Spatial Planning and the Latest Challenges of Sustainable Urbanization

Dear Colleagues,

Whether we look at the environment, society or the economy, it is now clear that all these areas are closely linked, interconnected and interdependent and that building a sustainable future depends on our ability to best balance resources (social, economic, and environmental) in order to build a development model that puts people at the center while respecting the environment in which they live and which they will leave to their descendants. In this context, cities play a key role since they are both the subject and the object of current development processes. As the subject, they are the drivers of local and national economies and thus major players in changing development processes into a system of interdependencies between the economy, society and the environment. As objects, cities are the places where populations and economic activities are, and will increasingly be, concentrated, and on which development policies are focused. Thus, cities are at the center, both negatively and positively, of the choices that will define the substance, nature and structure of development paths affecting the environment, society and the economy in the coming years. With this perspective in mind, this Special Issue encourages the scientific community to explore and reflect on the outcomes and opportunities of this multifaceted scenario. Topics include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Urban sustainability models and transformation during and after the pandemic;
• Participative practices in sustainable urban development models;
• Social innovation and new enterprise models;
• Innovative research, education and training modes;
• Knowledge management models in spatial planning processes, in architectural and civil design and in infrastructure engineering;
• The platform society and spatial planning;
• Social networks;
• Surveillance capitalism and sustainable urban development;
• Cities and sustainable mobility;
• Operationalizing sustainable urban tourism;
• SDGs and urban sustainability;
• Open science and big data for sustainable urban development;
• Smart cities and sustainability;
• Indicators of urban sustainability.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.  

Dr. Luigi Mundula
Dr. Vincenzo Todaro
Guest Editors

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