A Review of Urban Ecosystem Services Research in Southeast Asia

Karen T. Lourdes, Chris N. Gibbins, Perrine Hamel, Ruzana Sanusi, Badrul Azhar and Alex M. Lechner
Additional contact information
Karen T. Lourdes: Landscape Ecology and Conservation Lab, School of Environmental and Geographical Sciences, University of Nottingham Malaysia, Semenyih 43500, Malaysia
Chris N. Gibbins: School of Environmental and Geographical Sciences, University of Nottingham Malaysia, Semenyih 43500, Malaysia
Perrine Hamel: Asian School of the Environment, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore 639798, Singapore
Ruzana Sanusi: Department of Forestry Science and Biodiversity, Faculty of Forestry and Environment, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400, Malaysia
Badrul Azhar: Department of Forestry Science and Biodiversity, Faculty of Forestry and Environment, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400, Malaysia
Alex M. Lechner: Landscape Ecology and Conservation Lab, School of Environmental and Geographical Sciences, University of Nottingham Malaysia, Semenyih 43500, Malaysia

Land, 2021, vol. 10, issue 1, 1-21

Abstract: Urban blue-green spaces hold immense potential for supporting the sustainability and liveability of cities through the provision of urban ecosystem services (UES). However, research on UES in the Global South has not been reviewed as systematically as in the Global North. In Southeast Asia, the nature and extent of the biases, imbalances and gaps in UES research are unclear. We address this issue by conducting a systematic review of UES research in Southeast Asia over the last twenty years. Our findings draw attention to the unequal distribution of UES research within the region, and highlight common services, scales and features studied, as well as methods undertaken in UES research. We found that while studies tend to assess regulating and cultural UES at a landscape scale, few studies examined interactions between services by assessing synergies and tradeoffs. Moreover, the bias in research towards megacities in the region may overlook less-developed nations, rural areas, and peri-urban regions and their unique perspectives and preferences towards UES management. We discuss the challenges and considerations for integrating and conducting research on UES in Southeast Asia based on its unique and diverse socio-cultural characteristics. We conclude our review by highlighting aspects of UES research that need more attention in order to support land use planning and decision-making in Southeast Asia.

Keywords: natural capital; blue-green infrastructure; urban environmental challenges; Global South; tropical cities (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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