The Deep Place Method for Economic, Social and Cultural Sustainability

One of the central challenges of achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the New Urban Agenda (NUA) is to ensure that the pursuit of the 'city for all' and 'no one left behind' objectives does not in itself increase environmental degradation. This is equally true of post-industrial communities seeking recovery and communities in Least Developed Countries (LDCs) seeking the benefits of modernity. Balancing, social inclusion, economic growth and environmental sustainability is the challenge of the age as increasing inequalities, despite economic growth, and environmental risk present unique challenges.

The Deep Place methodology was developed in the UK to address the issues facing post-industrial communities where population level economic redundancy created poverty levels where 33% of children live in poverty. The method is a place-based approach to environmentally and socially sustainable economic change that is directly targeted at marginalised populations. It seeks to maximise the value of localised economic activity based on the skills and capacities of local populations. It seeks to develop patterns of employment that are not dependent on globalised relationships, but instead create local innovation in modes of production and ownership.

The Deep Place method combines specific theories of social sustainability to achieve a strategy for positive change. Most importantly, it goes beyond mapping and understanding the pattern of social problems in a specific place, to develop a coherent approach to integration of the local population into economic activity. It does this on an understanding that economic inactivity is the 'cause of the causes of poverty' and negatively influences health behaviours, educational attainment, housing outcomes, family security and community social cohesion.

The training event will provide an introduction to the Deep Place method and its implementation in pursuit of the SDGs and in implementing the New Urban Agenda