In this study, we explore the relationship between urban quality of life and sustainability in 17... more In this study, we explore the relationship between urban quality of life and sustainability in 171 Canadian cities, each with a population of over 25,000. To do so, we built four indices-quality of life, socioeconomic sustainability, environmental sustainability, and a combined global sustainability index-to investigate factors that are associated with cities scoring above average on quality of life and sustainability indices. Our findings reveal a significant positive relationship between quality of life and all three sustainability indices. However, a weaker correlation between quality of life and the Environmental Index suggests potential shortcomings in urban environmental policies. Furthermore, disaggregated analyses enabled us to identify two significant factors influencing quality of life and both the global and socioeconomic sustainability indices: lower crime rates, which reflect safety and equity to some degree, and higher median incomes, which indicate the capability to afford a better standard and variety of goods and services. Notably, while certain indicators such as cultural expenditure, transit ridership, housing costs, city greenness, and waste production do not directly correlate with quality of life, their significance within the realms of socioeconomic and environmental sustainability suggests a long-term impact on quality of life. By improving sustainability through environmental and socioeconomic measures, city authorities can further enhance the quality of life for residents.
Cities are shown to provide favourable conditions for western honeybees (Apis mellifera) by prote... more Cities are shown to provide favourable conditions for western honeybees (Apis mellifera) by protecting them from agricultural pesticides and offering a greater diversity of flora. Nevertheless, bee populations continue to decline in many urban areas, posing threats to plant reproduction and urban biodiversity, especially as many now promote urban beekeeping as part of their conservation efforts. While current research primarily focuses on the causes of bee colony collapse, including pesticide exposure, climate change, and habitat fragmentation, little attention is dedicated to urban apiculture and factors associated with the survival of honeybees within cities. Here, we analyse data from 3,694 honeybee hives in Montreal and Toronto to assess the effect of urban and environmental factors on hive survival. We find ground-level ozone concentrations, elevation, and the number of surrounding hives to be negatively associated with hive survival, which may point towards an issue of hive sa...
This paper investigates the role of sustainable development in city tourism attractiveness. A tri... more This paper investigates the role of sustainable development in city tourism attractiveness. A tripartite theoretical model of tourism attractiveness was tested to verify the relevance of the economic, environmental, social and cultural aspects of urban sustainable development. The comparative analysis of Quebec City and Bordeaux was based on visitors’ perceptions established through a questionnaire survey conducted with 499 tourists in summer 2014. This analysis produced three main findings. First, four levels of city tourism attractiveness were revealed (context, belt, complementary attractions and nucleus) and variables related to the urban living environment stood out in importance. Second, visitors recognized four sustainable development dimensions, and proved most sensitive to cultural aspects, followed by environmental concerns. Third, the correlations between tourism attractiveness and sustainable development were stronger within the broader spheres of attractiveness. The stu...
This chapter focuses on the use of sustainability indicators (SI) in tourism management. We addre... more This chapter focuses on the use of sustainability indicators (SI) in tourism management. We address the interpretation and use of tourism SI following their measurement. First, in terms of interpretation, we argue that the typical approach in measuring sustainability is relatively limited. It underestimates the possible compensation between socioeconomic and environmental-related indicators’ score, and overlooks the progress achieved by tourist destinations, which is a central feature of sustainability. Based on these observations, we propose that the best performing destinations with respect to sustainability are those that meet the following three performance criteria: i) they display a relatively higher score based on the indicators measurement; their environmental performance and socioeconomic performance are both high and non-compensatory and iii) they must improve over time. Second, in terms of practical use of SI, we argue that their use has been limited to promoting areas th...
DESCRIPTION Working paper-Centre de recherche en tourisme et patrimoine/Tourism and Heritage Rese... more DESCRIPTION Working paper-Centre de recherche en tourisme et patrimoine/Tourism and Heritage Research Centre
Cette étude discute de l’application d’indicateurs et d’indices de développement durable dans le ... more Cette étude discute de l’application d’indicateurs et d’indices de développement durable dans le cadre de classements des 25 plus grandes villes québécoises. Notre analyse est basée sur l’utilisation d’indices construits à partir de 20 indicateurs socio-économiques et environnementaux et permettant de tenir compte des différents aspects du développement urbain. Les performances relatives des villes sont analysées en fonction des avantages-désavantages associés à l’utilisation d’une grille commune d’indicateurs et d’indices de développement durable. Nous discutons de trois principaux enjeux : i) la comparabilité des villes; ii) les possibilités compensatoires entre indicateurs dans le calcul des indices et iii) la pondération des indicateurs dans le calcul des indices.
Current research on the conservation of urban heritage is characterized by a growing number of st... more Current research on the conservation of urban heritage is characterized by a growing number of studies that aim to describe and assess the sustainability of existing practices. We analyze 25 case studies that specifically discuss and propose sustainability indicators to assess urban heritage conservation. The analysis reveals a lack of consensus regarding the quantity, frequency of use, and type of the indicators, which calls for the development of common key indicators. We propose a strategy to select key indicators, which broadly cover the environmental, economic, and social aspects of sustainable development, as well as the basic dimension of heritage conservation. The selected indicators are those that are recognized by experts and legitimated by analyses and case studies.
In this study, we explore the relationship between urban quality of life and sustainability in 17... more In this study, we explore the relationship between urban quality of life and sustainability in 171 Canadian cities, each with a population of over 25,000. To do so, we built four indices-quality of life, socioeconomic sustainability, environmental sustainability, and a combined global sustainability index-to investigate factors that are associated with cities scoring above average on quality of life and sustainability indices. Our findings reveal a significant positive relationship between quality of life and all three sustainability indices. However, a weaker correlation between quality of life and the Environmental Index suggests potential shortcomings in urban environmental policies. Furthermore, disaggregated analyses enabled us to identify two significant factors influencing quality of life and both the global and socioeconomic sustainability indices: lower crime rates, which reflect safety and equity to some degree, and higher median incomes, which indicate the capability to afford a better standard and variety of goods and services. Notably, while certain indicators such as cultural expenditure, transit ridership, housing costs, city greenness, and waste production do not directly correlate with quality of life, their significance within the realms of socioeconomic and environmental sustainability suggests a long-term impact on quality of life. By improving sustainability through environmental and socioeconomic measures, city authorities can further enhance the quality of life for residents.
Cities are shown to provide favourable conditions for western honeybees (Apis mellifera) by prote... more Cities are shown to provide favourable conditions for western honeybees (Apis mellifera) by protecting them from agricultural pesticides and offering a greater diversity of flora. Nevertheless, bee populations continue to decline in many urban areas, posing threats to plant reproduction and urban biodiversity, especially as many now promote urban beekeeping as part of their conservation efforts. While current research primarily focuses on the causes of bee colony collapse, including pesticide exposure, climate change, and habitat fragmentation, little attention is dedicated to urban apiculture and factors associated with the survival of honeybees within cities. Here, we analyse data from 3,694 honeybee hives in Montreal and Toronto to assess the effect of urban and environmental factors on hive survival. We find ground-level ozone concentrations, elevation, and the number of surrounding hives to be negatively associated with hive survival, which may point towards an issue of hive sa...
This paper investigates the role of sustainable development in city tourism attractiveness. A tri... more This paper investigates the role of sustainable development in city tourism attractiveness. A tripartite theoretical model of tourism attractiveness was tested to verify the relevance of the economic, environmental, social and cultural aspects of urban sustainable development. The comparative analysis of Quebec City and Bordeaux was based on visitors’ perceptions established through a questionnaire survey conducted with 499 tourists in summer 2014. This analysis produced three main findings. First, four levels of city tourism attractiveness were revealed (context, belt, complementary attractions and nucleus) and variables related to the urban living environment stood out in importance. Second, visitors recognized four sustainable development dimensions, and proved most sensitive to cultural aspects, followed by environmental concerns. Third, the correlations between tourism attractiveness and sustainable development were stronger within the broader spheres of attractiveness. The stu...
This chapter focuses on the use of sustainability indicators (SI) in tourism management. We addre... more This chapter focuses on the use of sustainability indicators (SI) in tourism management. We address the interpretation and use of tourism SI following their measurement. First, in terms of interpretation, we argue that the typical approach in measuring sustainability is relatively limited. It underestimates the possible compensation between socioeconomic and environmental-related indicators’ score, and overlooks the progress achieved by tourist destinations, which is a central feature of sustainability. Based on these observations, we propose that the best performing destinations with respect to sustainability are those that meet the following three performance criteria: i) they display a relatively higher score based on the indicators measurement; their environmental performance and socioeconomic performance are both high and non-compensatory and iii) they must improve over time. Second, in terms of practical use of SI, we argue that their use has been limited to promoting areas th...
DESCRIPTION Working paper-Centre de recherche en tourisme et patrimoine/Tourism and Heritage Rese... more DESCRIPTION Working paper-Centre de recherche en tourisme et patrimoine/Tourism and Heritage Research Centre
Cette étude discute de l’application d’indicateurs et d’indices de développement durable dans le ... more Cette étude discute de l’application d’indicateurs et d’indices de développement durable dans le cadre de classements des 25 plus grandes villes québécoises. Notre analyse est basée sur l’utilisation d’indices construits à partir de 20 indicateurs socio-économiques et environnementaux et permettant de tenir compte des différents aspects du développement urbain. Les performances relatives des villes sont analysées en fonction des avantages-désavantages associés à l’utilisation d’une grille commune d’indicateurs et d’indices de développement durable. Nous discutons de trois principaux enjeux : i) la comparabilité des villes; ii) les possibilités compensatoires entre indicateurs dans le calcul des indices et iii) la pondération des indicateurs dans le calcul des indices.
Current research on the conservation of urban heritage is characterized by a growing number of st... more Current research on the conservation of urban heritage is characterized by a growing number of studies that aim to describe and assess the sustainability of existing practices. We analyze 25 case studies that specifically discuss and propose sustainability indicators to assess urban heritage conservation. The analysis reveals a lack of consensus regarding the quantity, frequency of use, and type of the indicators, which calls for the development of common key indicators. We propose a strategy to select key indicators, which broadly cover the environmental, economic, and social aspects of sustainable development, as well as the basic dimension of heritage conservation. The selected indicators are those that are recognized by experts and legitimated by analyses and case studies.
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