Montréal's Eco-quartier environmental program: local action and municipal management

This article assesses the City of Montréal's Eco-quartier program from the viewpoint of managing the urban environment and improving living environments. It evaluates the actual achievements of the program, looking especially at the ability of local communities to take effective action to improve their living environments, while under the guidance of the associations mandated to manage the program at the local level. Our research concentrated on three main areas: a) the development of the City of Montréal's environmental program; b) the effectiveness of the Eco-quartiers in carrying out their mandate; c) the actual impacts of the program in improving living environments.