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...

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...

Several indicator and index frameworks have been reported to assess management efficiency and promote transparency, facilitating decision-making and innovation. However, they cannot be applied in cities with limited information, making them impractical. This study proposes a Sustainable Urban...

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...

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...

Based on corrected nighttime light data and firm-level data from 1998 to 2010, we use an urban sprawl index that properly captures the subtle differences in density distribution within cities, extend a hyperbolic distance specification within a parametric stochastic framework to the analysis of...

City-level greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions data is necessary as an input into identifying, planning, and monitoring urban climate change mitigation actions. Until recently, the availability of emissions data at the city level required the existence of a local emissions inventory, produced through...

Approximately 70 percent of greenhouse gas emissions are generated through consumption in urban areas, which means that decarbonization of cities is essential to limit climate change to 1.5 to 2 °C. While per capita emissions in low- and middle-income countries remain low so far, prompt action...

This technical note serves as a primer on smart city solutions for climate mitigation in urban areas. It introduces a subset of solutions that have shown great promise in the path toward decarbonization. Note that this primer note does not endorse one solution over another. Each city should...

The optimization of sustainable smart cities is an essential endeavor in modern urban development, aiming to enhance the quality of life for citizens while minimizing environmental impacts. Big data plays a critical role in achieving these goals by enabling the collection, analysis, and...

To address air pollution and offer a convenient and comfortable living environment, the Chinese government launched a smart city pilot (SCP) project in 2012, accompanied by a comprehensive set of environmental and energy-related laws and regulations. Although academic interest in smart cities...

Abstarct Urban sustainability assessment is an effective method for objectively presenting the current state of sustainable urban development and diagnosing sustainability-related issues. As the global community intensifies its efforts to implement the sustainable development goals (SDGs), the...

Sustainable urban development involves many fields with complex data types and rich semantic relationships, such as the economic, societal, and ecological fields. Knowledge graphs provide a new means for sustainable urban development research by leveraging their strengths in the construction of...

Toulouse is known for its historical centre and the distinctive architecture of the pink brick buildings. Home to important University faculties and business hubs, vibrant and with a renowned quality of life, Toulouse attracts 5000+ new residents every year. In this context, availability of...

Toulouse is known for its historical centre and the distinctive architecture of the pink brick buildings. Home to important University faculties and business hubs, vibrant and with a renowned quality of life, Toulouse attracts 5000+ new residents every year. In this context, availability of...

The Living Spaces peer learning visit in Vilnius focused on wooden architecture as a key element of sustainable urban development. Like many European cities, Vilnius faces the challenge of balancing heritage preservation with modern needs. Over recent decades, the city has achieved substantial...

The Living Spaces peer learning visit in Vilnius focused on wooden architecture as a key element of sustainable urban development. Like many European cities, Vilnius faces the challenge of balancing heritage preservation with modern needs. Over recent decades, the city has achieved substantial...

The Circular Economy (CE) is a driver of change and regeneration at a global level, and especially for rural areas. However, there is a missing link regarding the CE in municipalities, i.e. at the macro level encompassing the built environment, which is even more pronounced concerning rural...

In January 2022, Slovenia's government adopted the strategic plan to stop using coal for electricity production by 2033. The plan calls for the closure of the Velenje coal mine and comprehensive economic and social restructuring for the region. As a result, the city of Velenje is progressively...

In January 2022, Slovenia's government adopted the strategic plan to stop using coal for electricity production by 2033. The plan calls for the closure of the Velenje coal mine and comprehensive economic and social restructuring for the region. As a result, the city of Velenje is progressively...

REACHOUT is a pioneering initiative under the European Green Deal that aims to transform urban resilience against climate challenges. With a focus on city-oriented climate services, REACHOUT collaborates with a diverse range of European cities to co-create tailored climate information tools....

Recent global developments, including the Russian invasion in Ukraine and its weaponisation of the energy sector have called for a radical acceleration of the European clean and just energy transition: cutting our dependency on external fuel sources, such as Russian gas, speeding up energy...

Daylight is essential for ecosystems and for the physical and mental well-being of people. In densely populated cities, only a small proportion of total daylight is available to support urban greenery and most people have little daily exposure to natural daylight. Despite this, many cities have...

This interview comprises the opening part of a doctoral defense in which Christian Nielsen acted as Sari Perätalo's opponent. The defense took place on November 24, 2023, at Oulu Business School, Finland, and the topic was "In search of a business model approach for smart cities." After the...

The Smart City concept is essential for urban areas to develop the city through sustainable strategies. This paper assesses how the citizens of Iași, a dynamic city that quickly implemented this concept, perceive the impact of the initiatives on their quality of life, achieved mainly through...

Christopher Alexander argued that modernist approach to architecture prioritizes innovation, abstraction, and mechanistic efficiency at the expense of human-centered and organic values. According to Christopher Alexander, this shift has led to a proliferation of buildings that are visually...

The West African region, one of the largest urban agglomerations in Africa has over decades experienced rapid rate of urbanization. The urbanization processes have been associated with manifold environmental and socioeconomic challenges including inefficient urban infrastructure, unaffordable...

This paper proposes a Sustainability Assessment for the social, economic, and environmental evaluation of gated housing projects, corresponding to the indicators of accessibility, connectivity, compatibility, nodality and containment, identity, diversity, density, and adaptability. The main aim...

Urban Green Infrastructure (UGI) refers to the strategically managed network of urban green spaces and natural and semi-natural ecosystems situated within the boundary of an urban ecosystem. These high-quality, biodiversity-rich areas can help make cities more sustainable and contribute to solve...

As living, economic and cultural spaces, cities require a sustainable energy system and must be designed to be highly energy efficient. The book provides a framework for practitioners and scientists on how the energy transition can contribute to achieving climate goals in the building sector....