Building-Integrated Vegetation Systems for Sustainable Cities

Dear Colleagues,

The current urban development is currently leading to densely built cities where the space still available is scarce and the land is expensive. This model of urbanization provokes problems such as the increase of the urban heat island effect, pollution, or lack of green areas. In order to overcome this and to be able to increment the quantity of green spaces in urban areas, building surfaces (mainly walls and roofs) can be used to locate vegetation. Therefore, the use of innovative building-integrated vegetation systems is becoming more frequent, mainly in the form of green roofs and living walls.

These types of nature-based solutions are usually employed with different aims such as ecosystem service provision (e.g., biodiversity increase, air quality improvement, stormwater management, temperature regulation), improvement of the building performance (e.g., temperature and noise isolation) or even with social or aesthetical purposes.

This Special Issue is intended to bring studies focused on building-integrated vegetation systems together. We welcome papers related with their design and optimization, advantages and drawbacks, their management and maintenance or their effects on buildings and their occupants. We also accept studies in a broader scale from the urban planning perspective.

Prof. Luis Pérez-Urrestarazu
Prof. Panayiotis A. Nektarios
Dr. Katia Perini
Guest Editors

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