Housing the Informal - Fostering Livable Cities and Communities in the Asia-Pacific Region

As of 2018, over half of the world's population resided in urban areas, and this is projected to reach 68% by 2050, with most of this growth occurring in the Global South. Moreover, the Asia-Pacific has the highest number of urban dwellers worldwide and more than half of the world's urban population, thus being a key region impacted by urban growth. The urbanization process often gives rise to informal settlements which are defined as areas lacking durable housing, sufficient living space, access to improved water, sanitation, and secure tenure. The growth of informal settlements significantly impacts urban services, education, and security. Legal status, physical location, social exclusion, and points of access to services plus financial constraints limit dwellers' access to these services. This results in health hazards, environmental pollution, service institutions who continue to run at a financial loss and social conflicts. Scope: With a focus on the Asia-Pacific region, this session will tackle the issues of informality, high-density housing, and the urgent need for multi-actor collaboration in various Asian and Australasian countries, with critical comparisons with European and African contexts. Organizers: The ASPAC (Asia-Pacific) Universities Urban Alliance is a partnership of the architecture, urban planning/design programs from universities across SE Asia & Australasia, who share a common commitment towards SDG11. Format: This session provides interactive group discussions among scholars and different actors regarding the latest research in housing and informal settlements in the world, which is divided into several sub-discussion groups where the presenters and participants can elaborate the topics and share their research progress in real time and remotely with students, community groups and research offices in their countries, utilizing different deliveries such as digital, analog and traditional ways of delivery to enhance diverse experiences for all participants. The event includes two main parts: (a) focused group discussion (FGD) and (b) a roundtable session where participants discuss the results of the FGD and draw conclusions, on the following topics: A. Latest research in housing and infrastructure provision in informal settlements. B. Multi-actor (penta-helix) collaborations in improving living quality in high density settlements. C. New paths of collaborations among key actors in addressing housing provision and quality.