Journal of Regional and City Planning

The Polarization of Orientation Amongst The Local on Cultural Land Utilization for Ecotourism Development in Ranah Minang Sumatera Barat

2022-12-30T12:33:23+07:00

The dynamics of problems related to land occupation, ownership of cultural land, and agricultural land in Indonesia, especially in Ranah Minang, West Sumatra, have become so serious they need to be solved first before trying to achieve the ideals of sustainable development. The research methodology used in this study was a phenomenological approach. The data were analyzed through the One Score-One Criterion Scoring System. The mean values obtained for the phenomenon of cultural land-use patterns in the region were very good in many aspects. On the other hand, the dynamics of stakeholder perceptions, motivations, and preferences did not indicate any directional bias or attitudinal scale among actors over the use of cultural land. This would be different if observed in the dynamics of perception and ecotourism motivation by generating inferences of the direction polarization and attitude scale among actors. The strategy for this purpose was to optimize various aspects of land-use patterns for ecotourism development: 1) strengthening the function of cultural lands as precious treasure; 2) creating a communal business field; 3) optimizing the productivity of agricultural commodities as added value for land users; 4) establishing no-building zones in certain strategic areas as well as providing incentives to land users.

Non-growers’ perspectives on home gardening: Exploring for future attraction

2023-01-23T22:59:49+07:00

To achieve urban sustainability, growing vegetables at home is a practical necessity. Understanding why people are hesitant to participate in urban vegetable growing is vital to reviving this practice. An in-person survey was conducted among 244 people who do not garden at home in Sri Lanka’s Colombo district to determine their perception of not gardening. Analysis was performed with exploratory factor analysis followed by binary logistic regression. According to the study, unrealized benefits and knowledge and experience challenges cause demotivation. The respondents had favorable attitudes toward urban agriculture; their interests appear to be aligned with urban agriculture and motivation should be able to entice them. The most viable way to attract them and ensure that they reap the economic and social benefits of urban home gardening appears to be to provide knowledge and hands-on experience. Younger people, private sector workers, and single homeowners are specific population segments that can be targeted for this motivation effort. The analysis further revealed that agriculture demonstrations in an urban setting inspire non-growers to practice urban agriculture.

Urban Transformation and Associated Emerging Urban Forms: An Examination of Physical Density from Planning Interventions Perspective

2023-01-12T16:03:05+07:00

Rapid urbanization frequently results in unanticipated morphological traits that could have multifaceted consequences, especially in the urban physical transformation of cities in developing countries. This study aimed to examine these spatial transformation events and identify the related emergent urban forms in the morphogenesis of Dire Dawa, Ethiopia from the perspective of plan-led and spontaneous developments. The researchers conducted a thorough on-site investigation to gather the necessary physical information and supplemented it with a desk review and focus group discussion. We utilized the Spacematrix software to examine the data and pinpoint the evolving urban structures from different time periods. Overall, the research demonstrated that point-type low-rise development dominated organically developed sites, whereas plan-driven developments were dominated by block-type low-rise and block-type midrise forms. Furthermore, except for outlying areas, there has been a rising trend in the floor space index and spatial coverage patterns over the course of the city’s morphological eras. This may indicate a growing concern for space efficiency and sustainable development. The density of the street network in organically developed portions, on the other hand, was greater than that in formally planned areas. This shows the relevance of considering the concept behind organic development in planning and designing interventions besides the formal western planning philosophy.

Planning With ‘Three-World Structures’: A Comparative Study of Settlements in Mountain Villages

2023-02-10T14:07:11+07:00

Mountain peoples’ basic understanding of the world is based on binary space concepts such as top-down, left-right, east-west, sacred-profane, and others, which form a threefold division structure that places people in the middle of their environment. Mountain settlements in several places in Indonesia that still emphasize this primitive understanding or classification are interesting to study in terms of their similarities and differences. This study aimed to compare three cases of settlements, namely Singengu Mandailing village in North Sumatra, Tenganan village in Bali, and Kampung Naga in West Java in terms of their understanding of binary space concepts that constitute this threefold division structure and their application in the planning of the community’s living environment. This study is a theoretical dialogue between the concept of binary space (bincar-bonom) in Singengu Mandailing village and two other local concepts that are similar, namely kangin-kauh (sunrise-sunset) in Tenganan village and timur-barat (east-west) in Kampung Naga. This qualitative study used data from the literature and the analysis was carried out following a qualitative descriptive research procedure. Based on previous research, each case has its own data, which the authors used to uncover differences and similarities in the binary space concepts from the three study cases. The authors employed a spatial matrix image to depict the position of each settlement element in the three cases, allowing the similarities and differences to be seen. The findings of the study show that Tenganan, Kampung Naga, and Singengu Mandailing have striking similarities in terms of addressing the middle point, namely as an axis or axis point. The difference lies in the filler elements and their value. The mountain village of Bali interprets the sacred-profane binary concept similarly to the mountain village of Mandailing, except in terms of the direction of sunrise-sunset. The settlement arrangement of Tenganan Pageringsingan village at the macro, meso, and micro scales defines the direction of the sunrise and sunset as a profane direction, whereas in Singengu village, the direction of the sunrise is a sacred direction and the direction of the sunset is a profane direction. As for the Singengu and the Naga communities, they understand the middle point to be related to the direction of the sunrise and sunset in opposite directions, so there are differences in treating certain artifacts, especially cemeteries. The binary space that influences the process of forming rural settlements in the mountains can be: (1) the physical setting due to natural/geographical conditions, (2) the cosmology and belief systems adhered to, and (3) the people’s socio-cultural life. Rural settlements in the mountains can also be said to emphasize the natural aspect of the mountains with all of their spatial shaping potential. The study’s findings further show that the local people’s understanding of their living space patterns has been carried over from previous generations to the present day. This suggests that settlement planning for local communities, particularly in mountainous areas where hereditary beliefs still exist, must be approached in a specific way. In future planning projects, different locations require different planning approaches.

Urbanization, Land Scarcity and Urban Farmers’ Mobility: Evidence from Ghana

2023-02-10T10:11:19+07:00

This study assessed how urban farmers survive land scarcity challenges in the midst of rapid urbanization in a developing country such as Ghana. As land scarcity becomes more pronounced in urban areas, farmers struggle to find a place to farm within the urban space but the numerous opportunities that come with farming within the city still inspires them to find spare lands and open spaces in the city to farm. Therefore, the study examined the factors that influence urban farmers’ mobility with respect to farmland in the midst of intense land scarcity. Reponses from 251 farmers were analyzed with both Tobit and Ordinary Least Squares (OLS). Land situation factors such as land ownership type, land scarcity challenges, and size of land were found to be associated with farmers’ mobility. Farm characteristics such as level of market benefits, intensity of vegetable production, and level of technology were also associated with farmers’ mobility within the city. Personal characteristics such as age, level of education, level of farmer engagement, and marital status also played a role. This implies urban farming sustainability requires conscious government efforts to include urban agriculture in its spatial planning decisions since there are numerous opportunities for farming within the city.

The Effects of Homeownership on Social Capital

2023-02-10T14:12:26+07:00

Access to homeownership is becoming increasingly limited due to various factors related to a decline in social capital, including sense of stability, security, and community attachment. This study examined the relationship between homeownership and social capital in Indonesia at the household level while addressing endogeneity and heterogeneity issues. This research used panel data from the IFLS-4 and IFLS-5 surveys, employing a fixed-effect regression model with robust standard error and instrumental variables. The study found that homeownership significantly impacts social capital in Indonesia. Furthermore, the effect of homeownership differs between Java and non-Java households and between urban and rural households. The study also identified other significant influencing factors of social capital, such as household size and monthly income. It is concluded that policies aimed at increasing homeownership may positively impact social capital in Indonesia. This research has provided evidence of the heterogeneity of the effect of homeownership on social capital based on geographical location and household characteristics, suggesting that policymakers should develop policies to meet the specific needs of each group to maximize the positive impact of homeownership on social capital.