Rapid growth and urbanization have caused serious environmental and energy problems in some Southeast Asian economies, and expectations are high for Japan to provide models and technologies to support sustainable development at affordable costs, the journalists told the Oct. 30 symposium.
Evi Mariani, a reporter for The Jakarta Post, said megadevelopment projects in the Indonesian capital have often been carried out at the expense of the environment.
"Many Southeast Asian cities like Jakarta have been propelled into something like urban competition, with cities vying for regional shoppers, travelers and multinational firms seeking to locate their regional headquarters," Mariani said.