Editorial

Since early 2020, Asia, alongside rest of the world, finds itself in the midst of a public health crisis due to the outbreak of the novel coronavirus. Whilst Europe and North America remain the epicentre of the pandemic, in Asia, major metropolitan and economic hubs, such as Mumbai, Delhi, Dhaka and Karachi, have notably emerged as COVID-19 hot spots. In these high-density urban environments, poverty and population concentrated in slums have been major factors complicating efforts to contain the spread of the virus, thus revealing some of the patterns of unequal and exclusionary growth to have shaped urban environments in recent decades. Also, the lockdown imposed in several countries has impacted the livelihood of the people adversely. India offers a classic example of reverse migration where loss of livelihood resulted in mass exodus of millions of people by foot to reach their native villages, many succumbing to the adversity.

Whilst Asia’s metropolitan cities have long been conceptualized as ‘engines of economic growth’, the situation of the pandemic also compels us to recognize them as social and functional bodies, for whose functioning, access to housing, health and sanitation services are as vital as economic stimuli. In the context of India, this has been evident through the way in which the conditions of state enforced lockdown have disproportionately affected certain populations, with those in the informal sector, and especially daily wage workers, being the hardest hit. Structural disparities in access to adequate housing and sanitation facilities further compounds this problem, resulting in a much higher exposure to risk of contagion for people living in slums and other types of substandard housing.

In demonstrating how public health is not only confined to hospitals and other healthcare facilities, but it is an issue that cuts across sectors of housing, sanitation and environment, the coronavirus pandemic inadvertently highlights crucial interlinkages between different areas of urban planning and governance, which are in need of being addressed as part of an integrated whole. In light of this, although the articles in this issue of the journal do not directly address the COVID-19 as their subject, they touch upon many of the urban and environmental issues that the health crisis has thrown into sharp relief. This ranges from discussions on the urban fabric of cities: in terms of recent demographic patterns as well as issues of affordable housing, to contemporary debates around sustainable solutions to climate change.

By Dinabandhu Mondal and Sucharita Sen, takes up the issue of urbanization, specifically examining the spatial development of cities beyond their municipal boundaries and the complex ‘zones of transition’ that emerge as a result. These zones, also known as peri-urban areas, comprise a mixture of urban and rural land-uses, which in the context of India makes them particularly difficult to govern owing to the binary urban–rural administrative system in place. As the authors argue, the ability to design governance structures better suited to the needs of these transitional zones rests on the ability to properly recognize and demarcate such areas in the first place. Towards this purpose, the paper develops a research methodology, combining census data and satellite imagery to both chart the rate of growth and spatial location of peri-urban areas, as well as document their dynamic characteristics.

The first piece in the issue is jointly written by a team of Indian and German researchers including myself builds on a longstanding collaboration between the Federal Institute for Research on Building, Urban Affairs and Spatial Development in Berlin/Bonn (Germany) and the National Institute of Urban Affairs in New Delhi. Using data gathered from national censuses and other official sources of data, the article undertakes a cross-comparative study across India, Germany/Europe and China, revealing key similarities and dissimilarities in terms of spatial structure, demographic trends and urban morphology across these diverse countries and continents. In doing so, it embarks on the project of developing a common data language that we hope can contribute to the building of global data sets and help visualize the implications of future urbanization in each context.

Shifting the focus on urban growth to a more micro-level analysis, the next article by Lutfun Nahar Lata traces how recent neoliberal shifts in land and housing policy in Bangladesh have facilitated the expansion of a real estate sector largely orientated towards the needs of a growing middle class. In bringing the issue of housing precarity into conversation with Henri Lefebvre’s theorizations on space and the ‘right to the city’, the paper seeks to take stock of the situation for the urban poor in Dhaka, a third of whom already live under the threat of forced eviction without resettlement. Through a series of interviews conducted across a selected slum as well as government offices, the author attempts to capture the vulnerability of existing residents to eviction and assess their resettlements prospects, whilst also identifying constructive steps for the state and housing markets in making provisions for more affordable and secure housing.

The following article, which takes slum rehabilitation colonies in Chandigargh (India) as its subject, the issue of housing affordability is also combined with a concern for its adequacy. Through this paper, the authors, Namita Gupta and Kavita, assess the effectivity of recent schemes and policies geared towards ensuring the urban poor’s ‘right to housing’, against data collected through a structured questionnaire conducted amongst households across three different resettlement colonies in the city. Covering a wide range of issues from affordability and security of tenure to the availability of essential services, the results reveal a highly nuanced picture. Whilst certain housing needs have been fulfilled by the new resettlement colonies, there are others, such as transport connectivity and availability of employment, that require greater policy attention. Additionally, even with long-term tenureships in place, the study reveals that in many cases, housing remains an insecure good, owing to people’s inability to keep up with rent payments.

To contrast this, the following article by Rukuh Setiadi et al., makes a more speculative proposal regarding the future of urbanization, specifically in the context of coastal cities that face the threat of rising sea levels. Whilst addressing the Indonesian capital of Jakarta as their main site of study, the authors compare disaster resilience strategies undertaken in four different coastal cities, evaluating their pros and cons, and assessing their practical applicability to the case of Jakarta. Using the notion of ‘Sea Cities’, the paper not only emphasizes the need for a serious engagement with sustainable solutions against the effects of climate change, but also calls for re-thinking the very relationship between ‘city’ and ‘sea’. In promoting a more integrated and co-dependent understanding of the two, the piece attempts to scope out the future possibilities for shifting from a terrestrial towards an ‘aquatic-based’ form of urbanism.

Also addressing issues of environmental sustainability, albeit through a very different subject lens, the next article by Maurya Dayashankar et al., looks at the need for behavioural changes in regard to solid waste management in India. Being one of the highest municipal waste–generating countries in the world, in India, the near-absence of waste segregation at the household level leads to higher levels of open dumping. In order to understand the complex psychosocial factors underlying this issue, the authors conduct household surveys in the Udupi district of Karnataka, documenting variations in knowledge, attitude and behaviour of citizens in regard to waste disposal and its environmental impacts. In identifying which factors have a relatively positive impact on the decision-making of households, the study is also able to identify where regulatory interventions may be effective in encouraging the practice of waste segregation.

The next article by Rana Najjari Nabi et al. tackles the social and cultural complexity of public spaces, for which the model of the Iranian bazaar is taken as an exemplar. As a historically enduring and culturally rooted form, the article explores the significance of the bazaar through the multiple functions it serves. At once a place of economic exchange and a space for interaction between diverse social groups, the authors argue that the bazaar is instrumental in both instituting a ‘sense of place’ and facilitating social cohesion at large. Through qualitative research conducted amongst experts from the fields of architecture, social sciences and psychology, the paper attempts to capture the most effective components of socialization in the bazaar. In doing so, it aims to assess the extent to which use of public space is driven by different cultural, physical and environmental factors, with a view to how such findings may help urban architects and designers enhance the sociability of other public spaces too.

Returning to the linkages between climate change and urbanization, the following article by Osarodion Ogiemwonyi and Amran Bin Harun, is based on Malaysian experience, amongst the context of a growing middle class and its consumption activities, which generally have high negative environmental impacts. In examining the relationship between ‘green products’ and ‘green behaviour’, the authors seek to formulate a proposal for how middle class consumption habits might be guided away from environmentally harmful outcomes. A questionnaire targeting urbanites in Kuala Lumpur was conducted towards this purpose, with specific factors that play a role in consumer decision-making (e.g. ‘awareness’, ‘behaviour’, ‘culture’ and ‘attitude’) were used to make sense of the results. Ultimately, the study suggests that stronger environmental awareness, through pedagogic means or otherwise, may go a long way in producing environmentally supportive consumer behaviour.

The next article, by Shahana Sultana and Nurul Islam Nazem, extends some of the former debates around the affordability of housing, to consider the possibilities of home ownership for the urban poor, vis-à-vis, existing institutional supports and loan structures in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Taking ready-made garment workers as a case study, the authors undertake a round of household surveys in order to capture income–expenditure patterns, household demography and housing characteristics across the selected sample. The results are then compared against existing loan requirements, with the interaction between interest rates and repayment periods forming a key part of the analysis. The study finds that if loan structures were to be amended towards conditions that were more favourable for the sample group (such as longer repayment periods), about a third of households would fall into the affordability range for home ownership.

The final article of this issue, by Tasneem Mostofa et al., aims to investigate the relationship between outdoor climatic conditions and subjective thermal comfort levels for both local and foreign pedestrians in the Malacca Heritage site, Malaysia. Using the physiological equivalent temperature as a key measure, the study evaluates sensations of thermal comfort and discomfort amongst pedestrians through an on-site questionnaire, with pilot tests conducted in multiple weather scenarios. Combining this with meteorological readings, the authors investigate in what ways thermal adaption, via physical, physiological and psychological means, is related to one’s perception of comfort, and to what extent the level of habituation and individual expectations plays a role. By capturing the intricate cross-cultural and climatic variations in thermal comfort range within the Malacca Heritage site, the findings of the article prove particularly valuable for architects, planners and urban designers working within tropical climates.

In light of the present unprecedented circumstances under the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a growing consensus amongst policy makers and urban planners that the lessons learned through the health crisis must be transformed into concrete pathways for action. Having not only changed the way we perceive cities, but also the recent history of urbanization more broadly, urban and environmental practitioners need to become more acutely aware of where new approaches to urban planning and governance are urgently needed. The pandemic has also brought to focus the need to strengthen the urban–rural linkages and perceive the existing binary between rural and urban with a more integrated approach. The pandemic has reiterated the crucial need for making the ‘leave no one behind’ motto (2030 UN Agenda) the heart of future planning. Policy initiatives need to bring about institutional reforms to bridge economic disparities and integrate siloed interventions to tackle the climate crisis. The need of the hour is to arouse awareness among every individual, especially the ones in power, to reduce carbon emission and switch to renewable energy. Towards this purpose, I invite readers of the journal to engage with the articles in this issue of Environment and Urbanization Asia in view of the current context, and consider their implications for achieving the long-term goal of healthy, sustainable and inclusive cities. I hope they provide valuable material for discussion and critical reflection which can be utilized towards practical planning applications for a post-covid era.