Rethinking the relationship between urban development, local health and global sustainability

The environmentally sustainable city has been increasingly attracting the attention of politicians and researchers. In this regard, this paper reviews the existing literature on the relationship between urban development, local health and Greenhouse Gases (GHG) emissions. Some findings suggest that patterns of urban development could promote urban sustainability in terms of the reduction of GHG emissions, for example, high-density development or compact urban form, which reduces vehicle kilometres travelled and thus reduce GHG emissions. However, it has also been found that these types of urban development might also cause health problems for local residents related to factors such as overcrowding, less green space for outdoor activities, a local heat island effect, high exposure to traffic and air pollution, and psychological stress. This local health paradox related to environmentally sustainable development is also deeply connected to equity issues, including environmental justice, health equity and the related spatial inequities. For future research, the paper proposes a new conceptual framework of the 'glocal environmentally sustainable city', addressing a balance between local health and global environmental sustainability.