Search Results (1,035)

Urban recreational spaces (URSs) are pivotal for enhancing resident well-being, making the accurate assessment of public perceptions crucial for quality optimization. Compared to traditional surveys, social media data provide a scalable means for multi-dimensional perception assessment. However, existing studies predominantly rely on single-modal data, which limits the comprehensive capturing of complex perceptions and lacks interpretability. To address these gaps, this study employs cutting-edge large vision–language models (LVLMs) and develops an interpretable model, Qwen2.5-VL-7B-SFT, through supervised fine-tuning on a manually annotated dataset. The model integrates visual-linguistic features to assess four perceptual dimensions of URSs: esthetics, attractiveness, cultural significance, and restorativeness. Crucially, we generate textual evidence for our judgments by identifying the key spatial elements and emotional characteristics associated with specific perceptions. By integrating multi-source built environment data with Optuna-optimized machine learning and SHAP analysis, we further decipher the nonlinear relationships between built environment variables and perceptual outcomes. The results are as follows: (1) Interpretable LVLMs are highly effective for urban spatial perception research. (2) URSs within Beijing’s Third Ring Road fall into four typologies, historical heritage, commercial entertainment, ecological-natural, and cultural spaces, with significant correlations observed between physical elements and emotional responses. (3) Historical heritage accessibility and POI density are identified as key predictors of public perception. Positive perception significantly improves when a block’s POI functional density exceeds 4000 units/km² or when its 500 m radius encompasses more than four historical heritage sites. Our methodology enables precise quantification of multidimensional URS perceptions, links built environment elements to perceptual mechanisms, and provides actionable insights for urban planning. Full article

The paper undertakes considerations and research into the implementation of mass timber tall buildings in shaping sustainable built environments. The investigated issues arise from contemporary challenges in shaping sustainable built environments, including the implementation of selected aspects of Sustainable Development Goals 11 and 13 relating to the need to meet the needs of an increasing urban population while limiting urban sprawl; the use of nature-based development solutions regarding materials and access to green spaces to ensure a high quality of life for residents, as well as the need to reduce the negative environmental impact of development. The aim of this article is to present building construction that is at the forefront of implementing pro-environmental solutions and contributing to sustainable urban development. Using a research method based on a case study with an analysis of the available literature, the study covered 109 tall mass timber buildings erected worldwide since 2009. General analyses of the urban context of the buildings in question were carried out in terms of accessibility to leisure and recreation areas and to urban greenery, public transport, as well as functional and material solutions for the structure and interior and facade design. Full article

The built environment influences urban quality of life, particularly through material properties and design decisions that affect thermal comfort, energy consumption, and environmental performance. Among the physical parameters shaping urban microclimates, surface reflectivity—albedo plays a central role in regulating both surface and ambient temperatures. While high-albedo materials are widely recognized for mitigating the urban heat island (UHI) effect and lowering energy demand, limited attention has been given to how material aging alters albedo and, by extension, thermal performance over time. This study investigates that relationship through field measurements conducted at 18 outdoor locations in Xanthi, Greece, across four dates with varying environmental conditions. Variables such as material color, age, and temperature were analyzed through statistical methods and linear regression. Results confirmed a strong correlation between color and albedo and identified a statistically significant relationship between aging and albedo. Additionally, the expected inverse correlation between albedo and surface temperature was reaffirmed. These findings underscore the dynamic nature of material performance and highlight the need for incorporating aging behavior into sustainable urban design. The study contributes data to the field and supports the development of long-term strategies in urban planning and maintenance aimed at preserving the reflective efficiency of surface materials. Full article

The polder in this case study addresses several environmental issues, risk management concerns related to localities served by existing non-permanent dams, energy requirements that can meet a locality’s needs during the renewable energy transition, and their impacts on both rural and urban built environments. Cultural landscape preservation or solar regeneration on agricultural plots in Romania’s rural wetland areas focuses on traditionally inspired design, emphasising the technical versus humanistic approach as an optimal path through some inspiring “Dyads”. Briefly, the dyads are related to Bennett’s systematic approach to ensure the knowledge necessary for achieving understanding without experiencing it. With a two-way spiral, the defined methodology applies energy as solar photovoltaic technology to water-related natural aspects in the built environment without reducing or harming the relevant water management related to nature or built cultural heritage. The Solar Regeneration Monad “Nature -Energy- Built” is a holistic visual framework, replicable in any built environment for a “Built” regenerative culture, that enables the best solution to be identified for the conservation of cultural heritage values in an “Energy” transition context with “Nature”, biodiversity, or other water-related issues. Full article

Waste valorization in construction materials offers a promising pathway to reducing environmental burdens while promoting circular resource strategies in the built environment. This study develops a novel composite mortar formulated with sustainable materials and alternative aggregates, namely polyethylene terephthalate (PET) particles recovered from post-consumer plastic waste and bottom ash from thermal power generation. Natural pumice was incorporated to improve the lightness and the thermal insulation, with cement serving as the binder. The mix design was systematically optimized using the Taguchi method to enhance performance while minimizing carbon emissions. The resulting mortar, produced at both laboratory and small-scale commercial levels, demonstrated favorable technical properties: dry density of 1.3 g/cm³, compressive strength of 5.96 MPa, thermal conductivity of 0.27 W/(m*K), and water absorption of 16.1%. After exposure to 600 °C, it retained 60.6% of its strength and exhibited only a 10.1% mass loss. These findings suggest its suitability for non-load-bearing urban components where sustainability, thermal resistance, and durability are essential. The study contributes to global sustainability goals, particularly Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 11, 12, and 13, by illustrating how waste valorization can foster resilient construction while reducing the environmental footprint of cities. Full article

The rapid increases in urbanization and time spent in built indoor environments have sparked significant concerns about their impact on human health and well-being. People who spend long hours in enclosed and highly artificial settings, such as hospital workers, are especially vulnerable to environmental stressors. This study examined whether applying biophilic (i.e., human tendency to connect with nature and other lifeforms) spatial design within hospital spaces could provide restorative benefits for nurses working in high-stress environments. Twenty-one nurses participated in this study, staying under two different conditions for 10 min: a control room with plain white walls and a biophilic space where the walls were entirely covered with vegetation. During the sessions, functional near-infrared spectroscopy was used to measure hemodynamic responses in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC). Additionally, standardized self-report questionnaires were used to analyze the level of perceived restorativeness, affective states, mood, and anxiety. Results showed that exposure to the biophilic space significantly reduced oxyhemoglobin (oxy-Hb) concentrations in the DLPFC, reflecting relief from cognitive–emotional overload and enhanced neural stabilization. Psychological measures further indicated decreases in fatigue, depression, and anxiety, alongside increases in vigor, attentiveness, and perceived restorativeness in biophilic space. These findings demonstrate that even brief exposure to a biophilically designed indoor environment can produce neuropsychologically restorative effects, suggesting biophilic interventions as sustainable, effective strategies for healthier workplaces and urban environments. Full article

Floods are among the most frequent and destructive natural hazards worldwide, with increasingly severe socioeconomic consequences due to rapid urbanization, land use changes, and climate variability. While the combination of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) with models such as HEC-RAS has been extensively explored for flood risk management, many existing studies remain limited to one-dimensional (1D) models or use coarse-resolution terrain data, often underestimating flood risk and failing to produce critical multivariate flood characteristics in densely built urban areas. This study applies a two-dimensional (2D) hydraulic modeling framework in HEC-RAS combined with GIS-based spatial analysis, using a high-resolution (1 × 1 m) LiDAR-derived Digital Terrain Model (DTM) and a hybrid mesh refined between 2 × 2 m and 8 × 8 m, with the main contributions represented by the specific application context and methodological choices. A key methodological aspect is the direct integration of synthetic hydrographs with defined exceedance probabilities (10%, 1%, and 0.1%) into the 2D model, thereby reducing the need for extensive hydrological simulations and defining a data-driven approach for resource-constrained environments. The primary novelty is the application of this high-resolution urban modeling framework to a Romanian urban–peri-urban setting, where detailed hydrological observations are scarce. Unlike previous studies in Romania, this approach applies detailed channel and floodplain discretization at high spatial resolution, explicitly incorporating anthropogenic features like buildings and detailed land use roughness for the accurate representation of local hydraulic dynamics. The resulting outputs (inundation extents, depths, and velocities) support risk assessment and spatial planning in the Ungheni locality (Iași County, Romania), providing a practical, transferable workflow adapted to data-scarce regions. Scenario results quantify vulnerability: for the 0.1% exceedance probability scenario (with a calibration accuracy of ±15–30 min deviation for peak flow timing), the flood risk may affect 882 buildings, 42 land parcels, and 13.5 km of infrastructure. This framework contributes to evidence-based decision-making for climate adaptation and disaster risk reduction strategies, improving urban resilience. Full article

This article explores how natural wood materials—especially untreated or minimally treated timber—are perceived and experienced during tourist experiences in recreational and tourism-oriented built environments. Drawing on principles of biophilic design and cultural theories of authenticity, the study examines both the psychological and the physiological impacts of wood surfaces on users. One of the objectives of this study is to strengthen the theoretical background and to explore the connections between tourists’ experiences and the material environment. Two pilot studies were conducted: a questionnaire administered to visitors of a national design fair (n = 37) and a physiological experiment measuring user responses to three material types (solid oak, chipboard, and white laminate). The results indicate that natural wood evokes significantly more positive emotional responses and is strongly associated with authenticity, sustainability, and comfort, although concerns about hygiene and surface aging persist. A SWOT analysis is used to summarize the strategic opportunities and risks associated with wood in tourism design. The findings support the inclusion of natural wood as a multisensory design element that enhances atmosphere, emotional engagement, and perceived environmental quality—especially when surface maintenance and cultural framing are appropriately addressed. Full article

Integrating bioluminescent organisms as passive lighting sources in the built environment is currently a hot topic. However, there are several limitations facing the implementation and up-scaling of these naturally bioluminescent organisms in the built environment on architectural and urban scales, such as the scale, sensitivity, enclosure, and difficulty of maintenance. Moreover, there are complex technicalities and operational aspects of conventional bioreactors that host these bioluminescent agents, especially in terms of managing their recharge and effluent, not to mention their high maintenance cost. The current work offers a sustainable, stand-alone, bioluminescent urban screen system employing Aliivibrio fischeri CECT 524 bioink on 3D-printed customized scaffolds as bioreceptive panel design based on a field-diffusion pattern to host the bioluminescent bacterial bioink. The field-diffusion pattern was employed thanks to its proven efficiency in entrapment of the various microbial cultures. Three different growth media were tested for culturing Aliivibrio fischeri CECT 524, including Luria Bertani Broth (LB), the Tryptone Soy Broth (TSB), and the standard Marine Broth (MB). The results revealed that the Marine Broth (MB) media achieved the highest bioluminescent intensity and duration. The maximum light emission typically in range of ~490 nm of blue–green light captured by a conventional reflex camera (human eye vision) was observed for 10 consecutive days in complete darkness after 3–10 s, at a room temperature of 25 °C. This was visible mainly at the thin curvilinear peaks of the 3D-printed field pattern. P1 achieved the highest performance in terms of visible blue–green light, and a duration of 10 days of active bioluminescence was achieved without the need for refilling, thanks to the high number of peaks and narrow wells at <0.5 cm of its field-diffusion pattern. This study proves the efficiency of this biomimetic pattern in terms of the bioreceptivity of the bioluminescent bacterial bioink. Furthermore, the proposed 3D-printed urban screens proved their economic sustainability in terms of affordability and their minimized production processes, in addition to their easy maintenance and recharge. These results qualify these 3D-printed bioluminescent urban screens for easy and decentralized adoption and application on an architectural and urban scale. Full article

Nepal is highly susceptible to natural hazards, including earthquakes, flooding, and landslides, all of which may occur independently or in combination. Climate change is projected to increase the frequency and intensity of these natural hazards, posing growing risks to Nepal’s infrastructure and development. To the authors’ knowledge, the majority of existing geohazard research in Nepal is typically limited to single hazards or localised areas. To address this gap, MiMapper was developed as a cloud-based, open-access multi-hazard mapping tool covering the full national extent. Built on Google Earth Engine and using only open-source spatial datasets, MiMapper applies an Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) to generate hazard indices for earthquakes, floods, and landslides. These indices are combined into an aggregated hazard layer and presented in an interactive, user-friendly web map that requires no prior GIS expertise. MiMapper uses a standardised hazard categorisation system for all layers, providing pixel-based scores for each layer between 0 (Very Low) and 1 (Very High). The modal and mean hazard categories for aggregated hazard in Nepal were Low (47.66% of pixels) and Medium (45.61% of pixels), respectively, but there was high spatial variability in hazard categories depending on hazard type. The validation of MiMapper’s flooding and landslide layers showed an accuracy of 0.412 and 0.668, sensitivity of 0.637 and 0.898, and precision of 0.116 and 0.627, respectively. These validation results show strong overall performance for landslide prediction, whilst broad-scale exposure patterns are predicted for flooding but may lack the resolution or sensitivity to fully represent real-world flood events. Consequently, MiMapper is a useful tool to support initial hazard screening by professionals in urban planning, infrastructure development, disaster management, and research. It can contribute to a Level 1 Integrated Geohazard Assessment as part of the evaluation for improving the resilience of hydropower schemes to the impacts of climate change. MiMapper also offers potential as a teaching tool for exploring hazard processes in data-limited, high-relief environments such as Nepal. Full article

The global rapid urbanization intensifies environmental challenges related to climate change, such as air pollution and the urban heat island (UHI) effect in built environments. The need to optimize nature-based solutions (NBSs) is imperative to mitigate climate change and adapt to extreme weather phenomena. Against this background, this review offers an analysis regarding the integration of vertical greenery systems (VGSs) into urban environments so as to capitalize on their environmental, social, and economic benefits. Key aspects of the review include the positive role of VGSs in UHI mitigation, air quality improvement, stormwater management, and biodiversity enhancement, while examining social aspects (i.e., improved well-being and mental health, noise reduction, and urban built aesthetics). Finally, parameters related to economic benefits and energy efficiency are assessed. The submission further analyses the significant challenges that VGSs face, such as high maintenance costs, structural risks, plant health issues, fire hazards, and other limitations (legislative and technical). The crucial need for interdisciplinary collaborations among urban planners, architects, environmental engineers, and stakeholders is highlighted, in order to successfully integrate VGSs into urban buildings. Thus, this paper aims to identify key strategies for optimizing VGSs’ implementation and provide valuable insights for policymakers and researchers aiming to enhance urban sustainability through vertical greening. Full article

Urban Waterlogging Susceptibility Assessment (UWSA) is vital for resilient urban planning and disaster preparedness. Conventional methods depend heavily on Historical Waterlogging Records (HWR), which are limited by their reliance on extreme rainfall events and prone to human omissions, resulting in spatial bias and incomplete coverage. While hydrodynamic models can simulate waterlogging scenarios, their large-scale application is restricted by the lack of accessible underground drainage data. Recently released flood control plans and risk maps provide valuable physics-informed priors (PI-Priors) that can supplement HWR for susceptibility modeling. This study introduces a dual-source integration framework that fuses HWR with PI-Priors to improve UWSA performance. PI-Priors rasters were vectorized to delineate two-dimensional waterlogging zones, and based on the Three-Way Decision (TWD) theory, a Multi-dimensional Connection Cloud Model (MCCM) with CRITIC-TOPSIS was employed to build an index system incorporating membership degree, credibility, and impact scores. High-quality samples were extracted and combined with HWR to create an enhanced dataset. A Maximum Entropy (MaxEnt) model was then applied with 20 variables spanning natural conditions, social capital, infrastructure, and built environment. The results demonstrate that this framework increases sample adequacy, reduces spatial bias, and substantially improves the accuracy and generalizability of UWSA under extreme rainfall. Full article

Mountain settlements represent culturally rich but environmentally fragile landscapes, shaped by enduring processes of ecological adaptation and human resilience. In western Sichuan, Jiarong Tibetan villages, with their distinctive integration of defensive stone towers and settlements, embody this coupling of culture and the environment. We hypothesize that settlement cores in these villages were shaped by natural environmental factors, with subsequent expansion reinforced by the cultural significance of towers. To test this, we applied a micro-scale spatial–environmental framework to four sample villages in Suopo Township, Danba County. High-resolution World Imagery (Esri, 0.5–1 m, 2022–2023) was classified via a Random Forest algorithm to generate detailed land-use maps, and a 100 × 100 m fishnet grid extracted topographic metrics (elevation, slope, aspect) and accessibility measures (distances to streams, roads, towers). Geographically weighted regression (GWR) was then used to examine how slope, elevation, aspect, proximity to water and roads, and tower distribution affect settlement patterns. The results show built-up density peaks on southeast-facing slopes of 15–30°, at altitudes of 2600–2800 m, and within 50–500 m of streams, co-locating with historic watchtower sites. Based on these findings, we propose four zoning strategies—a Core Protected Zone, a Construction And Development Zone, an Ecological Conservation Zone, and an Industry Development Zone—to balance preservation with growth. The resulting policy recommendations offer actionable guidance for sustaining traditional settlements in complex mountain environments. Full article

In the context of building healthy cities and enhancing the quality of historic blocks, assessing their health levels is of critical importance. However, research on health assessments of historic blocks remains limited, and existing evaluation frameworks often struggle to balance comprehensiveness with contextual specificity. Using the blocks along Ciqi Street, Yongqing Street, and Yongtai Street in Shedian Town, Nanyang City, as a case study, this study develops a health assessment system comprising five primary indicators, including block safety, block comfort, block ecological nature, block convenience, and block cultural nature, along with eleven secondary indicators and seventeen tertiary indicators. Based on SHP data, street view imagery, meteorological data, DSM data, and other relevant datasets and employing multiple analytical methods, including ArcGIS, semantic segmentation, and Grasshopper, a health assessment of the target blocks is conducted. The results indicate that the target blocks face significant safety issues, with health challenges primarily associated with their internal built environments. Finally, the study proposes three measures for quality improvement, providing references for related research and the renewal of historic blocks. Full article

In the study of person-environment interaction, a well-established research field provided evidence on the power of natural environments and natural built spaces to improve human well-being. However, urban life or certain health conditions may make access to natural environments more difficult. This begs the question: is it possible to replicate the positive effects of green environments in interior spaces? To answer the question, here we manipulated the acoustic and visual features of five rooms to have nature-inspired indoor environments and urban-like indoor environments. To test the effect of these environmental features on people’s well-being two measures were taken into account: participants’ emotional state and participants’ physiological states (i.e., electrodermal activity levels). The results showed that nature-inspired rooms evoked more positive emotional states and led to decreased levels of electrodermal activity (i.e., relaxation) in participants. The findings align with so-called biophilia interior design, a practical perspective focused on the importance of bringing nature (e.g., colours and materiality) into built environments for optimising people’s health and well-being. Full article