its transformational potential but many challenges remain in its translation and implementation in practice. There is a growing body of research that has therefore sought to identify the key opportunities, drivers and barriers to implementing regenerative development, particularly at a precinct scale [16,17]. This is because the precinct scale, synonymous with a neighbourhood scale, can be seen as the nexus between cities and buildings and offers potential for more meaningful engagement and stewardship within the community [18].…”