Search Results (23)

Underground pedestrian streets play a crucial role in urban spatial systems, yet the positioning of atrium spaces in existing underground walkways is often determined empirically without adequate consideration of spatial rationality in relation to public environmental behavior. Properly designed atrium spaces can significantly enhance spatial quality and pedestrian experience, effectively revitalizing underground environments. This research investigates the rationality of atrium spatial distribution in underground pedestrian streets, with particular emphasis on developing an evaluation framework for assessing atrium layout appropriateness, using pedestrian congregation patterns shaped by spatial network morphology as the primary evaluation criterion. Through comprehensive field observations and computational simulations, the study examines the interaction between existing underground street network configurations and pedestrian behavior, pioneering the application of spatial design network analysis (sDNA) technology to optimize atrium spatial positioning strategies, thereby establishing a more scientific methodology for atrium layout planning. The proposed approach was validated through a case study of Longhu Underground Pedestrian Street in Handan, ultimately providing a systematic method for verifying atrium distribution rationality. The research establishes an innovative framework that integrates computational analysis into underground spatial planning, incorporates pedestrian flow prediction into architectural design processes, and embeds performance-based evaluation into urban renewal initiatives. Findings demonstrate that sDNA technology can accurately predict pedestrian congregation patterns across various underground street configurations, providing a data-driven foundation for assessing atrium location rationality and supporting the optimization of existing underground spaces. These outcomes are expected to offer valuable scientific references for the design and improvement of atrium spatial distribution in future underground pedestrian systems. Full article

Ecosystem services are pivotal in assessing environmental health and societal well-being. Focusing on Lake Dianchi Basin (LDB), China, our research evaluated the IESV (Integrated Ecosystem Service Value) from 2000 to 2020, utilizing remote sensing and multiple statistical datasets. The analysis incorporates LSV (Landscape Service Value), CSV (Carbon Sequestration Value), and NPPV (Net Primary Productivity Value). The results show that LSV and CSV exhibited an expansion of low-yield zones near urban areas, contrasted by NPPV’s growth in high-yield outskirt areas. LSV’s normal distribution indicates stability, while CSV’s bimodal structure points to partial integration and systemic divergence. IESV pronounced clustering in both low- and high-yield regions, with low-yield zones congregating near urban centers and high-yield zones dispersed along the basin’s periphery. Despite an overall downward trajectory in IESV, NPPV’s augmentation suggested an underlying systemic resilience. A southeastward shift in IESV’s focus was driven by patterns of urban expansion. Finally, we produced projections with the CA-MC (Cellular Automata–Markov Chain) model to analyze the ongoing distribution of IESV areas around Kunming. By 2030, IESV’s aggregate value is expected to modestly diminish, with NPPV’s ascension mitigating the declines in LSV and CSV. In essence, IESV fluctuations within the LDB are intricately linked to urban development. Full article

Street-type spaces, characterized by their relative closedness and propensity for human congregation, inherently carry potential safety evacuation risks. In order to study the influence of slopes on the evacuation efficiency of pedestrians in street-type public spaces under the state of passenger flow surge during holidays, this study systematically analyzes the changing rules and behavioral characteristics of pedestrian evacuation in downhill movement through a three-phase analysis of the risk of crowd gathering in urban street-type spaces (before, during, and after) and evacuation simulation experiments combining variables such as slope, street width, obstacle layout, disability type, and group movement. The findings indicate that, in the structural design of street-type spaces, slopes of more than 4° should be minimized to maintain the smooth flow of pedestrians. Areas in streets with widths narrower than 2 m are high-risk zones for crowd gathering and should be better supervised. The number and location of obstacles should be reasonably arranged under the condition of satisfying the safety of pedestrians’ passage. The differences in the ability of evacuees should be taken into account to improve evacuation system deficiencies and ensure that everyone can evacuate safely. Ultimately, we propose a preventive mechanism for the safe evacuation of urban street-type public spaces to reduce the risk of crowd gathering and safeguard pedestrians. This study provides a theoretical framework for understanding the dynamics of pedestrian evacuation in inclined street-type spaces, thereby guiding urban planners and public safety managers to enhance the design and management of such spaces. Full article

With the continued recognition of the devastating effects of natural hazards, the construction of shelters has become essential in urban disaster preparedness planning systems. After analyzing the deficiency of the conventional spatial allocation model of shelters and the hierarchy of evacuation assignments, this study proposes a bi-level and two-phase spatial configuration methodology of shelters. The first hierarchy aims to evacuate refugees from demand blocks to both emergency shelters and resident emergency congregate shelters. The second hierarchy aims to transfer refugees from selected shelters in the first hierarchy to resident emergency congregate shelters. Each hierarchy contains two phases of optimizing calculations. The optimization objects for the first phase and second phase are minimizing the number of new shelters and the evacuation time, respectively. A genetic algorithm and exhaustive approach are programmed to determine the solution of the model in the first and second phases, respectively. The evacuation assignment rule is proposed based on the gravity model, which distributes evacuees proportionally to nearby shelters. This study uses the deterministic user equilibrium problem to present the evacuation traffic flow allocation, which improves the scientificity of the location model of shelters. The refuge demands differentiate the population between daytime and nighttime through mobile signaling data and improve the accuracy from the plot scale to the building scale. Using mobile signaling data to differentiate refuge demands between day and night populations enhances the model’s precision. Finally, to validate the proposed methodology, this study selected the main area of Changshu City, Jiangsu Province, China, which has a population of 1.6 million, as a case study area. Full article

City health examinations are integral to China’s urban planning, construction, and management. They effectively identify potential risks and vulnerabilities in urban development, ensuring safety resilience—a critical component. This resilience enhances the city’s ability to withstand internal and external shocks, promoting the safety of urban residents and fostering sustainable city development. Drawing on the Japanese disaster prevention strategy, the disaster prevention life circle emerges as a rescue and protection system during urban disasters, fortifying urban safety resilience. However, smaller and mid-sized cities, constrained by limited resources, significantly need to catch up in disaster prevention planning. Consequently, bolstering safety resilience in these cities becomes a pressing concern. This study focuses on Lindian County in Heilongjiang Province as the urban area under consideration for resilient city objectives. Leveraging the ArcGIS network analysis tool, we optimize the placement of emergency shelters, aligning with urban disaster assessments and the equilibrium of disaster prevention facility supply and demand. Accessibility analysis of emergency shelters was conducted using the Gaussian two-step floating catchment area method. Ultimately, we integrate the range of demand points assigned to each shelter, along with the effective land area reflecting the supply of shelters, as weights into a weighted Voronoi diagram. This diagram is combined with a reference to the entire region to delineate the disaster prevention life circle. Findings reveal that, under the premise of minimizing government construction costs while maximizing coverage and evacuation utilization rates, the optimal resident emergency congregate shelters in the study area are 8, with 98 emergency evacuation and embarkation shelters. Striking a balance between disaster prevention facility supply and demand and regional accessibility, the urban area of Lindian County is segmented into 3 resident disaster prevention life circles and 24 emergency disaster prevention life circles. The objective of this study is to optimize shelter siting and establish disaster prevention life circles in diverse urban areas. This endeavor aims to bolster urban resilience and foster sustainable urban development. Full article

Logistics services are integral to urban economic activity, and delving into the spatial distribution traits and evolutionary pathways of various kinds of logistics service node facilities (LSNF) is markedly valuable for understanding a city’s functional spatial makeup and refining the spatial layout of logistics services. This study quantitatively and qualitatively analyzes the spatial congregation and spreading characteristics of diverse LSNFs in Wuhan in 2011, 2014, 2017, and 2020, employing kernel density analysis, average nearest neighbor index, mean center, and distance distribution frequency, seeking to characterize the spatial evolution characteristics of LSNF, alongside examining the trends in distances to city cores, principal adjoining roads, and production and consumption sites. The following conclusions were made: (1) Between 2011 and 2020, various types of LSNFs in Wuhan experienced a pattern characterized by the noticeable coexistence of spatial expansion and agglomeration, particularly visible after 2014. The degree of agglomeration is classified in a descending order as follows: CWC, STN, PSN, and PDN. (2) An “absolute diffusion” phenomenon characterizes the distribution of distances between various kinds of LSNFs and city cores or neighboring roads, with the lion’s share of high-frequency distribution zones spreading beyond city cores by 5–10 km, and a majority of the LSNFs being situated within 1 km from adjacent roads. (3) While the LSNF collective exhibits a stronger tendency towards the consumption facet, it reflects a surrounding of industrial production sites on the production facet and locations of manufactured goods consumption on the consumption facet, followed by locations of agricultural product consumption and comprehensive consumption sites. Full article

This conceptual essay discusses how university athletic departments and local churches can collaborate in providing spiritual care for intercollegiate athletes in the United States. Parachurch organizations such as Athletes in Action (AIA) and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) play a vital role in creating and maintaining these partnerships. Additionally, a considerable body of literature is available on the importance of religiosity and spirituality in the lives of intercollegiate athletes in the United States. In the interests of helping intercollegiate student-athletes grow and develop religiously and spirituality, many sports chaplains assist student-athletes with finding a local place to worship while on campus. Chaplains that subscribe to the “urban chaplaincy/congregational model” play a significant role in bringing this task to pass. This essay highlights the primacy of building a relational bridge between university athletic departments and local churches in the United States to collaborate in intercollegiate student-athlete spiritual development and holistic care. Full article

This contribution investigates the spiritual position of a Christian congregation in urban contexts of gentrification and de-churching. A project in Amsterdam will serve as a case to explore crucial issues for shrinking congregations in ‘up-and-coming’ neighbourhoods, who aim to transcend the insider/outsider dichotomy between the congregation and its (urban) context. The project at hand shows a shift from exclusively Christian congregations to communities of people with various outlooks of life and from professional structures to cooperation between professionals and volunteers. Using the work of the French theologian Michel de Certeau as a city guide, and his understanding of the empty tomb as a key theological concept, the paper reflects on epistemological and methodological questions brought about by these shifts. After that, issues closely connected to the observed shifts are discussed: the questions of language (how to deal with different ways to express and interpret experiences) and ownership (who is in control in situations of plurality). The article argues for an urban Christian spirituality based on an epistemology of not-knowing and otherness, informed by methodologies of receptivity and desire, leading to practices of multilingualism and open ownership-structures. Full article

Between 2019 and 2021, volunteers of a local Protestant congregation in Amsterdam, professional artists, and (other) local residents organised the interactive exhibit A(t) home in the Staats. In this project, community art and diaconia joined forces using multidisciplinary methods to strengthen relations in the neighbourhood and to discern issues of belonging and lines of division in the changing neighbourhood. The project was situated at the intersection of an “up and coming” neighbourhood and a shrinking congregation. By analysing the exhibit, this article contributes to the development of creative, arts-based research methods in diaconal studies. Within this approach, art is never a mere illustration or a vehicle for reflection but rather a generator of knowledge. The central question is: how can alliances between community art and diaconia contribute to overcoming segregation in urban contexts? This question is informed by the process of gentrification and the search by city churches for ways to engage with urban changes. After the introduction and methodological reflections, the article describes the background and practice of the project, followed by the outcomes of the interactive exhibit. It concludes by answering the central question and mapping theoretical and practical challenges concerning alliances between art and diaconia in urban contexts. Full article

In wild boar, Sus scrofa, from Europe, domestic pig-typical ancestry is traced at varying levels. We hypothesised wild boar with pig-typical gene pool characteristics, i.e., “introgression”, congregate more in peri-urban habitats, because of less shyness and better adaptation to anthropogenic stress. We used 16 microsatellites to study introgression levels of 375 wild boar from peri-urban Vienna, Austria, and rural regions in comparison to commercial slaughter pigs, Mangaliza, and Turopolje pigs. We also expected more introgression in locations of warmer climates and lower precipitation. Despite discrimination of wild boar and pigs with 99.73% and 97.87% probability, respectively, all wild boars exhibited pig-typical gene pool characteristics, mostly at a very low level. Recent hybridisation was suspected in only 0.53% of wild boar, corresponding to the current largely indoor pig breeding/rearing in the region, with no chance of natural gene exchange between pigs and wild boar. Rather, pig ancestry in wild boar stems from incomplete gene pool differentiation during domestication and/or historical introgressions, when free-ranging pig farming was common. Individual introgression levels were lower in wild boar from peri-urban habitats, possibly reflecting the largely historical absence of pig farms there. Moreover, a marginal precipitation effect, but no temperature effect on introgression was observed. The latter, however, needs to be explored further by a more comprehensive data set. Full article

This article explores the attributes and religious, social and political activities of local religious groups in three Italian cities across all religious traditions. This is the first application of Congregations Study methodology in Italy to analyze the social composition, structure and activities of religious communities. The research was conducted between 2020 and 2021 with a total number of 877 communities mapped in the cities of Bologna, Milan and Brescia, and their surroundings. All local religious groups in three cities and their surroundings were counted and one key informant per group was interviewed (N = 566) with a Congregations Study questionnaire. Based on the results of the interviews, we found that, during the last decade, the dynamics of growth of adults’ and children’s regular religious participation was distinct within the Muslim and Christian Orthodox communities. Social service for elderly, environmental programs and political activity were found to be promoted by the Catholic communities to a stronger degree, while activities linked to the support of migrants were endorsed stronger by Muslim and Orthodox groups. Moreover, this study assessed the theological, ethical and political orientation of religious communities, highlighting different trends across religious traditions. The article discusses various configurations of urban religious diversity by bringing similarities and contrasts between communities of dominant religious tradition and minority religions, thus questioning the applicability of City Congregations Study (CCS) methodology to the analysis of configurations of religious diversity in Italy. Full article

This paper examines how megachurch congregations in South Korea responded to governmental measures to control the COVID-19 pandemic in terms of religious governance. This empirical study of Saeronam Church (SC) in Daejeon shows that the unexpected crisis forced its congregants to look back on their faithfulness in terms of self-reflection, and hence, made them more committed to their congregation socially and organizationally. The theologically and politically conservative megachurch congregants tend to regard the pandemic crisis as a God-planned ordeal which must be endured not only through self-reflection and repentance, but also through protection of their congregation from secular authorities. This attitude made it easier for conservative congregants to protest against governmental quarantine measures more explicitly and collectively. While some argue that the COVID-19 pandemic basically accelerated secularity by shrinking religious influence on society, this paper finds this aspect remarkably opposite in Korean conservative churches like SC, and emphasizes how a secular challenge, like the recent quarantine measures, can intensify megachurch Christianity. In this sense, it claims that the second-generation Korean megachurches like SC cannot be explained entirely by traditional theories of urbanization, marketing strategies, and church growth. Full article

Every year, diverse Jewish communities around the world observe Tashlich (casting off), a customary atonement ritual performed the day after Rosh Hashanah. This performative ritual is conducted next to a body of water to symbolize atonement and purification of one’s sins. Based on multi-sited ethnographic fieldwork in two egalitarian Jewish congregations in Tel Aviv and in New York City, I show how Tashlich performance is constructed as a political act to empower gender and sexual identities and experiences, as well as the socio-political positionality of LGBTQ Jews in various sites. By including new blessings, the blowing of the shofar by gay female participants, and by conducting the ritual in historical and contemporary queer urban spaces, the rabbis and congregants created new interpretations of the traditional customs. They exposed their feelings toward themselves, their community, and its visibility and presence in the city. The fact that the ritual is conducted in an open urban public space creates not only differing meanings and perceptions than from the synagogue, but also exposes queer politics in the context of national and religious identities. Furthermore, this comparative analysis illuminates tensions and trajectories of Jewishness and queerness in Israel and in the US, and sheds light on postmodern tendencies in contemporary urban religious communities as a result of the inclusion of the LGBTQ community. Full article

Community organising, an approach aiming at building local leadership and empowering local communities, has become increasingly popular in the last few decades because of the crisis of more traditional practises of civil society building and political action. In this paper, the authors first describe the main tenets of this approach, formalised between the 1930s and the 1940s in Chicago by Saul Alinsky, and its history and evolution to the present day. The following paragraphs describe the role played by religious values and religious communities, often representing key institutions in rundown social and urban contexts, in this approach. In the last paragraph, the authors finally discuss the conception of power implied in the version of community organising proposed by the Industrial Areas Foundation (an organisation created by Alinsky) and its affiliates, and the role of religion in it. With this work, the authors argue that the relational and bottom-up idea of power proposed by the IAF and its affiliates, although often focused on the development of a local power base able to place political pressure on the authorities from below and even economic boycott campaigns, has increasingly also relied on soft power after Alinsky’s death, especially because of the development of the ‘relational’ side of community organising, a process where the involvement of religious congregations (with the weight of their moral authority) has played a major role. Full article

In response to U.S. government restrictions imposed as part of a nationwide response to the COVID-19 pandemic, charismatic worship leader Sean Feucht began a series of worship concerts. Feucht positioned these protests as expressions of Christian religious freedom in opposition to mandated church closings and a perceived double-standard regarding the large gatherings of protesters over police violence against Black and Brown persons. Government restrictions challenged the sine qua non liturgical act of encounter with God for evangelicals, Pentecostals, and Charismatics: congregational singing in Praise and Worship. However, as Feucht’s itinerant worship concerts traversed urban spaces across the U.S. to protest these restrictions, the events gained a double valence. Feucht and event attendees sought to channel God’s power through musical worship to overturn government mandates and, along the way, they invoked longstanding social and racial prejudices toward urban spaces. In this essay, I argue that Feucht’s events reveal complex theological motivations that weave together liturgical-theological, social, and political concerns. Deciphering this complex tapestry requires a review of both the history of evangelical engagement with urban spaces and the theological history of Praise and Worship. Together, these two sets of historical resources generate a useful frame for considering how Feucht, as a charismatic musical worship leader, attempts to wield spiritual power through musical praise to change political situations and the social conditions. Full article