In the early 2000s, Agyeman developed the concept of just sustainabilities, defined as “the need to ensure a better quality of life for all, now, and into the future, in a just and equitable manner, whilst living within the limits of supporting ecosystems”.[3] His book on the subject, Introducing Just Sustainabilities: Policy, Planning, and Practice, is widely used at universities.[4]
Including his books and journal articles, Agyeman has over 150 publications in his field.[5] His article, Mind the Gap: Why do people act environmentally and what are the barriers to pro-environmental behavior?, published in Environmental Education Research, is the most cited journal article by a North American urban planning scholar.[6] His publications have led him to be ranked as one of the top 10 most highly cited urban planning faculty in North America.[7] His work integrates multiple academic disciplines, including geography, sociology, urban planning and policy, environmental justice, and sustainability.[8]
Books
Sustainable Communities and the Challenge of Environmental Justice (NYU Press, 2005)
Introducing Just Sustainabilities: Policy, Planning and Practice (Zed Books, 2013)
Co-authored books
Sharing Cities: A Case for Truly Smart and Sustainable Cities (MIT Press, 2015)
Co-edited books
Just Sustainabilities: Development in an Unequal World (MIT Press, 2003)
The New Countryside? Ethnicity, Nation and Exclusion in Contemporary Rural Britain (Policy Press, 2006)
Environmental Justice and Sustainability in the Former Soviet Union (MIT Press, 2009)
Speaking for Ourselves: Environmental Justice in Canada (UBC Press, 2010)
Cultivating Food Justice: Race, Class and Sustainability (MIT Press, 2011)
Environmental Inequalities Beyond Borders: Local Perspectives on Global Injustices (MIT Press, 2011)
Incomplete Streets: Processes, Practices, and Possibilities (Routledge, 2014)
Food Trucks, Cultural Identity, and Social Justice: From Loncheras to Lobsta Love (MIT Press, 2017)
The Immigrant-Food Nexus: Borders, Labor, and Identity in North America (MIT Press, 2020)
Sacred Civics: Building Seven Generation Cities (Routledge, 2022)
Agyeman currently sits on the Academic Board of The Centre for the Future of Places (KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm) and the Board of Directors of EcoDistricts. He is also on the Advisory Boards of Shareable, Boston University Initiative on Cities, Institute for Transportation & Development Policy - US, Participatory City, Urban Sharing, Equiticity and Sharecity,[12] and the McConnell Foundation's Cities for People Future Cities Canada programs.[3] In November 2021, he was an advisor on Michelle Wu's Transition Committee for her transition into the office of mayor of Boston.[13] Additionally, he is a Founding Senior Advisor/Thought Leader at PlacemakingX.
