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Cities have increasingly become the focal point for climate change initiatives. However, how cities respond to climate change challenges and through what mechanisms have remained largely unexplored. This paper develops a framework for local governance to examine and explain climate change initiatives in cities. Based on the analysis of 20 climate change initiatives in major cities and a detailed case study of Hong Kong, this paper has two main findings. First, local governments at the city level have an important role to play in climate change policies by embracing some key strategies (such as deliberation and partnership) and values (such as equity and legitimacy) of good governance. Second, by comparing and contrasting the experience in other cities, our case study of Hong Kong provides insights about the barriers that may limit a city's ability to adapt to new forms of governance that would enable it to better respond to climate change. The paper concludes by exploring the potential role of local governance as a model to strengthen climate change initiatives at the city level. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper aims to investigate factors affecting public attitude towards the siting of locally unwanted land uses (LULUs) and to explore the possible strategies to resolve such conflicts. Three questionnaire surveys were undertaken in communities with different siting experiences and socio-economic profiles. Over 750 individuals were successfully interviewed in each study district. The three communities were found to share similar risk beliefs but show variations in the level of awareness of and response to LULUs. In communities with a disproportionate share of LULUs, many residents did not trust the government in handling LULU issues and thought that the siting process was unfair. The results of the binary logistic regression analysis show that people are likely to oppose the siting of a LULU in their community if they have a negative siting experience, do not perceive the need, accord a high risk to the facility and have a low level of trust in government. The resolution strategies preferred by the public are greater public participation and effective mitigation of risks and impacts, rather than provision of compensation and incentives. All these call for policy-makers to be sensitive to local concerns, engage the public in the process, communicate risks effectively and foster trust building. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Energy poverty and other social aspects of energy are an important but under-researched area in the sustainability literature. This article challenges the effectiveness of the traditional expenditure-based 10%-income indicator in reflecting the nature and complexity of energy poverty, with particular reference to a case study in Hong Kong. To advance the energy poverty literature, this study proposes a multi-dimensional framework to conceptualise the complex linkages between vulnerability factors, impacts, and responses of energy-poor households. Based on analysis of five in-depth household case studies and 14 semi-structured interviews, three main findings are presented. First, the proposed integrated framework reveals that households in the Hong Kong context exposed to multiple vulnerability factors adopted various responses to energy poverty challenges. Second, the traditional expenditure-based indicator is not effective in identifying energy poor households. Most of the interviewed households did not reach the 10% income expenditure line but their lived experience suggests that they are energy poor. Household under-consumption of energy as a survival mechanism to cope with energy poverty vulnerabilities is a critical process through which households fall into "hidden" energy poverty. Thirdly, household responses to energy poverty impacted health, learning environment, family relationships, and dignity. These findings suggest that future policy responses to energy poverty should pay more attention to non-economic indicators, in particular households' lived experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]