Digital Approaches for Sustainable Heritage and Historic Urban Environments
A special issue of Urban Science (ISSN 2413-8851). This special issue belongs to the section "Urban Planning and Design".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 July 2027 | Viewed by 132
Special Issue Editors
Interests: geographic information systems (GISs); common data environment (CDE); 2D-3D geospatial modelling; preventive conservation; cultural heritage; digitisation
Interests: preventive conservation; geographic information systems (GIS); non-destructive testing; architectural heritage; risk assessment; geotechnics
Interests: landscape architecture; urbanism; geographic information systems (GIS); sustainable development; spatial analysis; land use planning; heritage conservation; architectural history; building information modelling (BIM); structure from motion (SfM); artificial intelligence
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Historic cities and cultural landscapes play a key role in sustainable urban development, yet they face growing pressures related to climate change, urban transformation, tourism dynamics, and socio-economic change. Addressing these challenges requires innovative and interdisciplinary approaches capable of integrating cultural heritage values with advanced digital tools and spatial data analysis.
Recent developments in geospatial technologies and digital modeling—such as Geographic Information Systems (GISs), Building Information Modeling (BIM/HBIM), digital twins, remote sensing, and artificial intelligence—are transforming the way historic urban environments are documented, analyzed, and managed. These technologies enable new data-driven approaches to preventive conservation, urban regeneration, heritage monitoring, and decision-making processes across architectural, urban, and territorial scales.
This Special Issue aims to explore how digital and geospatial approaches can contribute to the sustainable management and regeneration of built heritage and historic urban environments. Contributions may address methodological developments, technological innovations, integrated data platforms, and applied case studies that demonstrate the potential of digital technologies for heritage documentation, monitoring, risk assessment, participatory governance, and urban planning.
Interdisciplinary research connecting heritage conservation, urban science, geospatial analysis, and digital technologies is particularly encouraged.
Possible Topics
- GIS-based analysis for heritage planning and urban conservation;
- HBIM and digital twins for historic buildings and urban heritage;
- Spatial data infrastructures and heritage information systems;
- Preventive conservation supported by digital technologies;
- Monitoring and risk assessment of historic urban environments;
- Remote sensing and photogrammetry for heritage documentation;
- Machine learning and AI applications in heritage conservation;
- Digital tools for heritage-led urban regeneration;
- Cultural landscapes and territorial heritage analysis;
- Climate change and resilience of historic cities;
- Participatory digital platforms and WebGIS for heritage governance;
- Smart heritage within smart city frameworks;
- Multi-source spatial data integration for heritage management;
- Digital archives and heritage data infrastructures.
We look forward to receiving your contributions.
Dr. Francisco M. Hidalgo-Sanchez
Prof. Dr. Emilio J. Mascort-Albea
Prof. Dr. Assunta Pelliccio
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. Urban Science is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly 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 1800 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
- built heritage
- historic urban landscapes
- geographic information systems (GISs)
- HBIM and digital twins
- preventive conservation
- cultural heritage management
- urban regeneration
- remote sensing
- artificial intelligence for heritage
- data-driven urban planning
Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue
- Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
- Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
- Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
- External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
- Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.
Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.
