APRU on AP, AFP, Yahoo! Finance, Morningstar, BusinessWire, NBC & FOX channels, NHA & 200+ pieces of coverage: APRU launches The Routledge Handbook of Sustainable Cities and Landscapes in the Pacific Rim
February 24, 2022
01

APRU (the Association of Pacific Rim Universities) is proud to announce the launch of The Routledge Handbook of Sustainable Cities and Landscapes in the Pacific Rim. The publication is the result of a multi-year collaboration of scholars through the APRU Sustainable Cities & Landscape (SCL) Program’s activities and engagement within its global network 

 

The handbook addresses a growing list of challenges faced by regions and cities in the Pacific Rim that are fundamental to sustainable development policies and planning practices. These include the connection between cities and surrounding landscapes, the persistence of environmental and development inequities, and the growing impacts of global climate change. This handbook emphasizes the importance of place-based approaches and collaborative, context-specific policies that are specific to the areas where they are being implemented. 

 

The publication features a wealth of case studies from the Pacific Rim, enabling a comparative lens and a comprehensive scope to examine innovative policy capacity. The rich cases from the Asia Pacific region support cities in overcoming their need for research and evidence-based actions as highlighted in another report: “The Future of Asian & Pacific Cities published by UN ESCAP and UN-Habitat.” 

 

Contributions to the book were made by 128 scholars based in the USA, Philippines, New Zealand, Japan, Australia, Indonesia, Taiwan, China, South Korea, Israel, Hong Kong, Canada, Thailand, Belgium, Indonesia, India, and Singapore 

 

“This handbook is very much needed, given that much of the scholarly output on sustainable development to date has been developed in Europe and focuses on settings external to the fastest growing areas of the world, such as the coastal regions of the Asia Pacific,” said Dr. Christopher Tremewan, Secretary General of APRU. 

 

This book appeals to scholars, researchers, and students in such disciplines or fields as landscape architecture, architecture, planning, public policy, law, urban studies, geography, environmental science, and area studies,” he added. 

 

The APRU Sustainable Cities & Landscape (SCL) Program was established in 2016, hosted by the University of Oregon, and supported by academic experts from 17 APRU member universities. This strong interconnection allows the SCL to draw on the strengths of differences across the region, using different viewpoints to solve urban and sustainability challenges that transcend city and country boundaries in the Pacific Rim.  

 

The development of the handbook’s content was supported by the annual SCL conferences in 2018, 2019, and 2020. The conferences facilitated collaboration among contributors and helped maintain the momentum to keep the work on track. The safeguarding of momentum has been extremely important, given that much of the book’s content-development period took place after the pandemic had started.  

 

Multiple meetings of the SCL steering committee helped shape the handbook’s scope and supported the important activities that have ensured its quality. 

 

Leaders of the SCL Working groups were invited and engaged to invite contributors and circulate the call. Some chapters emerged from applied local design workshops with students and some were refined by the SCL-led online workshops that prepared participants for the online conference hosted after the pandemic had started. 

 

The SCL Sydney conference in 2019 introduced and foregrounded the significant role of indigenous communities in elevating multi-generational and deeply place-based knowledge and working to increase advocacy and representation among historically marginalized stakeholders.  

 

Edited by Yizhao Yang of the University of Oregon, and Anne Taufen of the University of Washington, the handbook targets policymakers and public professionals who require a focused, yet complex understanding of the issues involved in climate action; elected leaders and local officials who are often striving to make connections among the relevant issues and identify opportunities for strategic collaboration; and regional stakeholders who want to see their challenges and successes represented in the studies and analysis that help inform policy decisions 

 

The handbook offers rich teaching materials for classes focusing on sustainable cities and landscapes in fields of urban planning, landscape architecture, and public administration.  

 

It bridges academic and policy communities by illustrating the potential for professional development that is scientifically based, integrated across disciplines, and practical for implementation. 

 

“The Routledge Handbook of Sustainable Cities and Landscapes in the Pacific Rim is a significant reference volume appealing to readers across the academic and practitioner spectrum. We are delighted to have collaborated with APRU on the publication of this important project” said Grace Harrison, Routledge Editor for Environment, Sustainability & Product Design. 

 

The book’s editors and section editors have meticulously curated contributions from an international range of researchers investigating key issues facing regions and cities in the Pacific Rim,” she added. 

 

The Routledge Handbook of Sustainable Cities and Landscapes in the Pacific Rim is available for pre-order and will ship after March 9, 2022.  

 

Please see details here. 

 

Contacts 

Jack Ng, Director, Communications, APRU
[email protected] 

Related Articles
Global Climate Change Simulation Offers USC Students New Perspectives on Worldwide Fight
more
UO Students Co-host APRU Global Climate Change Simulation
more
APRU Sustainable Cities & Landscapes Conference Helps Shifting Toward Well-prepared and Resilient Urban Societies
more
The APRU Climate Change Simulation- Preparing Students to Lobby Leaders for Vital Actions
more
APRU on The Fiji Times: FNU Students Join Global Climate Change Simulation
more
APRU Global Sustainability: Waste & The City Seminar Course Helps Graduate Students Shape Green Leadership Concepts
more
APRU on SJTU News: Shanghai Jiao Tong University Successfully Held the "Resilient Urban Landscape – APRU SCL Webinar & Landscape Architects’Forum"
more
APRU on Bloomberg: APRU Launches The Routledge Handbook of Sustainable Cities and Landscapes in the Pacific Rim
more
APRU on The Jakarta Post: A Mounting Battle that Starts at Home
more
APRU Student Global Climate Change Simulation Tackling Climate Change Head-On
more
APRU on SCMP: Banning Plastic Cutlery Is Only One Part of Hong Kong’s Sustainability Challenge
more
APRU on Associated Press: APRU partners with United Nations ESCAP on The Asia Pacific Mayors Academy to Empower Mayors as Regional Leaders for Sustainability with Training Tailored to Unique Urban Challenges for a More Resilient Future
more
4th SCL Conference mastered shift from face-to-face to virtual, new survey shows
more
Civic Resilience and the COVID-19 Crisis (Part 1 of 2)
more
Civic Resilience and the COVID-19 Crisis (Part 2 of 2)
more
Asia-Pacific Mayors Academy concludes first cohort
more
APRU Sustainable Cities & Landscapes Experts Develop Curricula for Asia Pacific Mayors’ Academy
more
UNU-IAS and Partners Launch Asia-Pacific Mayors Academy
more
Cities and Refugees – 2019 Global Student Design Ideas Competition
more
Sustainable Urban Development Mayors Fellowship
more
APRU Inaugural Sustainable Cities and Landscapes Design Field School
more
1
21