Routledge Urban Atmospheres between East and West: Exploring Affect, Identity, and Mobility (Routledge Research in Planning and Urban Design)

Urban atmospheres shape how we experience and understand the spaces we inhabit. Urban Atmospheres between East and West is the first collective work to explore this topic from an inter-cultural perspective, spanning diverse locations such as China, Malaysia, Japan, France, Italy, and Cyprus. This groundbreaking volume addresses the need to foreground under-represented Eastern contexts while pairing them with resonant Western counterparts, offering a fresh lens on the dynamic interplay of culture and space. Organised into four thematic parts, the book’s ten chapters establish a comparative dialogue that bridges East and West. By tracing atmospheres that migrate across cultures and crystallise in sites of hybridity, the volume redefines atmosphere as an active, relational field. Readers will gain insights into how urban spaces mediate affective responses and negotiate concepts such as home, belonging, infrastructure, and spatial justice. This trans-cultural approach opens new pathways for understanding the relational dynamics of urban life. This edited volume is an essential resource for scholars and professionals in architecture, urban studies, sociology, media studies, anthropology, and geography. It is particularly valuable for academics, urban planners, cultural geographers, and researchers seeking to explore how urban spaces evoke and shape emotional and cultural experiences.