We would like to introduce books and share more about urban topics which we have extensive knowledge on. “Sidewalk city” is a familiar and affectionate name for Saigon, and speaks to its soul of city life. We chose to launch this book in Vietnam because Professor Annette Kim’s perspectives are similar to enCity’s approach: All cities have distinct characteristics associated with local context, culture, life and living environment. Therefore, urban and regional development solutions should be vernacular to preserve its signature heritage.
In the particular case of Saigon sidewalks, its main feature is multi-function (transport, commerce and community space) instead of single-function (only for traffic). This is not only a fundamental feature of Vietnamese urban life, but also aligned with the world’s trend to create livable and sustainable cities. Professor Kim has done her spatial analysis research in Vietnam. Since data is often non-existent or of poor quality, she started creating her own data by commissioning a satellite to take photos of Ho Chi Minh City and developing an algorithm to detect informal land development from those images.
Analysis found that sidewalks can be seen as a mixed-use space which different people take turns using over the course of a day. (Image courtesy of Professor Annette Kim)
We would like to thank the author, Professor Annette Kim, for her research efforts that make valuable contributions to understanding of public spaces in the world, and also express our appreciation of her love for Ho Chi Minh City. A big thank you also to Nha Nam Books for co-launching this book with us in Vietnam.
