GPSS Master Student ZHENG Hao Wins the Outstanding Student Poster Award from the Japan Society of Civil Engineers (JSCE)

Mr. ZHENG Hao, a master's student from the Graduate Program in Sustainability Science (GPSS) at the University of Tokyo, has won the Outstanding Student Poster Award at the 69th Infrastructure and Management Conference of the Japan Society of Civil Engineers (JSCE) for his study titled "Identifying the Urban Shrinkage in the Tokyo Metropolitan Area with NPP-VIIRS Nighttime Light Data."

Supervised by Professor ZHANG Runsen, his study employed remote sensing and spatial analysis methods to examine the trends in nighttime light changes in the Tokyo Metropolitan Area from 2012 to 2020, identifying regions experiencing urban shrinkage. The results showed that approximately 24% of the Tokyo Metropolitan
Area experienced shrinkage, displaying a three-tiered ring-like shrinkage pattern.

Furthermore, the study proposed a framework for processing and analyzing the nighttime light data, coupling it with population data to calculate and analyze the shrinkage structure of the Tokyo Metropolitan Area.

This study has made a methodological contribution to identifying urban shrinkage on a metropolitan scale. The findings offer insights for future urban planning and decision-making.

ZHENG Hao, a GPSS master student with his award

The research poster can be viewed here.
Readers are invited to explore the research and engage in discussions on shrinking cities and urban shrinkage.