This paper explores the formation and typology of suburban workplace agglomerations in a depopulating conurbation. This analysis comprised three sequential steps to examine 114 suburban municipalities around the central urban areas of the Keihanshin Conurbation, Japan’s second-largest conurbation, which expanded significantly between the 1960s and 1990s and is now facing a population decline. First, we observed the time flow change in the workplace concentration tendency in the central urban area using the National Census in 2000 and 2015 to estimate employment rate changes in central urban areas. Second, we clarified suburban workplace agglomeration occurrence and location using Local Moran’s I statistic method and Person Trip Census data from 2010. Third, we analyzed and typified the relationships between suburban workplace agglomerations and residential areas using the residential spatial distribution map obtained in Step 2. Based on the maps’ similarity, estimated by image analysis, we classified the suburban workplace agglomeration and determined those characteristics. The findings revealed that workplace agglomeration occurs in multiple suburban locations, and in central urban areas, employment centralization is decreasing. In contrast to conurbations with a population stagnation or increase, this is happening even in the inner suburbs and inter-city areas. The findings clarify several scales in suburban workplace agglomeration size and spatial residential distribution bands. Using a person trip census and spatial autocorrelation analysis enabled the analysis of aggregate numerical trends by postal district, while a map-based image analysis indicates the possibility of objectively estimating spatial distribution similarity.

Improving informal settlements have long been the biggest challenges for rapidly urbanizing Asian, African and Latin American cities. The participatory approach, implemented by the community, requires technical support, where the local housing production system, more specifically at the site, local carpenters and/or contractors, have taken a role in providing such support. Indonesia is one of the typical cases in terms of informal settlement improvement. These projects, particularly at implementation phase, naturally, should be technically supported through local housing production system organized by master carpenters called mandors, who have both soft and hard skills, leading and guiding the construction sites.

This research, therefore, aims to empirically discuss how Indonesia’s master carpenters, mandors, can contribute to the recent informal settlement improvement projects, including KOTAKU, from the institutional perspective as well as at the project implementation. For this objective a case study was conducted in three districts of Ngampilan, Muja Muju and Klitren in Yogyakarta City. Considering the possible contribution of mandors, brought through their philosophy of leadership and coordination based on Javanese culture, at the different phases of upgrading project, research, planning and implementation, the conclusion highlights (1) based on the relationship between the project leaders and the government, a process that can utilize the capabilities of the master carpenters by collaborating with them through the local prime contractor is desirable, (2) when setting up technical positions in the formation stage of the project's implementation organization, it is ideal to secure a slot for the master carpenters from the planning stage, and (3) since the authority of the field in physical improvement lies mainly with the local residents and the professional engineers in charge, it is desirable to strengthen the authority of the master carpenters in the field in order to utilize their skills.

Street food vending is a typical job in the urban grassroots/informal economy in Bangkok, and the modernization of society in Thailand has put pressure on street food vendors to formalize their work. Two opposing approaches to street vending have been implemented; one is the Policy of Returning Walkways to the Public (PRWP), led by the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration in 2014. It caused a huge decline in the number of street food vendors (SFVs). The other approach is the Street Food Program (SFP) in 2016 and is supported by the Government Savings Bank. The SFP promotes and upgrades street food vending businesses. We conducted the present study to clarify the characteristics and approaches, implementation, and outcomes of the SFP, and we evaluated its effectiveness from an inclusive development perspective. Our analyses elucidated three-basic-approaches of the SFP (financing, knowledge development, and online payment system) along with the concepts of inclusive development with an empowerment approach for socially vulnerable. It assisted 19,918 SFVs across the country (19.3%). In a pilot project of the SFP conducted in Ari, Bangkok, SFVs were assured of their business continuity under the PRWP, and it revealed that this is reflected in the SFVs' self-perceptions of social inclusiveness; the SFP participants were more positive about the future prospects of their business and their quality of life, and they did not perceive themselves to be 'left behind by economic growth' or 'socially excluded.' It can be concluded that SFP has a certain usefulness as an inclusive development approach to SFVs.

Global warming and climate change have been intensifying the severity of disasters worldwide. Disasters not only cause loss of human lives and affect the economy; they also have a huge impact on houses located in areas prone to natural calamities. Therefore, in recent years, governments have been emphasizing post-disaster reconstruction, especially in countries that see frequent disasters. From the Ji-ji earthquake in 1999, which led to the launch of large-scale post-disaster reconstruction, to Typhoon Morakot in 2009, the Taiwanese government has attached great importance to the formulation of post-disaster reconstruction policies. However, different from the Ji-ji earthquake, 73% of the disaster victims of Typhoon Morakot were the indigenous population, which made this unique post-disaster reconstruction (PDR) project unique. Nonetheless, the indigenous context-based PDR project still had little discussion.

Therefore, this study arranged the documentaries on Typhoon Morakot post disaster reconstruction and the interview record of the residents to clarify: 1) understand the main contents and characteristics of the reconstruction policy after Typhoon Morakot 2) clarify residents' evaluation of the reconstruction policy, and 3) proposed some suggestions based on this case study.

The research mythologies here were literature surveys and interviews to examine the problems in the policy and clarify the main issues and challenges in the project. For the literature survey, the main content and characteristics of the policy after Typhoon Morakot were analyzed by researching government documents related to the reconstruction plans released by official and private reconstruction agencies. For the interviews, this study selected interviewees from five relocated settlements—in Pingtung and Taitung counties in southern Taiwan—affected by the disaster.

As per the findings, the project's main issues and challenges were: 1) inadequate permanent housing space planning, 2) NGO domination and patchy housing design scheme, 3) substandard construction, 4) ignorance of the social context, and 5) insufficient resident participation. The results show that there was much room for improvement in Taiwan's post-disaster reconstruction policy. Thus, this research provided suggestions to enhance future discussion and post-disaster project planning.

The Japanese government has set a goal of reducing the environmental impact by 46% by 2030 compared to 2013, and reducing the environmental load is an urgent issue. In particular, CO₂ emissions from the transportation sector account for 20% of the total, especially passenger cars accounting for the majority of emissions. This study focused on EVs, AVs, and LRTs, and evaluated the impact of the introduction of these next-generation transportation systems. It also predicted the future environmental burden of traffic for a regional city in Japan focusing on CO₂. Then, assuming the introduction of a carbon tax on automobile traffic, the variable automobile mileage was revealed from mode choice model using trip costs.

As a result, it was clarified that the environmental burden of traffic in the automobile sector will decrease by about 10% in 2030. It was also found that in order to achieve the Japanese government's target of a 46% reduction in CO₂ emissions by 2030 in the private passenger car sector, a carbon tax of 211 yen per kilometer of vehicle travel would be required. And, it was revealed that if a combination of next-generation transportation and a carbon tax were introduced, the required carbon tax levy could be reduced by 11% to 187 yen per kilometer. Subsidies for public transportation were also considered, but it became clear that the effect of subsidizing fares would be insignificant.

In Bangkok, Thailand, the suburban area where urban and agricultural land use are mixed, is expanding owing to rapid urbanization, and residents’ lifestyles are changing simultaneously. This study analyzed the latter lifestyles and perceptions of ecosystem services by conducting a questionnaire survey in Lat Krabang district, clarifying how lifestyles and perceptions are related to the awareness of paddy field conservation and utilization of idle land.

First, we analyzed the lifestyles of the residents, focusing on their preferred places to purchase perishable food and spend leisure time. We categorized the former into “large-scale retail,” smallscale retail,” and “producing areas, and the latter into “urban facilities,” green spaces,” and “canals and wetlands.” Significant differences in the means of transportation and travel times were identified among categories. Next, we determined the relationship between lifestyle and ecosystem services. Ecosystem services are scored for each lifestyle category. The results showed that residents’ relationship with the natural environment was strongly related to their perceptions of ecosystem services. Residents with lifestyles closer to nature tend to value their existence as direct services.

Second, we analyzed awareness of the conservation of paddy fields and the utilization of idle land corresponding to lifestyle and residential areas. Factor analysis and correspondence analysis were used to analyze awareness. The results showed that conservation of paddy fields was important in all categories. However, differences in awareness of idle land utilization by lifestyle were confirmed. Residents in the more developed areas showed an awareness of higher quality development, whereas those with a natural land-use lifestyle expected the land to be converted into paddy fields and public open space. Residents using the canal also attached importance to the improvement of cultural services.

Thus, this study clarified that the lifestyle of residents is a factor shaping their awareness of the development and conservation of the natural environment. In the future, it will be crucial to balance mixed land use that exerts environmental functions integrally with agricultural land and environmental utilization, to expand the lifestyle by utilizing ecosystem services from agricultural land and canals.

Sustainability balances the economy, society, and environment with “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” as cited in the Brundtland Report. Research acknowledges there is no single definition of 'sustainability, and it is challenging to have it since the term is defined based on what is desirable, convenient, and measurable for the user group. This reasoning suggests there can be many definitions of sustainability, and this idea is not necessarily wrong. The concept of sustainability can and should be adapted to the local situation. Research also suggests differences in capacities of developing countries, which adds value to studying the case of developing countries.

This case study is focused on a conceptual framework to define and apply environmentally sustainable transportation (EST) to local public transport route planning in the Philippines. This research explores how EST can be applied to existing land-use and transport planning policies and clarifies its role in developing countries. The paper has two parts: first, it discusses the theory and concept of sustainability. Second, the methodology for creating a conceptual framework of EST is presented and the resulting images are explained with how they can be linked to the local public transport planning policy.

This research resulted in three images that show a way to define sustainable transport in the Philippines. The first image suggests a modification in the triple bottom line model by including resilience and institutional capacity. The second image clarifies elements of sustainable transportation and prioritizes safety as an essential factor that public transport systems should give more importance to. Lastly, the third image illustrates the linkages of EST with the Public Transport Modernization Program, which includes the policy on local public transport route planning. It also clarifies that EST thematic areas are related to the components of the Public Transport Modernization Program.

Bangkok is Thailand’s economic and transportation hub. The country’s first mass rapid transit station has operated there for more than 20 years. But the number of passengers traveling through the mass rapid transit system is lower than private cars, with a steady increase in vehicle consumption and population over the last decade. However, the development of a better environment for pedestrians can make more people start walking. Therefore, this research aims to examine accessibility to mass rapid transit stations by walking due to passenger satisfaction and the pedestrian environment. The case study focuses on the elevated station structure, the interchange station in different urban areas in Bangkok’s metropolitan area. An online questionnaire was used to collect data, and data analytics was performed using a statistical tool. The results prove that passenger satisfaction is not entirely different from the urban and west outer ring road zone areas, even in the most developed downtown areas such as the central business districts. The difference between personal variables such as age, gender, and residential location of the station impacts the perception of the pedestrian environment in different ways, as even the environment did not support people walking. However, most passengers are slightly satisfied with the current pedestrian environment. Therefore, for a complete understanding of this phenomenon, a future study should include the correlation between a physical study and user perception specific to the case of Bangkok.

An increased number of vacant houses have been found in Spain and Japan in recent years, specifically in de-growth areas. This article explores the extent to which these two countries have promoted policies and tax systems to counteract this phenomenon. According to existing research, tax systems sometimes work as factors that encourage the increase of vacant houses. However, the systems in the two countries in question are dissimilar. We apply the divergence perspective for developing housing system typologies, and analyse vacant housing policy measures from the administrative perspective of Japan’s centralised unitary and Spain’s decentralised unitary state.

As a result, while the Spanish taxation system may expect housing owners to circulate their properties in the real estate market, the duty schemes in Japan encourage homeowners to build or to hold onto their houses. Moreover, the recent vacant housing policies of both countries seem to actively decentralise taxation authorities, disclose information on vacant properties and take advantage of vacant spaces. More generally, vacant housing control in Spain is relevant to countries with decentralisation or even a federal system, which can control housing vacancy levels by the power of local governments. By contrast, the Japanese method of vacancy control applies to East Asian and socialist countries, where national governments can promptly implement policies. Moreover, the policy promoting a nationwide vacant house bank would help to mitigate information asymmetry.

The sharing economy is an economic model that aims to increase sustainability by encouraging the more efficient use of underutilized assets through sharing. In recent years while many large sharing businesses exist, the number of governments attempting to implement the sharing economy has reduced. This paper aims to examine whether the sharing economy can still be considered a viable sustainable economic model post COVID-19 through a literature review. From the literature review, various government and business strategies that must be considered in the implementation of the sharing economy was found. For example, studies show governments should prioritize public interest while working together with businesses and the community. Looking at cities which have actively implemented the sharing economy, there are mixed results which calls into question the effectiveness of the sharing economy. The sharing economy was also hit hard due to travel restrictions and lockdowns combined with the added negative effect due to the intimate nature of sharing. While this may sound dire for the future of sharing, governments around the world have announced post-COVID-19 recovery programs that focus on increasing sustainability and community resilience which may help sharing businesses. Not only this, surveys indicate people want to be closer to their community and are also more open to sharing. This suggests sharing does have a place in a post-pandemic society, just in a different form. This is where the smart sharing city could step in as a new urban model. While the concept is still in the early stages of consideration, its emphasis on providing benefit to both users and society through sharing addresses the criticisms of the sharing economy and provides a more holistic approach that includes important stakeholders such as the community. Therefore, sharing in the form of the smart sharing city that promotes sustainability and community resilience has the potential to return as another sustainable urban model in a post-COVID-19 world.

In a rapidly urbanizing country, it is difficult for the government to provide sufficient public facilities on time including public parks, which are vital elements to enhance the quality of life in the neighborhood. In the case of Phnom Penh, Cambodia has only 1.1 m² of park and green area per person, which is less compared to other cities in the world (JICA, 2014). A large number of parks are located in the urban core along the boulevards, not in the newly expanded area. On the other hand, in the suburban area, a private park has been built inside a private residential development project, but it has limited access. It is believed that some residents in the suburban area still have difficult access to parks due to the public park insufficiency. The objectives of the research are 1) to clarify the actual situation and satisfaction of residents’ park utilization in 3 different types of areas in private sector-led suburban neighborhoods; 2) to evaluate the perception of residents on parks. The methodology to be used is a literature review, field observation, and survey questionnaire. It has been discovered that residents in different parts of the area have a different levels of accessibility and satisfaction in park utilization due to the lack of public parks. More than half of respondents who are residing in a housing project without a park or non-project area have never been to a park, while more than 80% of residents residing in a housing project with a park visit their project park, which is open only to people within the project. Furthermore, residents of projects with parks have better access and satisfaction than other residents in the Sen Sok ward. Therefore, it is vital to provide equity in park utilization to create a good neighborhood. Surprisingly, even though project parks are regulated for common use among residents, a small number of outside residents visit these parks. Moreover, 58.6% of the projects with park residents stated that project parks should be shared. This is a positive sign towards the sharing of privately owned parks in the future.

Rapid urbanization led Kabul City to develop illegally over the past two decades of stability. Due to inherent rural-urban migration and the return of people from abroad, a large majority of populations flooded into cities. A significant number of planned residential neighborhoods have undergone housing transformations in Kabul City. In most cases, detached courtyard houses have been transformed into apartment buildings in violation of building land use regulations. Kabul Municipality (after this “KM”) as a responsible entity was unable to enforce the rules and regulations on these planned residential neighborhoods across the city. According to this study, the problem is the result of a monitoring mechanism that lacks technical staff and is based on a top-down approach where residents were not involved in urban planning and development. In the paper, it is argued that the current monitoring mechanism should be revised through a participatory approach involving residents' councils such as Gozar Assemblies (GAs), and Community Development Councils (CDCs). The Engineers Association should also be integrated into the system to prevent the spread of illegal apartment buildings. Therefore, this study aims to examine factors that greatly improve monitoring mechanisms related to housing transformation. We assessed the level of housing transformation and its effects associated with the monitoring mechanism. Furthermore, the study evaluated the existing status of the monitoring mechanisms. Moreover, the study examined how local council intervention can greatly contribute to preventing the proliferation of illegal buildings and strengthening monitoring systems. Lastly, we investigated how the inclusion of Engineer Associations can assist in resolving technical deficits.

Generally, a park is known as a public space that is built to enhance the quality of life. In some countries, governments are not able to provide sufficient public parks during the rapid urbanization period while private parks are built in the gated community with limited accessibility. In the case of Phnom Penh, Cambodia, the same phenomenon occurred. Many public parks are small and were planned before the present urban context. Currently, in the suburban area, private parks are continuously constructed in some residential projects. However, the accessibility of those private parks is not clearly defined. The objectives of the research are 1) to clarify the situation of private parks at residential projects before and after the enactment of regulations; 2) to clarify the project’s elements that influence the public access to private parks in residential projects. The research is applied mixed method by conducting field observation in Phnom Penh, utilizing the data from the Ministry of Land Use Management, Urban Planning and Construction, and reviewing the literature and regulation documents. There are 2 findings found in this research. First, there is no significant difference toward the park creation in the residential project before and after the enactment of the sub-decree on management of gated community. It is assumed that the park is created to provide a quality living rather than the purpose of commercial, and mainly for residents within projects, so the access to the parks is not completely open for the public. Second, due to the location of the park, security to the park, and the type of building use surrounding the park, public access is limited.

The growth of peer-to-peer (P2P) accommodation sharing platforms, including Airbnb, has increased rent in the rental housing market in many tourism cities worldwide. Airbnb is also one of the biggest P2P accommodation sharing platforms in Bangkok. There were 38,249 Airbnb listings in 2019 in Bangkok, with an annual average increase of 34% from 2015–2019. On the other hand, many people in Bangkok still struggle with housing affordability and rental housing is one solution. To date, however, there has not been a study on the effect of Airbnb on the rental housing market.

This research aimed to investigate an emerging situation and reveal the actual characteristics of P2P accommodation in Bangkok. The results suggested the following: (1) The growth of all Airbnb listings included an increase in inactive listings, which accounted for 47.4% of all listings in 2019; (2) Apartments and condominiums are the main property types listed, representing 72.1% of all listings; (3) The presence of active Airbnb listings is a small fraction (1.7%) of rental housing in Bangkok overall. Moreover, Airbnb listings tend to be concentrated in the Inner Bangkok of tourist spots, commercial and business regions, and high-end residential areas around the city center. Seven high-presence districts (more than 5%) and seven mediumpresence districts (2.5–5%) have emerged around these areas. Thus, they represent a risk for rental housing market distortion at the local level.