Sustainable Development and Land Use Planning in Taiwan

Nowadays, sustainable development has become a fashionable term not only in the industrial countries but also in the developing countries. However, what is the definition of sustainable development? There are several different answers to this question. The paper does try to re-examine the meanings of sustainable development firstly. Thus, it maintains that the promotion of sustainable development is because the developing models supported by the dominant western societies have met with severely crisis, and they do probably utilize the myth of sustainable development to prolong their hegemonic positions and to preserve their developing models. The paper then supplies a different perspective of sustainable development. It argues that sustainable development should not only pursue a balance development between natural resource protection and economic growth but also need to exclude inequity within the political economic structure. Citizens and local communities should be empowerment to own a relative autonomous position related to the state government and business conglomerates. In addition, the concept of sustainable development should be stood on the epistemology and methodology, which are different from the dominant social paradigm. The paper argues that the power of choice should be kept in the hands of citizens, and democratic participation is the best way for the planning of a sustainable society. Using the ideas developed above, the paper further examines the land use planning in Taiwan, especially focusing on the institutions for the development of industrial parks in Taiwan. The paper argues that those institutions are lack of the spirit of sustainable development, and they should be addressed in order to meet Taiwan's sustainability in the future