International Federation of Landscape Architects (IFLA) Brussels, Belgium G. CABALLERO & K. WONG, 2016 1 Pop-Up Urbanism, a Future in Southeast Asia Gabriel Caballero 1 & Kenneth Wong See Huat 2 1 ICOMOS Philippines / Caballero Landscapes, Heritage & Cities Planning 2 Kuala Lumpur Centre for Sustainable Innovation ABSTRACT The urbanisation of metropolitan areas and the character of cities have taken a new dimension in recent years. There is an increasing focus for local residents to have an active role in developing the cities where they live in. Such trend is seen as an important step in promoting sustainable practices and improving planning policies in urban areas. A new type of urbanism, called "Pop-up urbanism" has emerged to compliment this phenomenon. Pop-up urbanism as a movement involves all sorts of innovative practices, which examine potential urban design strategies using temporary installations. Several projects have now been observed in the region of Southeast Asia and particular cases in Malaysia and Singapore improve people's awareness and strengthen the character of local neighborhoods, making it friendlier to citizens and municipal administrations. Diverse collaborators from the business sector, individual innovators and different organizations have contributed to such imaginative temporary improvements of the public realm. Keywords: Pop-up Urbanism, Southeast Asia, Malaysia, Singapore INTRODUCTION The urbanisation of metropolitan areas and the character of cities have taken a new dimension in recent years. There is an increasing focus for local residents to have an active role in developing the cities of the world. Such trend is seen as an important step in promoting sustainable practices and improving planning policies in urban areas (Yuen, 2009). With the emergence of the “Maker Movement” from DIY (Do-It- Yourself) communities around the world, urban designers, planners, and community members have taken it unto themselves to test improvements that can be done in the public realm. In an era of corporate-led urban development and profit-driven common spaces, innovative thinkers are exploring methods to democratise the psychological ownership of the city. There is a notable interest in creating and preserving shared public spaces/ commons, which are not solely defined by their conventional ownership but by how citizens make use of them (Lydon et al, 2011). This is apparent in the customary use of open arenas as commons, despite being formally owned by private establishments, royal families, defence forces or managed by the State. This is also observed in the appropriation of privately owned or abandoned spaces as common spaces and utilising them as urban gardens, venues for play and community gatherings. Local residents, indigenous groups, activists, artists, and urban design professionals often initiate these interventions. Within this “DIY urbanism,” the creation of open spaces becomes a task not only for qualified architects or urban planners but also for individuals and larger collectives. This spread of DIY urbanism was observed to have started in tandem with the contemporary financial meltdown