Asian Alleyways (2) Publications in 2020

Alleyways are an urban form historically shared by most cities in Asia, yet understudied. The book critically explores “Global Asia” and the metropolization process, specifically from its alleyways, which are understood as ordinary neighbourhood landscape providing the setting for everyday urban life and place-based identities being shaped by varied everyday practices, collective experiences and forces. This turns the traditional approach of “global cities” upside-down and contributes to a renewed conception of metropolization as a highly situated process, where forces at play locally, in each alleyway neighbourhood, are both intertwined and labile. Beyond the mainstream, standardising vision of the metropolization process, the book offers a nuanced overview of urban production in Asia at a time of great changes. As such, the book will be welcomed by an array of scholars, students, and all those interested in the modern transformation of Asian cities and their urban cultures, including new approaches to social life, urban change and urban governance.

Many thanks to Marie Gibert-Flutre for being such a great co-editor and co-author, for bringing together such a great list of scholars covering such as Bangkok, Beijing, Hongkong, HCMC, Seoul, Shanghai, Taipei and Tokyo. We hope the book will make a great addition to the ongoing discussion about changes going in Asian cities and Asian Alleyways. Many thanks to all contributors, editors, endorsers and to everyone who helped to make the book come true…

More on: https://www.aup.nl/en/book/9789463729604/asian-alleyways

Teaching in times of Corona

The new semester has not even started yet, but behind the scenes we had some busy weeks to prepare for the start of online classes next week. I am honest if I say that it will be a huge challenge for everybody involved, especially for the new students.

Therefore each week and topic will be as interactive as possible, with videos, chats and different online live activities. I am not sure how long it will be like this but I think we have to prepare for a dual system (on and offline) for the coming months.

It is also out of question that this is a challenging time for everybody out there, starting with small businesses, young and elderly, single and families, but it might be the best to see it also as a chance to rethink our current lifestyle, finding new ways to support each other and the local community.

This might be the chance to improve our daily life in cities and the public spaces we use, appreciate and need to voice our concerns, starting with political, social, environmental and cultural issues we should be addressed now to improve our society as a whole. For this purpose we are preparing some new research and fieldwork projects to be announced soon.