There are numerous sustainability challenges related to mobility. One of the main challenges is the necessary reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. The transport sector is one of the main emitters. There are also challenges regarding accessibility, health, equity, and justice that need to be considered. The recent COVID-19 pandemic led to a temporary decrease in emissions (mainly from reduced aviation), at the same time as there were worsening aspects such as social exclusion. These and other complex challenges requireurgent, comprehensive change and creative solutions. The urgency for a change adds to the challenge of mobility planning since conventional planning processes are usually slow. Moreover, local planners who plan for transitioning to sustainable mobility need to facilitate participatory processes since mobility planning affects many stakeholders. When engaging with planning practitioners, it was found that there is a lack of tools that can support practitioners when conducting reflective and generative multistakeholder dialogues.

The aim of this research was to develop process-oriented methodological support for multistakeholder dialogues in strategic planning for transitioning to sustainable mobility. A transdisciplinary research approach was used to explore this topic, including the problem space of participatory research modes. Furthermore, a design research approach was used for tool development.

A comprehensive literature review to identify prominent research themes in regional and urban planning for transitioning to sustainable mobility was made. The developments in the field over the past 15 years show a paradigm shift from ‘predict-and-provide’ to participatory visionary approaches, such as backcasting and SymbioCity. However, this has led to new challenges concerning processes that support reflective and generative stakeholder dialogue in a rapidly changing and highly diversified world. These challenges relate to, among other things, an insufficient diversity in multistakeholder processes, a limited availability of stakeholders to participate in such processes and a lack of tools that can aid with an overview of various sustainability goals from policy and planning documents.

Among participatory research approaches, transdisciplinary research and action research were explored. As these research modes have become prominent, it is important to know more about them. It was found that transdisciplinary research could be particularly useful for advisory reflective contexts, whereas action research could be particularly useful for contexts where action is a priority.

The dissertation presents further forms of methodological support that can help structure participatory multistakeholder dialogue-based processes:− a framework for analysing the complexity of co-production settings in relation to epistemic communities, linguistic diversities, and culture;− a rapid scenario planning method to support regional visioning for sustainability transformation; and− the MUSTS tool that connects sustainability goals at multiple levels with stakeholders who have the power and legitimacy to act upon them. To conclude, the methodological process-supporting tools that were investigated and those developed in this research offer a form of “scaffolding”that aids facilitators to organise more efficient and effective participatory processes. These scaffolding tools are rooted in transdisciplinary coproduction of knowledge research and offer promising elements for a toolbox for strategic planning for transitioning to sustainable mobility.

This paper presents a case study of a transdisciplinary scenario planning workshop that was designed to link global challenges to local governance. The workshop was held to improve stakeholder integration and explore scenarios for a regional planning project (to 2050) in Blekinge, Sweden. Scenario planning and transdisciplinary practices are often disregarded by practitioners due to the perception of onerous resource requirements, however, this paper describes a ‘rapid scenario planning’ process that was designed to be agile and time-efficient, requiring the 43 participants from 13 stakeholder organizations to gather only for one day. The process was designed to create an environment whereby stakeholders could learn from, and with, each other and use their expert knowledge to inform the scenario process. The Framework for Strategic Sustainable Development (FSSD) was used to structure and focus the scenario planning exercise and its subsequent recommendations. The process was evaluated through a workshop participant survey and post-workshop evaluative interview with the regional government project manager to indicate the effectiveness of the approach. The paper closes with a summary of findings which will support those wishing to conduct similar rapid scenario planning exercises to inform policy planning for complex systems.

Planning in modern urban environments requires skills to address complexity in order to move towards sustainability. Co-production of knowledge in transdisciplinary groups was found to be a useful tool in such contexts. Using the concepts of multilingualism, epistemic communities and culture, the article proposed a conceptual framework for analysing complexity of co-production settings, as an indispensable means of managing complex challenges. The framework was evaluated based on inclusiveness, cross-sectoral understanding, applicability in different contexts and time perspectives. Moreover, it was compared to other studies. Based on the framework, several suggestions to maintain were put forth for a process leader (facilitator) when preparing for a co-production process: linguistic equality between participants, disciplinary integrity, a working culture of mutual respect, simultaneous mitigation and informed facilitation. Finally, the article suggested possible future research questions, related to development of the framework: identification of levels of complexity and mapping specific tools to address complexity at each level; integration of other factors of diversity, such as gender, age, as well as political and institutional contexts.

Medan Sverige är en global föregångare inom hållbar utveckling betonar Klimatpolitiska rådet 2019 att hållbarhetsåtgärderna är för långsamma för att uppfylla de aktuella målen, särskilt när det gäller transport och stadsmiljö. Regional utveckling och kommunal fysisk planering spelar avgörande roller i förändringsprocessen eftersom planerare och strateger behöver ta itu med internationella avtal såsom Parisavtalet, Agenda 2030 och Den nya urbana agendan, samt svara på nationella mål och lokala prioriteringar. Det finns indikationer på att otillräcklig samordning mellan de nationella, regionala och lokala planeringsinsatserna är en nyckelfaktor bakom misslyckandet med att hålla sig på rätt spår. För att hjälpa till att hantera denna brist engagerade planerare från Region Blekinge i sydöstra Sverige SustainTrans-gruppen från Institutionen för Strategisk hållbar utveckling vid Blekinge Tekniska Högskola för att bana väg för en scenarioplaneringsstrategi över en 30-årig horisont (till 2050). Tanken var att ta fram åtminstone tre scenarier och att få med regionala, lokala och några relevanta nationella intressenter i genomförandet. Som ett minimum skulle de fyra identifierade nyckelområdena från projektet Strukturbild Blekinge 2.0 täckas in i studien:

Blekinges övergripande utveckling (exempelvis befolkningsutveckling)Arbetsmarknad, näringsliv och turismAttraktiva stads- och livsmiljöerInfrastruktur och transport

Rapportförfattarna från SustainTrans-gruppen arbetade iterativt med befintliga kunskaper, statistiska data och resultat från en intressent-workshop. Ett startläge identifierades och fyra utforskande scenarier togs fram och strukturerades efter de sannolika effekterna av höga och låga regionala hållbarhetsinsatser respektive hög och låg befolkningstillväxt: 

’Tveksamma Blekinge’ (oförändrad befolkning/ ej hållbart)’Blind tillväxt’ (ökad befolkning / ej hållbart)’Hållbarare Blekinge’ (oförändrad befolkning/ hållbart)’Nystart Blekinge’ (ökad befolkning/ hållbart)

Scenarioprocessen inkluderade alla nyckelområdena från Strukturbild Blekinge 2.0 som viktiga utvecklingsområden och resulterade i bredare samtal mellan offentliga intressenter. Detta kommer också förhoppningsvis lägga en grund för ökad samordning och integration mellan dessa organisationer.

Baserat på intressenternas synpunkter på scenarierna från workshopen, blev rapportförfattarnas bedömning att scenarierna ’Tveksamma Blekinge’ och ’Blind tillväxt’ skulle få för många negativa konsekvenser. Detta kunde ju också förväntas med tanke på scenariernas namn men mer specifikt handlade det om att det förstnämnda scenariot ge en gradvis nedgång medan det senare på sikt ge verkligt destruktiva resultat för livskvaliteten, naturen och samhällsekonomin. ’Hållbarare Blekinge’ och ’Nystart Blekinge’ bedömdes å andra sidan vara bättre eftersom de troligen skulle säkerställa en god livskvalitet. Med det senare scenariot kan den högre folkmängden sannolikt också ge extra fördelar som högre skatteinkomster och en mer välmående region. Det finns dock en risk att befolkningsökningen kan hämma hållbarhetsprestanda om den skulle drivas för långt.

En åtgärd som identifierades som avgörande för att slå in på spåret till något av de föredragna scenarierna var att stärka planeringsfokus för nya bostäder till täta blandade samhällen inom det befintliga urbana fotavtrycket. Det finns samtidigt regionala gränser för tillväxt som är svåra att uppskatta med den begränsade typen av kvalitativa bedömningar som denna studie skulle täcka. Därför rekommenderas att fler studier görs som bygger vidare på scenarierna, går in i mer detaljerad kvantitativ modellering och bygger färdplaner för ett attraktivt och hållbart Blekinge 2050.

A quarter of energy-related greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) originate from the transportation sector. Continuously increasing demand for transportation services worldwide is one of the main urban challenges addressed by Sustainable Development Goal 11, target 2. One way to address this issue is to develop an integrated transportation system that can ensure confidence and comfort for the passengers. This will contribute not only to the customers’ experience but also to operators and authorities through sustainable, cost-effective, and profitable services. Conversely, the lack of such a system or a poorly managed system prevents the economy and society from realizing its potential. In the transition towards sustainability, the planning process of complex systems such as transportation often requires supportive tools and methods, such as futures methodologies that assist decision-making by providing information about possible futures. In today’s rapidly changing environment, forecasting tools do not always provide the expected outcomes since it is difficult to predict all the unexpected events. Therefore, there is a demand for alternative methods that not only grasp the constant changes but also create additional value (for example, meeting the needs of multisectoral collaboration and creation of common vision). The present article investigates the usefulness of three such methodologies, namely backcasting, foresighting, and SymbioCity, for the planning process of the bus park and railway station in Kisumu, Kenya, and Centralen in Gothenburg, Sweden. The paper’s contribution is a description of the Kenyan transportation system (which has not been studied in detail before), planning process, and pertinent issues related to the stations both in Kisumu and Gothenburg, located in the sharply contrasting contexts of global South and global North, respectively. On the basis of field research, interviews, and feasibility study of futures methodologies, the paper concludes that backcasting is the most suitable of the methodologies for both places, since it can be applied at a small scale, and provides creative solutions and has a high level of integration of stakeholders. Furthermore, the paper examines the application of the futures methodologies in multisectoral urban transitions apart from transportation and draws conclusion on what can be learnt from it.

There are many socially engaged research modes in sustainability science. The main ones are action research and transdisciplinary research. There is also transdisciplinary action research, a field that seems to combine the two. This paper aims to provide a better understanding of the differences between these research modes in the context of sustainability science to help potential users to determine appropriate research mode(s) to fulfil their purposes. To do so, we asked three research questions: (i) What are the aims of these research modes? (ii) What are some methods used to fulfil the aims of these research modes? (iii) In what empirical domain are the different approaches being used today? Using a comparative systematic-narrative hybrid literature review and bibliometric studies the paper attempts to fulfil the set aim. In total, we analysed 1487 articles in-depth, of which 633 utilised the action research mode, 787 used transdisciplinary research, and 67 used transdisciplinary action research. There are a lot of similarities between the research modes, e.g. they all use traditional qualitative social science research methods, engage the same types of stakeholders, and address the same sustainability issues. But the differences relate to the aims of the research modes. Researchers employing action research seem to be more intent on achieving action in the practice domain and knowledge from that action for both practitioners and researchers (action-for-knowledge). In contrast, researchers employing transdisciplinary research rather seem to be more intent on producing new, relevant and shared knowledge for an action that is later undertaken in the practice domain (knowledge-for-action). Although this might be a premature conclusion, researchers employing transdisciplinary action research seem to be more intent on achieving action based on integrative knowledge (integrative knowledge-for-action). Finally, some advice regarding the choice of research mode for a particular purpose is presented.

A tool that provides an organised overview of sustainability goals for relevant stakeholders at different levels is proposed. The MUSTS tool was developed and prototyped, then tested within a multistakeholder collaborative project for sustainable transport planning in Sweden. By applying the tool, this study managed to sort and organise 179 goals in 30 documents at five levels into 109 goal categories and help stakeholders identify the goals relevant to their work. An exemplification of the results from the tool shows that different aspects of ‘health’ are aimed for by the goals in the various policy and planning documents. It also shows the different stakeholders with mandate and legitimacy to act on these goals. The usefulness of the tool for various contexts and for other purposes, such as sustainability assessment of the goals in policy and planning documents, monitoring and reporting of the goals, and supporting dialogue-based processes is discussed.