Ernan Rustiadi

Rapid urban expansion is reshaping large metropolitan regions into polycentric systems in which multiple centers interact through transport, infrastructure, land-use, economic and ecological networks. Urban heat island (UHI) research has traditionally relied on single-city or core–periphery models; these remain useful for explaining heat contrasts within individual cities, but are insufficient for explaining how thermal loads form, propagate and accumulate across interconnected metropolitan regions. This study combines bibliometric analysis and a PRISMA-guided systematic review to synthesize research on UHI processes in polycentric cities, mega-urban regions and metropolitan systems. The bibliometric corpus comprises 468 Scopus-indexed records published in 2020–2025, while 35 full-text studies were retained for qualitative synthesis. The results show strong publication growth from 54 records in 2020 to 124 in 2025, an annual growth rate of 18.09%, and an interdisciplinary evidence base led by environmental science, social science, Earth-system science and engineering. Three spatial patterns recur across the core studies: multi-core hotspots, corridor-based heat propagation and peripheral thermal expansion. The review contributes a network-based interpretation of UHI as a nested metropolitan process in which node morphology, functional hierarchy, transport connectivity, blue–green infrastructure (BGI) and governance coordination jointly shape heat intensity, footprint and exposure. Rather than displacing single-city or core–periphery interpretations, the proposed framework extends them by positioning local heat analysis as one layer within a larger multiscale heat-governance architecture.

Rapid urbanisation is threatening agriculture in major cities worldwide. In the Greater Bandung Area (GBA), large-scale conversion of agricultural land into built-up areas has occurred over recent decades. Therefore, this study aimed to understand the rural–urban transition and its control in the agricultural context over the last 20 years. The methods adopted were multitemporal analysis of land cover change (2003–2023), calculation of the sub-district development index (SDI) (2005–2014–2021), spatial clustering analysis, and assessment of the level of agricultural land control. The results showed a transformation of GBA’s spatial structure from a monocentric growth pattern to a polycentric configuration, with the peri-urban zone within a 10–20 km radius evolving as a high-performance area. This shift has diminished the dominance of the traditional city centre and produced a pronounced “donut effect”. An integrated analysis of SDI and spatial clustering identified three interrelated functional zones, namely urban, peri-urban, and rural, forming a continuous spatial gradient. The peri-urban area functioned as a dynamic interface where agricultural activities coexisted and competed with urban expansion pressures. These results outlined the need for context-specific and differentiated planning methods, supported by selective spatial control to guide metropolitan transition toward balanced and sustainable development.

Sustainable spatial development requires land-use allocation that aligns with reflects the environment’s biophysical capacity. However, rapid urbanization and agricultural expansion often result to spatial mismatches between land utilization and land capability, the reby increasing environmental degradation and disaster vulnerability. East Java Province, one of Indonesia’s most densely populated regions, has experienced significant land-use transformation driven by demographic pressure and economic development. This study aims to evaluate the environmental carrying capacity by assessing the spatial compatibility among land capability, existing land use, and the Provincial Spatial Plan (RTRWP) using a Geographic Information System (GIS)-based analytical approach. Land capability was determined based on key biophysical parameters, including slope gradient, soil texture, drainage conditions, erosion susceptibility, effective soil depth, and flood hazard. Spatial overlay analysis was employed to identify areas of conformity and mismatch between land capability and both current and planned land uses. The results indicate that only approximately 52% of the provincial area is utilised in accordance with its land capability. In comparison, the remaining 48% exhibits varying degrees of spatial mismatch. Erosion is identified as the dominant limiting factor, affecting more than 43% of the region, particularly in mountainous and hilly landscapes. Furthermore, over 60% of East Java falls within Land Capability Classes III–VII, indicating moderate to severe environmental constraints on limitations intensive land use. High levels of spatial mismatch are concentrated in the southern upland districts—such as Pacitan, Trenggalek, southern Malang, and Lumajang, which are highly susceptible to landslides, as well as in the northern lowland corridor, including the Surabaya–Gresik–Sidoarjo metropolitan region, which faces a significantly flood risk. These findings suggest that land-use practices exceeding environmental carrying capacity substantially amplify disaster risk. Therefore, integrating land capability assessment into spatial planning and zoning regulations is essential and for promoting ecosystem-based disaster risk reduction and achieving sustainable spatial development in East Java Province.

Rapid urbanization in the Global South has intensified the formation of mega-urban regions, where conventional urban–rural classifications often fail to capture the complexity of peri-urban systems. In the Jakarta–Bandung Mega-Urban Region (JBMUR), rapid land-use change and socio-economic transformation have produced hybrid landscapes that challenge binary zoning approaches. This study aims to delineate urban, peri-urban, and rural spatial structures using a spatially constrained clustering framework and to evaluate the performance of the Rustiadi Quantitative Zoning Method-2 (RQZM-2) compared with conventional non-spatial clustering (Non-RQZM). Built-environment, accessibility, environmental, and socio-economic indicators derived from remote sensing and spatially disaggregated statistical data were analyzed using grid-based K-Means clustering. Comparative validation using internal metrics, stability analysis, spatial coherence diagnostics, and statistical differentiation tests indicates that RQZM-2 produces more stable, spatially coherent, and interpretable clusters than conventional clustering. The validated four-cluster solution identifies compact urban cores, extensive peri-urban transition belts, and two distinct rural sub-types, revealing a functionally differentiated regional structure across the JBMUR. These findings demonstrate that incorporating spatial contextualization into clustering improves the empirical representation of peri-urban spatial continuity and provides a robust analytical basis for spatial zoning and regional planning in rapidly urbanizing mega-urban regions.

Indonesia’s diverse cultural, natural, and geological resources boost tourism. Geoparks are key to sustainable development, and the Gunung Sewu Geopark is recognized by UNESCO. However, its main use in tourism does not yet fully affect the village's independence. This study addresses research gaps by proposing an integrated policy framework that uses multi-criteria analysis to consider economic, social, and environmental factors as an effort to improve village selfsufficiency and governance geopark. Using the multi-criteria policy analysis (MULTIPOL) method, this research examines the alignment among the priorities of scenarios, policies, and action plans. The findings reveal that priority scenarios in Gunung Kidul and Wonogiri enhance GSUGGp community advantages by increasing community awareness (CpcityBhav), with the highest average values of 17.4 and 17, respectively. In Pacitan, two priority scenarios are identified: strengthening regulations and institutions for sustainable GSUGGp management (InstituReg) and CpcityBhav, both with average value of 16.8. Policy and action plan priorities across the three regencies show that Gunung Kidul and Pacitan focus on marketing and boosting tourism activities to stimulate local economies, while Wonogiri emphasizes community-based initiatives through tourism and local entrepreneurship. At the program level, regional differences emerge in priority actions, including partnerships, green investments, education-based tourism, and university collaboration. This study highlights the importance of locally adaptive, integrated policies to overcome institutional fragmentation and promote sustainable Geopark development that strengthens village independence. The strategic framework developed offers practical relevance for geoparks facing similar cross-jurisdictional challenges.

Rural poverty in Indonesia remains a complex issue involving various aspects. West Manggarai, East Nusa Tenggara, is a national tourist destination and a significant focus of national development, yet poverty rates remain very high. Therefore, this study developed a Composite Poverty Index (CPI) using the Sustainable Rural Livelihoods Approach (SRLA) to illustrate the complexity of rural deprivation in West Manggarai Regency. The CPI was developed by normalizing eighteen validated indicators across five livelihood capitals—human, social, natural, physical, and financial. These indicators were then classified using a Likert-type scale, and their weights were determined through the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) to produce village-level CIP scores. The results show that most villages fall into the “Moderate” category (CIP: 0.40–0.60), reflecting chronic but not extreme deprivation. Spatial inequalities are evident, particularly in access to education, infrastructure, clean water, financial services, and ecological resources. Remote villages recorded higher CIP scores. Natural and economic capital were weakest, while human and social capital performed relatively well. Therefore, poverty alleviation in West Manggarai requires an integrated strategy tailored to local spatial conditions and livelihood capital.

Metropolitan areas worldwide are facing growing pressures, such as high population density, environmental degradation, and socio–economic challenges. Urban resilience has become a key focus in addressing these issues. This study explores the development of urban resilience research in metropolitan areas through a systematic review using the PRISMA method of SCOPUS-indexed articles. The review shows a significant annual increase in urban resilience studies, with three main themes clustered into environment, urban planning, and social–human dimensions. Highly cited research emphasizes urban concepts, resilience measurement of urban systems against various shocks, and resilience dimensions. Notably, metropolitan areas in Asia lead in urban resilience-related discussions, particularly in response to frequent and diverse shocks. Most studies apply quantitative methods at the city/metropolitan scale, using multi-dimensional resilience indicators. The literature highlights the distinct characteristics of Asian metropolitan regions compared to others, underlining the need to assess resilience not only in urban cores but also in peri-urban, desakota, and rural settings. These findings stress the importance of formulating policies that promote adaptive, sustainable and local ecosystem management to strengthen urban resilience across different metropolitan landscapes.

Rural poverty in Indonesia remains a complex issue involving various aspects. West Manggarai, East Nusa Tenggara, is a national tourist destination and a significant focus of national development, yet poverty rates remain very high. Therefore, this study developed a Composite Poverty Index (CPI) using the Sustainable Rural Livelihoods Approach (SRLA) to illustrate the complexity of rural deprivation in West Manggarai Regency. The CPI was developed by normalizing eighteen validated indicators across five livelihood capitals—human, social, natural, physical, and financial. These indicators were then classified using a Likert-type scale, and their weights were determined through the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) to produce village-level CIP scores. The results show that most villages fall into the "Moderate" category (CIP: 0.40–0.60), reflecting chronic but not extreme deprivation. Spatial inequalities are evident, particularly in access to education, infrastructure, clean water, financial services, and ecological resources. Remote villages recorded higher CIP scores. Natural and financial capital performed the weakest, while human and social capital performed relatively well. Therefore, poverty alleviation in West Manggarai requires an integrated strategy tailored to local spatial conditions and livelihood capital.