This book presents the proceedings of the 2024 Research Day on Human Settlements Planning. The book contains abstracts of the oral and poster presentations of the research outputs of students taking up Bachelor of Science in Human Ecology at the College of Human Ecology, University of the Philippines Los Ba˜nos, Laguna, Philippines. The outputs are from their Undergraduate thesis (CERP 200), Research Methods in Human Ecology (HUME195), and Seminar in Human Ecology (HUME 199) courses. The contributions in this proceedings emphasize the interrelationships between human societies and their ecosystems. Drawing on interdisciplinary perspectives, the research papers presented explore how human settlements, whether urban or rural, can be designed and managed to enhance the well-being and quality of life for all its inhabitants. The discussions range from studies on human and family development including individual and family dynamics, social organizations and policies, and climate change and disaster risk reduction. By engaging with both theoretical frameworks and practical applications, the students’ research offers valuable insights into how human ecological principles, theories, and frameworks can be applied to the development, planning, and management of sustainable and resilient communities. This collection of abstracts provides a platform for young scholars to contribute to the ongoing discourse on human settlements planning, with the aim of advancing solutions that meet both the present and future challenges in environment and development.

The volcanic Molucca islands have provided the world with their precious cloves, which have been highly valued in medicinal properties for millennia. Cloves have antibacterial, antiviral, and analgesic characteristics. They were considered silver bullet cures in medieval epidemics and the early COVID-19 pandemic response. Cloves originated from Ternate Island, the center and regional trade hub of the Molucca Islands. Its cloves had reached Babylonia 4,000 years ago, marking its importance in global trade. Qualitative research was conducted on the 1775 Mount Gamalama eruption’s impact on indigenous knowledge development. To confirm the findings, I conducted field visits, key informant interviews, field observations, and a literature review. Tolire Lake is an apparent landmark in Takome village, which has a sacred white crocodile, a java plum hill, a lush forest, stunning landscapes, and an underwater mythical village. The residents are testaments to human resilience, preserving indigenous knowledge and turning it into disaster risk reduction tools. They built settlements on safer ground and designated parts areas for conservation-based tourism. In addition, modern science introduction enhances disaster early warning and alert systems and empowers indigenous communities. Understanding indigenous knowledge and wisdom is critical to building resilience and sustainability through disaster risk reduction (DRR) efforts. Indigenous knowledge produces lessons in environmental protection, social justice, and economic growth. The world can learn from indigenous and scientific knowledge combined to sustain the island, its people, and its prosperity.

With over half of the global population concentrated in cities, cities and human settlements became the forefront of current global challenges. About one-third of the 234 UN indicators and 17 SDGs are inextricably linked to SDG 11, highlighting the role of cities and human settlements towards addressing environmental degradation, economic inequality, and ensuring social justice. The DCERP’s 2024 Research Conference on Human Settlements Planning aimed to contribute to the development of science-based policy-making, improving well-being in urban and rural areas, and ensuring safe, sustainable, resilient, and inclusive cities and human settlements. This chapter aims to synthesize the contributions from the said students’ conference. Specifically, this aims to state the overarching themes of the conference, discuss how the presented researches contribute to the broader field of study, summarize the main themes and trends, and identify potential research directions. This further aims to provide recommendations on making future students’ research conferences inclusive, participative, collaborative, and comprehensive, relating SDG 11 with other SDGs.

Increasing population and rapid economic growth result in waste management problems in the Municipality of Bay, Laguna. In response, the municipality is planning to invest in an Integrated Waste Management Technology System (IWMTS) that aims to generate public revenue. Key informant interviews, surveys, and focus group discussions were utilized for data collection. Results showed that respondents lack knowledge about IWMTS but perceive positive impacts on waste volume reduction and municipal waste management and little to no negative impacts on health, livelihood, and accessibility. Meanwhile, economic analysis showed that it is estimated to generate an annual revenue of PHP 11.986 million (USD 214,036) with yearly expenses of PHP 3.7 million (USD 66,071). These cash flows are expected to recover the overall capital outlay of PHP 48.14 million (USD 859,642). A net present value (NPV) of PHP 3.164 million (USD 56,500) and a 5.77-year payback period (PBP) were calculated through cost-benefit analysis. The environmental analysis revealed positive impacts on reducing the volume of wastes, water resources, and quality, odor and air quality, and soil and nutrients. Considering these, the study provided recommendations on project implementation to achieve sustainable waste management and circular economy in the municipality.