The assumption that climate mitigation can only be afforded at a particular level of income is implicit in global climate negotiations. This suggests that middle-income countries may reach a tipping point in their development process where low-carbon investment becomes more viable. In order to avoid dangerous levels of climate change, this tipping point needs to be brought forward in time: upper-middle-income countries are already responsible for 37.8% of global CO 2 emissions. We explore the scope for large-scale investment in climate mitigation in Johor Bahru, a fast-growing industrial city in Malaysia. We find that the city could reduce per capita emissions by 10.0% by 2025, relative to 2014 levels, through cost-effective investments. If the returns could be recovered and reinvested in low-carbon measures, Johor Bahru could reduce per capita emissions by 35.2% by 2025, relative to 2014 levels. This result suggests that the tipping point may be a function of political will and institutional capacity as well as income. This has substantial implications for global climate policy discussions, particularly the opportunities and responsibilities of middle-income countries. If comparable savings can be delivered across cities in middle-income countries, this would equate to a reduction in global emissions of 6.3% with the exploitation of cost-effective options and 11.3% with the exploitation of cost-neutral options. Investing in economically attractive low-carbon measures could also provide cities in middle-income countries with an opportunity to build the political momentum and institutional capacities necessary for deeper decarbonization.
Analyzing population and employment sizes at the local finer geographic scale of transit station areas offers valuable insights for cities in terms of developing better decision-making skills to support transit-oriented development. Commonly, the station area population and employment have been derived from census tract or even block data. Unfortunately, such detailed census data are hardly available and difficult to access in cities of developing countries. To address this problem, this paper explores an alternative technique in remote estimation of population and employment by using building floor space derived from an official administrative geographic information system (GIS) dataset. Based on the assumption that building floor space is a proxy to a number of residents and workers, we investigate to what extent they can be used for estimating the station area population and employment. To assess the model, we employ five station areas with heterogeneous environments in Tokyo as our empirical case study. The estimated population and employment are validated with the actual population and employment as reported in the census. The results indicate that building floor space, together with the city level aggregate information of building morphology, the density coefficient, demographic attributes, and real estate statistics, are able to generate a reasonable estimation.
CASBEE-City tool determines the city's Built Environment Efficiency (BEE) by calculating the improvement of Quality of Life (Q) over human activities' Environmental Load (L) within the city's hypothetical boundary. A total of 58 variables (57 Q indicators and one variable for L) are used in the worldwide version of CASBEE-City which were grounded using ISO 37120:2014 Sustainable Development of Communities and 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by the United Nations (UN). This paper examines the application of CASBEE-City for Malaysian cities using the case of Johor Bahru City and identifies assessment indicators which are customised based on the data availability, reliability and suitability through focus group discussions (FGDs) which involved 36 respondents (researchers, urban planners and stakeholders). This paper reveals Johor Bahru with moderate score B+ in 2010 and 2025. Consensus were also achieved from the 36 FGD respondents for the practicability and future potential of CASBEE-City and BEE framework in Johor Bahru.
This paper outlines the lessons learnt through the multidisciplinary 'Science-to-Action' approach to formulating, mainstreaming and implementing the Low Carbon Society Blueprint for Iskandar Malaysia 2025 (LCSBP-IM2025). Iskandar Malaysia (IM) is a rapidly developing urban region in southern Peninsular Malaysia that was institutionalised in 2006 with a view to spurring Malaysia's economic growth up to 2025. In pursuing rapid economic growth to become a developed, high-income nation by 2020, Malaysia is conscious of its global responsibility in environmental protection and global climate change mitigation, hence the country's commitment to reducing its carbon emission intensity of GDP by up to 40 % by 2020 based on the 2005 level. Being a premier economic region in Malaysia, IM seeks to develop a low carbon society (LCS) and lead the way to cutting its carbon emission intensity by up to 58 % by 2025 based on the 2005 level through the implementation of the LCSBP-IM2025. The LCSBP-IM2025 is the outcome of an internationally funded joint research under the SATREPS programme that brings together Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), Kyoto University, Japan's National Institute for Environmental Studies (NIES), Okayama University and the Iskandar Regional Development Authority (IRDA), in a unique 'academia-policymaker' partnership, towards crafting an LCS pathway to guide and sustainably manage the projected rapid development in IM up to 2025. To that end, a multidisciplinary research team that comprises the above research institutions and IRDA, led by UTM, has been set up. A methodology has
There is a lack of understanding of the theory of the Tragedy of the Anticommons (ToA), a type of coordination breakdown or a hold-out problem involving multiple fragmented co-proprietorships with undivided shares, in the land partition context. This paper, hence, discusses how ToA occurs particularly in the agricultural land partition that is primarily governed under the National Land Code 1965 and proposes potential legal and non-legal approaches and mechanisms to address the land tragedy. An abductive content analysis of (9) case laws extracted from the LexisNexis database was performed through which themes and codes were developed to explain how ToA hindering land partition takes place. Subsequently, judicial decisions in solving disputes arising from land partition and existing best practices in dealing with the tragedy were reviewed. The case laws review indicated that unsuccessful agricultural land partition associated with high transaction costs in securing co-proprietors consensus is a form of simultaneous ToA, that most of the unpartitioned land (anticommons) may be subject to underinvestment (land mismanagement) and disuse. Key factors leading to disagreement among co-proprietors and consequently ToA are as follows: (i) unequal (unfair) proportion or shares of land; (ii) uneven geographical partition and spatial distribution of government reserves; and (iii) potential damages and negative effects (e.g., loss of income and property). To address ToA, these are legal mechanisms proposed: statutory enforcement of the National Land Code (NLC) 1965 (via land forfeiture and reversion), the Land Acquisition Act (LAA) 1960 on compulsory land acquisition, and judicial decisions (e.g., land partitions may take place if it is fairly distributed and made by the majority shareholders), while non-legal approaches cover negotiation and arbitration; en-bloc sales (partition); collective action through enhanced social capital; and imposition of a tax on underutilised land. By showcasing various agricultural anticommons tragedies and their potential negative externalities in the land partition context, this paper offers policy and management insights that help land officers and local authorities ensure the maximum efficiency and productivity (i.e., highest and best use) of the land
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