Urban Green Infrastructure and Ecological Security: Spatial Modeling, Monitoring and Governance

Dear Colleagues,

Rapid urbanization and climate change have intensified environmental vulnerabilities, posing severe challenges to urban livability and public health. Addressing these interconnected challenges is essential for achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, particularly SDG 3 (“Good Health and Well-Being”), SDG 11 (“Sustainable Cities and Communities”), and SDG 13 (“Climate Action”). Urban green infrastructure (UGI), including urban forests, parks, greenways, wetlands, street trees, and green roofs, provides nature-based pathways to mitigate environmental risks, enhance ecosystem services, and strengthen urban ecological security. Understanding the complex interactions among UGI, urban microclimates, ecological processes, and human well-being requires advanced multi-source data integration, spatially explicit monitoring, and cutting-edge analytical frameworks.

This Special Issue, entitled “Urban Green Infrastructure and Ecological Security: Spatial Modeling, Monitoring and Governance”, aims to bring together interdisciplinary research on the spatial patterns, ecological functions, environmental health benefits, and governance of UGI. Topics include, but are not limited to:

• Spatial patterns, connectivity, accessibility, and ecological performance of UGI;
• Monitoring and modeling urban environmental-health risks, such as urban heat islands, air and noise pollution;
• Biodiversity conservation, habitat quality, ecosystem services, and urban ecological resilience;
• Multi-source data integration, particularly street-view imagery for fine-scale assessments of UGI, urban canopy, and human-centered exposure;
• GeoAI, machine learning, and spatial data science for UGI optimization, ecosystem-service trade-offs, and ecological-security pattern identification;
• Urban green-space planning, nature-based solutions, and climate-adaptive governance frameworks;
• Environmental justice, public-health benefits, and the equitable distribution of UGI.

Existing studies often examine the spatial structure, ecological performance, environmental health effects, or governance of UGI separately. This Special Issue seeks to bridge these fields by integrating spatially explicit evidence, emerging geospatial technologies, ecological assessment, and planning practice. We welcome original research articles, reviews, methodological contributions, and case studies that advance knowledge and provide practical solutions for greener, healthier, more resilient, and ecologically secure cities.

Prof. Dr. Liang Zhou
Prof. Dr. Jun Yang
Dr. Guangliang Xi
Dr. Zhiyu Fan
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-anonymized 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.