Future Challenges and Trends in Sustainable Urban Planning and Design
A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Green Sustainable Science and Technology".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 April 2026 | Viewed by 7
Special Issue Editors
Interests: risk-sensitive urban planning; inclusive development; community engagement; empowerment & transformation; equitable resilience
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: disaster response and rescue; risk assessments; policy modelling; multi-agency collaboration; mass-scale community engagement; early warning systems
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: disaster-induced relocations and resettlements; use of ICT for improved disaster resilience; disaster-resilient urban infrastructure
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
This Special Issue welcomes cutting-edge research that confronts future challenges in sustainable urban planning and design, particularly where environmental risks and societal resilience intersect. We invite original research and comprehensive reviews addressing sustainable, risk-sensitive urban planning, including frameworks that integrate anticipatory strategies for climate change adaptation, disruptive event mitigation, and disaster risk reduction in the built environment. Contributions exploring community-inclusive development, with equitable access, participatory governance, and just outcomes at their core, are especially encouraged, as are studies on resilient and sustainable communities that enhance collective adaptive capacity. Equally valued are analyses of community resilience to digital vulnerabilities, such as cybersecurity threats and digital divides impacting urban populations. We also welcome investigations of technology-enhanced, multi-agency collaboration, illustrating how digital tools and platforms can strengthen interdisciplinary coordination during crises and promote climate resilience at multiple governance scales. At the heart of this Special Issue lies a shared mission: to reimagine cities as inclusive, resilient, and future-ready systems capable of adapting to complex environmental, social, and technological challenges.
Dr. Devindi Geekiyanage
Prof. Dr. Terrence Fernando
Prof. Dr. Kaushal Keraminiyage
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Applied Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- risk-sensitive urban planning
- climate change adaptation strategies
- disaster risk reduction in the built environment
- community-inclusive development
- equitable urban resilience
- resilient and sustainable communities
- digital vulnerability and community resilience
- technology-enhanced multi-agency collaboration
- urban resilience to environmental and digital risks
- participatory climate-resilient urban governance
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