Population mobility and sustainable development in the Mamminasata Metropolitan South Sulawesi, Indonesia

Economic growth and urban agglomeration have triggered an increase in the size and mobility of the Metropolitan Mamminasata urban population. This study aims to analyse spatial interactions working as a determinant of connectivity of the transportation system and the growth of suburban areas toward smart and sustainable cities in the Mamminasata Metropolitan urban system and the effects that spatial expansion, spatial integration, urban agglomeration, spatial use, and the transportation system have on population mobility. The research method used is a sequential explanatory design that combines quantitative and qualitative research methods. The results show that the coefficients of determination are as follows: spatial expansion to population mobility – 4.90%, spatial integration to population mobility – 2.99%, spatial interaction to population mobility – 4.87%, urban agglomeration to population mobility – 2.09%, space use to population mobility – 2.64%, and transportation system to population mobility – 5.15%. The results of this study will assist in the formulation of development policies, management of the urban transportation system, and allocation of space utilisation going forward.

Gated communities in Bahrain: historical and urban geographies

Residential gating is a notable element in cities worldwide, but notable gaps exist in studies of residential gating in smaller cities and the Global South. This article examines the historical and urban geographies of residential gating in the Arab Gulf, using a case study from Bahrain. This research adds new nuance to studies of gated communities by presenting a case study from a smaller city in the Global South and integrating observations and interviews. The results explain the reasons for gated community development in Bahrain and provide insight into gated communities’ built and social environments in Bahrain. The article concludes that in ordinary cities, understanding urban development in general, and gated developments in particular, demands attention to their spatiotemporal contexts. Attention to these contexts can provide new insights that contribute to efforts to interpret and theorise contemporary urbanisation processes.

Small town urbanization and project experimentation in Pangandaran Region, Indonesia

This article contributes to the debate of small centre urbanization and positions it amidst three emerging challenges: urban-rural transformation, economic experimentation, and disaster risk mitigation. To examine the entanglement of the three forces, we analysed the expansion of the Pangandaran urban area – a small urbanizing area in West Java. This expansion occurred as part of the Special Economic Zone (SEZ) project, in the form of a regional infrastructure plan including railway, airport, and harbour development to accommodate tourism flux. This study uses discursive and qualitative approaches to rural-urban transformation with data gathered through document analysis, mapping, and FGDs with local stakeholders. The results show that although urbanization was a complex process with promises of extensive infrastructure developments and national projects, little attention has been paid to the internal urban structure, utilities, and increasing vulnerability to natural disasters in Pangandaran. The study also addresses how urban theories and policies should deal with the complexities of small urban areas in Indonesia.

From command to market-driven economy: the changing role of manufacturing industries in Romania

In 1990, Romania and other CEE countries embarked on a political shift that prompted radical structural and spatial changes in economic activities. Industrial restructuring holds a central role in strengthening both EU convergence and internal socioeconomic divergence. The aim of this paper is to discuss the contribution of manufacturing to national wealth creation, the attractiveness of industries to foreign direct investments, and the evolutionary trajectories of manufacturing employment and firms in conjunction with the pathways taken at the level of the national economy. To attain this aim, we analyse in detail the period between 2002 and 2019, looking at the temporal dynamics of the industry in times of growth and crisis. The changes discussed are typical of economic restructuring, with regions and urban centres experiencing a dramatic change in their economic roles and functions and increasing inequalities between metropolitan and non-core regions.

Crime rates and contextual characteristics: a case study in Connecticut, USA

There is a long-standing interest in the spatial relationship between contextual characteristics and crime rates in the U.S. since such a relationship allows police and stakeholders to design crime prevention programs to better target areas at risk for crime. The objective of this research is to examine the relationships between violent/property crime rates and contextual characteristics at the county-subdivision level in the State of Connecticut. The analysis shows that predictors such as population density, type of housing, education, poverty, and racial/ethnic diversity are significantly associated with violent and property crime rates. The results are discussed in the context of different crime hypotheses, which can explain spatial variations in crime rates. Most importantly, the association between crime rates and the explanatory variables in this study significantly varied over space, highlighting that different crime prevention policies/programs should be implemented in different county subdivisions in Connecticut.

Changes in the functional structure of small towns in the least developed regions of Poland

The main objective of this work was to describe the functional structure of small towns located in the least-developed Polish voivodships (the so-called eastern Polish wall) and its changes between 2008 and 2018. An additional goal was to measure the diversification level of the functions performed by these towns. The results show that the structure of functions performed by small towns in eastern Poland was relatively uncompetitive and characterized by high stability over time. The structure was dominated by functions related to non-market services and industry, which in their case do not generate high added value. The studied structures were also relatively homogenous. The combination of such features in the long term may slow down the economic growth of the surveyed towns and regions in which they are located.

The potential geographical accessibility to public hospitals for the population in Bucharest’ proximity

Access to health services is essential for ensuring a fundamental human right: the right to health care. Traditional accessibility methods do not consider traffic changes and possible infrastructure works and do not always reflect the actual travel time to the nearest hospital. This study tries to measure the potential access to hospitals of the population from the proximity of Bucharest, an area overlapping Ilfov County, using API (Application Program Interface). Two scenarios were considered. The first represents accessibility in the morning, an interval with heavy traffic, and the second represents accessibility in the evening, an interval without heavy traffic. The results confirm that Ilfov County has good accessibility to public hospitals, with over 60% of the population travelling less than 30 minutes to the nearest hospital. The proximity of Bucharest makes it possible for residents to access hospitals in that area quickly. The findings provide a scientific basis for local authorities to optimize access to hospitals and planning resources.

Geographic health inequalities in Madrid City: exploring spatial patterns of respiratory disease mortality

The unequal geographic distribution of health determinants could denote situations of environmental injustice. This work aims to identify spatial patterns of respiratory disease mortality and their association with the education level and the atmospheric pollution in Madrid. To this purpose, we applied spatial analysis through statistical techniques and Geographic Information Systems at the census tract level. The analysis showed a slight but significantly higher risk of mortality in areas with more unfavourable socioeconomic and environmental conditions. This work has the potential to inform public policy and research on links among social, environmental and health inequalities in Madrid City.

The cultural and political ecology of reed-cane craftsmanship in Lake Eber

The current study examines the interactions of people living around Lake Eber with the lake and their use of it from a cultural and political ecology perspective. In this context, fieldworks were carried out in different periods of 2018-2019. At the same time, observations and interviews covering the research subject were carried out. In the study, it was determined that aquatic plants such as common reed, reedmace, lakeshore bulrush and common cattail are cut from the Lake Eber and are used as building materials and in the production of rush mats, beach umbrellas, prayer rugs, reed pillows, floor mats (straw) and tomb mats. On the other hand, it was observed that the interest in reed-cane craftsmanship and the production of reed-cane products is decreasing every year. This is caused by drought, pollution and eutrophication processes seen in the lake. Based on the results of the study, we suggest that more field studies should be done to examine the factors that threaten the lake ecology and projects should be conducted to improve the situation in the lake.

A Survey of Experts and Home Business Owners in Rural Areas of Isfahan Province (Challenges and Barriers)

The purpose of this article is to examine the barriers and challenges of home-based businesses from the perspective of experts and home-based business owners using the Delphi method and confirmatory factor analysis. The first group included experts from the Department of Cooperatives, Labor and Social Welfare and the Department of Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism. The sample size for the first group was selected using snowball or chain sampling of 28 people, and the second group based on the statistics of about 1,000 people in villages with large household jobs with a subset of more than 4 people in rural areas of Isfahan province. In the quantitative part, using confirmatory factor analysis, 5 factors were individualized: economic, managerial and structural, weakness of laws and comprehensive policy, research and information, and human-nature related factors.