Grenoble’s Presqu’île project: ISO 37101 as a bridge between planning policies and urban projects

In the book “Puissances de la norme” ¹, Catherine Thibierge talks about “standards’ densification”: both an increase in the number of existing technical standards, and an extension of the field of standardization. Technical standards were, in fact, initially developed to provide a common framework in the product's market; their application by enterprises, although voluntary, ensures greater interoperability and dissemination ². In the 2000s, standardization started to turn to new fields such as the management of cities and territories, and, to date, almost 600 environmental standards have been produced by ISO (1). This interest in environmental issues eventually led to the creation of a technical committee (2), the ISO/TC 268 “Sustainable cities and communities”. This committee published, in 2016, the standard ISO 37101, which provides territories with recommendations for adopting a methodological approach to sustainable development. This standard belongs to the category of Management System Standards (MSS), standards that provide all types of organizations with a continuous improvement process model, the Plan-Do-Control-Act process.

The ISO 37101 represents an innovative document compared to other MSS, adding an element to the classic process: a 6x12 matrix that outlines 6 long-term goals and 12 areas of action for sustainable development. Through an iterative cross-analysis of this grid, organizations can assess their contribution to the goals and how the different areas of action are taken into account. Therefore, ISO 37101 aims to give territories a “management tool” capable of “conveying a common language”, enough flexible to be used in conjunction with other existing policies and to be territorialized in different local conditions.

The French government recognized the potential of this standard and so the French Ministry of Ecological Transition engaged in the dissemination of this standard through an experimental action ³ with about 25 territories. These territories are appropriating the standard in different ways, mainly using the matrix and not the entire proposed process. Indeed, the implementation of a management system with the Plan-Do-Control-Act process could require times that don’t necessarily fit with a political mandate. On the other hand, the matrix allows territories to “not omit anything” from public policies and to then add up their ambitions.

One of the first territories to implement ISO 37101 was Grenoble, within the Presqu'Île development project. Here, the matrix has been used to review the project’s main goals and to couple them with the existing local and national regulations, allowing the evolution and prioritization of these goals. Furthermore, demonstrating the matrix’s flexibility, the grid was filled with the project’s requirements to compare and choose between different project managers’ offers.

The French experimental action shows how this methodological framework allows the implementation of larger objectives even at smaller scales. Therefore, this contribution wishes to open a reflection on the role that ISO 37101, and standards in general, could have as a bridge between planning policies and urban plans and projects.

 

Notes

1. International Organization for Standardization;

2. Thematic groups that elaborate standards;

References

¹ [Joan Le Goff et al, 2017] Joan Le Goff, Stéphane Onnee, Puissances de la norme. Défis juridiques et managériaux des systèmes normatifs contemporains, EMS, 2017.

² https://europa.eu/youreurope/business/product-requirements/standards/standards-in-europe/index_it.htm

³ https://www.ecocites.logement.gouv.fr/l-utilisation-du-standard-international-iso-37101-a172.html