Regional Planning: The Key to Sustainability

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The industrialization, the extraordinary demographic growth and the fast technological development have generated enormous environmental impacts, in a context where the environment has been explored far beyond its availability. An integrated strategy of the energy and environmental politics will have to find an even point in the promotion of sustainable development. Each region has a specification and a variety of endogenous resources which can be used in a holistic and integrated way. Some of the environmental basic services that most foster the health and quality of life of the citizens are explored at municipal or regional levels, and their optimization bring designated benefits to the improvement of the management of resources and the quotidian citizens’ life. In what concerns to energy, the central theme of an integrated energy program would be the preparation of decentralized energy plans, reporting to an area. These would meet energy needs for subsistence and development of alternate energy resources at a low cost to the economy and environment. In what concerns with environmental management, questions of the optimal strategy should be achieved by always attending regional specifications, not only being focused on available structures, but also on the human characterization (demographic studies based on education level, culture type, age, employment). The integration of all those aspects and the identification and analysis of key factors in each region are the stumble to get sustainability. The execution of a plan that promote self environmental and energy sustainability for a region, and also collaborate and contribute along with the stakeholders of the region for this aim will be the key of success. Regions that act as propeller and pro-asset will educate and take self responsibility of the community in the conservation and the management of the resources. With this approach we can create a sustainable culture. This paper will study a conceptual plan strong support on community involvement and stakeholder’s education for an energy and environmental system which could meet demands and needs at municipal level.

Stream: Environmental Sustainability

Paper: A paper has not yet been submitted.

Manuela Carreiras is an Environmental Engineer and is a student in Environmental Management, Materials and Waste Valorization Master in Aveiro University. She is a specialist in environmental management, with a large interest in environmental and energetic sustainability, especially on the planning of resources use. She is a collaborator in the Verlag Dashofer Editions since 2005, more specifically in the "Environmental Management Practice Manual". She has collaborated on several research projects funded by the Portuguese and European Research Community related with environmental management and soil and water conservation. She has a large experience at being a facilitator and working on cultural change behavior related with environmental performance.