PERTANIKA JOURNAL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES AND HUMANITIES

There are three main elements of sustainable development, namely: economic sustainability, environmental sustainability and social sustainability. No doubt that it is difficult to intertwine harmoniously the anthropocentric of social and economic objectives with the eco-centric objectives. Using Malaysia and Thailand as a case study, this paper attempts to explore the night market phenomenon which has a positive impact on urban sustainability, especially in small urban spaces. The night market traders are able to increase their incomes which come from lower-middle economic class. Utilising of unused urban space as a 'venue' of night market has changed the landscape. The research applied various techniques in gathering data and presented findings which are in line with various socio-spatial dimensions. It is found that night markets have slowly transformed unused urban space into a place.