Communication and the Narrative Basis of Sustainability: Observations from the Municipal Water Sector

Numerous studies attempt to operationalize sustainability and seek to characterize objective, or at least standardized, metrics of sustainable conditions and/or operations. In this paper, we suggest that sustainability is better viewed as an emergent quality, defined in terms of specific institution...

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Main Authors: Charles N. Herrick, Joanna L. Pratt
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2013-10-01
Series:Sustainability
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/5/10/4428
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spelling doaj-ca64f7a5051a4eb1bb4463e4e2169f672020-11-24T23:22:00ZengMDPI AGSustainability2071-10502013-10-015104428444310.3390/su5104428Communication and the Narrative Basis of Sustainability: Observations from the Municipal Water SectorCharles N. HerrickJoanna L. PrattNumerous studies attempt to operationalize sustainability and seek to characterize objective, or at least standardized, metrics of sustainable conditions and/or operations. In this paper, we suggest that sustainability is better viewed as an emergent quality, defined in terms of specific institutions and situations. Observations from the water sector suggest that sustainability is not merely a matter of “bolting on technologies”, but a complex synthesis of institutional factors, social value perspectives, technologies and engineered artifacts, and natural or environmental conditions. The pursuit of sustainability appears to involve a process of broad-scale organizational transformation, a transformation that can vary significantly from utility to utility. Owing to this contingent quality, we suggest that sustainability is productively understood as a narrative construct. We illustrate how two types of discourse are particularly critical to the establishment and perpetuation of meaningful sustainability programs in water utilities and municipalities: (1) constitutive discourse, which frames and enables new ways of conceiving a particular state of affairs; and (2) transactional discourse, which provides a medium for participatory deliberation and enables the sharing of instructions and information necessary to carry out a transformation from the status quo to an envisioned future state. Although physio-chemical properties, ecological processes and thresholds, and technological factors must inform deliberations, we suggest that the realization of sustainability is at base a narrative enterprise. Observations articulated in this essay were derived through an ensemble research approach including a targeted literature review, a three-phase survey of 18 U.S. water utilities, and a workshop with water sector professionals, regulators, and experts in sustainability and organizational change.http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/5/10/4428sustainabilitycommunicationwater sectorwater utilitycontested conceptsnarrativeconstitutive discoursetransactional discourse
collection DOAJ
language English
format Article
sources DOAJ
author Charles N. Herrick
Joanna L. Pratt
spellingShingle Charles N. Herrick
Joanna L. Pratt
Communication and the Narrative Basis of Sustainability: Observations from the Municipal Water Sector
Sustainability
sustainability
communication
water sector
water utility
contested concepts
narrative
constitutive discourse
transactional discourse
author_facet Charles N. Herrick
Joanna L. Pratt
author_sort Charles N. Herrick
title Communication and the Narrative Basis of Sustainability: Observations from the Municipal Water Sector
title_short Communication and the Narrative Basis of Sustainability: Observations from the Municipal Water Sector
title_full Communication and the Narrative Basis of Sustainability: Observations from the Municipal Water Sector
title_fullStr Communication and the Narrative Basis of Sustainability: Observations from the Municipal Water Sector
title_full_unstemmed Communication and the Narrative Basis of Sustainability: Observations from the Municipal Water Sector
title_sort communication and the narrative basis of sustainability: observations from the municipal water sector
publisher MDPI AG
series Sustainability
issn 2071-1050
publishDate 2013-10-01
description Numerous studies attempt to operationalize sustainability and seek to characterize objective, or at least standardized, metrics of sustainable conditions and/or operations. In this paper, we suggest that sustainability is better viewed as an emergent quality, defined in terms of specific institutions and situations. Observations from the water sector suggest that sustainability is not merely a matter of “bolting on technologies”, but a complex synthesis of institutional factors, social value perspectives, technologies and engineered artifacts, and natural or environmental conditions. The pursuit of sustainability appears to involve a process of broad-scale organizational transformation, a transformation that can vary significantly from utility to utility. Owing to this contingent quality, we suggest that sustainability is productively understood as a narrative construct. We illustrate how two types of discourse are particularly critical to the establishment and perpetuation of meaningful sustainability programs in water utilities and municipalities: (1) constitutive discourse, which frames and enables new ways of conceiving a particular state of affairs; and (2) transactional discourse, which provides a medium for participatory deliberation and enables the sharing of instructions and information necessary to carry out a transformation from the status quo to an envisioned future state. Although physio-chemical properties, ecological processes and thresholds, and technological factors must inform deliberations, we suggest that the realization of sustainability is at base a narrative enterprise. Observations articulated in this essay were derived through an ensemble research approach including a targeted literature review, a three-phase survey of 18 U.S. water utilities, and a workshop with water sector professionals, regulators, and experts in sustainability and organizational change.
topic sustainability
communication
water sector
water utility
contested concepts
narrative
constitutive discourse
transactional discourse
url http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/5/10/4428
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AT joannalpratt communicationandthenarrativebasisofsustainabilityobservationsfromthemunicipalwatersector
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