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Applied Sciences
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Resilient Cities in the Context of Climate Change
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Resilient Cities in the Context of Climate Change

A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Ecology Science and Engineering".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 10 March 2026 | Viewed by 1594

Special Issue Editors

Dr. María Isabel Rodríguez Rojas

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Urban Planning, University of Granada, 18071 Granada, Spain
Interests: sustainable urban drainage systems and nature-based solutions; urban planning; integrated water management; flood management; soil sealing; climate change; resilient cities
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Maddi Garmendia

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Engineering in Gipuzkoa, University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU, Europa Plaza 1, 20018 Donostia, Spain
Interests: sustainable drainage systems and planning; nature-based solutions

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In recent years, the growing impact of climate change has highlighted the urgent need for cities to enhance their resilience to environmental disruptions. Urban areas, home to a significant proportion of the global population, are particularly vulnerable to climate-related risks such as extreme weather events, rising sea levels, and increased temperatures. These challenges necessitate a comprehensive and proactive approach to urban planning and development.

Resilience, in the context of cities, refers to the ability of urban infrastructure, planning, ecosystems, and communities to anticipate, prepare for, and recover from the adverse effects of climate change. Achieving this resilience requires a multi-faceted strategy that incorporates both mitigation and adaptation measures. Mitigation efforts, such as reducing greenhouse gas emissions, are essential in slowing the pace of climate change, while adaptation strategies must focus on strengthening urban infrastructure, improving water management systems, enhancing social cohesion to withstand climate impacts, and changing the urban model of impermeabilization.

For this purpose, scientific researchers must work with stakeholders, urban planners, policymakers, and citizens in order to enhance the capacity of cities to adapt to and mitigate the impacts of climate change, contributing to the long-term sustainability and well-being of urban populations.

We are pleased to invite you to this Special Issue regarding climate-resilient cities. This Special Issue aims to promote scientific research on topics related to measures to improve the resilience of cities in the 21st century.

In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following:

1. Nature-based solutions and green infrastructures.
3. Sustainable drainage systems and low-impact developments.
3. Sustainable urban planning and water-sensitive urban design.
4. Flood protection.
5. Adaptive water management.
6. Energy efficiency improvements.
7. Climate-resilient transportation systems.
8. Community engagement and education.
9. Disaster preparedness and early warning systems.
10. Urban resilience governance.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. María Isabel Rodríguez Rojas
Dr. Maddi Garmendia
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 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

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

  • sustainable urban planning
  • resilient cities
  • sustainable drainage systems

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

18 pages, 5097 KB  
Article
Planning Resilient Cities: A Methodological Framework for the Integration of Nature-Based Solutions
by María I. Rodríguez-Rojas, Begoña Moreno Escobar, Germán Martínez Montes and Maddi Garmendia Antín
Appl. Sci. 2025, 15(23), 12378; https://doi.org/10.3390/app152312378 - 21 Nov 2025
Viewed by 277
Abstract
Climate change arguably constitutes the most significant environmental challenge of our time, making the enhancement of urban resilience a global priority. Nature-based Solutions (NbS) have emerged as effective instruments to mitigate some of its impacts, particularly by reducing flood risk and moderating urban [...] Read more.
Climate change arguably constitutes the most significant environmental challenge of our time, making the enhancement of urban resilience a global priority. Nature-based Solutions (NbS) have emerged as effective instruments to mitigate some of its impacts, particularly by reducing flood risk and moderating urban temperatures. However, their implementation is often reactive, focusing on existing problems rather than anticipating future ones. This underscores the need for robust methodological frameworks that enable the proactive integration of NbS within urban planning processes. This study proposes a spatial planning methodology supported by Geographic Information Systems (GIS), which, through the application of opportunity, priority, and feasibility criteria, identifies optimal areas for NbS integration, determines appropriate typologies, and establishes levels of intervention urgency. Although the methodology has been developed for the city of Granada, its structure allows for replication in other urban contexts. The findings reveal that one-third of Granada’s urban area is suitable for NbS implementation, with approximately 7% exhibiting a high or very high risk of surface runoff accumulation. The proposed tool has the potential to strengthen urban resilience and enhance citizens’ quality of life. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Resilient Cities in the Context of Climate Change)
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27 pages, 10653 KB  
Article
Intensified Rainfall, Growing Floods: Projecting Urban Drainage Challenges in South-Central China Under Climate Change Scenarios
by Zhengduo Bao, Yuxuan Wu, Weining He, Nian She and Zhenjun Li
Appl. Sci. 2025, 15(21), 11577; https://doi.org/10.3390/app152111577 - 29 Oct 2025
Viewed by 958
Abstract
Global climate change is intensifying extreme rainfall, exacerbating urban flood risks, and undermining the effectiveness of urban stormwater drainage systems (USDS) designed under stationary climate assumptions. While prior studies have identified general trends of increasing flood risk under climate change, they lack actionable [...] Read more.
Global climate change is intensifying extreme rainfall, exacerbating urban flood risks, and undermining the effectiveness of urban stormwater drainage systems (USDS) designed under stationary climate assumptions. While prior studies have identified general trends of increasing flood risk under climate change, they lack actionable connections between climate projections and practical flood risk assessment. Specifically, quantifiable forecasts of extreme rainfall for defined return periods and integrated frameworks linking climate modeling to hydrological simulation at the watershed scale. This study addresses these gaps by developing an integrated framework to assess USDS resilience under future climate scenarios, demonstrated through a case study in Changsha City, China. The framework combines dynamic downscaling of the MRI-CGCM3 global climate model using the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model to generate high-resolution precipitation data, non-stationary frequency analysis via the Generalized Extreme Value (GEV) distribution to project future rainfall intensities (for 2–200-year return periods in the 2040s and 2060s), and a 1D-2D coupled urban flood model built in InfoWorks ICM to evaluate flood risk. Key findings reveal substantial intensification of extreme rainfall, particularly for long-term period events, with the 24 h rainfall depth for 200-year events projected to increase by 32% by the 2060s. Flood simulations show significant escalation in risk: for 100-year events, an area with ponding depth > 500 mm grows from 1.38% (2020s) to 1.62%, (2060s), and the 300–500 mm ponding zone expands by 21%, with long-return-period events (≥20 years) driving most future risk increases. These results directly demonstrate the inadequacy of stationary design approaches for USDS, which carries substantial applied significance for policymakers and stakeholders. Specifically, it underscores the urgent need for these key actors to update engineering standards by adopting non-stationary intensity-duration-frequency (IDF) curves and integrate Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (SUDS) into formal flood management strategies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Resilient Cities in the Context of Climate Change)
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