Focusing upon different colonial territories in early-to-mid 1900s Asia, the in-person conference seeks papers that examine issues aligned to late-colonial and early-postcolonial governance and matters today noted as belonging to ‘sustainable development’. In particular, papers are sought that breakdown, at the time foreign empires began to decline and future postcolonial aspirations grew, how Asian societies responded to the need to provide improved urban and rural liveability.

Seeking to dissect the relationship between governance and environmental management, the era circa 1900-50 saw Asian capital city populations rapidly grow, economic developments transpire, and decolonisation occur, yet there is still much to appreciate of the role native persons had in late-colonial policy making. Thus, in what ways did native persons contribute to urban and rural environmental management strategies, i.e. matters aligned in the present-day to sustainable development?

To enhance knowledge of Asia’s modern past and the evolution of urban and rural environmental supervision, papers on the following broad topics are sought:

• Health equity, clean living environments, and land management;
• Knowledge growth of native civil servants and the (re)shaping of environmental management strategies;
• Urban-rural interactions and impacts;
• Administration of urban and rural sites and climatic influence;
• Urban economic development and environmental footprints;
• Approaches and policies to combat the degradation of land and water features;
• Architecture and city planning, public space creation, housing, and the promotion of peoples’ well-being.

The two-day international event, with keynote address by Prof. Stephen Tuffnell (Oxford University), will be held on the campus of the Chinese University of Hong Kong in January 2027.

The deadline for the submission of conference abstracts, of 200-250 words, is Sunday, October 17, 2026.

Submission Link:
International Conference on Environmental Management, Land, and Cities – Fill out form

For questions about the conference, please email Prof. Ian Morley at ianmorley@cuhk.edu.hk.

Financial support to persons outside of Hong Kong may be available.