This master thesis is a case study of three Urban Developments Projects along the Harbor of Copenhagen. The study analyzes the planners, the developers, and the municipality’s approach to green and social sustainability in the development of three urban development projects between 1999 and 2022.
We conducted the study through a Mixed Methods approach and have done document analysis of official planning documents, interviews with planners and experts, observation, field survey, and thorough use of data from the Municipality of Copenhagen.
The main findings are that planners have little impact on green and social sustainability when they only are the planning authority and, secondly, have the most impact on sustainability when the municipality is the possessor of the field of development though a quasi-private corporation, and therefore have a wider ability to implement initiatives that affect the sustainability. Another key finding is that although the planners and the municipality, through quasi-private corporation, have a comprehensive ability to improve the green and social sustainability in the developed areas, they do not always do so due to other economic interests or political priorities. Finally, we conclude that green sustainability gets more attention in planning the newest urban development project but legislation, economic interest, and political priorities tend to overrule the initiatives to improve green and social sustainability.