Search Results (1,600)

Urban areas in subtropical regions are increasingly exposed to heat stress as climate change intensifies extreme heat events. In high-density cities, urban renewal is widely implemented to upgrade aging building stock, yet its potential role as a passive heat adaptation strategy remains insufficiently understood, particularly for projects below environmental impact assessment thresholds. This study examines how urban renewal influences neighborhood-scale microclimates through a comparative analysis of six residential renewal cases using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. Pre- and post-renewal scenarios are evaluated to assess changes in wind environment and thermal conditions, with a particular focus on the spatial extent and distance–decay characteristics of renewal-induced effects. The results reveal a consistent distance–decay pattern of microclimate responses across all cases. The influence of urban renewal is strongest within 0–50 m, remains detectable up to approximately 100 m, and diminishes substantially beyond 100–150 m, indicating a clear neighborhood-scale impact radius. Ventilation performance improves systematically following renewal, while thermal responses are more heterogeneous. Localized cooling of up to 1.5 °C is observed in selected cases, whereas others exhibit negligible temperature change despite enhanced airflow. These findings demonstrate that improved ventilation alone does not guarantee thermal mitigation. Instead, thermal outcomes depend on the interaction between airflow, solar exposure, and surface thermal properties. Urban renewal can therefore function as a form of passive heat adaptation when morphological changes are coordinated with shading and surface design strategies. By quantifying the spatial limits of renewal-induced microclimate effects, this study provides empirical evidence for integrating microclimate considerations into neighborhood-scale planning. The identified influence radius offers a practical reference for climate-responsive urban renewal, particularly in high-density subtropical cities where incremental redevelopment plays a dominant role. Full article

Urban density is a central concept in sustainable urban development, yet its measurement and interpretation remain fragmented and often limited to single indicators. This paper develops a multidimensional framework for measuring urban density and linking it to selected dimensions of liveability relevant to spatial planning and sustainable urban development. The approach conceptualises urban density as the interaction between morphological, functional, and structural dimensions within a common spatial unit defined as the urban footprint. The framework is operationalised through indicators capturing built form, population and activity intensity, and land-use composition, while selected liveability components—such as accessibility, green infrastructure, and environmental conditions—are incorporated as an interpretative layer. The methodology is demonstrated through its application to three Slovenian cities (Izola, Kranj, and Gornja Radgona), representing different urban typologies. The results show that similar aggregate density values may correspond to different spatial configurations, revealing patterns not captured by conventional indicators. The analysis identifies mismatches between density dimensions and a “density dilution effect” related to the use of heterogeneous spatial units. The findings confirm that the relationship between density and liveability is context-dependent, shaped by the interaction between built form, functional structure, and green space provision. The study contributes a transferable methodological framework that supports a more nuanced interpretation of urban density and provides a tool for informed and context-sensitive spatial planning, contributing to more efficient land use, improved environmental quality, and more sustainable urban development outcomes. Full article

Under global warming and rapid urbanization, understanding the link between residential spatial layouts and carbon emissions, considering microclimate effects, is crucial. Using the Local Climate Zone (LCZ) framework, this study selected 60 residential neighborhoods in Suzhou (hot summer and cold winter zone). A microclimate–neighborhood morphology coupling model was built by integrating the Urban Weather Generator (UWG) and Urban Metabolism-Induced Energy (UMI) model. The factor method was used to simulate energy use and carbon emissions of building clusters. The study systematically analyzed eight spatial form indicators, their influence on carbon emissions, and developed a predictive model. Main conclusions: (1) Carbon emission intensity ranks: LCZ6 > LCZ3 > LCZ5 > LCZ4 > LCZ2 > LCZ1. (2) Shape factor is positively correlated with carbon emissions across all LCZs, being the most stable and significant predictor. (3) Dominant factors vary by LCZ: sky view factor for compact high-rise (LCZ1); scattering degree for open high-rise (LCZ4); shape factor for compact mid-rise (LCZ2), open mid-rise (LCZ5) and open low-rise (LCZ6); no significant factor for compact low-rise (LCZ3). These findings can support low-carbon residential design, energy-efficient renovation of old neighborhoods, and optimization of residential evaluation standards. Full article

Mountainous megacities face a distinctive form of pluvial waterlogging in which terrain-controlled flow convergence, accelerating imperviousness, and aging drainage interact to produce chronic, spatially clustered failures rather than stochastic events. Existing frameworks, such as hydrodynamic modeling, data-driven machine learning, and multi-criteria composite indexing, carry distinctive failure modes at the municipal scale. This study develops and externally validates a city-wide, grid-based assessment framework for Chongqing, China, through three integrated choices. First, resilience is reformulated as a stabilized adaptation-to-risk ratio and subjected to an explicit falsification test against independent waterlogging observations. Second, multi-source hydroclimatic, topographic–hydrologic, land-cover, and service-accessibility indicators are integrated on a 500 m fishnet (22,500 cells) through within-component CRITIC–Entropy weighting and TOPSIS, with robustness diagnosed by a 500-iteration Monte Carlo weight-perturbation analysis. Third, a spatially grouped LightGBM classifier with SHAP interpretation serves both as an independent validation layer and as a mechanistic lens on non-linear driver thresholds. The composite risk surface achieves ROC-AUC values of 0.834 and 0.873 against two independent waterlogging registries, is strongly spatially clustered (Moran’s I = 0.81, p < 0.001), and preserves its ranking under aggressive weight perturbation (Spearman ρ ≥ 0.95 in 95% of scenarios). A counterintuitive finding emerges from the falsification test as resilience yields ROC-AUC below 0.5 on both point sets, indicating that accessibility-based capacity proxies systematically capture urban centrality rather than drainage robustness, like a diagnosable measurement problem affecting the wider resilience-index literature. LightGBM concentrates 88.0% of waterlogging cells within the top 10% of scored grids, and SHAP-derived thresholds align with saturation-ponding, well-drained, and convergence–hotspot regimes of classical hydrology. Together, these results reframe waterlogging assessment in complex terrain from a cartographic exercise into a falsifiable, resource-aware prioritization framework, and clarify why capacity maps and risk maps should be published as complementary instruments of flood governance. Full article

In recent years, local governments in China have actively promoted new district development, encouraging a transition from monocentric to polycentric urban form. Whether and how this spatial restructuring is reflected in government-mediated land grant prices, however, remains unsettled. Using LandScan population grids and Exploratory Spatial Data Analysis (ESDA), this paper measures the polycentric spatial structure of 283 prefecture-level cities in China. We merge this measure with city-level land transaction data to examine how polycentricity affects overall urban land prices as well as industrial, residential, and commercial land prices. The results show that a more polycentric urban structure significantly increases comprehensive land prices. Across land-use categories, the effect is smallest for industrial land and stronger for residential and commercial land. Further analysis shows that land-finance dependence moderates the effect of polycentric urban spatial structure on land prices, and this moderating effect differs across land-use types. In addition, the positive effect of polycentricity is weaker in larger cities. Spatial econometric estimates further suggest that local polycentricity raises land prices in neighboring cities, implying the presence of positive spillovers across urban areas. The paper contributes to the literature on urban spatial structure by linking intra-urban polycentricity to land price and by showing that these effects extend beyond city boundaries. Full article

Background/Objectives: This study investigates the interaction and coordinated development of the digital economy and the tourism economy in China’s Yangtze River Delta urban agglomeration, using panel data from 27 cities covering the period from 2013 to 2022. Methods: Composite indices are constructed for the two subsystems, with indicator weights determined using the entropy method. A coupling coordination model is then applied to assess the extent and quality of their joint development. Exploratory spatial data analysis is further employed to examine spatial dependence and clustering patterns, with Moran’s I serving as a key analytical measure. Results: The findings indicate that both subsystems improved over the study period, although the digital economy advanced more quickly and showed greater regional disparity. The overall coordination level rose from a medium stage to a relatively high stage, yet uneven development persisted, particularly in Anhui. Spatially, coordination followed an east-high, west-low pattern, and high-level areas gradually spread outward from leading cities to form a core–periphery structure. Positive spatial clustering was evident in most years, pointing to clear regional agglomeration in digital–tourism coordination. Conclusions: These results underscore the importance of differentiated regional policies, stronger inter-city collaboration, and deeper integration between digital development and tourism transformation. Full article

Outdoor music festivals (OMFs) increasingly operate as a form of temporary land use that activates urban stock land, yet how such land-use reconfigurations unfold across uneven urban–rural geographies remains insufficiently examined. Taking China’s OMFs from 2013 to 2024 as a case, this study applies the Geodetector model within a spatial justice framework to analyze fifteen indicators organized along the distributional, procedural, and recognition dimensions. The results show a pronounced “market-sinking” trend accompanied by westward expansion, and the seasonal clustering gradually moderated. The three dimensions jointly shape OMFs’ diffusion through distinguishable pathways, with the procedural dimension exhibiting the highest explanatory power through institutional steering and industrial coordination, followed by the recognition dimension through demographic foundations and digital visibility, and the distributional dimension through material and infrastructural accessibility; interaction detection further indicates that their joint presence produces amplified effects. These mechanisms align with international land-use and territorial-governance studies, while reflecting the state-led coordination distinctive to China. The findings point to an emerging form of collaborative co-creation in which governmental, market, and community actors jointly shape the spatial production of cultural events, extending the classical core–periphery account and informing debates on the territorial governance of event spaces in non-metropolitan regions. Full article

This study investigates the rapid, often uncontrolled urban expansion in Khenchela, a medium-sized city in Algeria’s eastern High Plains, and its profound environmental repercussions amid semi-arid fragility. Drawing on sustainable urban development and resilience frameworks, it dissects pressures such as green space reduction (from 45 ha in 1998 to 33 ha in 2023, dropping per capita from 6.1 m² to 3 m² below WHO standards), water scarcity with 35% leakage losses waste mismanagement, informal settlements on hazardous lands, air/soil pollution, and climate vulnerabilities like heat waves and flooding. Employing a mixed-methods approach documentary analysis of (MPLUUP, LUP and MDP) plans, GIS cartography of spatial evolution (2000–2025), statistical demographics, field observations, and institutional critiques, the research exposes governance gaps: fragmented coordination, weak ecological integration, and resource shortages. It reveals socio-spatial disparities across functional zones, underscoring the need for adaptive, participatory strategies that promote polycentric and compact urban forms, enhanced biodiversity, efficient infrastructure, and inclusive governance to strengthen urban resilience. Full article

With the accelerating processes of globalization and urbanization, metropolitan fringe areas—situated at the intersection of urban expansion and rural transformation—have become critical focal points in urban geography, regional economics, and urban–rural planning. Within the context of China’s new urbanization strategy and the national “dual circulation” framework, the role of policy evolution in shaping spatial development has become increasingly significant. Specifically, in metropolitan fringe zones such as Shenzhen’s Guangming District, the complex interplay between overlapping policies and local path dependencies has generated a distinctive logic of spatial restructuring. Taking this area as a case study, this research investigates the influence of national policies on regional evolution and spatial reconstruction. The findings demonstrate that, under sustained policy guidance, Guangming District has experienced a three-stage process of spatial restructuring, characterized by a dynamic and tightly coupled relationship between policy instruments and spatial forms across different developmental phases. Full article

Under the macro background of the rural revitalization strategy and urban-rural integrated development, rural settlements are undergoing a profound transformation from physical morphology to functional connotation. However, existing studies mainly focus on the expansion of single land elements, lacking long-term quantitative monitoring of the coupling relationship between rural development and policy texts. Taking Fuzhou City as a case study, this research selects long-term Global Human Settlement Layer (GHSL) and Night-Time Light (NTL) data from 1990 to 2025, combined with policy text quantification methods. Based on rural development units, the Coupling Coordination Degree Model (CCDM), Macro-Micro Matching Index (MMI), and gravity center migration analysis are employed to systematically reveal the spatiotemporal evolution characteristics and driving mechanisms of rural settlement morphology under policy institutional changes. The research results indicate that: (1) Fuzhou’s rural settlements exhibit relatively stable gravity centers of construction land, while the gravity center of economic vitality has significantly shifted toward the southeastern coastal area under policy guidance; (2) The coupling coordination degree of rural human–land relationships has generally increased, but with significant spatial heterogeneity, forming a pattern of high-quality coordination in coastal areas and low-efficiency lag in mountainous regions; (3) The shift in policy orientation from scale expansion to functional enhancement has driven economic factors to concentrate in key policy areas ahead of physical spatial expansion. The analytical framework combining remote sensing monitoring and policy quantification constructed in this study reveals the precedence of factor flow and the lag of physical space driven by policies, providing a scientific basis for the differentiated governance of rural areas in coastal mountainous cities. Full article

Enhancing carbon productivity is fundamental to achieving carbon neutrality while sustaining economic growth. Utilizing a comprehensive dataset of Chinese cities from 2010, 2015, and 2020, this study investigates the spatiotemporal patterns and underlying drivers of urban carbon productivity (UCP). Methods including kernel density estimation, spatial autocorrelation analysis, and the spatial Durbin model (SDM) are employed. The results reveal that China’s UCP has improved significantly overall, yet with increasing internal disparities among cities. The SDM decomposition indicates a fundamental shift in driving mechanisms. Green technological innovation has supplanted generalized R&D expenditure as the most dependable core driving force for improving local carbon productivity. Moreover, the economic development level also exerts positive spatial spillover effects in the later stage, which jointly contribute to the formation of a multi-centered pattern. Urban form metrics exert dual influences: urban compactness (ENN_MN) shows a stable positive local effect, whereas urban fragmentation (PD) and urban sprawl (CONTAG) exhibit a paradoxical “local inhibition–neighborhood promotion” effect, highlighting intricate inter-city spatial interactions. The findings underscore the necessity for differentiated local practices, namely, policy must target differentiated city roles and manage spatial spillovers for synergistic regional green and sustainable transition. Full article

The imbalance of urban public transport networks often leads to traffic congestion. Traditional planning prioritizes system optimization and single-mode travel, neglecting interactions between different modes. From an economic perspective and based on passenger travel behavior, this paper constructs a reasonable path set for multimodal networks. Using information entropy, it establishes multidimensional indicators including site path diversity entropy, destination regional entropy vectors, and weighted comprehensive entropy. Regional aggregation and coefficient of variation analyze internal balance, while scatter plots and the Gini coefficient measure global resource allocation equity. ArcGIS Pro 3.4.3 is employed for spatial analysis and visualization. An empirical study of Beijing’s six central districts reveals significant spatial heterogeneity in path distribution across functional zones: working areas exhibit concentric patterns, commercial areas form corridor agglomerations, residential areas have the highest entropy values, and transport hubs are relatively balanced. Cluster analysis based on entropy vectors effectively identifies commuter, residential, and hub station types. Some hubs show an ideal “high richness, low imbalance” state, while areas like Beijing Railway Station exhibit “low richness, high imbalance.” The Gini coefficient of 0.1864 indicates relatively balanced public transport resources overall. The “route-region-demand” collaborative analysis framework constructed in this study achieves a paradigm shift from static network structure to dynamic human-oriented evaluation, providing methodological support for equity assessment, network optimization, and resource allocation in multimodal public transport networks, and can contribute to the equitable and balanced sustainable development of public transport. Full article

This study addresses the critical challenge of translating the profound social, spatial, and cultural dynamics of the traditional introverted Persian house into more tangible design metrics for contemporary Iranian housing. Relying on qualitative data from twenty-four diverse expert interviews across architecture, urban planning, and policy, the research demonstrates a broad consensus that the notion of replicating historical form is unsustainable. Instead, it indicates that the introverted configuration is likely a context-specific ontological imperative—viewed here as a fundamental socio-spatial requirement—rooted in measurable performance, serving simultaneous social, cultural, psychological, and environmental paradigms. The main findings show that preserving cultural continuity requires a shift from aesthetic conservation to prescriptive configuration. This logic is synthesised into a consolidated socio-spatial framework, whose originality lies in introducing three regulatory design instruments: (1) the sequenced depth and filtration protocol for spatial arrangement; (2) the controlled visual and environmental parameters for façade performance; and (3) the cultural adaptability and resilience requirement for functional programming. The framework’s prescriptive metrics, such as minimum space syntax values and the visual filtering coefficient, provide regulatory bodies with the precise technical tools necessary to enforce cultural protocols like privacy and dignity in high-density urban developments. While these metrics serve as an operationally promising model, they represent a theoretical framework that requires further empirical validation in diverse contemporary residential settings before mandatory regulatory adoption. This framework offers a pragmatic pathway for safeguarding Iranian housing’s cultural identity, ensuring future developments are certified not only for safety and structure, but for their adherence to the fundamental socio-spatial contract of the Persian dwelling. Full article

Unused, underutilized, abandoned, and residual urban spaces are increasingly recognized as potential resources for adaptive reuse, ecological improvement, and urban resilience. In this study, such areas are approached through the overarching concept of waste space, a term that captures both their underutilized condition and their transformation potential. While existing research has largely focused on the definition, classification, and emergence of such spaces, their potential for transformation across varying spatial and institutional contexts has received comparatively limited attention. Addressing this gap, this study operationalizes selected social–ecological system (SES) dynamics through spatial analysis in the metropolitan area of İzmir, Türkiye, offering a proxy-based assessment of transformation capacity rather than a direct transformation. Using district-level analysis across ten metropolitan districts, this research combines typological and morphological classification of waste spaces with four spatial indicators: the Density Index, Location Quotient, Shannon Diversity Index, and Typology Dominance Index. The results show that waste spaces are unevenly distributed across İzmir and form distinct district-level configurations shaped by infrastructure expansion, post-industrial transformation, speculative vacancy, and fragmented urban growth. This study concludes that waste spaces cannot be addressed through a uniform regeneration logic. By linking SES dynamics with measurable spatial indicators, the proposed framework offers a context-sensitive, proxy-based basis for indicating transformation capacity of waste spaces and supporting district-specific planning and policy decisions. Full article

This study analyses the influence of three-dimensional (3D) urban form on intra-urban thermal variability and its long-term evolution in Zagreb, Croatia. The research focuses on four residential districts (Špansko sjever, Dugave, Lanište, and Novi Jelkovec) representing different development periods. The central hypothesis is that differences in the development period and urban compactness are associated with differences in summer thermal patterns, with more open spatial configurations generally exhibiting weaker thermal responses than more compact developments. The methodology integrates LiDAR-derived building morphology with a decade-long Landsat time series (2015–2024), including land surface temperature (LST), normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), and normalized difference built-up index (NDBI). The results indicate a consistent increase in summer LST across all analysed neighbourhoods, with warming rates ranging from approximately 2.00 to 2.83 °C per decade. Built-up intensity shows a positive association with temperature, while vegetation trends are generally weak. A multiple linear regression model explains 47% of the variance in LST (R² = 0.47), with NDBI identified as a significant predictor (p < 0.01), whereas NDVI and volumetric building density are not statistically significant. Despite this, neighbourhoods with higher volumetric building density (up to ≈2.96 m³/m²) tend to exhibit stronger warming trends compared to lower-density areas (≈1.69 m³/m²), indicating the additional explanatory value of three-dimensional urban morphology. These findings support the concept of a volumetric expression of urban thermal processes, while highlighting that 3D urban morphology contributes to the interpretation of the long-term thermal patterns when considered alongside other factors. They also emphasize the importance of integrating 3D spatial metrics into climate-sensitive urban planning and mitigation strategies. Full article