Resource information
Despite the central role of urban areas in socio-economic and geo-political change processes at the local, regional, and global level, as well as in the regional and global biophysical processes, little attention has been paid so far to the complex and dynamic interactions between urban areas and the biophysical and chemical processes of global environmental changes.This book contributes to the knowledge about these interactions. It is a collection of the work by a group of Latin American researchers of various disciplines, focused on studying the interactions between global and regional environmental changes and urban areas. These interactions can be grouped into two broad areas:
those associated with climate change and variability
those associated with changes in land use and land cover
The first three chapters of the book focus on the various aspects of the interactions between climate and urban areas. The next three present case studies of changes in land use and land cover. The last chapter introduces a series of reflections that may guide future areas of research on the topic and improve the relation between scientific research and the management practices of urban areas in Latin America.The discussion in the book reveals how important it is that the urbanisation process in Latin America be directed toward a more balanced growth and better living conditions for millions of urban inhabitants. It also recognises and analyzes the opportunities afforded by sustainable development during this growth, while stressing the need to base this concept on multidimensional, integrated, and operational perspectives to enable better management of the complex reality of urban systems in Latin America.The authors also emphasise that attention to urban problems in the region shouldprovide balanced consideration of small, medium, and large urban centres since they have problems similar to those in mega cities, but they have fewer available resources to tend to their problems.
