Sustainable Cities In Asia

With Asia’s cities undergoing unprecedented growth in the 21st century, lauded the ‘urban century’ by many, Sustainable Cities in Asia provides a timely examination of the challenges facing cities across the continent including some of the projects, approaches and solutions that are currently being tested. This book uses numerous case studies, analysing topical issues ranging from city cycling in India, to green spaces in China, to the use of community-led energy generation projects in post-Fukushima Japan. Containing contributions from an international team of scholars, it also takes a multi-disciplinary approach and draws on examples from a wide range of countries, including China, India, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates. Ultimately, by providing a comprehensive discussion of the broader debates around the shape of sustainable urbanism, it demonstrates that Asia is one of the most active regions in terms of the development of sustainable city strategies. Tackling the contemporary issues of key importance for sustainability, such as property markets, migration and transport, this book will appeal to students and scholars of Urban Geography, Sustainability, Environmental Studies and Asian studies.

This multidisciplinary book focuses on best practices in sustainability research in the Asia-Pacific Region. Drawing links between research, practice, education for sustainability and the needs of industry, it addresses the sustainable development goals (SDGs). The book also presents research undertaken by a wide range of universities on matters related to sustainable development, in order to promote research in this area across multiple disciplines. Four key themes are explored: (1) Education for Sustainability. (2) Sustainable Cities. (3) Sustainable Buildings. (4) Sustainable Infrastructure. This unique book documents and disseminates the wealth of know-how on sustainable development research in the Asia-Pacific Region today. It presents lessons learned and comparative case studies from various countries, including India, China, Indonesia, the Philippines, Bangladesh, New Zealand and Australia.

While there has been much recent research into achieving sustainability in urban areas, most of this is specific to a particular region. This volume broadens these discussions by extending the analysis from North American and European cities to include East Asian cities. Many cities in Asia have deep historical roots, have sustained dense populations through time and have grown prosperous in recent decades. They also face significant environmental degradation and other planning challenges. In bringing together and comparing strategies and experiences from three distinct global regions, this book offers unique insights and new perspectives on the challenges of moving towards greater urban sustainability. While questioning which strategies can promote sustainable cities in a global context, the book also illustrates that while formulae generated out of American and European experience cannot be universally applied, some of the analytical approaches and experience of the other developed countries can offer insights for those working in different contexts. It argues that managing urban change for greater urban sustainability in diverse regions requires detailed understanding of local issues and regional strategies as well as strong support from local communities.

This book considers urbanization in Asia and presents case studies of sustainable development "best practice" from 12 Asian countries: Bangladesh, Cambodia, People's Republic of China, India, Indonesia, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Malaysia, Pakistan, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Viet Nam.

Urban planners across the world are faced with sustainable development issues in their work, especially when they are tasked with creating green cities or where sustainable and smart growth in urban settings are set as primary goals. This book introduces green city planning and practices from the three dimensions of green-building innovation, community development and smart city strategies, and argues that effective implementation of green city planning are a necessary pre-condition for reaching sustainable urban development. A range of authors representing a broad disciplinary spectrum bring together the different standards of green building methods and urban design techniques and clearly sketch the roles of both spatial designers and urban researchers in the implementation of green city planning at regional, community and single-building level in order to arrive at an integrated approach across different scales.

This book is about the growth and future development of cities. Its collection of nine essays brings together a variegation of views and visions of how we might build sustaining cities into the 21st century, with one staying concern: a better tomorrow. The essays do not profess to provide answers but rather, alternative starting points for further explorations and reflections on the meaning of sustainable development for our cities.

At a time when Asia is rapidly growing in global influence, this much-needed and insightful book bridges two major current policy topics in order to offer a unique study of the latest smart city archetypes emerging throughout Asia. Highlighting the smart city aspirations of Asian countries and their role in Asian governments’ new development strategies, this book draws out timely narratives and insights from a uniquely Asian context and policymaking space.