HANDBOOK for Developing Urban Eco-Islands with Smart Solutions

The 'HANDBOOK for Developing Urban Eco-Islands with Smart Solutions' is a guide published by the Stockholm Environment Institute in 2021. It provides a strategic framework for the integrated development of small islands located near urban areas, aiming to transform them into sustainable tourism destinations. The handbook details a 'Smart and Sustainable Island Development Model' that balances environmental, economic, social, and cultural dimensions, and advocates for the use of digital technology and citizen science to monitor ecosystems and manage visitor flows.

• The Smart and Sustainable Island Development Model is a strategic framework based on four sustainability dimensions: environmental, economic, social, and cultural. Each dimension consists of specific support systems that must be strengthened to ensure the island's long-term viability.
• Environmental sustainability for small islands requires maintaining ecosystem integrity, implementing efficient resource and waste management, and ensuring balanced spatial planning. The handbook emphasizes that nature monitoring must be performed prior to other development activities because island ecosystems are isolated and highly sensitive to human disturbance.
• Economic sustainability on small islands depends on three primary elements: logistic support and connectivity to the mainland, the provision of sufficient and optimal infrastructure (such as energy and water), and the support of local small businesses to enable year-round economic activity.
• Social and managerial sustainability focuses on the wellbeing and longevity of the local community. Key factors include maintaining a cohesive local community, engaging local knowledge in decision-making, and fostering cooperation between residents, authorities, and visitors.
• Cultural sustainability involves the preservation and exhibition of the island's tangible and intangible heritage, as well as the development of a distinct cultural identity used in educational and tourism programs.
• The strategic planning process for an Urban Eco-Island consists of three main stages: setting a shared long-term vision based on core values, conducting a sustainability assessment to identify gaps and needs, and establishing strategic goals and an action plan with measurable indicators.
• Digital solutions can be applied to small islands across five categories: environment monitoring, visitor monitoring, aerial image analysis, virtual experiences, and transportation. These tools help reduce the need for physical transport to remote sites for data collection.
• Specific digital tools tested include infrared sensors and Bluetooth tracking for visitor flows, weather stations and air quality sensors for environmental data, and drones for non-intrusive bird nest counting. Satellite imagery using the Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) is used to monitor vegetation decay.
• Citizen science is recommended as a method to engage residents and visitors in data collection, such as using the iNaturalist app for biodiversity monitoring or the Litterati app for tracking marine litter. This approach increases scientific literacy and environmental awareness.
• Effective waste management on small islands requires a tailored approach due to limited treatment possibilities. On Aegna, a system was implemented where waste is collected in separate containers (packaging, glass, mixed municipal) and transported periodically to the mainland via a central waste management station.

APA

Kuldna, P., Moora, H., Tuhkanen, H., Piirsalu, E., Harlio, A., Suomela, M., Airikkala, V., Reittu, N., & Laager, M. (2021). HANDBOOK for Developing Urban Eco-Islands with Smart Solutions. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/handbook-for-developing-urban-eco-islands-2.pdf

Chicago

Kuldna, Piret, Harri Moora, Heidi Tuhkanen, Evelin Piirsalu, Annika Harlio, Maria Suomela, Veli Airikkala, Noora Reittu, and Merilin Laager. HANDBOOK for Developing Urban Eco-Islands with Smart Solutions. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2021. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/handbook-for-developing-urban-eco-islands-2.pdf.

Wikipedia

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BibTeX

@techreport{kuldna2021handbook, author = {Kuldna, Piret and Moora, Harri and Tuhkanen, Heidi and Piirsalu, Evelin and Harlio, Annika and Suomela, Maria and Airikkala, Veli and Reittu, Noora and Laager, Merilin}, title = {{HANDBOOK for Developing Urban Eco-Islands with Smart Solutions}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2021}, url = {https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/handbook-for-developing-urban-eco-islands-2.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }