The project started from the recognition that the management and redevelopment of contaminated land has moved through different stages, each stage being characterized by a specific approach. The most recent stage is that of sustainable remediation and regeneration. Now decisions on the management of contaminated sites have to be sustainable across all the three pillars of sustainable development (environmental, economic and social). In particular, ensuring the social acceptability and support for regeneration strategies and actions is currently regarded as being of high importance. Understanding the acceptability of regeneration requires knowledge of relationships among actors co-involved in this process. Addressing this issue requires thinking in terms of social networks.
The aims of the research were both theoretical and empirical. The theoretical aim was to enrich research on stakeholder involvement in brownfield regeneration projects by exploring the social networks of actors engaged in regeneration and their visions of sustainability. These two dimensions (social network and sustainability visions) were analysed in order to integrate them into a coherent framework.
The empirical aim was to develop a case study of a regenerated brownfield, known as Area 2, and located within the Vega Science and Technology Park (Vega STP) in Porto Marghera, Venice, Italy. More details can be found in the methods and preliminary findings section.