Transformative Futures of Cities - (Political Ecology in the Asia Pacific Region) (Hardcover)

About the Book

In a world defined by the dual challenges of climate change and sustainable development, cities play a pivotal role in reimagining the future trajectories of our societies and planet. This volume authored by an international cohort of scholars is dedicated to understanding the dynamic transformations of cities, with a particular focus on cities in the rapidly growing countries of Southeast Asia.

Book Synopsis

In a world defined by the dual challenges of climate change and sustainable development, cities play a pivotal role in reimagining the future trajectories of our societies and planet. This volume authored by an international cohort of scholars is dedicated to understanding the dynamic transformations of cities, with a particular focus on cities in the rapidly growing countries of Southeast Asia. The book underscores the complex interplay between global climate and environmental changes and societal choice, highlighting the critical implications for climate adaptation and sustainable development. The spotlight is on Southeast Asia, an epicenter of diverse societies, cultures, and economic development, including Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, and the Philippines.

About the Author

Ronald Holzhacker, PhD (University of Michigan, 1997) is Professor in the Faculty of Spatial Sciences, Department of Spatial Planning and Environment, and the Faculty of Arts, Department of International Relations at the University of Groningen, the Netherlands. He is broadly interested in questions of governance and planning for climate adaptation and sustainable development. He is founding Director of the Groningen Research Centre for Southeast Asia and ASEAN.

Bakti (Bobi) Setiawan is professor in urban planning at the Department of Architecture and Planning, Gadjah Mada University, Indonesia. He is now coordinating the doctoral program in urban and regional planning. His expertise and research interests include: informal housing, community development, urban environment, and urban heritage conservation. In 2021, he published a book on Urban Transformation in Indonesia (in the Indonesian language).

Dyah Rahmawati Hizbaron is Vice Dean at Gadjah Mada University. She is a lecturer at the Faculty of Geography, Department of Environmental Geography, as well as a researcher at the Disaster Studies Center GMU. Her research interests focus on disaster issues, the environment, urban development, and sustainable infrastructure.

Kim Neil Irvine is an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Architecture and Planning at Thammasat University, Thailand. He was an Associate Professor at Nanyang Technological University Singapore from 2012 to 2020. Previously, he had been a Professor of Geography and Planning at Buffalo State, the State University of New York, for 25 years. His research focuses on applied hydrologic modelling, sustainable urban waterscapes, and smart city planning.

Christina Prell is Associate Professor at the University of Groningen. Christina's research focuses on the intersection of social networks and the environment. She considers how networks can operate either as drivers of climate change, leading to various environmental inequalities, or alternatively to enable local climate action processes. She has published 40+ articles in peer-reviewed and authored the book Social Network Analysis: History, Theory, and Methodology (2012).

Klaus Hubacek is Professor in the Faculty of Science and Engineering, University of Groningen, and Chair of the department Integrated Research on Energy, Environment and Society. His research focuses on modeling the interactions between human and environmental systems. Klaus conducted studies for several national agencies and international institutions such as the World Bank, the Interamerican Development Bank, the World Wide Fund for Nature, and Greenpeace. Klaus was a lead author of the most recent assessment report (AR6) of the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).