D Tomozeiu

Towards the ‘ubiquitous eco-city’: An analysis of the internationalisation of eco-city policy and practice

The global mainstreaming of urban sustainability policy, since the early 2000s, points to a new phenomenon: the ‘ubiquitous eco-city’. Its key features – based on the analysis of a census of 178 initiatives – include: the significant, global proliferation of eco-city initiatives; increased international knowledge transfer activities involving both public and private actors; the centrality of ‘carbon discourse’ guiding concepts, policy and practice; the marrying of ‘green’ with ‘smart’ technological systems; and a focus on achieving environmental innovation through economic growth. Among the implications is the need to moderate the ‘ubiquitous eco-city’ paradigm with strong local contextualisation and social sustainability measures.

Eco-city indicators: governance challenges

According to the most recent (2011) global census of eco-city initiatives, there are currently 178 eco-city initiatives under development, representing a significant mainstreaming of urban sustainability in the last decade. As the number of eco-city initiatives grows, so the question of how to define eco-city indicators and establish standards becomes more pressing. While there are many sustainability standards and certification schemes available for use at building level (e.g. LEED, BREEAM), similar sustainability assessment and endorsement frameworks for the urban level have only recently begun to emerge. This article surveys the current situation by: (i) proposing a conceptual model of urban sustainability indicators from a governance perspective; (ii) presenting the findings of a comparative analysis of the use of urban sustainability indicators in nine eco-city initiatives; and (iii) outlining key challenges for the future development of international urban sustainability standards. It argues that the current situation is marked by a considerable diversity of practice and governance functions, and an ongoing tension between place-specificity and universal applicability as goals of urban sustainability.

Adapting adaptation: the English eco-town initiative as governance process

Climate change adaptation and mitigation have become key policy drivers in the UK under its Climate Change Act of 2008. At the same time, urbanization has been high on the agenda, given the pressing need for substantial additional housing, particularly in southeast England. These twin policy objectives were brought together in the UK government’s ‘eco-town’ initiative for England launched in 2007, which has since resulted in four eco-town projects currently under development. We critically analyze the eco-town initiative’s policy evolution and early planning phase from a multilevel governance perspective by focusing on the following two interrelated aspects: (1) the evolving governance structures and resulting dynamics arising from the development of the eco-town initiative at UK governmental level, and the subsequent partial devolution to local stakeholders, including local authorities and nongovernmental actors, under the new ‘localism’ agenda; and (2) the effect of these governance dynamics on the conceptual and practical approach to adaptation through the emerging eco-town projects. As such, we problematize the impact of multilevel governance relations, and competing governance strategies and leadership, on shaping eco-town and related adaptation strategies and practice.

Operationalising intercultural competence for translation pedagogy

ABSTRACT This article discusses intercultural competence in the context of translator training. It looks at the way this competence is incorporated and defined in the overall translation competence models, moving on to introduce two models that focus on intercultural competence in particular and serve to operationalise the concept for pedagogical purposes. Making this competence more explicit in translator training is considered vital: in the light of results gained from a survey into the current pedagogical practice, translator trainers’ and translation students’ understanding of the nature and extent of (inter)cultural training do not match. This calls for re-evaluation of teaching practice, which, in turn, presupposes a detailed, comprehensive account of the various dimensions of intercultural competence a translator is to possess. This article discusses these dimensions and provides exemplary scenarios on how to address them in translator training.

Teaching intercultural competence in translator training

ABSTRACT In this position paper we define an interculturally competent translator as one that demonstrates a high level of intercultural knowledge, skills, attitude and flexibility throughout his or her professional engagements. We argue that to attain this goal, intercultural competence needs to be introduced into the translator training curriculum explicitly and in a conceptually clear manner. In this article we provide an overview of earlier attempts at discussing the role of intercultural communication in translator training curricula and we discuss the various pedagogical and practical challenges involved. We also look at some future challenges, identifying increasing societal diversity as both a source of added urgency for intercultural training and a challenge for traditional biculturally based notions of translators’ intercultural competence, and we argue for the central role of empathy. Finally, and importantly, we introduce the contributions to the special issue.