Albert Tonghoon Han

Problem, research strategy, and findings Local elected officials play a leadership role in setting plan directions and can jeopardize implementation if they are not committed to plan goals. In this research, we apply topic modeling, semantic networks, and sentiment analyses to Calgary’s (Canada) plans and candidates’ social media communications in the 2017 Calgary municipal election to assess alignments or divergences between plans’ and candidates’ priorities. Though the mayor, ward representati

This study analyzes the effects of relaxing the greenbelt in the Seoul Metropolitan Area of South Korea. Ordinary least squares and generalized least squares regressions were employed to measure the policy’s effect on four sprawl measurement criteria: physical growth containment, land and housing values, community service provision cost, and commuting cost. Relaxing the greenbelt guided new development inside the greenbelt and decreased the percentage change in property tax and land price relati

Buildings and energy systems are shaped within many different kinds of departments and agencies throughout local governments. This article argues that further opportunities exist to reduce the energy use of buildings and their associated greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions through the existing powers and jurisdiction of local governments. We use the example of New York City, where buildings produced 73 percent of all GHG emissions in 2014. By analyzing a data set of almost four thousand large buildin

Many governments, businesses, and institutions are committing to net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, a goal and process known as deep decarbonization. Achieving this goal in the United States requires a national, economy-wide transformation in energy production and use in five sectors: electricity, transportation, industry, land-based carbon sinks, and buildings. All of these sectors interact with planning for the built environment and land use, so planning scholars and practitioners have

The Calgary Metropolitan Area experienced unprecedented growth between 1991 and 2011, becoming the most densifying metropolitan area in Canada. New developments during this period were concentrated in the city edge and exurban areas in parallel with the population growth and occurred contiguously to the existing urban areas. Local growth management policies were found to be effective in densifying the inner suburban areas. However, during the same 2 decades, municipalities outside the city bound

This study explores the changes in the regional growth patterns in the nine largest Canadian Census Metropolitan Areas (CMAs) between 1990 and 2010. We analyzed whether the metropolitan areas matched the Inside Game (i.e., intensification) with a strong Outside Game (i.e., regional planning) of growth management as represented by physical growth patterns. Overall, Toronto, Vancouver, and London CMAs matched the Inside Game with a strong Outside Game. Conversely, the CMAs of Ottawa, Montreal, Que

Plans can only impact practice when elected officials adopt, enact, and approve funding for specific strategies. We explore ways to track implementation from the planning documents to elected officials’ priorities and to their voting patterns to identify the consistencies and gaps that may limit the impact of plans. We use Twitter data mining, text content analysis, and voting records from the digitized council minutes in Calgary, Alberta, between the 2017 municipal election and the last quarter

Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) faces a confluence of critical challenges, including limited energy access, rapid urbanization, and the pursuit of inclusive economic growth, compounded by the global urgency of climate action. This study investigates the potential for SSA to transition toward renewable energy as a cornerstone of sustainable development. Emphasizing the region's acute vulnerability to climate change, it underscores the necessity of embedding renewable energy strategies within both urbani

Campus district energy (DE) systems present opportunities to reduce energy costs, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, manage peak loads, and increase the share of renewable energy. We investigate the opportunities and barriers to expanding campus DE systems off-campus through surveys and interviews with 18 campus DE managers and providers, and a case study modeling heat demand near campus. The impact of DEs on buildings’ energy consumption reductions are estimated at around 33%. Expanding the campu

This article explores the possibility that pairing desirable community amenities with polluting, industrial, or otherwise unwanted sites, such as waste incinerators, may have the potential to mitigate, or even compensate for, some of their negative local impacts. The environmental justice literature shows that polluting sites tend to disproportionately affect low income and disenfranchised communities. Could this be reversed or mitigated by linking positive amenities to polluting sites? The Sout