Rivers are important ecosystems, vital to the livelihoods of hundreds of millions of humans and other species. Despite their environmental, social, and economic importance, current use of rivers is unsustainable, due to a combination of solid waste and high levels of pollutants. Plastic materials are among the most predominant of such pollutants. Based on the need for additional research in this area, this study examines pressures put to rivers and explores trends related to riverine plastic pollution, with a focus on Asia. Apart from the bibliometric analysis, and relying on the collected information, examples describing the drivers of riverine plastic pollution in a sample of Asian countries are described, outlining the specific problem and its scope. Among some of the results obtained from it, mention can be made to the fact that much of the literature focuses on plastic pollution as a whole and less on one of its most significant ramifications, namely microplastics. Additionally, there is a need related to data availability on riverine plastic data and improving the understanding of transport mechanisms in relation to riverine plastic emission into the ocean. The results from this study illustrate the significance of the problems posed by plastic waste to Asian rivers and point out the fact that there are still significant gaps in respect of regulations and standards, which prevent improvements that are highlighted in this study. Based on the results of this bibliometric assessment, specific measures via which levels of riverine plastic pollution may be reduced are presented, bringing relevant new insights on this topic beyond the existing reviews.

In the last two decades, the concept of ecological citizenship has become a recurrent theme in both popular and academic discussions. Discussions around the prospects of, and limitations to, ecological citizenship have mostly focused on the idea of political agency and the civic responsibility of individuals in relation to their environments, with an emphasis on environmental justice and sustainability. However, the current scholarship has yet to adequately characterize its conceptual bases and empirical applications from an information perspective. Therefore, this paper provides an overview of citizenship studies and infrastructure studies for developing more nuanced understanding(s) of epistemological models for ecological citizenship in our networked world. Drawing on the literature on information infrastructure, this paper then proposes a conceptual framework to understand ecological citizenship as constituted both discursively and techno-materially through neoliberal, anthropocentric informational infrastructures.

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The purpose of this study is to explore the relationship between posthumanism and sustainability and contribute to the interdisciplinary concept of posthuman sustainability. We conducted a scoping review of 45 peer-reviewed journal articles that met our inclusion criteria and employed co-occurrence analysis based on the clustering techniques of the VOSviewer. We identified five themes within the articles: post-humanism, post-anthropocentrism, post-dualism, post-Enlightenment, and post-technologism. Through our analysis, we found that posthumanism can offer insights into ecological issues and help promote alternative sustainable practices. We also identified three immediate concerns for post/humanities scholars: (1) fostering dialogue between critical humanist and posthumanist scholarship based on onto-epistemological plurality, (2) achieving conceptual clarity in the field, and (3) advocating for meaningful engagement with indigenous worldviews in a multidimensional and multitemporal manner. By exploring the relationship between posthumanism and sustainability, we hope to expand our knowledge of the urgent ecological issues we face and contribute to interdisciplinary efforts to address them.

Welcome to the second issue of the Journal of Posthumanism, which presents four articles, two commentaries, one book review, and two artistic works. It is also our pleasure to host the special issue entitled “The KJSNA Conference Session on Philosophical Posthumanism” that has five commentaries.