Examining Spatial Identity of Kampungs Through Young Adults’ Perception in Surabaya – Indonesia

Abstract

Abstract. Spatial identity is a result of a connection between people, physical elements of places, and activities associated with them. The development of identity occurs through the psychological process place attachment. This article is based on a research project that observed the spatial identity of young adults living in kampungs (urban villages), in Surabaya city. The young adults are faced with the contrast of a two-sided modernity between the kampungs and the city, which affects their attachment. The study of place attachment has been undertaken through an observation of social life of the participants and spatial perception. Through this study of spatial identity not only physical characteristics were identified, but also social characteristics. This is due to physical conditions of space and social interactions in these spaces are intertwined The study found that the identity with the strongest attachment is related to social behaviour of the young adults but which is not recognised by current planning strategies. This study of spatial identity is suggesting that policy changes are needed to improve spatial environment of the kampungs.

Evaluating Urban Status of Informal Settlements in Indonesia: A Comparative Analysis of Three Case Studies in North Jakarta

“…Therefore, many workers and low-income immigrants are unable to afford the cost of housing within the urban boundaries of the city. As most of the immigrant groups are low-income people, they have settled into groups of area that are often located in uninhabitable areas or far from developed areas (Damayanti & Kossak, 2016;Prasetyanti, 2015). The poor have no choice but to live in kampung which below the healthy residential environment.…”

City of Kampung: risk and resilience in the urban communities of Surabaya, Indonesia

“…Physical risk is the most prominent issue in almost all cases. Kampung can be displaced for a range of reasons, including urban development projects (Putra, 2016), urban beautification (Peters, 2013), commercialisation (Damayanti and Kossak, 2016; Ernawati et al , 2013; Setijanti et al , 2016) or land speculation (Raharjo, 2010). Hayati et al (2017) pointed out that in Surabaya’s inner city kampung , houses have been left empty and not maintained due to socio-economic mobility.…”

“…Relocation to another place can break not only the inhabitants’ social networks, but also cause them to lose their daily income-earning activities as kampung inhabitants depend on their strategic location for informal income-generating activities (Ernawati et al , 2013; Hellman, 2015; Wilhelm, 2011). Insecure jobs and unstable income in this case are consequences of informal income-earning activities (Damayanti and Kossak, 2016; Peters, 2013). Such risks are a common feature of life in the volatile economies of Southeast Asia’s globalising cities (McGee, 2002).…”

“…Since most kampung are located in high-density and low-lying neighbourhoods, environmental risks, such as flooding and environmental degradation, are difficult to avoid (Damayanti and Kossak, 2016; Ernawati et al , 2013; Jones, 2017; Peters, 2013; Setijanti et al , 2016; Wilhelm, 2011). Surabaya, in particular, is located on low-lying land within a monsoonal climatic system.…”

“…High and low water flows have been a feature of kampung for centuries if not millennia. Several studies discuss flooding as a problem within kampung in Surabaya (Damayanti and Kossak, 2016; Ernawati et al , 2013; Peters, 2013; Setijanti et al , 2016). However, for kampung inhabitants, annual monsoon flooding is an accepted feature of their lives and they adapt their buildings to the flood situation.…”