Publications

Rapid urbanization in the Global South poses challenges to ecological integrity, cultural heritage, and equitable access to green infrastructure. This study evaluates the effectiveness of recent green infrastructure projects in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, including flagship parks and upgraded road corridors, through the lens of the Urban Nature Futures...

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its accompanying 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provides as a comprehensive framework to address the world's most pressing sustainability challenges. However, with the 2030 deadline fast-approaching, progress on the SDGs remains woefully insufficient. At present, the world is only on track to...

Over the past 2 decades, the Vietnamese Mekong Delta has undergone significant changes in flooding patterns and environmental flow, driven by climate change and human activities. This study investigates these transitions, focusing on the impacts of rising temperatures, altered precipitation patterns, and extensive dam construction upstream. Using...

The water budget in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta (VMD) depends heavily on rainfall which play crucial roles in supporting agriculture, aquaculture, and local livelihoods. This study evaluated rainfall trends across the VMD from 1978 to 2022, revealing significant spatial and seasonal variations. While a few inland stations showed marginal increases...

The global food system confronts critical challenges, including food insecurity, small-scale producer vulnerability, and environmental degradation. While locally led initiatives emerge as potential solutions, they face obstacles, such as participant bias and scaling limitations. This study analyzes 157 international and 91 Japanese locally led food...

Local-level follow-up and review (FUR) is essential for realising the 2030 Agenda, given municipalities' crucial role in delivering SDG targets. However, Japanese municipalities face significant challenges, including capacity constraints, demographic shifts, financial limitations, and the absence of mandatory national SDG directives. This policy...

Climate-induced migration has emerged as a major concern in India and Bangladesh, due to their geographical vulnerability and socioeconomic conditions. Coastal areas, such as the Sundarbans and the Ganges–Brahmaputra Delta, face relentless threats due to rising sea levels, cyclones, and floods. These factors force millions to relocate, resulting in...

Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) depends on well-designed and implemented follow-up and review (FUR) processes to monitor progress, review policies, and adjust strategies. However, despite the critical role cities play in implementing the SDGs, they lack official recognition in the FUR architecture of the 2030 Agenda. To engage...

This presentation examines how Japanese municipalities are responding to long-term population decline, contrasting Yubari City’s failed growth-centric approach with Shimokawa Town’s efforts to ‘shrink gracefully.’ It highlights how local governments can move beyond pro-growth planning by adopting sustainable, community-oriented strategies better...

This study examines the geoheritage of the Malwa region in Punjab, India, identifying and eval-uating potential sites based on their sceintific, educational, economic, cultural, and touristic sig-nificance. Through comprehensive mapping and quantitative assessment methodologies, this research categorizes these sites into high, medium, and low...