Heritage Buildings: Latest Advances and Prospects

Dear Colleagues,

Heritage buildings are invaluable cultural assets that connect communities to their history, architectural traditions, and collective identity. However, their conservation, restoration, and adaptive reuse present significant challenges, requiring a balance between historical integrity, technological advancements, and sustainability. In the face of climate change, heritage buildings are increasingly vulnerable to environmental risks, necessitating innovative and resilient conservation strategies. Additionally, emerging concepts such as circular design and heritage building material passports are transforming the way we document, manage, and restore historic buildings, while minimizing resource consumption and environmental impact. Contributions to this Special Issue will explore topics such as digital documentation techniques, sustainable materials, and adaptive reuse strategies. Special attention will be given to climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies, including energy-efficient retrofitting, environmental impact assessments, and disaster risk reduction for heritage sites. The Issue will also investigate how circular design principles can enhance the longevity and sustainability of historic buildings by promoting resource efficiency, reversible interventions, and low-carbon conservation approaches. Beyond technical and scientific advancements, this Issue will also address policy frameworks, community engagement, and participatory approaches that contribute to sustainable heritage management. By bringing together researchers, conservation specialists, architects, engineers, and policymakers, it aims to foster an interdisciplinary discussion and encourage best practices for ensuring the long-term preservation of heritage buildings in the face of evolving environmental and societal challenges.

We welcome original research articles, case studies, and review papers that contribute to advancing knowledge in heritage building conservation, particularly in relation to sustainability and climate resilience.

Topics of Interest:

1. Sustainable materials and eco-friendly restoration strategies;
2. circular design principles in heritage conservation;
3. adaptive reuse: balancing preservation with contemporary needs;
4. heritage policies, legal frameworks, and governance models;
5. community engagement and participatory approaches in heritage management;
6. climate change mitigation and adaptation for heritage structures;
7. disaster risk reduction and resilience strategies for heritage buildings;
8. digital technologies in heritage documentation and conservation (BIM, AI, digital material passports, laser scanning, photogrammetry);
9. energy-efficient and seismic retrofitting of historic buildings;
10. innovative methodologies for historical building restoration.

We look forward to receiving your contributions

Prof. Dr. Graziella Bernardo
Prof. Dr. Luis Palmero-Iglesias
Prof. Dr. Domenico Caputo
Dr. Ilaria Capasso
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.

• regenerative conservation
• heritage circularity
• resilient adaptation
• sustainable materials
• smart heritage management
• low-impact retrofitting
• climate change mitigation