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This study examines the interplay between Airbnb and gentrification in Thessaloniki and Greece, focusing on their economic and social impacts on urban neighborhoods. Utilizing data from 110 online publications and qualitative insights from ten semi-structured interviews with real estate agents, Airbnb stakeholders, residents, and experts, the research provides a nuanced view of these dynamics. The findings suggest that Airbnb influences housing markets by driving up rental and home prices, potentially exacerbating housing scarcity and displacing vulnerable populations in gentrifying areas. While this aligns with the existing literature, the results remain tentative due to the complexities involved. The trend toward corporate-hosted short-term rentals appears to shift Airbnb away from its original community-focused model, though this shift is still evolving. The COVID-19 pandemic introduced changes, such as a move from short-term to long-term rentals and the conversion of commercial spaces to residential use, impacting neighborhood dynamics. However, these effects may be temporary and do not fully address broader housing issues. While an oversupply of Airbnb accommodations might stabilize rental prices to some extent, its impact on the overall housing crisis remains uncertain. Future research should investigate the long-term effects on housing affordability and social equity, considering the limitations of current findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores a new perspective on trade fairs, examining their expected impact on the sustainable development of the host city. To study this impact, the paper examines the annual fair of Thessaloniki, Greece, which has a long history and strong connection with the city. Methodologically, mix research method is used, combining quantitative and qualitative methods. The findings challenge the focus of trade fairs’ benefits in terms of sustainability on the economic aspect. Thessaloniki citizens believe that the fair contributes positively to sustainable urban development, possibly due to their emotional attachment with it and its crucial economic benefits. Stakeholder interviews, however, reveal concerns. Some attribute limitations to outdated fair infrastructure, claiming that a planned redevelopment could address sustainability issues. Others, more critical of the fair, argue that achieving truly balanced development is difficult within the existing mode of socio-economic organisation.

Mobility as a Service (MaaS) is a new mobility solution that brings together different modes of transportation, such as car-sharing, public transport, taxis, and bicycles, to create personalized service packages for commuters. The present study aims to identify key factors affecting the adoption of a Mobility as a Service system, and to explore the extent to which a local community is ready to accept the implementation of MaaS. The case study investigates the city of Thessaloniki, which is the second largest urban agglomeration in Greece. This study applies a triangulation approach by combining quantitative and qualitative analysis, providing a comprehensive understanding of the opportunities and the challenges arising with the implementation of a MaaS system in the city of Thessaloniki. Furthermore, the utilization of MaaS as a tool for vulnerable people, a crucial aspect that has not been analyzed properly in the existing literature, is examined. A quantitative survey analysis was conducted, inferential statistics were applied, and a binary logistic regression model was developed to determine the significant characteristics that most affect citizens' willingness to use a MaaS system. In addition, stakeholders were interviewed to examine their readiness to promote and collaborate for the development of a MaaS system. Results showed that age, driving license, daily time spent on urban trips, the frequency of commuting as car passenger or by public transport (PT), previous usage of a MaaS system, and the number of family members seem to be the most influential factors of citizens' choice to adopt MaaS. For stakeholders, the quality of service provided, and the user friendliness of the system are necessary prerequisites. The findings reveal that the views of residents and stakeholders provide some positive foundations for the development of a MaaS system in the city. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In my 2022-23 Fulbright Award to Spain and Greece, I took on the daunting task of writing six plays, titled Mi Corazón Español Vive Ahora En Grecia: Six Plays of Sephardic Greece, about the Spanish roots of the Jewish communities of Thessaloniki and Veria, of which I am a descendent (my father’s mother, my Nona, Mary Massarano Crespin was from Thessaloniki, and my Nono, Isaac Morris Crespin was from Veroia). This project was built upon a previous 2018 Fulbright project titled Madre de Israel: Three Plays of Jewish Salonika. In this essay, I will document and analyze my dramatic adaptation process for both Fulbright Projects, creating living histories for the stage to memorialize a Sephardic Jewish world nearly destroyed by the Holocaust. Working through a process which included teaching, oral narrative, traditional scholarship, and the creative research of exploring the geography, family histories, and cultural experiences of Ladino/Spanish music, poetry, and storytelling, I have written a total of 10 new plays, all using a non-linear technique of dreamwork for dramatic writing. The challenges tied to this ongoing project include the absence of collective memory, the destruction of entire communities, and the controversial curation of places of Jewish memory.

PrcisIn the Thessaloniki Eye Study (TES) incidence phase population, frequent dietary salt intake was potentially associated with increased risk of open angle glaucoma in antihypertensive users.PurposeThe aim was to examine the association between dietary salt intake and glaucoma by antihypertensive use in the TES population.Materials and methodsThe study population included TES incidence phase participants. Dietary salt intake frequency was assessed by self-report. Outcomes included prevalence of any open angle glaucoma (OAG), primary open angle glaucoma (POAG), and pseudoexfoliation (PEX). Covariates included demographics, cardiovascular disease, migraines, diabetes, steroid use, smoking, history of cataract surgery, central corneal thickness, intraocular pressure, blood pressure, and antihypertensive use. Logistic regression was used to examine associations between frequency of salt intake and glaucoma, controlling for covariates and stratified by antihypertensive use.ResultsThe study included 1076 participants 80.5±4.4 years old, of whom 518 were female. There were 89/1076 (8.3%) participants with any OAG, 46/789 (5.8%) with POAG, and 287/1030 (27.9%) with PEX. In participants with antihypertensive use, frequent versus never salt intake was associated with increased risk of any OAG [adjusted odds ratio (aOR)=2.65, 95% confidence interval (CI)=1.12, 6.28; n=784] and POAG (aOR=3.59, 95% CI=1.16, 11.11; n=578) overall, and additionally in participants with diastolic blood pressure

Thessaloniki is a unique city, paradigm of cosmopolitanism in the recent past and today the second largest city in Greece. The text focuses from the perspective of political-cultural symbology and memory studies. It examines the historical tension between national myths of the Greek state and the ductility of various concepts (Hellenism, Byzantinism, Balkanism). And in its second part, it studies the symbolic map of the memory of today's Thessaloniki attending to its emblematic spaces. All this allows us to contrast some fields of representation defined by fluidity and identity claim based on the national appropriation of classical or Byzantine traces and the relative invisibility of Muslim or Jewish presences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article examines the living and infrastructuring practices of homeless newcomer migrants who find shelter in abandoned train wagons in the west end of Thessaloniki, an area described as “one of the biggest train cemeteries in Europe.” Hundreds of train wagons have been abandoned there over the years, especially after the 2010 financial crisis, when the state-owned railway company was faced with significant financial difficulties. These abandoned wagons form an urban borderland and have provided temporary shelter to numerous homeless and unregistered migrants who stop in Thessaloniki on their route to Central and Northern Europe. Although there is a significant number of studies which discuss the formal infrastructures provided by the state and the NGOs, little attention has been given to the various ways by which homeless and unregistered migrants create and self-manage their own infrastructures to meet their needs. The article aims to shed light on this shortage while examining the (re)production of arrival infrastructures by the migrants themselves. In doing so, the article builds upon the concept of abandonment and attempts to enrich it by drawing on the theories of arrival infrastructures and urban commons. It combines spatial analysis and urban ethnography in order to explore how an urban borderland with abandoned infrastructures, like the train wagons, are re-used and transformed into commoning infrastructures, where newcomers and settled migrants join their forces in their attempt to support each other, meet their needs and of “becoming otherwise.”

Situated in the north of Greece, Thessaloniki, the country’s second largest city, is foremostly admired for its uninterrupted history of over twenty-three centuries. In solid proof of this remarkable continuity, its historic center is interspersed with a wide array of archaeological and architectural remains that date from Hellenistic to modern times. The most distinguished segment of this unique heritage is by far the city’s Early Christian and Byzantine legacy. More than half of its surrounding walls, fourteen churches and one bath comprise a unique ensemble, revered in the whole of Europe as early as the 19th century. Not surprisingly, at the end of the 20th century, it became one of the first Greek cultural assets to be inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Thirty-four years have passed since then, a substantial period of time that allows, on the present occasion of the 50th anniversary of the World Heritage Convention, for a review and appraisal of the impact of the inscription. This is precisely the goal of this paper, which will be pursued through an original discussion and evaluation of the consequences of World Heritage status, on one hand for the monuments themselves, and on the other, for their urban, architectural, social and educational setting. Extensive bibliographic research and thorough on-site examination will provide the basis for this discussion, which will culminate with a didactic conclusion as to the degree to which the full potential of the inscription has been achieved or remains to be pursued.

The parameters that affect bicyclists' satisfaction are of vital importance when it comes to determining the reasons that endure bicycle usage in an urban environment. This research refers to the factors that affect bicycle users' satisfaction with the existing infrastructure in the Municipality of Thessaloniki, Greece. Bicycle dependence in Thessaloniki is relatively limited when it is compared to other European cities with similar topological and demographic characteristics. This article aims to determine the most suitable measures that policymakers should implement to enhance bicycle infrastructure. The data collection process was realized through an online questionnaire survey addressed to the bicycle organizations and groups that are situated in Thessaloniki. Inferential statistical analysis investigated the dependency between the perceived satisfaction and the perceived level of safety of cyclists. Ordinal and multinomial logistic regressions were applied to identify the significant problems that influenced cyclists' satisfaction, as well as the most important improvement measures suggested by the survey participants. The findings revealed that the lack of safety and urban integration of bicycle infrastructures were the statistically significant issues affecting users' satisfaction. The development of a safe, integrated, and interconnected bicycle network area emerges as a priority to increase cyclists' satisfaction and daily bicycle trips in cities with low bicycle culture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the global hegemonic resilience discourse, green infrastructure is projected as a “win-win” approach to urban planning. Following the trend of adopting resilience as the new silver bullet for urban development, and in the midst of the recent financial crisis, Thessaloniki, Greece, joined the 100 Resilient Cities network of the Rockefeller Foundation in 2014. This event marked a shift in the city’s public space production and governance programme, introducing new private actors in decision-making processes, an emphasis on green space economic benefits, and an extensive regeneration programme heavily focused on the city centre. The article scrutinises these changes to uncover the policy implications of the turn to resilience in green public space production. Based on data on green public space spatial distribution; semi-structured interviews with municipal representatives and senior employees and representatives of the government, civil society, and local professional associations; policy document analysis; and comparative analysis of all relevant development and planning documents, and drawing on Brenner and Theodore’s (2005) conceptualisation of neoliberalism, the article argues that greening policies in Thessaloniki form an ongoing enclosing process of the urban green commons that articulates in a threefold manner: their discursive construction as “natural assets,” the implementation of spatially selective policies, and the post-politicisation of decision-making processes.

Lifetime cancer risk characterization of ambient PM-bound carcinogenic metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were examined in the cities of Los Angeles (USA), Thessaloniki (Greece) and Milan (Italy), which share similar Mediterranean climates but are different in their urban emission sources and governing air quality regulations. The samples in Milan and Thessaloniki were mostly dominated by biomass burning activities whereas the particles collected in Los Angeles were primary impacted by traffic emissions. We analyzed the ambient PM2.5 mass concentration of Cadmium (Cd), Hexavalent Chromium (Cr(VI)), Nickel (Ni), Lead (Pb), as well as 13 PAH compounds in the PM samples, collected during both cold and warm periods at each location. Pb exhibited the highest annual average concentration in all three cities, followed by Ni, As, Cr(VI), Cd and PAHs, respectively. The cancer risk assessment based on outdoor pollutants was performed based on three different scenarios, with each scenario corresponding to a different level of infiltration of outdoor pollutants into the indoor environment. Thessaloniki exhibited a high risk associated with lifetime inhalation of As, Cr(VI), and PAHs, with values in the range of (0.97–1.57) × 10−6, (1.80–2.91) × 10−6, and (0.77–1.25) × 10−6, respectively. The highest cancer risk values were calculated in Milan, exceeding the US EPA standard by a considerable margin, where the lifetime risk values of exposure to As, Cr(VI), and PAHs were in the range of (1.29–2.08) × 10−6, (6.08–9.82) × 10−6, and (1.10–1.77) × 10−6, respectively. In contrast, the estimated risks associated with PAHs and metals, except Cr(VI), in Los Angeles were extremely lower than the guideline value, even when the infiltration factor was assumed to be at peak. The lifetime cancer risk values associated with As, Cd, Ni, Pb, and PAHs in Los Angeles were in the range of (0.04–0.33) × 10−6. This observation highlights the impact of local air quality measures in improving the air quality and lowering the cancer risks in Los Angeles compared to the other two cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Benjamin Samokovlija (Sarajevo, 31.III.1918 - Skopje, 28.II.1996), comes from a Jewish family. On April 5, 1941 he was mobilized in the ranks of the army of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. In the second half of August 1941, Benjamin joined the ranks of the National Liberation Army and the People's Liberation Army. He took part in numerous battles in the anti-fascist war for the liberation of Yugoslavia. After the Fourth Enemy Offensive of the Supreme Headquarters of the People's Liberation Army and Partisan Detachments of Yugoslavia which took place in the first half of 1943, Samokovlija together with part of his partisan unit were captured by the Germans and imprisoned in Zenica. After a month in the Zenica prison, a group of 600 prisoners, including Samokovlija, were transferred to the Thessaloniki concentration camp. In October 1943, through an EAM connection, Benjamin Samokovlija managed to escape and join ELAS. He remained in the ranks of the Greek partisans until the contact with the Macedonian partisans from the First Macedonian-Kosovo Brigade on the territory of the Aegean part of Macedonia in the period between the second half of December 1943 and January 1944. He was admitted to the III Battalion and was in charge of the agitprop of the battalion, from where he was later transferred to the ranks of the II, V and X brigades, acting as a battalion commissioner and participating in the battles for the liberation of Macedonia. At the very beginning of World War II in 1941, Benjamin Samokovlija lost many of his immediate family members, including his parents and wife. As direct witnesses to the measures taken for the physical and economic destruction of the Jews in Bosnia and Herzegovina by the German occupying authorities, their collaborators and the authorities of the Independent State of Croatia, his three sisters joined the People's Liberation War. His eldest sister Laura was killed in 1945. Benjamin Samokovlija is the holder of several military and state decorations. During his tenure, he ran a number of state-owned enterprises. It is particularly important to emphasize that for less than two decades he served as President of the Jewish community in the Republic of Macedonia, building strong friendly relations with other religious communities in the country.

This study examines the effects of short-term exposure to PM10 and O3 on all-cause, cardiorespiratory, and cerebrovascular mortality in the urban area of Thessaloniki, Greece. An analysis was performed on the vulnerable subgroup (the elderly population). The primary effect estimates employed were the relative risks for every 10 µg/m3 increase in air pollutant concentrations. Strong associations between PM10 and O3 levels on mortality were reported, with the elderly people becoming frailer. An increase of 10 μgr/m3 in PM10 concentration resulted in a 2.3% (95% CI: 0.8–3.8) and 2% (95% CI: 0.1–4.5) increase in total and cardiorespiratory mortality, respectively. O3 concentrations showed even stronger associations for all-cause (3.9%, 95% CI: 2.5–5.3) and cardiorespiratory deaths (5.3%, 95% CI: 3.1–7.7) with 10 μgr/m3 increases; no statistically significant associations were found for cerebrovascular causes, while both pollutants presented stronger impacts on health between day 0 and 3. Concerning the elderly, the total mortality rose by 3.2% (95% CI: 1.5–5) due to PM10 concentrations and by 4.4% (95% CI: 2.9–6) due to O3 concentrations. In total, 242 (170) all-cause deaths were annually attributed to the PM10 (O3) level in Thessaloniki. In the efforts towards achieving a sustainable environment for humanity, health benefits resulting from two air pollution abatement scenarios (a 20% reduction in PM10 levels and full compliance to the European Union PM10 limits) were quantified. The analysis led to a respective decrease in total excess mortality by 0.4% and 1.8%, respectively. This outcome stresses the necessity of appropriate civil protection actions and provides valuable scientific knowledge to national and regional administrations in order to develop proper health and air quality plans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, we investigate the spatio-temporal variability of tropospheric NO2 Vertical Column Densities (VCDs) and surface concentrations that were retrieved using Multi-Axis Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy (MAX-DOAS) measurements over Thessaloniki, Greece, for the period June 2020 to November 2022. The MAX-DOAS system captures the NO2 seasonal variability very well, reporting low concentrations during summer and higher concentrations in the winter, as well as the diurnal cycle with higher NO2 amounts in the morning followed by a reduction towards noon. The "weekend effect" is evident, with approximately 30% lower NO2 concentrations on the weekends compared to the working days. An excellent agreement is found with in situ data from a nearby air quality monitoring station with Pearson's correlation coefficients ranging between R = 0.90 and R = 0.99. The spatial variability is assessed by comparing the NO2 concentrations at four azimuth viewing directions of the MAX-DOAS system. Despite the large variability due to short- and long-term temporal variations, higher NO2 concentrations of up to 25% (statistically significant at the 95% confidence level) are reported for the azimuth that crosses the entire city center and an urban area compared to those pointing towards the sea. The MAX-DOAS tropospheric NO2 columns are then compared to those measured by the TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI) on board the Sentinel-5P satellite. Despite the generally good correlation (R = 0.72 and R = 0.89 for the daily and monthly data, respectively), a clear underestimation of TROPOMI is found (approximately 55% in winter, 21% in spring and 40% during autumn and summer), mainly due to the much larger satellite footprint that provides a smoother perception of the NO2 concentration, while the MAX-DOAS measurements are more affected by local emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The most efficient way to reduce damage and losses in metropolitan areas with complex functions that are exposed to disaster risks is to reduce their vulnerability, which necessitates an assessment of the urban system's vulnerability. Regarding the areas located near Seveso establishments, they are characterized by high levels of vulnerability, both spatially and sectorally, as they present an increased risk due to the possible occurrence of large-scale industrial accidents. In this study, a vulnerability assessment indicator system (VAIS) that assesses the vulnerability presented in the areas located near Seveso facilities was proposed. The VAIS consisted of social, environmental and spatial indicators, and an assessment of the indicators was carried out by collecting the appropriate data. The study area is located in the western part of Thessaloniki and includes the Seveso site and the adjacent municipal districts. Prioritization of the examined municipal districts based on their overall vulnerability was carried out using multicriteria analysis methods. The results showed that there was a convergence among the three categories of vulnerability (social, environmental and spatial) in the areas that presented the highest vulnerability. The MD of Kalochori (MD7) was the most vulnerable MD in the study, while the less vulnerable ones varied depending on the vulnerability category (social, environmental or spatial) considered each time. The proposed methodology may prove to be a highly useful tool in decision-making processes when used by the relevant authorities who are qualified to define and implement a site-specific security management system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urban streams are ecosystems of great ecological and hydrological importance for human environments. However, they face pressure on biodiversity, hydromorphology, and water quality. In this study, an urban riparian system of a Mediterranean city (Thessaloniki, Greece) which interacts with several land-use classes, namely forests, pastures, cultivations, industrial-commercial infrastructure, and light and dense urban fabric, is assessed. The analyzed data were collected by implementing mainly QBR and ancillary RMP protocols on 37 plots of the Dendropotamos stream. The QBR protocol provided an assessment of total riparian vegetation cover, cover structure and quality, as well as channel alterations. The RMP protocol was used to enhance the quantitative assessment of dominant tree and shrub cover. Parts of Dendropotamos surrounded by agricultural (median QBR score: 27.5), industrial (50), and dense residential areas (27.5) suffer, in general, from low riparian vegetation cover, bad vegetation structure and quality, the continuous presence of alien/introduced species, and channel alterations. A variety of riparian habitat conditions characterize the sparse residential areas (60) where cover structure and quality of vegetation is improved. The reduction in grazing pressure has improved the riparian habitat in the greatest part of Dendropotamos that is surrounded by semi-natural pastures (65). Within forested areas (85), the stream conditions are considered quasi-natural. All previous land uses are differentiated in terms of the dominant trees found in the vegetation of Dendropotamos: Platanus orientalis in forested areas, alien Ailanthus altissima mainly in residential and industrial areas, and native shrubs, e.g., Quercus coccifera and Pyrus spinosa, in pastures. The QBR protocol could be a valuable tool in urban environment planning to help identify areas with potential for restoration, such as those with moderate residential pressure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main aim of this study is the identification of the most appropriate measures and policies to combat particulate air pollution in the city of Thessaloniki, Greece through a methodology including the calculation of emissions by sector and the application of an air quality modeling system. The identification of the current air quality situation showed that the exceedances of the mean PM10 daily levels occur during the cold winter months with residential heating being the major contributor representing a 73% share of total PM10 emissions. Moreover, the effect of the biomass consumption for heating purposes on PM10 concentrations has been verified and quantified by implementing a regression model identifying that a PM10 emissions reduction by 45% would result in the elimination of the exceedances of the mean PM10 daily values. Based on the above, a set of cost-effective measures and policies were defined and their impact on PM10 emissions was estimated. Finally, the air quality modeling system was applied for the mitigation scenarios selected, leading to a significant reduction of 67% in the number of exceedances observed and ensuring compliance with the limit of 35 exceedances of the daily value limit per year pursuant to European Legislation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several studies have focused on the ground displacement phenomena in the broader area of the Thessaloniki Plain, Greece. Although there is a general consensus on the diachronic occurrence of subsidence, there have been recent studies that also report considerable uplifts. In order to resolve some of these ambiguities and to further study and monitor the area, new, high-accuracy leveling measurements were conducted during 2018-2020 in the vicinity of the town of Sindos. Findings indicate a total vertical displacement of up to about -15 mm, whereas the continuation of a clear overall subsidence tendency rather than uplift has been verified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the global hegemonic resilience discourse, green infrastructure is projected as a "win-win" approach to urban planning. Following the trend of adopting resilience as the new silver bullet for urban development, and in the midst of the recent financial crisis, Thessaloniki, Greece, joined the 100 Resilient Cities network of the Rockefeller Foundation in 2014. This event marked a shift in the city's public space production and governance programme, introducing new private actors in decision-making processes, an emphasis on green space economic benefits, and an extensive regeneration programme heavily focused on the city centre. The article scrutinises these changes to uncover the policy implications of the turn to resilience in green public space production. Based on data on green public space spatial distribution; semi-structured interviews with municipal representatives and senior employees and representatives of the government, civil society, and local professional associations; policy document analysis; and comparative analysis of all relevant development and planning documents, and drawing on Brenner and Theodore's (2005) conceptualisation of neoliberalism, the article argues that greening policies in Thessaloniki form an ongoing enclosing process of the urban green commons that articulates in a threefold manner: their discursive construction as "natural assets," the implementation of spatially selective policies, and the post-politicisation of decision-making processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Middle-class housing in Greece developed rapidly after World War II (WWII). Across all Greek cities a multi-story building type, so-called "polykatoikia" emerged because before the war, in 1929, a social and legal contract was constituted, according to which each apartment could be owned by "micro-owners". The applied General and Special Building Regulations envisioned a homogeneous city volume composed of these polykatoikias. On the other hand, the new ownership model invited a heterogeneous middle-class population to buy and reside in these apartments, in contrast to the previous homogenous one owner per building model. Thessaloniki developed differently than other cities, starting with homogeneous urban planning and city volume, but heterogeneous architectural styles that would evolve vice versa in the post-WWII era. The contemporary political--social--economic changes modified the city's development vision and population's needs related to the polykatoikia. Today, the matured state of the polykatoikias, the expected deterioration of the building stock and its environmental (in)efficiency troubles the micro- owners. The lack of common decision-making strategies to enforce building unity increases the entropy to a dysfunctional level. The paper's main goal is to investigate whether the polykatoikia model is reaching a breaking point. Will the future of the polykatoikia return to homogeneity by relying on one investor per building and be leading a decrease of polykatoikia's variety, or are there strategies that lead to the sustainability of the building type and its micro-owners? The research is based on the author's Ph.D. thesis; recent literature on the topic and in-situ observations both support the objectives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This article focuses on the transition of the natural landscape of Thessaloniki's east waterfront to the artificial urban landscape that draws a straight line between water and land, while noting the developing rigid homogeneous multistorey buildings as a background image of the city in contrast to the former porosity and architectural variety of the late 19th-early 20th century mansions. The transition is captured either as a commentary on the new landscape or as a memoir of a lost era by cinematographers, such as Takis Kanellopoulos in his film "Parenthesis" (1968) and Theo Angelopoulos in his film "Eternity and a Day" (1998) and photographers of the 1960's such as Socratis Iordanidis and Yiannis Stylianou. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Public spaces underwent a notable shift in their acoustic profile during the societal restrictions resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. A silver lining emerged from this global crisis, with noticeable improvements in public acoustic environments due to reduced noise levels resulting from restricted mobility. This research focuses on the acoustic environment of Thessaloniki’s waterfront, a Mediterranean metropolis in Northern Greece. Waterfronts of Mediterranean coastal cities provide unique acoustic environments worthy of protection from environmental noise. By analyzing sound level measurements and recordings during the 2021 lockdown and comparing them to the post-lockdown period in 2022, we aimed to explore environmental noise and acoustic complexity indicators. The study’s findings revealed a significant increase in acoustic complexity during the lockdown, underscoring an inverse relationship between noise levels and acoustic complexity. Urban waterfronts, like Thessaloniki’s, hold great potential for enhancing acoustic complexity and subsequently improving the acoustic quality of public spaces while protecting them from environmental noise. This research sheds light on the possible use of sound complexity as an environmental quality standard that can be incorporated in sustainable urban planning and design.

In the present study, the introduction of the Innovative Polygon Trend Analysis (IPTA), a non-parametric trend analysis methodology, is proposed as an alternative to the classical trend analysis methodology, according to which processes (normality, independence, and pre-whitening) are not necessary. Monthly precipitation measurements from Thessaloniki are analysed for the period 1971–2020, subdivided into two consecutive equal periods, to identify inherent trends among months and seasons, respectively. A finer interpretation of trends, with physical and numerical explanations and inferences, leads to the obtained results; the total monthly and seasonal precipitation values, their associated standard deviations, as well as trend slopes and trend lengths, are depicted. Increasing trends between the two sub-periods are identified for most months: winter and autumn.

Carbon monoxide, XCO, and methane, XCH4, column-averaged dry-air mole fractions (DMFs), observed by the TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI) on board Sentinel-5P (S-5P), are validated against those obtained from a Bruker ground-based low-resolution Fourier transform spectrometer, EM27/SUN, operating in the framework and according to requirements of the Collaborative Carbon Column Observing Network (COCCON), in Thessaloniki, Greece, on a mid-latitude urban site. The current operational S5P/TROPOMI observations show very good agreement with the respective FTIR measurements and capture both their seasonal variability and pollution episodes. XCO reported the highest concentrations during the fire episodes in summer 2021, when its daily mean value reached a maximum of 0.134 ± 0.015 ppm. XCH4 shows a slight annual increase of 0.02 ppm, with the highest concentrations during early 2022 (approximately 1.92 ppm). The satellite CH4 and CO products have been recently reprocessed with updated CH4, CO and H2O cross-sections, among other improvements, bringing noticeable changes in the pre-existing biases of S5P products against the FTIR ground-based data. We report that, for this mid-latitude station, mean biases and standard deviations fall well within mission requirements for XCH4 and XCO (−0.01 ± 0.6% and 0.62 ± 4.2% for XCH4 and XCO, respectively), underlying the significance of satellite measurements as a valuable supplement to ground-based data for the purpose of greenhouse gas monitoring. The results presented in this work for the Thessaloniki FTIR instrument are in strong agreement with FTIR locations in the middle latitudes.

This paper investigates a communist plan in the 1920s to establish a Middle Eastern center in the port city of Thessaloniki. To explain this counterintuitive choice, the paper situates Thessaloniki within two radical spaces. First, it shows the importance of post-Ottoman radical networks in making Thessaloniki a critical point of liaison in the 1920s. Second, it discusses the radical connections across the Mediterranean and the agency of revolutionary sailors in establishing these linkages.

The issue of atmospheric pollution in urban centers has become a growing concern in recent years. The increasing levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere are a major contributor to atmospheric pollution, and it is imperative to monitor these gases. This study presents the measurements of column-averaged dry-air mole fractions of carbon dioxide (XCO2) and carbon monoxide (XCO) in Thessaloniki, Greece. The measurements were taken in Thessaloniki using the Bruker EM27/SUN instrument, which was developed by Bruker and KIT and has been part of the Collaborative Carbon Column Observing Network (COCCON) since 2018. COCCON is a global network of stations around the globe and serves as an important supplement to the high-resolution Bruker IFS125 spectrometer used in the Total Carbon Column Observing Network (TCCON), and it provides an increased density of column-averaged greenhouse gas observations. In this work, a four-year analysis of column-averaged dry-air mole fractions of XCO2 and XCO is presented, focusing on diurnal and seasonal cycles as well as on the comparison between them. The hourly time series show the expected seasonal cycle of XCO2 with a spring maximum and late summer minimum due to photosynthesis activity, while XCO2 presents a daily maximum of 419.987 ± 2.286 ppm and a daily minimum of 405.001 ± 3.067 ppm. The seasonal co-variability between XCO2 and XCO reveals an interesting correlation—especially during winter (R2=0.841 for 2022) and spring (R2=0.437 for 2022) period, when anthropogenic emission sources occur.

During the last few years, extremely high temperatures have been recorded in many Greek regions and, in some cases, have been rather abnormal for each season. These extreme events appear to be persistent in duration and are occurring at a disconcerting frequency. The main objective of this study is to examine the exceptionally high temperatures that were recorded during January 2023 in Thessaloniki, Greece. The entire month was characterized by minimum and maximum temperatures that exceeded the climatological mean (1961–2000) by about 4.2 °C on average. Additionally, the average deviation for the mean maximum temperature of the month was calculated at 3.5 °C. In an attempt to classify the intensity of this possible extreme event compared to a future intermediate emission scenario (RCP4.5), a comparison of the observational data with the corresponding data from two future projections (2041–2060 and 2081–2100) of a high-resolution regional climate model was carried out. The spatial resolution of the simulations was 10 × 10 km and they were the result of the dynamical downscaling of the RegCM regional climate model after nesting a 25 km simulation of the model for the initial and boundary conditions. Finally, through this study, the contribution of the synoptic-scale atmospheric conditions of this event was examined.

Prefigurative politics are 'world-making' events. They enact alternative ways of being, knowing and doing in spaces of resistance and experimentation. What insights does prefiguration in design(ing) hold for the politics of prefiguration? In exploring this affinity, I dive into a photograph of my twenty-year-old self that pivots around the maquette of the 'Constellation'. In this memoir I delve into my experience of prefiguration as an architecture student and member of a counterculture in Greece in the mid-1980s. The maquette performs a double prefigurative. Like every design prototype, it acts in the present tense while it also signals a future desired change. Yet the project also manifests a prefigurative function via its countercultural affiliation, even if its political goals remained elusive. The courses of action encountered in this memoir defy the entrenched dualities of collectivity/individuality, embodiment/language, users/designers, futures/presents. The memoir contributes to the study of prefigurative politics by underscoring the assembling of matter into form as a capacitor of a prefigurative imaginary at work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transit-oriented development (TOD) is an integrated urban and transport planning approach that aims to mitigate urban sprawl and car use, enhance neighborhood livability, increase public transport use, and promote sustainable mobility. Although TOD is widely accepted by academics, planners, and policymakers, the question of how citizens acknowledge its expected benefits remains open. This paper explores citizen satisfaction and perceptions of their neighborhood and investigates their awareness of TOD's potential for sustainable revitalization and regeneration of metro areas in Thessaloniki, a compact Mediterranean city that is introducing a new urban rail system. Our research is based on a questionnaire survey, conducted within the catchment areas of two future metro stations, which present different spatial and socio-economic characteristics. For the data analysis, we use inferential statistics analysis and ordinal logistics regression to investigate the variations in citizens' perceptions. Findings reveal that even if there is a statistical difference between people's perceptions regarding the main spatial features of their neighborhoods, respondents in both areas express similar major concerns about public space, walkability issues, transit quality, and the positive effects that the metro could offer regarding urban revitalization and development. Furthermore, age, income, and personal travel behaviors appear to be significantly related to the level of satisfaction with public transport and the willingness to increase transit use because of the metro. We argue that citizens' pre-construction surveys can support local policy makers in tailing and optimizing a TOD project implementation based on the community's needs and priorities. Such surveys operate as knowledge production platforms to strengthen policy efficiency and reinforce the feelings of trust between citizens and local policy makers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although there is a growing interest in the association between ambient temperatures and mortality, little evidence is available for Thessaloniki, the second largest city of Greece. In this study, we present an assessment of the effects of temperature on daily mortality from 2006 to 2016 in the urban area of Thessaloniki, by describing the exposure-lag-response association between temperature and cause-specific mortality with the use of a distributed lag non-linear model (DLNM). A J-shaped relationship was found between temperature and mortality. The highest values of risk were evident for respiratory (RR > 10) and cardiovascular causes (RR > 3), probably due to the fact that health status of individuals with chronic respiratory and cardiovascular diseases rapidly deteriorates during hot periods. Cold effects had longer lags of up to 15 days, whereas heat effects were short-lived, up to 4 days. Percentage change in all- and cause-specific mortality per 1 °C change above and below Minimum Mortality Temperature showed a larger increase for all-cause mortality in heat (1.95%, 95% CI: 1.07–2.84), in contrast to a smaller increase in cold (0.54%, 95% CI: 0, 1.09). Overall, 3.51% of all-cause deaths were attributable to temperature, whereas deaths attributed to heat (2.34%) were more than deaths attributed to cold (1.34%). The findings of this study present important evidence for planning public-health interventions, to reduce the health impact of extreme temperatures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Purpose: To introduce and define the concept of sieving tourism destinations as an umbrella term representing faster decision-making processes compared to destination choice models, and to demonstrate its usefulness for both sides of consumption and production of tourism attractions. Methods: Fast decision at the consumers’ demand side is demonstrated via an exploratory graphic model. Producers’ supply side sieving is measured by observing data elimination on two public serving internet platforms compared to a baseline taken from special interest group tour operators representing Jewish heritage attractions in Sicily and Thessaloniki. Results: On the demand side, nowadays market conditions enable destination choice decision making in a few simple steps often interpreted as spontaneous, intuitive, or irrational. Quantitative analyses on the supply side provided measurable sieving ratios. They reveal careful partial sieving performed at local level editorship, while much harsher sieving occurs on social media platforms. This is interpreted as a market failure related to niche and special interest groups attractions. Implications: The demand side findings call for targeted marketing distinguishing customers not only by income but also by temperament, mood, and personality. The supply side findings call for careful examination of the conditions for inclusion and exclusion from the list of attractions as well as the need to remedy the concealment of minor attractions from social media platforms.

Since the European Union’s agreement with Turkey on March 18, 2016, more than 70,000 refugees have been trapped in Greece. Most have been settled in state-run camps on the perimeters of Athens and Thessaloniki. However, these state-run camps do not meet international standards and are located at significant distances from urban centres, within industrial zones where residential use is not permitted. At the same time, a number of self-organized and collective refugee housing projects have been created within the urban fabric of Athens and Thessaloniki. In the context of these projects, refugees develop forms of solidarity, mutual help, and direct democracy in decision-making processes. There is a significant volume of bibliography which studies the NGOs’ activities and state migration policies. However, little attention has been given to the various ways by which refugees create self-managed and participatory structures to meet their needs. This article aims to fill the gap in the research concerning the production of housing common spaces by the refugees themselves. Based on the current discussions on the Lefebvrian ‘right to the city’ and the spatialities of ‘commons’ and ‘enclosures,’ the article aims to compare and contrast refugee housing commons with state-run refugee camps. Using qualitative methods, including ethnographic analysis and participatory observation, the main findings show that refugees attempt not only to contest state migration policies but also negotiate their multiple identities. Consequently, refugees collectively attempt to reinvent a culture of togetherness, to create housing common spaces, and to claim the right to the city.

In this article, we investigate the spatio-temporal variability of tropospheric NO2 Vertical Column Densities (VCDs) and surface concentrations that were retrieved using Multi-Axis Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy (MAX-DOAS) measurements over Thessaloniki, Greece, for the period June 2020 to November 2022. The MAX-DOAS system captures the NO2 seasonal variability very well, reporting low concentrations during summer and higher concentrations in the winter, as well as the diurnal cycle with higher NO2 amounts in the morning followed by a reduction towards noon. The “weekend effect” is evident, with approximately 30% lower NO2 concentrations on the weekends compared to the working days. An excellent agreement is found with in situ data from a nearby air quality monitoring station with Pearson’s correlation coefficients ranging between R = 0.90 and R = 0.99. The spatial variability is assessed by comparing the NO2 concentrations at four azimuth viewing directions of the MAX-DOAS system. Despite the large variability due to short- and long-term temporal variations, higher NO2 concentrations of up to 25% (statistically significant at the 95% confidence level) are reported for the azimuth that crosses the entire city center and an urban area compared to those pointing towards the sea. The MAX-DOAS tropospheric NO2 columns are then compared to those measured by the TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI) on board the Sentinel-5P satellite. Despite the generally good correlation (R = 0.72 and R = 0.89 for the daily and monthly data, respectively), a clear underestimation of TROPOMI is found (approximately 55% in winter, 21% in spring and 40% during autumn and summer), mainly due to the much larger satellite footprint that provides a smoother perception of the NO2 concentration, while the MAX-DOAS measurements are more affected by local emissions.

The article discusses the Russian press covering the events on the Thessaloniki (Macedonian) front during the First World War. It is noted that at the beginning of the twentieth century the press became a noticeable phenomenon in the political life of Russia. Massive press campaigns accompanied all major international conflicts of the pre-war period. During the First World War, the press played an extremely important role; it was not only the main source of information but also turned into a powerful means of ideological and political influence. For example, by analysing the perspective of the Russian press on the position of Romania during the First World War and taking into account both the domestic political situation and its relationship with Entente and the Central Powers, the authors demonstrate that the Russian press was an independent and multifaceted source, perfectly capable to accurately portray important events of the international life. For this article, the authors have made use of materials from famous and influential Russian newspapers, such as “Русское Слово” (Russian word), “Новое Время” (New Time), “Речь” (Speech) and the social-political journal “Вестник Европы” (Bulletin of Europe).

Within the framework of the present paper an attempt has been made to develop a methodology for the calculation of a Passenger Car Equivalent (PCE) factor in order to express the number of commercial vehicles in the equivalent number of passenger cars. The methodology is based on the Highway Capacity Manual, the examination of the international literature and an extended field survey. The research area is the Municipality of Thessaloniki, Greece and specifically 27 at-grade, signalized intersections which were examined. The field survey was performed during two time-periods in order a comparison to be possible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper analyses the fate of the Thessaloniki Jews, who during the Ottoman times constituted the majority, but after joining the city to Greece in 1912 faced the threat of assimilation. Looking for the solution, the Jewish community found itself between Zionist and socialist ideas with sentiments towards the Ottoman as much more tolerant model of the city and the state. Many of Jews chose the third way as emigration, mostly to the European countries and the United States, and only a quarter of them repatriated to Palestine.