The study of urbanization in Southeast Asia has been a growing field of research over the past decades. The Routledge Handbook of Urbanization in Southeast Asia offers a collection of the major streams and themes in the studies of the cities in the region. A focus on the urbanization process rather than the city as an object opens the topic more broadly to bring together different perspectives. This timely handbook presents these diverse views to build a clearer understanding of theoretical contributions of urban studies in Southeast Asia and to provide a complete collection of scholarly works that are thematically structured and a useful tool for teaching urbanization in Southeast Asia.

Following the introduction by the editor, the handbook is structured along central, emerging themes. It contains six parts, which are each introduced by the editor:

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• Theorizing Urbanization in Southeast Asia
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• Migration, Networks and Identities
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• Development and Discontents
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• Environmental Governance
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• The Social Production of the Urban Fabric
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• Social Change and Alternative Development

This handbook will be an essential reference work for scholars interested in Urban Studies, cities and urbanization in Asia, and Southeast Asian Studies.

About the Author

Rita Padawangi is a Senior Lecturer at the Singapore University of Social Sciences. Her research interests and projects cover the sociology of architecture, participatory urban development and social movements, with particular emphasis in Southeast Asia. She is also a coordinator of the Southeast Asia Neighborhoods Network, an initiative that involves urban studies scholars on Southeast Asia from various disciplines to combine field research, teaching and civic engagement on cities and their neighborhoods in the region.

Reviews

This collection of essays represents a major contribution in the understanding of the contemporary urbanization process in the diverse region of Southeast Asia. It is significant because its shifts the focus from the economic role of urban centers to a concern with the "urban condition" recognizing the human challenges of the of urban life which is now a reality for the majority of Southeast Asians. Its interdisciplinary approach encompasses themes such as patterns and the production of urban space, processes of the urban transition (including migration), development discontents, environmental governance and alternative urban development strategies. This collection frames a new debate about urbanization that is rewriting of the narrative of Southeast Asian urbanization.

Terry McGee, Professor Emeritus, University of British Columbia, Canada

Book Information
ISBN 9781032094557
Author Rita Padawangi
Format Paperback
Page Count 540
Imprint Routledge
Publisher Taylor & Francis Ltd
Weight(grams) 997g