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Environmental Planning and Governance for Sustainable Cities

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Urban and Rural Development".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 August 2025 | Viewed by 1922

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
1. Applied Mathematics Department, Technical University of Madrid, 28031 Madrid, Spain
2. LifeD Laboratory, 28010 Madrid, Spain
Interests: human mobility; big data; artificial intelligence
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Guest Editor
Office of Innovation, United Nations Children’s Fund, New York, NY, USA
Interests: remote sensing; land use; land cover change; object detection; geospatial analysis
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Accelerated urbanization and growing population pressure pose significant challenges to environmental sustainability in cities. In this context, environmental planning and governance become crucial elements to ensure the sustainable development of urban areas. Environmental planning and governance is also key to achieving Sustainable Development Goals. The concept of "Environmental Planning and Governance for Sustainable Cities" stands as an integrated approach that aims to manage human and natural resources, promote urban sustainability and resilience, and improve quality of life and work. Environmental planning is the process of designing and managing urban development in harmony with the surrounding environment and with natural resources. It involves assessing environmental risks, conserving natural resources, and promoting sustainable solutions. Sustainable cities must be designed with consideration of elements such as efficient public transportation, rational land use, waste management, energy supplies, carbon emissions, and the creation of green spaces and data-driven solutions. Environmental planning also helps to mitigate climate change by addressing challenges related to greenhouse gas emissions, evaluating climate risk and adaptation to climate change.

Governance, on the other hand, is crucial to ensuring the effective implementation of environmental planning policies. Actively involving the local community, businesses, health systems, energy supplies, carbon emissions, and institutions in decision making is essential to building consensus and collaboration that promotes sustainability. Participatory governance promotes transparency, accountability, and social responsibility, creating a framework in which citizens feel involved and responsible for their urban environment.

Modern technologies play a significant role in the environmental planning and sustainable governance of cities. Solutions such as Smart Cities, which use data, AI, and technologies to optimize the efficiency of urban services, can help monitor and manage energy consumption in real time, improve waste collection, and optimize traffic. Digital innovations also facilitate the active participation of citizens, for example, through online platforms that enable them to share feedback, make suggestions, and report environmental problems. Digital apps and other mobile technologies also have the potential to change the behaviors in the city and promote sustainability.

This Special Issue aims to explore the multidimensional aspects of environmental planning and governance for sustainable cities, aiming to contribute to a deeper understanding of the challenges and opportunities in creating environmentally resilient urban environments. This Special Issue seeks to collate and showcase cutting-edge research, innovative practices, and insightful perspectives from scholars, practitioners, policymakers, and stakeholders around the world.

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

  • The impact of urbanization on urban climate;
  • Smart cities;
  • Data and artificial intelligence for sustainable cities;
  • Metaverse, citiverse, and sustainable cities;
  • The assessment of health risk associated with urban climate;
  • The interaction between urban, climate, and health;
  • Climate change, global warming, heatwaves, and health;
  • Climate risk monitoring and solutions;
  • Urbanization, urban development, and health;
  • Green cities and green-gray infrastructure;
  • Climate adaption, mitigation strategies, and policy;
  • Governance for sustainable cities.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. David Pastor-Escuredo
Dr. Do-Hyung Kim
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. Sustainability 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

  • smart sustainable cities
  • circular cities
  • 15-minute cities
  • urban climate
  • governance
  • urbanization
  • environmental planning

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

23 pages, 6434 KiB  
Article
Sustainable Development and Environmental Governance for Urban Vending Zones: A Case Study in the Waliu Community, China
by Yue Zhai, Pengfei Ma and Mengbi Li
Sustainability 2025, 17(9), 4002; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17094002 - 29 Apr 2025
Viewed by 516
Abstract
In the past decade, the governance of urban space, in connection with the triad, environmental, social, and governance (ESG), has trended towards greater humanization to achieve urban sustainability and social harmony in China. With a focus on the case of the Waliu Community [...] Read more.
In the past decade, the governance of urban space, in connection with the triad, environmental, social, and governance (ESG), has trended towards greater humanization to achieve urban sustainability and social harmony in China. With a focus on the case of the Waliu Community (Zhengzhou), this study investigates the evolution of environmental governance in its vending zones. As one of the earliest Chinese communities to transition from spatial exclusion to spatial inclusion and then to spatial self-management in environmental governance, the Waliu Community established two specific vending zones, Tea City and Shenglong. These zones have transformed the governing mindset of the community’s urban environment. The latest strategy of spatial self-management enables urban low-income groups to participate in the co-governance of the urban environment. The research methods used in this study range from spatial analysis and direct observation to semi-structured interviews; data and information are collected through field notes, official records, and designed questionnaires. The study investigates key indicators spatial utilization efficiency, vendor livelihood, social order and safety, and stakeholder satisfaction. Results demonstrate that spatial self-management effectively optimizes community traffic flow, enhances waste collection efficiency, and fosters consensus and collaboration among stakeholders. It is concluded that spatial self-management facilitates the sustainable production of urban spaces for their users within China’s complex urban contexts. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Environmental Planning and Governance for Sustainable Cities)
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26 pages, 4921 KiB  
Article
The Impact of Construction Logistics and Project Implementation on Urban Quality of Life: The Grounded Theory Approach
by Aleksandra Chełstowska, Osypchuk Oleksandra and Katarzyna Sosik
Sustainability 2025, 17(6), 2651; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17062651 - 17 Mar 2025
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 587
Abstract
Increased entrepreneurship and an influx of residents to urban areas requires the expansion of the housing and service infrastructure. However, at the stage of construction project implementation, the necessary technical, technological, and transport processes may significantly affect urban logistics and residents’ lives. A [...] Read more.
Increased entrepreneurship and an influx of residents to urban areas requires the expansion of the housing and service infrastructure. However, at the stage of construction project implementation, the necessary technical, technological, and transport processes may significantly affect urban logistics and residents’ lives. A literature review showed that there is no exhaustive research on this topic. Therefore, the authors aimed to assess the impact of residential and non-residential (commercial) construction projects carried out in Szczecin on residents’ quality of life. The research process was based on an inductive approach, which enabled conclusions to be drawn in this research area. For this purpose, structured observations and expert consultations as well as surveys related to construction projects were carried out. The research result was the identification of areas related to construction project implementation that have a significant impact on quality of life, which may serve as a basis for preparing city development plans by local authorities. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Environmental Planning and Governance for Sustainable Cities)
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