Adaptive neighborhoods: The interrelation of urban form, social capital, and responses to coastal hazards in Jakarta

Abstract

This paper analyzes the relationship between the urban form of neighborhoods and collective bottom-up adaptation processes. The adaptive capacity of urban populations in marginal settlements of the Global South is critically related to social capital, as manifested through social networks, self-organization, and collective action. We analyze these responses and hypothesize that they are significantly shaped by the specific spatial forms of neighborhoods, particularly in the presence and form of places to meet. Drawing on mix-method research, we investigate socio-spatial practices and collective responses to hazards in coastal neighborhoods of Jakarta, including a standardized household survey (n = 300) and cultural mapping. Our findings demonstrate that social capital is key to community-based hazard responses. Importantly, the presence of different types of public meeting places enhances different forms of social networks due to highly diversified locations and user groups. We found that North Jakarta's urban form facilitates bonding social capital, which enables the formation of 'responsive neighborhoods' capable of responding on mid-term scales. Meeting places in neighborhood centers foster bonding ties, which, together with attachment to place and social belonging, appear to be key local assets for dealing with natural hazards e.g. by creating informal 'insurance systems'. However, there is insufficient evidence to suggest that the current urban form of North Jakarta supports the formation of 'adaptive neighborhoods' in the long- term, which would require bridging and linking ties to the outside world. Our findings suggest that a spatial perspective on collective hazard response action is important for urban planning strategies to empower local communities.