Saqqummersitaq

The past three decades have seen the population of Greenland declining, with inhabitants moving to Denmark. Often, they do so in search of work or educational opportunities, while others want better social care and services. In recent years, homelessness has become a significant cause of concern (Christensen et al. 2017) with increasing numbers of people living rough, with few shelters, inadequate housing, and arctic weather conditions.

During this presentation, the housing situation in Greenland’s capital Nuuk is at focus, and I argue for creating and simulating infrastructure development through enhanced social planning (ESP) to meet demographic challenges. Enhanced social planning involves the regeneration and development of housing areas and communities. When adopted as a mechanism, the concept of social planning can play a crucial role in creating inhabitable communities, affordable housing, thriving economies, social cohesion, and diversity. ESP takes its point of departure in the underlying principles of social justice (equity, access, participation, and rights) and aims to enhance community well-being and effectiveness. ESP involves planning for communities and their inhabitants through deliberate action and policy implementation combined with regional and other strategical activities.