The conceptual integration of planning and sustainability: an investigation of planners in the United States

The author reports the results of a survey of more than five hundred local planners in the United States. The purpose of the survey was to measure the extent to which an ecological definition of sustainable development is reflected in planners' views and opinions. Through statistical and other quantitative analyses of the results of the survey, it was found that the conceptual integration of sustainability is most related to the planners' academic background, the state public policy context in which they work, and their general level of support for the concept. Although there is much consistency between planners' views and sustainability there remain several areas of conceptual conflict, primarily in relation to nonurban issues (that is, agriculture and natural open space) and private market forces that affect the use of land.