This open access book provides recent trends of urbanization and inequality in Africa and Asia. It addresses the inequality challenges of urbanization and large-scale rural-to-urban migration. It answers questions around socio-economic and spatial inequalities and how serious those are in cities...

Modern cities are developing exponentially and thus ensuring mobility is one of the key challenges. The solution can be viewed as the determination of optimal vectors of strategic city development, including transport as a sub-system. One dominant theme in respective research discourse is...

Cities and towns in the Pacific region face significant risks from natural hazards. These risks are projected to increase with climate change and increasing urbanization, yet they are not well understood. As a complementary technical report to Livable Pacific Cities and Towns: Urbanization...

Background: The smart city concept has become a central framework in contemporary urban governance; however, empirical research predominantly focuses on large metropolitan areas, while small municipalities remain comparatively underexplored. This study examines how citizens of Ivanić-Grad...

The informal street food sector serves as a vital component of urban economies in South Africa, providing affordable nutrition and employment. However, this industry struggles to comply with required health and safety practices and standards. This study protocol outlines a mixed-methods...

In the past, both researchers and policymakers have often underlined the important role cities have to play in reaching the objectives of the Paris Agreement and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Meanwhile, city networks have become increasingly active in approaching international...

This study is a novel attempt to analyze the patterns and trends of urbanization in medium to large cities in Central Asia. It encompasses a broad range of parameters, and employs an evidence-based approach to outlining strategic directions and actions for fostering green and resilient urban...

Digital twin technologies play a very important role in the provision of smart cities. However, it is not clear which innovative strategies should be implemented first on how to optimize digital twin technologies for sustainable smart cities. The main performance indicators should be identified...

Cities worldwide face increasing challenges in adapting to the devastating effects of severe weather events, including flooding, hurricanes, and rising temperatures. New York City, severely impacted by Hurricane Sandy in 2012, has developed the Financial District and Seaport Climate Resilience...

This study utilizes China's ratification of the Paris Agreement in 2016 as a quasi-natural experiment to examine the effects of environmental regulation on green innovation within listed companies, particularly focusing on the role of urban shrinkage. Results show that environmental regulation...

Sustainable Smart Cities (SSCs) have garnered significant attention due to the accelerating rate of urbanization, and digitalization recently. The main objective of SSC initiatives is to seamlessly integrate digital technology into the city's fundamental systems, ultimately enhancing the...

Jakarta, the economic hub of Indonesia, faces significant air pollution challenges exacerbated by meteorological factors. This study proposes applying Fuzzy Geographically Weighted Clustering (FGWC) combined with Coot Bird Optimization (CBO) to evaluate the vulnerability of air quality in...

The dynamics of land use and land cover are significantly impacted by population growth, mobility, and demand. The objectives of this study are to identify the transition of land-use changes in the vicinity of Mirik Lake between 1990 and 2020. The study uses satellite imagery obtained from the...

This study examines the environmental implications of urban sprawl on biodiversity conservation in Wa Municipality, Ghana, with particular emphasis on the reduction of vegetation cover due to the expansion of built-up areas. Using a combination of remote sensing, Geographic Information System...

The Colombian government is promoting the transition to electric vehicles in metropolitan areas; however, a lack of decision-making in intermediate and small cities hinders local sustainable objectives. The transition to clean technologies must be aligned with the realities intrinsic to cities....

This study explores the externalities caused by managerial myopia from the perspective of carbon emissions in urban areas. Using panel data from 194 Chinese cities and 1 286 listed companies from 2012 to 2021, this study empirically examines the effect of managerial myopia on urban carbon...

Urbanisation has increased the need for sustainable urban development by positioning smart cities as critical frameworks for addressing environmental, economic, and social challenges. This study evaluates the sustainability strategies of three leading smart cities Zurich, Oslo, and Copenhagen by...

Industry 4.0 has revolutionized modern urbanization and smart cities. However, the relationship between Industry 4.0 technology advances such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and their impact on the earth, environment, people, and biological ecosystems needs further consideration, particularly...

Effectively assisting urban designers in developing resilient urban areas requires innovative approaches. Moreover, using spatial analysis is necessary to assess the effectiveness of the conceptual design depending on different specifications. Even though these concepts are closely related, they...

Urban planning, through design and land use allocation, affects urban climate dynamics and patterns at different atmospheric layers and spatial scales. Climate sensitive planning and design draws attention to the consideration of climate parameters for decision making. Seeking to contribute to...

Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) is increasingly recognized as an effective urban planning strategy, aiming for the harmonious development of urban spatial structures and rail transit systems, thus fostering sustainability. This study addresses the limitations of existing research in...

Cities around the world are responsible for ever-growing shares of people, assets, and economic activities vulnerable to climate disasters. They are also responsible for the majority of the world's carbon emissions. Cities in low- and middle-income countries still have a window of opportunity to...

This report is following a Living Spaces peer-learning visit in Malmö that took place between 9 and 11 October 2024, hosted by the City Architect and City Planning Department in Malmö. Malmö, Sweden's third-largest city, has undergone significant transformation since the industrial decline of...

This report is following a Living Spaces peer-learning visit in Malmö that took place between 9 and 11 October 2024, hosted by the City Architect and City Planning Department in Malmö. Malmö, Sweden's third-largest city, has undergone significant transformation since the industrial decline of...

A Local Green Deal is a local tailor-made action plan to accelerate and scale-up a city's sustainability transition. It builds on and joins up existing strategies - e.g. sustainable energy and climate action plans, circular economy plans, resilience or economic development plans - legislation,...

This study investigates the impact of green open spaces in reducing the probability of flooding and open waste burning in urban areas in Indonesia's three largest metropolitan cities: Surabaya, Jakarta, and Medan. This study employs urban village microdata from the 2014 and 2018 Village...

How sustainable are Ghana's cities? This Strategy measures sustainability along three dimensions-the enabling Urban System, People & Economy, and Environment-each of which has four building blocks. This approach is premised on the idea that city systems (infrastructure, governance, institutions,...

Climate change severely challenges our ecosystem and society, affecting urban residents' socioeconomic activities. Thus, assessing severe weather risk is crucial for evaluating urban sustainability; understanding trends, causes, and impacts on socioeconomic development; and supporting the United...

As urbanization accelerates globally, air pollution-particularly PM2.5-is becoming an increasingly significant threat, not only to public health but also the environment. In-depth research on the impact of China's Zero-Waste City pilot policy on PM2.5 concentration offers valuable insights into...