Urban transformation towards sustainability in Asian cities

Abstract

According to UN projections, cities will be home to 60% of the world’s population by 2030 (UN 2011a, b, c). The IEA estimates that cities will be responsible for approximately 73% of the world’s energy use by 2030 (IEA 2008), compared to about two-thirds of the world’s energy being consumed in cities today. Cities are likely to play an increasingly significant role in improving energy efficiency and decreasing emissions, and constitute platforms of vital importance with respect to the development of global culture, economy, innovation, investment, and partnership. It can therefore be said that cities are the main engines of social, economic, and technological development. The geographical distribution of urban populations will continue to change, as the regions where the changes are occurring are likely to shift in the future. Moreover, although urbanisation in the first half of the twentieth century was concentrated predominantly in Europe (IEA 2008), recent trends indicate an unprecedented wave of urbanisation within the boundaries of Asia.