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Interest in nature-based approaches for climate change adaptation in cities is growing. Whilst there is a growing field of scholarship in a European and North America setting, research on the policy and governance of urban greenspace for climate adaptation in subtropical Asia is limited. Given the different development patterns, environmental characteristics and governance arrangements in subtropical cities, plus their comparatively large population and high climate risk, this is a significant knowledge gap. In response, this paper evaluates competences – skill sets, capabilities, and supporting policy and legislation – to enact adaptation through greenspace across different governance contexts; and assesses how international rhetoric on nature-based adaptation becomes localised to subtropical Asian city settings. We conduct interviews with stakeholders, plus review of relevant policy and city-specific research, for three cities with different governance and development contexts: Hanoi (Vietnam); Taipei (Taiwan); and Fukuoka (Japan). Across all three cases, we find that institutional structures and processes for connecting different remits and knowledge systems are a bigger challenge than a lack of appropriate policy or individuals with the required technical knowledge. However, opportunities for civil society participation and consideration of justice issues vary between the cities according to the socio-political context. These findings illustrate the value of individuals and organisations able to work across institutional boundaries in linking greenspace and adaptation agendas for subtropical Asian cities; and the importance of competence in collaboration with developers and civil society so that the rapid development or regeneration seen in subtropical Asian contexts does not tend towards green climate gentrification. More broadly, our findings show that the diverse nature of subtropical Asian cities means the role of greenspace in climate adaptation is likely to be context-specific, and thus that caution ...

This paper elaborates challenges for sustainable development based on consumption of the coastal environment through tourism, evaluating the case of the Miramar Resort in Taitung County, Taiwan. Thinking in terms of the blue economy and more sensitive forms of tourism and recreation that consider environmental protection have laid focus on the idea that the coastal environment may be 'consumed', yet that this consumption needs to fit with the principles of sustainability. The purpose of this paper is thus to evaluate what sustainable consumption of the coastal environment may (or may not) look like in a locality facing competing social, economic and environmental sustainability pressures, specifically Taitung County in Taiwan. We conduct in-depth interviews with key actors involved in the dispute over the construction of the Miramar Resort in Taitung, and assess these through the conceptual lens of sustainable consumption. Our study finds significant contestation over the developer and local government claims that the resort represents a sustainable trajectory for the locality, with differing views on environmental impact, fairness of process, and distribution of economic benefit. In a wider context, these findings illustrate the importance of inclusive and meaningful decision-making processes, shared end goals, and good support for local-level coastal managers and planners if consumption-driven developments are to form part of sustainable local development in peripheral coastal regions.

This paper elaborates challenges for sustainable development based on consumption of the coastal environment through tourism, evaluating the case of the Miramar Resort in Taitung County, Taiwan. Thinking in terms of the blue economy and more sensitive forms of tourism and recreation that consider environmental protection have laid focus on the idea that the coastal environment may be 'consumed', yet that this consumption needs to fit with the principles of sustainability. The purpose of this paper is thus to evaluate what sustainable consumption of the coastal environment may (or may not) look like in a locality facing competing social, economic and environmental sustainability pressures, specifically Taitung County in Taiwan. We conduct in-depth interviews with key actors involved in the dispute over the construction of the Miramar Resort in Taitung, and assess these through the conceptual lens of sustainable consumption. Our study finds significant contestation over the developer and local government claims that the resort represents a sustainable trajectory for the locality, with differing views on environmental impact, fairness of process, and distribution of economic benefit. In a wider context, these findings illustrate the importance of inclusive and meaningful decision-making processes, shared end goals, and good support for local-level coastal managers and planners if consumption-driven developments are to form part of sustainable local development in peripheral coastal regions.

This paper evaluates the planning competences required to enact a managed transition to sustainability at the municipal level for cities facing population, economic and employment decline. Drawing on the 'shrinking cities' literature, we argue consolidation of the built environment can become a focal point for sustaining citizen welfare when transitioning cities facing decline, especially those previously reliant on resource industries. We evaluate the former coal-mining town of Yubari, Japan, which is developing a consolidated urban form with the aim of creating a 'sustainable' future city. Findings from interviews and content analysis of Yubari's planning policy indicate, however, that to translate 'shrinking' a city into a managed transition, spatial planning must be accompanied by a wider range of social policy measures and strong cross-sectoral engagement. We also caution that the unique geographical and political context of Yubari mean its model may not be directly replicable in other contexts.

This paper evaluates the role of land use planning, especially open space systems, in mainstreaming biodiversity and ecosystem services (BES) at the urban level. Whilst there is increasing interest in BES mainstreaming to balance environmental protection with socio-economic development, there is also concern that BES thinking deflects attention from underlying social justice questions. Through the case study of Durban, South Africa - often held as an exemplar in BES mainstreaming - we argue open space systems can offer a pathway to BES mainstreaming that is both scientifically effective and socially just. Yet what makes this possible in Durban, we argue, is (a) a robust scientific evidence base deployed reflexively and sensitively; (b) a move towards explicit emphasis on providing benefits of BES to the most vulnerable people; and (c) supportive policy frameworks plus the presence of biodiversity managers able to navigate the political as well as scientific landscape.

This chapter evaluates the role of communication in building support for climate change adaptation through urban spatial planning. We take Durban in South Africa as our case study, a city with significant vulnerability to climate change which is widely regarded as having successfully implemented climate adaptation initiatives through spatial planning, despite a challenging socio-economic context. In particular, we aim to assess the role of communication in initiating and sustaining Durban's climate adaptation initiatives, and evaluate wider lessons and challenges for the role of communication in climate change action with reference to social theory on science and environmental governance. We pay particular attention to the role of communication at the personal, institutional and municipal scale in eThekwini Municipality's Municipal Climate Protection Programme, focusing on how framing and argumentation around the role the city's open space system may support progress towards ecosystem-based adaptation. Drawing on a narrative literature review and associated content analysis of planning documentation and peer-reviewed literature, we argue that climate adaptation initiatives which carry multiple rationales in addition to the scientific basis for action stand the greatest chance of reaching implementation. We argue this is important because: (a) the complexity of governance structures mean many actors with different priorities and value positions must be engaged to enact policy; and (b) the short-term nature of political attention necessitates rationales that sustain their appeal to a broad range of viewpoints over time. We caution, however, that there is a need for ongoing critical reflection as to the grounds on which the 'success' of a climate adaptation intervention can be claimed, and that care must be taken to ensure a focus on framing and getting buy-in does not deflect attention away from debating the underlying causes of vulnerability.

Although Scotland and the wider UK is making good progress with research and development towards deployment of offshore carbon capture and storage, there is increasing divergence in opinion on the necessity of CCS for meeting climate change targets. Oil and gas operators appear optimistic about the technical feasibility of CCS; whereas civil society and NGOs are increasingly vocal in their scepticism towards the necessity of CCS in a net-zero society. Given that operators' expertise may be required to support offshore CO2 storage given their subsea experience, and that civil society is important in shaping government and public opinion, this divergence may be a challenge to offshore CCS deployment in the UK and elsewhere. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the grounds on which oil and gas operators' views on CCS differ from a wider range of stakeholders, through a survey and in-depth interviews. Our results show that people with more knowledge of CCS are more likely to support its deployment, and that strong belief in anthropogenic climate change is lower – albeit rising – among oil and gas respondents. Our results also show concern that the net-zero transition may have negative effects for carbon-intensive regions, and that storage expertise is the UK's strongest skill set for CCS deployment. We suggest that across a range of stakeholders, the value of CCS is thus most likely to lie in specific applications (e.g. hydrogen) and/or very specific localities (e.g. places with existing subsurface knowledge and skills), rather than widespread deployment as a mitigation technology.

Research on environmental justice in authoritarian regimes, and in particular on how transnational networks support problem framing and claims-making in the absence of state-led democratic participation instances, is limited. This article uses the case of untreated wastewater from a steel mill owned by Taiwanese conglomerate Formosa Plastics Group, which caused mass fish deaths along coastal provinces in Vietnam in 2016, to explore how civic groups and local communities problematize official accounts of events and engage with transnational networks to make claims to environmental injustice. The paper highlights local narratives about the adverse impacts of the disaster on residents' livelihoods and wellbeing, controversies over the causes of and responsibility for the disaster, and the role of transnational alliances with Taiwan in sustaining and magnifying claims to injustice. We argue that viewing issues such as the Formosa steel incident through a transnational environmental justice lens illuminates the effect of global and national processes of economic reform in shaping uneven environmental and social impacts from new infrastructure developments. We also argue that thinking in terms of transnational networks can make sense of the spaces which can emerge for claims-making in authoritarian contexts, where democratic participation instances and access to knowledge may be restricted.

This paper assesses barriers to local biodiversity and ecosystem (BES) governance within cities, drawing on findings from an international expert survey encompassing 45 cities in 25 countries. BES is recognised as a key foundation for sustainable cities, yet current literature indicates that more clarity is needed on the factors which may undermine BES initiatives. Survey findings show broad agreement that officials in development sectors have inadequate BES knowledge, budgets for BES are insufficient, and planners in the locality lack knowledge about BES. Respondents not working for local governments were more likely to see policy change with administrations, budget limitations, and lack of expertise as barriers. Respondents for cities in less-developed countries agreed significantly more that there were harmful cultural activities, and were more concerned that inadequate consideration from governments at different scales and poor internal communication were barriers. Based on the findings, we suggest (a) a need to evaluate the effectiveness of collaboration both within government and between sectors; (b) the importance of building capacity within local government staff, both in techno-scientific knowledge and in engaging the policy landscape with this knowledge; and (c) the importance of further considering how BES conservation may relate to culturally meaningful practices.