Designing Networks for Sustainable Neighbourhoods: A case Study of a Student Apartment Complex

Abstract

Sustainability has been identified as a key, yet controversial issue in community informatics and community networking research. This paper draws on an action research study in an urban apartment complex in Brisbane, Australia, which provokes a re-conceptualisation of the idea of sustainability. The methodology employed comprises participatory design and sociocultural animation. The site is characterised by a high turnover of residents and thus offers various opportunities to study the conditions and design implications that foster the growth of a sustainable neighbourhood community. The paper critiques current approaches to residential community development that are informed by community capacity building strategies. A theory of neighbourhood identity implicit in these strategies is set in contrast with the theory of networked individualism. Following an analysis of designing for collective community activity vs. networked community activity, the paper suggests implications for the design of a sustainable online community network. The discussion suggests that (a) certain means aimed at increasing social capital may support collectivity but may also lead to high barriers of entry and can thus be counterproductive to ensuring sustainability in a diverse residential community; and (b) there is a need to broaden the scope of residential community systems design to include peer-to-peer networking tools which allow for the fluid, diverse and swarming social behaviour of residents.

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