Search results for: transforming urban China

Authors: Yuhua Yang, Yingcheng Li

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As a new form of intercity economic cooperation, innovation enclaves have received much attention from governments and scholars in China, which are of great significance in promoting the flow of innovation elements and advancing regional integration. Utilizing inter-city linkages of innovation enclaves within and beyond the Yangtze River Delta Region, we construct multi-scalar innovation enclave networks in 2018 and 2022, and analyze the evolutionary characteristics and underlying mechanisms of the networks. Overall, we find that: (1) The intercity innovation enclave networks have the characteristics of preferential connection and are gradually forming a clear multi-scale and hierarchical structure, with Shanghai, Hangzhou and Nanjing as the core and other cities as the general nodes; (2) The intercity innovation enclave networks exhibit local clustering dominated by geographical proximity connections, and are becoming more noticeable in the effect of distance decay and functionally polycentric as the spatial scale decreases; (3) The intercity innovation enclave networks are influenced by both functional distance and multidimensional proximity. While the innovation potential differences caused by urban attributes internally drive the formation of innovation enclave cooperation, geographic proximity, technological proximity and institutional proximity externally affect the selection of cooperation partners.

Keywords: economic enclave, intercity cooperation, proximity, yangtze river delta region

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Authors: Shagufta Tazin Shathy, Mohammad Imam Hasan Reza

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Fragmentation due to urbanization and agricultural expansion has become the main reason for destruction of forest area and loss of biodiversity particularly in the developing world. At present, the world is experiencing the largest wave of urban growth in human history, and it is estimated that this influx will be mainly taking place in developing world. Therefore, study on urban fragmentation is vital for a sustainable urban development. Landscape fragmentation is one of the most important conservation issues in the last few decades. Habitat fragmentation due to landscape alteration has caused habitat isolation, destruction in ecosystem pattern and processes. Thus, this research analyses the spatial and temporal extent of urban fragmentation using landscape indices in the Kuala Lumpur (KL) – the capital and most populous city in Malaysia. The objective of this study is to examine the urban fragmentation index in KL city. Fragmentation metrics used in the study are: a) Urban landscape ratio (the ratio of urban landscape area and build up area), b) Infill (development that occurred within urbanized open space), and c) Extension (development of exterior open space). After analyzing all three metrics, these are calculated for the combined urban fragmentation index (UFI). In this combined index, all three metrics are given an equal weight. Land cover/ land use maps of the year 1996 and 2005 have been developed from the Landsat TM 30 m resolution satellite image. The year 1996 is taken as a reference year to analyze the changes. The UFI calculated for the year of 1996 and2005 found that the KL city has undergone rapid landscape changes destructing forest ecosystem adversely. Increasing UFI for the year of 1996 compared to 2005 indicates that the developmental activities have been occupying open spaces and fragmenting natural lands and forest. This index can be implemented in other unplanned and rapidly urbanizing Asian cities for example Dhaka and Delhi to calculate the urban fragmentation rate. The findings from the study will help the stakeholders and urban planners for a sustainable urban management planning in this region.

Keywords: GIS, index, sustainable urban management, urbanization

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Authors: Mina Sarabi, Dariush Sattarzadeh, Mitra Asadollahi Oula

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In the old days, gardens reflect the identity and culture of each country. Persian garden in urban planning and architecture has a high position and it is a kind of paradise in Iranian opinion. But nowadays, the gardens were replaced with parks and urban open spaces. On the other hand, due to the industrial development of cities and increasing air pollution in urban environments, living in this spaces make problem for people. And improving ecological conditions will be felt more than ever. The purposes of this study are identification and reproduction of Persian garden pattern and adaptation of it with sustainability features in green spaces in contemporary cities and developing meaningful green spaces instead of designing aimless spaces in urban environment. The research method in this article is analytical and descriptive. Studying and collecting information about Iranian garden pattern is referring to library documents, articles and analysis case studies. The result reveals that Persian garden was the main factor the bond between man and nature. But in the last century, this relationship is in trouble. It has a significant impact in reducing the adverse effects of urban air pollution, noise and etc as well. Nowadays, recreated pattern of Iranian gardens in urban green spaces not only keep Iranian identity for future generations but also, using the principles of sustainability can play an important role in sustainable development and quality space of a city.

Keywords: green open spaces, nature, Persian garden, urban sustainability

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Authors: Yixiao Tang

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The risks of adolescents being exposed to sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and participating in unsafe sexual practices are increasing. There is the necessity and significance of providing adolescents with appropriate sex education, considering they are at the stage of life exploration and risk-taking. However, in delivering sex education, the contents and instruction methods are usually discussed with contextual differences. In the Chinese context, the socially prejudiced perceptions of homosexuality can be attributed to the traditional Chinese Confucian philosophy, which has been dominating Chinese education for thousands of years. In China, students rarely receive adequate information about HIV, STDs, the use of contraceptives, pregnancies, and other sexually related topics in their formal education. Underlying the Confucian cultural background, this essay will analyze the variables that determine the subject matter of sex education for adolescents and then discuss how this cultural form affects social views and policy on sex education.

Keywords: homosexuality education, adolescent, China, education policy

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Authors: Xin Li

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The uncertainty and the complexity of the urban environment combining with the threat of climate change are contributing factors to the vulnerability in multiple-dimensions in Chinese megacities, especially in Shanghai. The urban area occupied high valuable technological infrastructure and density buildings is under the threats of climate change and can provide insufficient ecological service to remain the trade-off on urban sustainable development. Urban ecological-based adaptation (UEbA) combines practices and theoretical work and integrates ecological services into multiple-layers of urban environment planning in order to reduce the impact of the complexity and uncertainty. To understand and to respond to the challenges in the urban level, this paper considers Shanghai as the research objective. It is necessary that its urban adaptation strategies should be reflected and contain the concept and knowledge of EbA. In this paper, we firstly use software to illustrates the visualizing patterns and trends of UEBA research in the current 10 years. Specifically, Citespace software was used for interpreting the significant hubs, landmarks points of peer-reviewed literature on the context of ecological service research in recent 10 years. Secondly, 135 evidence-based EbA literature were reviewed for categorizing the methodologies and framework of evidence-based EbA by the systematic map protocol. Finally, a conceptual framework combined with culture, economic and social components was developed in order to assess the current adaptation strategies in Shanghai. This research founds that the key to reducing urban vulnerability does not only focus on co-benefit arguments but also should pay more attention to the concept of trade-off. This research concludes that the designed framework can provide key knowledge and indicates the essential gap as a valuable tool against climate variability in the process of urban adaptation in Shanghai.

Keywords: urban ecological-based adaptation, climate change, sustainable development, climate variability

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Authors: B. C. Biermann

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This in-depth exploration investigates the transformative integration of urban vibrancy into contemporary interior design through the strategic incorporation of vivid wall pieces. Bridging the gap between public dynamism and private tranquility, this study delves into the nuanced methodologies, creative processes, and profound impacts of this innovative approach. Drawing inspiration from street art's dynamic language and the timeless allure of natural beauty, these artworks serve as conduits, orchestrating a dialogue that challenges traditional boundaries and redefines the relationship between external chaos and internal sanctuaries. The fusion of urban vibrancy with contemporary interior design represents a paradigm shift, where the inherent dynamism of public spaces harmoniously converges with the curated tranquility of private environments. This paper aims to explore the underlying principles, creative processes, and transformative impacts of integrating vivid wall pieces as instruments for bringing the "outside in." Employing an innovative and meticulous methodology, street art elements are synthesized with the refined aesthetics of contemporary design. This delicate balance necessitates a nuanced understanding of both artistic realms, ensuring a synthesis that captures the essence of urban energy while seamlessly blending with the sophistication of modern interior design. The creative process involves a strategic selection of street art motifs, colors, and textures that resonate with the organic beauty found in natural landscapes, creating a symbiotic relationship between the grittiness of the streets and the elegance of interior spaces. This groundbreaking approach defies traditional boundaries by integrating dynamic street art into interior spaces, blurring the demarcation between external chaos and internal tranquility. Vivid wall pieces serve as dynamic focal points, transforming physical spaces and challenging conventional perceptions of where art belongs. This redefinition asserts that boundaries are fluid and meant to be transcended. Case studies illustrate the profound impact of integrating vivid wall pieces on the aesthetic appeal of interior spaces. Urban vibrancy revitalizes the atmosphere, infusing it with palpable energy that resonates with the vivacity of public spaces. The curated tranquility of private interiors coexists harmoniously with the dynamic visual language of street art, fostering a unique and evolving relationship between inhabitants and their living spaces. Emphasizing harmonious coexistence, the paper underscores the potential for a seamless dialogue between public urban spaces and private interiors. The integration of vivid wall pieces acts as a bridge rather than a dichotomy, merging the dynamism of street art with the curated elegance of contemporary design. This unique visual tapestry transcends traditional categorizations, fostering a symbiotic relationship between contrasting worlds. In conclusion, this paper posits that the integration of vivid wall pieces represents a transformative tool for contemporary interior design, challenging and redefining conventional boundaries. By strategically bringing the "outside in," this approach transforms interior spaces and heralds a paradigm shift in the relationship between urban aesthetics and contemporary living. The ongoing narrative between urban vibrancy and interior design creates spaces that reflect the dynamic and ever-evolving nature of the surrounding environment.

Keywords: Art Integration, Contemporary Interior Design, Interior Space Transformation, Vivid Wall Pieces

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Authors: Shahab Mirzaean Mahabadi, Elham Ebrahimi

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The urban development process in the historical urban context has predominately witnessed two main approaches: the first is the Preservation and conservation of the urban fabric and its value, and the second approach is urban renewal and redevelopment. The latter is generally supported by political and economic aspirations. These two approaches conflict evidently. The authors go through the history of urban planning in order to review the historical development of the mentioned approaches. In this article, various values which are inherent in the historical fabric of a city are illustrated by emphasizing on cultural identity and activity. In the following, it is tried to find an optimized plan which maximizes economic development and minimizes change in historical-cultural sites simultaneously. In the proposed model, regarding the decision maker’s intention, and the variety of functions, the selected zone is divided into a number of components. For each component, different alternatives can be assigned, namely, renovation, refurbishment, destruction, and change in function. The decision Variable in this model is to choose an alternative for each component. A set of decisions made upon all components results in a plan. A plan developed in this way can be evaluated based on the decision maker’s point of view. That is, interactions between selected alternatives can make a foundation for the assessment of urban context to design a historical-cultural landscape. A genetic algorithm (GA) approach is used to search for optimal future land use within the historical-culture landscape for a sustainable high-growth city.

Keywords: urban sustainability, green city, regeneration, genetic algorithm

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Authors: Yiqi Sun, Zhiyuan Zhang, Chenkun Ma

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Regeneration of outmoded urban forms and restorative environments are now recognized as major assets towards achieving sustainable development. Shanghai, like many Chinese cities, is now shifting from an agitated industrial past to more livable development schemes. Therefore, a sustainable approach to Shanghai development consists in turning industrial heritage into places with high potential for improving citizen’s daily life as regard to the three pillars of sustainability, namely: environment, economy, and society. As such, this study focuses on the Corniche in Xuhui West Bund district; a former industrial area converted into recreational public spaces in Xuhui West Bund. This area was the birthplace of the aviation industry of China, and many of the industrial features were preserved. Unused areas have been transformed into exhibition halls and green spaces, integrating some of the original industrial, architectural forms. Our case study investigates the effects of this approach associating urban regeneration with restorative design, as well as its impact on the surrounding neighborhood. Information extracted from visitors’ answers to a questionnaire survey; on-site systematic observation, counts, and measurements allowed us to assess the sustainability of this intervention in terms of accessibility, functionality, cultural and restorative qualities. In general, we found that cycling is not highly encouraged by the current design and level of connectivity, while visitors widely acknowledge the enhancement of cultural heritage resulting from the intervention. Moreover, recreational and restorative areas were found to have a very positive effect on local communities. Indeed, such an approach can provide valuable insights on how future interventions in Chinese major cities could take full advantage of existing assets in creating a more environmental, more livable, and culturally richer city.

Keywords: architectural heritage conservation, cultural urban identity, sustainability assessment, restorative environment, urban regeneration

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Authors: Saad Algharib, Jay Lee

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Urbanization is a complex phenomenon that occurs during the city’s development from one form to another. In other words, it is the process when the activities in the land use/land cover change from rural to urban. Since the oil exploration, Kuwait City has been growing rapidly due to its urbanization and population growth by both natural growth and inward immigration. The main objective of this study is to detect changes in urban land use/land cover and to examine the changing spatial patterns of urban growth in and around Kuwait City between 1989 and 2001. In addition, this study also evaluates the spatial patterns of the changes detected and how they can be related to the spatial configuration of the city. Recently, the use of remote sensing and geographic information systems became very useful and important tools in urban studies because of the integration of them can allow and provide the analysts and planners to detect, monitor and analyze the urban growth in a region effectively. Moreover, both planners and users can predict the trends of the growth in urban areas in the future with remotely sensed and GIS data because they can be effectively updated with required precision levels. In order to identify the new urban areas between 1989 and 2001, the study uses satellite images of the study area and remote sensing technology for classifying these images. Unsupervised classification method was applied to classify images to land use and land cover data layers. After finishing the unsupervised classification method, GIS overlay function was applied to the classified images for detecting the locations and patterns of the new urban areas that developed during the study period. GIS was also utilized to evaluate the distribution of the spatial patterns. For example, Moran’s index was applied for all data inputs to examine the urban growth distribution. Furthermore, this study assesses if the spatial patterns and process of these changes take place in a random fashion or with certain identifiable trends. During the study period, the result of this study indicates that the urban growth has occurred and expanded 10% from 32.4% in 1989 to 42.4% in 2001. Also, the results revealed that the largest increase of the urban area occurred between the major highways after the forth ring road from the center of Kuwait City. Moreover, the spatial distribution of urban growth occurred in cluster manners.

Keywords: geographic information systems, remote sensing, urbanization, urban growth

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Authors: Ioannis Kavouras, Eftychios Protopapadakis, Emmanuel Sardis, Anastasios Doulamis

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In this paper, we investigate the appropriateness and usability of three different free and open-source rendering tools for urban planning visualizations. The process involves the selection of a map area, the 3D rendering transformation, the addition of nature-based solution placement, and the evaluation and assessment of the suggested applied interventions. The manuscript uses a case study involved at Dilaveri Coast, Piraeus region, Greece. Research outcomes indicate that a Blender-OSM implementation is an appropriate tool capable of supporting high-fidelity urban planning, with quick and accurate visibility of related results for end users and involved in NBS transformations.

Keywords: urban planning, nature based solution, 3D gaming tools, game engine, free and open source

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Authors: William Feng, Qingyu Gao

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Despite the extensive discussions about Hong Kong’s sentiments towards the Chinese Mainland since the sovereignty transfer in 1997, there has been no large-scale empirical analysis of the changing attitudes in the mainstream media, which both reflect and shape sentiments in the society. To address this gap, the present study uses an optimised semantic-based automatic sentiment analysis method to examine a corpus of news about China from 1997 to 2020 in three main Chinese-language newspapers in Hong Kong, namely Apple Daily, Ming Pao, and Oriental Daily News. The analysis shows that although the Hong Kong press had a positive emotional tone toward China in general, the overall trend of sentiment was becoming increasingly negative. Meanwhile, the alignment and antagonism toward China have both increased, providing empirical evidence of attitudinal polarisation in the Hong Kong society. Specifically, Apple Daily’s depictions of China have become increasingly negative, though with some positive turns before 2008, whilst Oriental Daily News has consistently expressed more favourable sentiments. Ming Pao maintained an impartial stance toward China through an increased but balanced representation of positive and negative sentiments, with its subjectivity and sentiment intensity growing to an industry-standard level. The results provide new insights into the complexity of sentiments towards China in the Hong Kong press and media attitudes in general in terms of the “us” and “them” positioning by explicating the cross-newspaper and cross-period variations using an enhanced sentiment analysis method which incorporates sentiment-oriented and semantic role analysis techniques.

Keywords: media attitude, sentiment analysis, Hong Kong press, one country two systems

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Authors: Alvarez Magañini, María Victoria-Rubbi, Lautaro Nahuel

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At present, we are facing an unstable international context, conditioned by a relative decline of the US power, primarily in the economic sphere and, to a lesser extent, in the military sphere. This scenario of multipolarity creates tension and uncertainty in the peripheral countries when the issue of their foreign policy arises. This paper presents an analysis of the bilateral relations that were maintained by the Argentine Republic, a peripheral country, along with the United States and China during the period of 2005-2015 in matters of defense in order to identify the empirical consequences resulted from the Argentine actions. Based on the conceptual framework of Peripheral Realism, we analyze indicators related to the weapon trade, defense loans, joint exercises, and personnel training, among others. There will also be a comparative analysis of the conventional military forces of the two powers in question, United States and China. As a conclusion, the cost of having closer relations with China instead of the United States in the defense agenda has been clearly higher than the benefits obtained. The conclusions drawn are empirically aligned with the theoretical paradigm of peripheral realism. Although there are certain conceptual and methodological digressions, these conclusions they could be useful to update and adapt the theory to the current complex international scenario.

Keywords: China, United States, Argentine, peripheral country, peripheral realism

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Authors: Naveed Mazhar

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Our cities are known to have significant modifying effects on the local climate. The nature of the modifications depends on a range of physical variables, usually assessed at a wide range of spatial scales. Physical spatial dimensions, such as measured parameters of microclimates and their significant influence on human sensations, are known to have far-reaching effects on human thermal comfort and by corollary a force that influences human perception. Less scholarship has thrown light on the subjective dimension and insufficiently demonstrates a relational approach between human behavior and how it is affected by the phenomenon of urban microclimates. Other than identifying gaps in the most recent scholarship and providing future research opportunities, the scope of this study will help improve urban design guidelines and raise framework standards of socially responsive urban design. This study will help equip future professionals to ameliorate the effects of urban microclimates on participant’s perceptions enabling more frequent usage of the outdoor urban spaces. However, it is informed that the physical parameters of an outdoor open space determine psychological human adaptations and is a measure of the degree to which people are willing to adapt to their surroundings. A large amount of research is available related to urban microclimates. However, very few studies are focused on the elucidation of the critical factors influencing human perceptions of the microclimates in urban spatial configurations. Based on the most recent scholarship, this study has evaluated the role urban microclimatic conditions have in the formation of human perceptions and, by extension, behavioral patterns formulating in outdoor open spaces. Furthermore, this study also defines, in the backdrop of the current scholarly literature, the socio-spatial interdependence of behavioral patterns with relationship to the built urban fabric and its resultant correlation with human perception. A comprehensive review and analysis of the recent research conducted within the scope of the study will help frame gaps, issues, current research methods and future research opportunities.

Keywords: urban design, urban microcliamate, human perception, human behavioral patterns

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Authors: Mohammadreza Mojtahedi

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Rapid urbanization presents multifaceted challenges, including environmental degradation and public health concerns. As the inevitability of urban sprawl continues, it becomes essential to devise strategies to alleviate its pressures on natural ecosystems and elevate socio-economic benchmarks within cities. This research investigates urban agriculture's economic contributions, emphasizing its pivotal role in food provisioning and export potential. Adopting a descriptive-analytical approach, field survey data was primarily collected via questionnaires. The tool's validity was affirmed by expert opinions, and its reliability secured by achieving a Cronbach's alpha score over 0.70 from 30 preliminary questionnaires. The research encompasses Neishabour's populace of 264,375, extracting a sample size of 384 via Cochran's formula. Findings reveal the significance of urban agriculture in food supply and its potential for exports, underlined by a p-value < 0.05. Neishabour's urban farming can augment the export of organic commodities, fruits, vegetables, ornamental plants, and foster product branding. Moreover, it supports the provision of fresh produce, bolstering dietary quality. Urban agriculture further impacts urban development metrics—enhancing environmental quality, job opportunities, income levels, and aesthetics, while promoting rainwater utilization. Popular cultivations include peaches, Damask roses, and poultry, tailored to available spaces. Structural equation modeling indicates urban agriculture's overarching influence, accounting for a 56% variance, predominantly in food sufficiency and export proficiency.

Keywords: urban agriculture, food supply, export potential, urban development, environmental health, structural equation modeling

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Authors: Paul Anyaogu, E. U. M. Igbo

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This study examines the public view on child street hawking in Aba Urban, Abia State, Nigeria, its causes and effect on the child participant and society at large. The study tends to investigate the influence of socioeconomic status on child street hawking. The current situation reflects a chronic urban poverty, which disposed of parents/guardians to send their children and wards of school age to income yielding activities. A social survey research design was employed to select the respondents. A total of 1,108 questionnaires were administered to the respondents of 18 years and above and 1,038 were retrieved. Also, 24 in-depth interviews were conducted in the study area. The findings revealed that child street hawking is on the increase and a serious threat to social cohesion and national security. The study also revealed that poverty is a major cause of child street hawking. The study recommends that government should create job opportunities for urban dwellers, as well as provide social amenities and also put up poverty alleviation/eradication programmes for the people.

Keywords: Aba Urban, child street hawking, dangers, disposition, poverty

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Authors: Amir Hossein Ashari, Sedighe Erfan Manesh

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When investigating Iranian traditional and historical urban development, such as that seen in Shiraz, our attention is drawn to mosques as a focal point. Vakil Mosque in Shiraz is completely consistent, coordinated and integrated with the Bazaar, square and school. This is a significant example of traditional urban development. The position of the mosque in the most important urban joint near bazaar in a way that it is considered part of the bazaar structure are factors that have given it social, political, and economic roles in addition to the original religious role. These are among characteristics of sustainable development. The mosque has had an important effect in formation of the city because it is connected to main gates. In terms of access, the mosque has different main and peripheral access paths from different parts of the city. The courtyard of the mosque was located next to the main elements of the city so that it was considered as an urban open space, which made it a more active and more dynamic place. This study is carried out via library and field research with the purpose of finding strategies for taking advantage of useful features of the mosque in traditional urban development. These features include its role as a gathering center for people and city in sustainable urban development. Mosque can be used as a center for enhancing social interactions and creating a sense of association that leads to sustainable social space. These can act as a model which leads us to sustainable cities in terms of social and economic factors.

Keywords: mosque, traditional urban development, sustainable social space, Vakil Mosque, Shiraz

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Authors: Xiao Liulingzi

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It is important for using multi-sensory teaching in music learning. This article aims to provide knowledge in multi-sensory learning and teaching music in primary school. For primary school students, in addition to the training of basic knowledge and skills of music, students' sense of participation and creativity in music class are the key requirements, especially the flexibility and dynamics in music class, so that students can integrate into music and feel the music. The article explains the multi-sensory sense in music learning, the differences between multi-sensory music teaching and traditional music teaching, and music multi-sensory teaching in primary schools in China.

Keywords: multi-sensory, teaching practice, primary music classroom, China

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Authors: Michael Picard

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This proposal offers to shed light on the changing legal geography of the global waste economy. Global waste recycling has become a multi-billion-dollar industry. NASDAQ predicts the emergence of a worldwide 1,296G$ waste management market between 2017 and 2022. Underlining this evolution, a new generation of preferential waste-trade agreements has emerged in the Pacific. In the last decade, Japan has concluded a series of bilateral treaties with Asian countries, and most recently with China. An agreement between Tokyo and Beijing was formalized on 7 May 2008, which forged an economic partnership on waste transfer and mining. The agreement set up International Recycling Zones, where certified recycling plants in China process industrial waste imported from Japan. Under the joint venture, Chinese companies salvage the embedded value from Japanese industrial discards, reprocess them and send them back to Japanese manufacturers, such as Mitsubishi and Panasonic. This circular economy is designed to convert surplus garbage into surplus value. Ever since the opening of Sino-Japanese eco-parks, millions of tons of plastic and e-waste have been exported from Japan to China every year. Yet, quite unexpectedly, China has recently closed its waste market to imports, jeopardizing Japan’s billion-dollar exports to China. China notified the WTO that, by the end of 2017, it would no longer accept imports of plastics and certain metals. Given China’s share of Japanese waste exports, a complete closure of China’s market would require Japan to find new uses for its recyclable industrial trash generated domestically every year. It remains to be seen how China will effectively implement its ban on waste imports, considering the economic interests at stake. At this stage, what remains to be clarified is whether China's ban on waste imports will negatively affect the recycling trade between Japan and China. What is clear, though, is the rapid transformation in the legal geography of waste mining in East-Asia. For decades, East-Asian waste trade had been tied up in an ‘ecologically unequal exchange’ between the Japanese core and the Chinese periphery. This global unequal waste distribution could be measured by the Environmental Stringency Index, which revealed that waste regulation was 39% weaker in the Global South than in Japan. This explains why Japan could legally export its hazardous plastic and electronic discards to China. The asymmetric flow of hazardous waste between Japan and China carried the colonial heritage of international law. The legal geography of waste distribution was closely associated to the imperial construction of an ecological trade imbalance between the Japanese source and the Chinese sink. Thus, China’s recent decision to ban hazardous waste imports is a sign of a broader ecological shift. As a global economic superpower, China announced to the world it would no longer be the planet’s junkyard. The policy change will have profound consequences on the global circulation of waste, re-routing global waste towards countries south of China, such as Vietnam and Malaysia. By the time the Berlin Conference takes place in May 2018, the presentation will be able to assess more accurately the effect of the Chinese ban on the transboundary movement of waste in Asia.

Keywords: Asia, ecological unequal exchange, global waste trade, legal geography

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Authors: Hsiao-Wen Wang

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The split-share structure reform in China represents one of the most significant milestones in the evolution of the capital market. With the goal of converting non-tradable shares into tradable shares, the reform laid the foundation and supported the development of full-scale privatization. This study explores China’s split-share structure reform and its impact on statutory audit fees. This study finds that auditors earn a significant statutory audit fee premium after the split-share structure reform. The Big 4 auditors who provide better audit quality receive higher statutory audit fee premium than non-Big 4 auditors after the share reform, which is attributable to their brand reputation, rather than the relative market dominance.

Keywords: chinese split-share structure reform, statutory audit fees, big-4 auditors, corporate governance

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Authors: Lim Poh Im

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This paper examines the current strategic and planning issues in the provision of affordable housing in urban centres in Malaysia from the perspective of sustainability. Sustainability here refers to social sustainability such as the need to address urban poverty and ensure better quality of life; economic sustainability in ensuring that the financial mechanisms are healthy and stable in the long-run, and to a lesser extent, environmental sustainability in reducing pollution related problems and building footprint. The Malaysian affordable housing sector has undergone tremendous transformations since the sixties, transcending from the earlier social housing catering to the poorer strata of the society, to the current state of housing woes plaguing the young urban middle class. The increase in urban land prices and construction costs, coupled with rampant property speculative and manipulative activities have resulted in situations of housing that are largely unaffordable even to the middle income sector of the urban populations. To overcome such scenario, the public as well as private sectors in the recent years, have came up with various intermediate, as well as medium-term policies aimed to curb the burning housing needs of the urban populations. Key strategies include financial intervention in regulating the interests rates, imposing property gain taxes; loosening the requirement for density and other planning requirements, faster approval of projects, compulsory contribution from developers, etc. Some of the policies are commendable, while others are ad-hoc by nature, and are not able to resolve the long-term socio-economic challenges. This paper discusses and examines the issues from the ‘sustainability’ perspective, focusing on key fiscal, land use and planning policies, as well as the more subtle (but important) political and institutional factors shaping the provision of mass housing for the urban populations in Malaysia.

Keywords: affordable housing, urban housing, sustainable housing, planning for urban housing

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Authors: Hsiao-Tien Pao, Yi-Ying Li, Hsin-Chia Fu

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This paper addressed the impacts of energy consumption, economic growth, financial development, and population size on environmental degradation using grey relational analysis (GRA) for China, where foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows is the proxy variable for financial development. The more recent historical data during the period 2004–2011 are used, because the use of very old data for data analysis may not be suitable for rapidly developing countries. The results of the GRA indicate that the linkage effects of energy consumption–emissions and GDP–emissions are ranked first and second, respectively. These reveal that energy consumption and economic growth are strongly correlated with emissions. Higher economic growth requires more energy consumption and increasing environmental pollution. Likewise, more efficient energy use needs a higher level of economic development. Therefore, policies to improve energy efficiency and create a low-carbon economy can reduce emissions without hurting economic growth. The finding of FDI–emissions linkage is ranked third. This indicates that China do not apply weak environmental regulations to attract inward FDI. Furthermore, China’s government in attracting inward FDI should strengthen environmental policy. The finding of population–emissions linkage effect is ranked fourth, implying that population size does not directly affect CO₂ emissions, even though China has the world’s largest population, and Chinese people are very economical use of energy-related products. Overall, the energy conservation, improving efficiency, managing demand, and financial development, which aim at curtailing waste of energy, reducing both energy consumption and emissions, and without loss of the country’s competitiveness, can be adopted for developing economies. The GRA is one of the best way to use a lower data to build a dynamic analysis model.

Keywords: China, CO₂ emissions, foreign direct investment, grey relational analysis

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Authors: Gayatri Kanwar

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The purpose of this research paper is to explore the power of myth in changing human lives; it establishes patterns in the human psyche, affects the way of thinking, as myths unveil various subjects, ideas, and challenges. Through mythological stories one comes to understand the images behind the emotions and feelings, they influence him as it changes his thought patterns, their therapeutic sets the individual on the path of healing and transforms human lives. Every civilization in the olden times had a vast source of myths which they lived by. They were not ordinary stories of everyday life, but exemplary cases narrated through oral traditions in a sacred manner revealed the 'way to live life'. The mythical stories have a spiritual touch which brought him to the acceptance of suffering or finding a solution to his life problems. In modern times, the significance of the age old myth has lost their touch. Each one of us bears countless stories inside ourselves of our own lives and all its happenings. Therefore, each being is a natural narrator. Everybody tells stories about their lives; hence, one tends to know oneself as well as seeks understanding of others through them. When one remembers their stories they speak in narratives. As stated by Jung, these narratives grow into a personal mythology one lives by. Nonetheless, there are times when one becomes stuck in their own stories or myths. Hence, mythology can change one’s perception and can open pathways to other ways of discovering, feeling and experiencing one’s lives.

Keywords: Power of Myths, Significance of myths in modern times, Transforming human lives, Benefits to Society

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Authors: Tommy Lo

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This paper presented the changes in temperature and air ventilation of an inner urban area at different development stages during 2002 to 2012 and the high-rise buildings to be built in 2018. 3D simulation models ENVI-met and Autodesk Falcon were used. The results indicated that replacement of old residence buildings or open space with high-rise buildings will increase the air temperature of inner urban area; the air temperature at the pedestrian level will increase more than that at the upper levels. The temperature of the inner street in future will get higher than that in 2002, 2008 and 2012. It is attributed that heat is trapped in the street canyons as the air permeability at the pedestrian levels is lower. High-rise buildings with massive podium will further reduce the air ventilation in that area. In addition, sufficient separations among buildings is essential in design. High-rise buildings aligned along the waterfront will obstruct the wind flowing into the inner urban area and accelerate the temperature increase both in daytime and night time.

Keywords: micro-climate change, urban design, ENVI-met, construction engineering

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Authors: Isaac Kofi Mensah, Jianing Mi, Feng Cheng

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This research paper seeks to investigate the factors determining the continuance usage of online mobile payment applications among WECHAT users in China. Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and the Diffusion of Innovation (DOI) theory would both be applied as the theoretical foundation for this study. A developed instrument would be administered to the targeted sample of 1000 WECHAT Users in the City of Harbin, China, through an online questionnaire administration platform. Factors such as perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, perceived service quality, social influence, trust in the internet, internet self-efficacy, relative advantage, compatibility, and complexity would be explored to determine its significant impact on the continuance intention to use mobile payment apps. This study is at the development and implementation stage. The successful completion of this research article would not only provide an insightful understanding of the factors influencing the decision of WECHAT users in China to use mobile payment applications but also enrich the e-commerce adoption literature.

Keywords: diffusion of innovation (DOI), e-commerce, mobile payment, technology acceptance model (TAM), WECHAT

Procedia PDF Downloads 192

Authors: Sara Bouzekri, Said Madani

Abstract:

In many Mediterranean cities such as Algiers, the human activity, the strong mobility the urban sprawl, the air pollution, the problems of waste management, the wasting of the resources and the degradation of the environment weaken in an unquestionable way the farming. The question of sustainable action vis-a-vis these threats arises then in order to maintain a level of desired local development. The methodology is based on a multi-criteria method based on the AFOM diagnosis, which classifies agricultural strength indicators and those of threat, according to an analytical approach. In a sustainable development perspective, it will be appropriate to link the threat factors of the case study with the factors of climate change to see their impact on the future of agriculture. This will be accompanied by a SWOT analysis, which crosses the most significant criteria to arrive at the necessary recommendations based on future projects for urban agriculture.

Keywords: Algiers, environment, urban agriculture, threat factors

Procedia PDF Downloads 299

Authors: Yan Wang, Yasushi Asami, Yukio Sadahiro

Abstract:

In urban context, urban nodes such as amenity or hazard will certainly affect house price, while classic hedonic analysis will employ distance variables measured from each urban nodes. However, effects from distances to facilities on house prices generally do not represent the true price of the property. Distance variables measured on the same surface are suffering a problem called multicollinearity, which is usually presented as magnitude variance and mean value in regression, errors caused by instability. In this paper, we provided a theoretical framework to identify and gather the data with less bias, and also provided specific sampling method on locating the sample region to avoid the spatial multicollinerity problem in three distance variable’s case.

Keywords: hedonic regression, urban node, distance variables, multicollinerity, collinearity

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Authors: Lei Danyang, Lu Jialiang

Abstract:

As nightlife is getting richer in urban area, urban nightscape has become an increasingly important part of the urban landscape. Understanding urban nightscape from the perspec­tive of pedestrian perception is very important to improve the livability and walkability of a city. The purpose of this study is to analyze the nightscapes of two different urban forms. The research methods are literature investigation and field investigation. From analyzing the lighting, sensory ex­perience, and night activities, this research studies the two streets, Pei Ho Street and Yen Chow Street West in Sham Shui Po. Results revealed that the two streets are on the two extremes of the two characters of the night and a better balance needs to be found between them. Because of the different land usage and stakeholders, the two streets should play different roles in the nightscape, so their balance points are also different. On the one hand, Pei Ho Street, which has a strong commercial atmos­phere, should not only retain its vitality and diversity but also ensure its function of relaxation at night; on the other hand, in Yen Chow Street West, it is necessary to develop its potential of reconnecting people with the darkness of the night while ensur­ing its safety. These findings may not only provide policymak­ers with information to help them improve the nightscape and livability of the Sham Shui Po area but also help bridge the gap between research and design. In the future, more attention should be paid to pedestrian preference and nightscape perception of vulnerable groups.

Keywords: Hong Kong, pedestrian perception, Sham Shui Po, urban form, urban nightscape

Procedia PDF Downloads 144

Authors: Jianjia Wang, Tong Yu, Haoran Zhu, Kun Liu, Jinwei Hao

Abstract:

The underlying pattern in the modern city is agglomeration. To some degree, the distribution of urban spatial density can be used to describe the status of this assemblage. There are three intrinsic characteristics to measure urban spatial density, namely, Floor Area Ratio (FAR), Building Coverage Ratio (BCR), and Average Storeys (AS). But the underlying mechanism that contributes to these quantities is still vague in the statistical urban study. In this paper, we explore the corresponding extrinsic factors related to spatial density. These factors can further provide the potential influence on the intrinsic quantities. Here, we take Shanghai Inner Ring Area and Manhattan in New York as examples to analyse the potential impacts on urban spatial density with six selected extrinsic elements. Ebery single factor presents the correlation to the spatial distribution, but the overall global impact of all is still implicit. To handle this issue, we attempt to develop the Boltzmann statistical model to explicitly explain the mechanism behind that. We derive a corresponding novel quantity, called capacity, to measure the global effects of all other extrinsic factors to the three intrinsic characteristics. The distribution of capacity presents a similar pattern to real measurements. This reveals the nonlinear influence on the multi-factor relations to the urban spatial density in agglomeration.

Keywords: urban spatial density, Boltzmann statistics, multi-factor correlation, spatial distribution

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Authors: U. Tumaini, J. Msuya

Abstract:

Food insecurity is a worrying challenge worldwide with sub-Saharan Africa including Tanzania being the most affected. Although factors that influence household food access security status and ways of coping with such factors have been examined, little has been reported on how these coping strategies vary along the urban-rural continuum especially in medium-sized towns. The purpose of this study was to identify food insecurity coping strategies employed by households and assess whether they are similar along the urban-rural continuum. The study was cross-sectional in design whereby a random sample of 279 households was interviewed using structured questionnaire. Data were analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) Version 20 software. It was revealed that the proportion of households relying on less preferred and quality foods, eating fewer meals per day, undertaking work for food or money, performing farm and off-farm activities, and selling fall back assets was higher in rural settings compared to urban and peri-urban areas. Similarly, more households in urban and peri-urban areas cope with food access insecurity by having strict food budgets compared to those in rural households (p ≤ 0.001). The study concludes that food insecurity coping strategies vary significantly from one spatial entity to another. It is thereby recommended that poor, particularly rural households should be supported to diversify their income-generating activities not only for food security purposes during times of food shortage but also as businesses aimed at increasing their household incomes.

Keywords: food coping strategies, household food insecurity, medium-sized towns, urban-rural continuum

Procedia PDF Downloads 328

Authors: Signe Voltelen, Kristin Astrup Aas

Abstract:

In the Scandinavian cities, there is a raised focus on the potential of using urban agriculture in city development, both as a tool for handling challenges provoked by climate change and to develop new, and stronger social communities. During the last couple of years, Copenhagen has experienced an increase in extreme weather resulting in dramatical floods with huge humanitarian and economic consequences. As an approach for climate adaption and mitigation the government has made a strategy for changing a significant amount of the cities hard surfaces into green and absorbing surfaces. Including urban farms and gardens. In close collaboration with the municipality, it has been possible to implement citizen-run gardens under the different concepts climate adaption and food literacy. Like other European cities, Copenhagen has a historical tradition of small-scale farming for food security inside the city, and in the outskirts of the urban area. Lately, this tradition has gotten new relevance, and new initiatives are popping up. In addition to providing local food, the urban farm becomes a semi-public, semi-private room that invites to community and integration across ethnicity, social background, and age. The direct interaction in the process of farming creates a connection between the urban and the rural and are educational for people growing up and living their whole life in the dense city. In the paper, three local example models of urban agriculture are presented, and the experiences of their potential as tools for developing social and environmental sustainable cities is examined.

Keywords: city development, climate mitigation, community building, urban agriculture, urban- rural transition, food security

Procedia PDF Downloads 283