Extending the urban metabolism framework: From Bangalore to Bangkok

Social and ecological systems are tightly linked in urban environments. Research in several Asian cities has illustrated the coupled nature of the systems, and the surprises that this coupling can have in store, especially with regard to one of the most important metabolic flows, water.

This project, which builds on SEI work in Bangalore, India, evaluates two cities with broadly similar social and infrastructural relationships to water, but very different biophysical settings: Bangalore and Bangkok, Thailand.

The project also extends the Bangalore metabolic framework to 71 other Indian cities, and aims to foster a cross-fertilization of policy ideas.