Sustainability Assessment in Social Housing Environments: An Inclusive Indicators Selection in Colombian Post-Pandemic Cities

Abstract

The use of indicators for sustainability assessment in the urban planning process is a widely used approach. With the definition of the Agenda 2030 and the role of cities in achieving sustainable development goals, much work has been devoted to the definition of evaluation frameworks and indicators to assess policies and plans and support decision-making in the transition to sustainable urban environments. Therefore, there is currently a wide range of indicator frameworks for the sustainability assessment of human settlements. However, considering the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the urban sustainability paradigm, the need to reassess the relevance of existing assessment frameworks in the post-pandemic context has been highlighted. Thus, this article aims to illustrate a selection of indicators to evaluate urban sustainability in developing countries’ post-pandemic contexts, using Colombia as a case study. This work comprises the characterization of the post-pandemic relevance of a set of sustainability indicators through the participation of stakeholders associated with the development process of social housing in urban environments in Colombia. Within a Delphi process, the initial indicators were taken from local and international sustainability frameworks validated before the pandemic. Further, a final selection was made through the evaluation of a survey from a sample of 45 stakeholders, and different participatory mechanisms with experts. These results acknowledged the relevance of factors, such as atmospheric conditions, risk management, the performance of public transport systems, and the availability and accessibility to key services, in the achievement of urban sustainability. These results will support the sustainability assessment of the development of post-pandemic recovery policies in Colombia and serve as a reference for other contexts in developing countries.