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This paper explores the systemic relationship between urban civilization initiatives and economic prosperity by examining the economic impact of China's "National Civilized City" (NCC) designation. We begin by synthesizing literature that addresses the complex interactions between urban development and environmental sustainability, emphasizing a systems approach. A theoretical model is developed to capture the dynamic interplay between urban environmental strategies and socio-economic outcomes, framed within the context of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Employing a quasi-experimental difference-in-differences (DID) method, we analyze data from a panel of Chinese cities (1997–2019) to assess how the NCC title influences economic growth and urban sustainability. Our results indicate a notable 2.88% increase in GDP per capita associated with the designation; however, this effect varies based on the city's administrative status and geographical location, highlighting the complex and conditional nature of policy impact on economic development. We conclude by offering policy recommendations that promote a holistic approach to urban planning, fostering synergies between environmental conservation and economic growth. These insights contribute to a deeper understanding of sustainable urban development strategies with relevance to both emerging and developed economies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sustainable urbanization is significant in developing countries. This paper studies whether Chinese-type sustainable urbanization, that is new-type urbanization, promotes green total factor productivity (GTFP). We find that the new-type urbanization implementation in China, on average, significantly promotes GTFP by 3.2%. The positive effect of new-type urbanization on GTFP is correlated with promoting innovation, especially green innovation, and improving allocation efficiency. We do not find clear evidence for industrial upgrading, including industrial advancement and rationalization. This is because industrial upgrading is a gradual process and cannot be achieved shortly. Instead, we find that pilot cities might screen the entry of new firms and keep polluting firms out comparatively. The heterogeneous results indicate that the promotion effects on GTFP are more salient in regions with strong environmental regulation and adequate factor endowments. We have some practical implications for sustainable development in developing countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urbanization is a significant phenomenon that requires a balance between environmental sustainability, social equity, and economic development. Sustainable urbanization refers to efforts to manage the growth of cities in accordance with the principles of environmental, economic, and social sustainability. The purpose of this study is to contribute to the literature by evaluating the performance of sustainable urbanization in Türkiye through socio-economic and environmental variables. Using bibliometric analysis, publications in the Web of Science database up to May 2024 were examined, and prominent research trends, key issues, and influential publications in the literature on sustainable urbanization were identified. The findings indicate an increasing interest and diversification of studies in the field of sustainable urbanization in recent years. Notably, China and the USA have been leading in this area, with Türkiye also making significant contributions. Considering the environmental, economic, and social dimensions of sustainable urbanization, it is concluded that cities should adopt holistic and integrated approaches in their planning and management processes. Green buildings, sustainable transportation systems, and effective waste management are crucial components of sustainable urbanization, and investments in these areas enhance urban life quality. The results of the study suggest that significant steps can be taken towards sustainable urbanization in Türkiye, making cities more livable, environmentally friendly, and economically sustainable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Globally, karst regions face the dual challenges of urbanization and ecological protection, with the coupling coordination of multi-dimensional urbanization (MDU) and ecological security (ECS) being a necessary condition for achieving sustainable development. This study, based on statistical data on MDU and ECS in the Yunnan–Guizhou Region (the YGR) in China, employs the entropy weight TOPSIS model, degree of coupling coordination (CCD) model, and panel Tobit regression model to explore the coupling relationship between MDU and ECS. The main conclusions are as follows. (1) MDU in the YGR increased from 0.299 to 0.305, indicating low-level and sluggish development. Spatially, it is characterized by a "dual-core" structure centered on Kunming and Guiyang. (2) ECS decreased from 0.456 to 0.423, with a spatial pattern of "high in the east, low in the west". The impact of human activities on ECS increased from 0.579 to 0.631 due to the increase in social and economic activities. (3) CCD increased to 0.579, achieving moderate coordination. The spatial feature evolved into a tri-cluster pattern of "high–low–high" across the "eastern–central–northwestern" regions. (4) Regression results indicate that annual average precipitation has a "both promoting and limiting" dual effect on CCD. The coefficient for the proportion of afforested land area is 0.205, with a significance level of 5%, suggesting that increasing forest cover is a key measure for improving CCD. The study reveals the factors influencing the evolution of MDU and ECS from a negative to a positive correlation, providing a basis for decisions related to sustainable development for urban and ecological management in karst landscapes globally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bangladesh is going through an unprecedented period of urban growth, and its cities are having to deal with rising service, housing, and infrastructural needs. It is critical to comprehend how urban government promotes sustainable development as the nation struggles with the intricacies of urbanization. This study aims to investigate how urban governance impacts sustainable urbanization at the city corporation level in Bangladesh, focusing on Goal 11 of the Sustainable Development Agenda, which is "sustainable cities and communities." The study selected Rajshahi and Gazipur City Corporations as case studies and employed Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and descriptive statistics methods to gather data from primary and secondary sources. The findings of the study reveal gaps in urban governance, highlighting inconsistencies between the expectations of stakeholders and the reality on the ground. Stakeholders express high expectations for housing access, infrastructure development, disaster management, transportation, and environmental sustainability, but the current state falls short in several areas. Further, the study proposes several recommendations to enhance urban governance, including fostering participatory approaches, ensuring sufficient budget allocation for infrastructure development, addressing housing challenges, enhancing women's safety in transportation, and strengthening disaster management systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rapid development of urbanization necessitates effective analytical methods to address its complexities. Peri-urbanization, the expansion of settlement boundaries and urban spread, is a critical aspect of this phenomenon. This study introduces a quantitative method to analyze peri-urbanization, providing a peri-urban index (PUI) for medium-sized cities based on peri-urban dynamics. Utilizing the analytical hierarchy process (AHP), the weight values of influencing dynamics are calculated, establishing a peri-urban scale (PUS) ranging from one to five based on rural and urban characteristics. Applied to a medium-sized case study city, the method assesses the peri-urbanization from 2007 to 2022. Four main dynamics—socio-demographics, economic-employment, land use-accessibility, and building-texture patterns—and fourteen sub-dynamics were identified and weighted using AHP. The city's PUI values over different years reveal a 41.6% increase, indicating significant peri-urbanization. This quantitative approach, which innovatively integrates multiple numerical analysis methods, not only highlights the peri-urbanization trends of the city but also provides a comparative analysis framework for other cities. The method's ability to track changes over time and compare different urban areas supports the development of sustainable urbanization strategies, ensuring balanced growth and resource allocation. This method offers urban planners, policymakers, and architects a powerful tool to manage and guide future urban expansion effectively through interdisciplinary collaboration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urban Heat Islands (UHIs) pose a significant threat to urban climates, exacerbating the effects of climate change and impacting public health, energy consumption, and local ecosystems. Sustainable urbanization is key to enhancing climate resilience in cities. This review paper examines strategies that mitigate the UHI effect, exploring various methods such as green infrastructure, reflective materials, and urban planning. Real-time data, case studies, and examples are integrated to assess the effectiveness of these interventions. The paper provides a comprehensive evaluation of sustainable urban strategies for creating resilient, cooler cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Urban trees and forests show a better ecosystem with many benefits, including pure air quality. The development of urban green infrastructure (UGI) creates a better management system that greatly impacts social values in an urban system. The UGI and construction activities are receiving much attention for their effectiveness in addressing various urban ecological, social and economic issues. Using green infrastructure in stormwater management can reduce the influence on urban sewerage systems and, eventually, on building water resources. The main goal of the research is to optimize the green infrastructure to provide a less-pollution, well-organized, and pleasurable environment for the inhabitants. Various models are used to study the present rainfall-runoff scenario, but the stormwater management model (SWMM) is the most preferable and suggested model. Once the parameters are accessed, optimizing the green infrastructure (GI) will be easy. A complete SWMM model is evaluated over the complete surface, and a hydrological measurement is presented. The evaluation study presents various component percentages: asphalt (37%), green (27%), ceiling (21%), grit (12%), and cemented area (2%), which provides rainproof coverage of approximately 60%. A design is developed about the diverse events of GI in urban exploiting the SWMM and demonstrates its stimulus on the rainfall-runoff behaviour. In recent years, very little attention has been given to green spaces in urban areas, which not only increases pollution but also decreases the urbanization. Therefore, urban green spaces are more important to improve air quality and resident living standards. Over the given scenario and the rainfall event, a decline of the quantitative discharge parameters is evident, such as discharge volume (i.e., from 3.6 to 61.8) and the peak discharge rate (i.e., from 5.4 to 62.7%). The simulation results show that green areas give high satisfaction with low construction costs, which shows the superlative performance ratio of the examined measures. From the investigation, it is also recommended to have green areas and public spaces in impervious urban areas, which greatly reduced the runoff in the project area.

Bu çalışmada karasal iklime sahip Erzurum’da yeni gelişmekte olan alanlar için imar planlarında tanımlanmış olan yapılaşma koşullarının ve kentsel gelişme dinamiklerinin soğuk iklim şartları ile uyumluluğunun belirlenmesi ve iklime uygun kentsel tasarım modelleri uygulanması durumunda ortaya çıkacak mekânsal farklılıklarının tespit edilmesi amaçlanmıştır. Bu doğrultuda Erzurumun batı koridorundaki gelişme alanlarından Yıldızkent semtinin yeni gelişecek bir bölgesinde örnek saha çalışması yapılmıştır. Bu alan için imar planındaki yapılaşma kararları ile karasal iklime -yoğun kış koşullarına- uyumlu tasarım parametreleri uygulandığında ortaya çıkabilecek kentsel çevreyi yansıtması açısından iki farklı kentsel tasarım projesi geliştirilmiştir. Her iki tasarım, iklim duyarlı bir kentsel çevre için dikkat edilmesi gereken, kentsel form, yoğunluk ve geometri, geçirimsiz yüzey miktarı, gökyüzü görünürlük oranı, bina yüksekliği cadde genişliği oranı, sokak yönlenmeleri, havalandırma, güneş radyasyonu, su döngüsü, kar yönetimi ve bitki örtüsü başlıklarında analiz edilmiştir. Elde edilen bulgular, çalışma alanının mevcut planlara göre geliştiği durumda karasal iklim koşullarıyla uyumsuz bir kentsel çevre yaratacağını göstermektedir. Bu durum kentsel ısı adası, hava kirliliği ve mikro düzeyde sıcaklık farklılıkları gibi problemlerin alanda gözlenmesini yüksek bir ihtimal haline getirmekte ve ekolojik temelli sürdürülebilir bir kentleşme sürecini tehdit etmektedir. Yapılan çalışma ile karasal iklim koşullarına uygun bir kentsel tasarım ile iklim ve kentsel çevre arasındaki uyumsuzlukların giderilebileceği ve yaşam kalitesinin artırılabileceğine dair bilgiler ortaya konmuştur.

This paper explores the systemic relationship between urban civilization initiatives and economic prosperity by examining the economic impact of China’s “National Civilized City” (NCC) designation. We begin by synthesizing literature that addresses the complex interactions between urban development and environmental sustainability, emphasizing a systems approach. A theoretical model is developed to capture the dynamic interplay between urban environmental strategies and socio-economic outcomes, framed within the context of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Employing a quasi-experimental difference-in-differences (DID) method, we analyze data from a panel of Chinese cities (1997–2019) to assess how the NCC title influences economic growth and urban sustainability. Our results indicate a notable 2.88% increase in GDP per capita associated with the designation; however, this effect varies based on the city’s administrative status and geographical location, highlighting the complex and conditional nature of policy impact on economic development. We conclude by offering policy recommendations that promote a holistic approach to urban planning, fostering synergies between environmental conservation and economic growth. These insights contribute to a deeper understanding of sustainable urban development strategies with relevance to both emerging and developed economies.

The rapid urbanization of Abha and its surrounding cities in Saudi Arabia's mountainous regions poses challenges for sustainable and secure development. This study aimed to identify suitable sites for eco-friendly and safe building complexes amidst complex geophysical, geoecological, and socio-economic factors, integrating natural hazards assessment and risk management. Employing the Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (Fuzzy-AHP), the study constructed a suitability model incorporating sixteen parameters. Additionally, a Deep Neural Network (DNN) based on eXplainable Artificial Intelligence (XAI) conducted sensitivity analyses to assess the parameters' influence on optimal location decision making. The results reveal slope as the most crucial parameter (22.90%), followed by altitude and land use/land cover (13.24%), emphasizing topography and environmental considerations. Drainage density (11.36%) and rainfall patterns (9.15%) are also significant for flood defense and water management. Only 12.21% of the study area is deemed "highly suitable", with "no-build zones" designated for safety and environmental protection. DNN-based XAI demonstrates the positive impact of variables like the NDVI and municipal solid waste generation on site selection, informing waste management and ecological preservation strategies. This integrated methodology provides actionable insights for sustainable and safe residential development in Abha, aiding informed decision making and balancing urban expansion with environmental conservation and hazard risk reduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Enhancing the level and quality of urbanization and embarking on a new path toward the sustainable development of urbanization are the forces that are driving the achievement of stable and healthy economic and social development. Based on data from three population censuses and official statistics spanning from 1997 to 2021, this study decomposed the changes in the urbanization rates in Chongqing during this period. We employed a fixed-effects model to conduct a regression analysis on the factors influencing the regional contributions of urbanization and provide a comprehensive analysis of their mechanisms. The study findings are as follows: 1. The central urban area has been the primary region driving the urbanization in Chongqing since the establishment of the Chongqing municipality; however, since 2017, the new urban area has gradually become the new "main force" driving the urbanization in Chongqing. In different stages, dynamic regions have exhibited a pattern of "diversification—centralization—diversification". 2. Local urbanization is the main factor promoting the urbanization development in Chongqing, whereas remote urbanization has only played a supplementary role. The overall urbanization pattern in Chongqing is characterized by "local urbanization and population inflow". The central urban area has primarily propelled the urbanization of Chongqing through remote urbanization, whereas the new urban area, as well as the northeastern Chongqing area and southeastern Chongqing area, have predominantly driven the urbanization of Chongqing through local urbanization. In the four major regions and 38 counties, the predominant urbanization type was often "local urbanization and population outflow". 3. The level of the contribution of different regions to the urbanization development in Chongqing is the combined result of factors such as economic development, local administrative capacity, improvement in public services, and enhancement in transportation infrastructure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urban trees and forests show a better ecosystem with many benefits, including pure air quality. The development of urban green infrastructure (UGI) creates a better management system that greatly impacts social values in an urban system. The UGI and construction activities are receiving much attention for their effectiveness in addressing various urban ecological, social and economic issues. Using green infrastructure in stormwater management can reduce the influence on urban sewerage systems and, eventually, on building water resources. The main goal of the research is to optimize the green infrastructure to provide a less-pollution, well-organized, and pleasurable environment for the inhabitants. Various models are used to study the present rainfall-runoff scenario, but the stormwater management model (SWMM) is the most preferable and suggested model. Once the parameters are accessed, optimizing the green infrastructure (GI) will be easy. A complete SWMM model is evaluated over the complete surface, and a hydrological measurement is presented. The evaluation study presents various component percentages: asphalt (37%), green (27%), ceiling (21%), grit (12%), and cemented area (2%), which provides rainproof coverage of approximately 60%. A design is developed about the diverse events of GI in urban exploiting the SWMM and demonstrates its stimulus on the rainfall-runoff behaviour. In recent years, very little attention has been given to green spaces in urban areas, which not only increases pollution but also decreases the urbanization. Therefore, urban green spaces are more important to improve air quality and resident living standards. Over the given scenario and the rainfall event, a decline of the quantitative discharge parameters is evident, such as discharge volume (i.e., from 3.6 to 61.8) and the peak discharge rate (i.e., from 5.4 to 62.7%). The simulation results show that green areas give high satisfaction with low construction costs, which shows the superlative performance ratio of the examined measures. From the investigation, it is also recommended to have green areas and public spaces in impervious urban areas, which greatly reduced the runoff in the project area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China's urbanization has received as much attention as its economic growth in recent years. While rapid urbanization has promoted modernization and wealth creation, it has also brought many problems and challenges. So, since 2014, the Chinese government has implemented a new urbanization policy nationwide. However, few researchers have examined whether China's new urbanization policies promote sustainable urbanization. This paper evaluates the sustainable urbanization of 19 urban agglomerations in China using the elastic coefficient. The results indicate a significant increase in the number of cities achieving sustainable urbanization since the implementation of China's new urbanization policy. The number has risen from 46 in the period of 2010–2015 to 71 in the period of 2015–2021. Considering the impact of the new coronavirus on economy, there would have been even more cities entering sustainable urbanization during the latter period. This indicates that the new urbanization policy has a positive influence on the sustainable urbanization of China's urban agglomerations. The sustainable urbanization status is not static and changes with different policies that are implemented in different time periods. Therefore, it is important to find useful policies that can guide and enhance the urbanization process in these cities. In addition, cities that have a sustainable urbanization status are not perfect. To address this issue, it is important to categorize and implement targeted policies for cities experiencing both sustainable and non-sustainable urbanization. Changes in a city's size or urbanization rates are not related to the city's sustainable urbanization status. A larger city size does not indicate sustainable urbanization, and, similarly, cities with faster urbanization rates do not exhibit a higher level of urbanization sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of PLANARCH - Design & Planning Research is the property of Ataturk University Coordinatorship of Scientific Journals and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Bangladesh is going through an unprecedented period of urban growth, and its cities are having to deal with rising service, housing, and infrastructural needs. It is critical to comprehend how urban government promotes sustainable development as the nation struggles with the intricacies of urbanization. This study aims to investigate how urban governance impacts sustainable urbanization at the city corporation level in Bangladesh, focusing on Goal 11 of the Sustainable Development Agenda, which is “sustainable cities and communities.” The study selected Rajshahi and Gazipur City Corporations as case studies and employed Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and descriptive statistics methods to gather data from primary and secondary sources. The findings of the study reveal gaps in urban governance, highlighting inconsistencies between the expectations of stakeholders and the reality on the ground. Stakeholders express high expectations for housing access, infrastructure development, disaster management, transportation, and environmental sustainability, but the current state falls short in several areas. Further, the study proposes several recommendations to enhance urban governance, including fostering participatory approaches, ensuring sufficient budget allocation for infrastructure development, addressing housing challenges, enhancing women’s safety in transportation, and strengthening disaster management systems.

South Asia is the most polluted region in the world and is struggling to deal with the effects of growing CO2 emissions and the ecological impact it has left. The region needs to identify the variables that are most effective in reducing pollution in order to achieve long-term sustainable growth. The current study aims to investigate the environmental impacts of the current and projected urbanization rate, the service sector, and the availability of natural resources to test the environmental Kuznets-curve (EKC) theory in six South Asian countries (SAARC). With cross-sectional dependence present, this research examines panel data from 1972 to 2021 using the newly developed Driscoll Kraay Standard Error (DKSE) approach. To check the robustness of DKSE estimation, the study employs a novel Cross Sectional Autoregressive Distributive Lag (CS-ARDL) method. The results of DKSE show that GDP significantly minimizes CO2 emissions in both the short and long run. At the same time, GDP2, urbanization, and the service sector increase CO2 emissions in the South Asian region. The DKSE estimator also shows that industrialization and abundant natural resources have insignificant impacts on CO2 emissions. Inconsistent with the EKC hypothesis, the findings show that higher economic growth leads to increased environmental pollution and CO2 levels. Meanwhile, the CS-ARDL analysis found that GDP and industrialization reduce CO2 emissions, while urbanization, GDP2, and natural resource availability increase CO2 emissions. This research emphasizes the need for establishing appropriate industrialization and urbanization strategies and promoting cleaner energy adoption to reduce CO2 emissions.

The versatility and diverse applications of IoT-based Heterogeneous WSN (HWSN) technologies make them valuable tools for achieving sustainability goals in Sustainable Smart Cities (SSCs). Proper management of underlying heterogeneous architecture is crucial for the successful operation of smart applications. To prolong the WSN’s lifespan and avoid failures, effective energy management is essential. Although researchers are continually exploring heterogeneity in WSN, it gets more and more important to create cost-effective paradigms that cover multiple facets of SSC while ensuring their stability and reliability. The concept of Dominating Sets (DS) in a graph can be leveraged to minimize resource utilization in WSNs by arranging nodes into disjoint DS, with only one set executing duties at any given time. In this work, we propose a novel technique for IoT-based HWSNs-enabled SSC, called EADDSA, utilizing the DS concept to plan the sleep-and-awake scheme for heterogeneous nodes, based on their resource capabilities. We propose a new algorithm, called the Energy Attentive Algorithm (EAA), to find disjoint DSs that are energy-aware. EAA algorithm attentively tries to form the set that maximizes lifespan while adhering to DS conditions in each iteration. EADDSA further incorporates an effective DS scheduling strategy to enhance the HWSN lifetime by establishing operational guidelines for each round, taking into account the estimated lifetimes and the designated number of working rounds for each DS. This enables efficient allocation of data sensing and gathering tasks across the network minimizes resource usage, and extends network lifetime.

This study empirically examines the effect of sustainable urbanization on vulnerability to climate change over a sample of 52 African countries from 1996 to 2019. We use the two‐stage system generalized method of moments (GMM) empirical strategy and mediation analysis to assess direct and indirect impacts, respectively. The results of the direct analysis reveal that sustainable urbanization reduces vulnerability to climate change. The results of the indirect analysis also show that sustainable urbanization significantly reduces vulnerability to climate change through the channels of digitalization and institutional quality. The results also highlight that considering the direct effect of sustainable urbanization alone underestimates the impact of reducing vulnerability to climate change. The results are robust to an alternative indicator of vulnerability to climate and other estimation techniques. These results have important policy implications and provide evidence for the improvement of sustainable urbanization in terms of access to basic services or reduction of vulnerability to climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The climate has an impact on the urban thermal environment, and the magnitude of the surface urban heat island (SUHI) and urban cool island (UCI) vary across the world's climatic zones. This literature review investigated: 1) the variations in the SUHI and UCI intensity under different climatic backgrounds, and 2) the effect of vegetation types, landscape composition, urban configuration, and water bodies on the SUHI. The SUHI had a higher intensity in tropical (Af (tropical rainy climate, Köppen climate classification), Am (tropical monsoon climate), subtropical (Cfa, subtropical humid climate), and humid continental (Dwa, semi-humid and semi-arid monsoon climate)) climate zones. The magnitude of the UCI was low compared to the SUHI across the climate zones. The cool and dry Mediterranean (Cfb, temperate marine climate; Csb, temperate mediterranean climate; Cfa) and tropical climate (Af) areas had a higher cooling intensity. For cities with a desert climate (BWh, tropical desert climate), a reverse pattern was found. The difference in the SUHI in the night-time was greater than in the daytime for most cities across the climate zones. The extent of green space cooling was related to city size, the adjacent impervious surface, and the local climate. Additionally, the composition of urban landscape elements was more significant than their configuration for sustaining the urban thermal environment. Finally, we identified future research gaps for possible solutions in the context of sustainable urbanization in different climate zones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

From the past to the present, societies have formed an order by living decently together and have gradually come to a settled life. Therefore, villages were formed and cities were formed with the development of villages over time. Technological developments and industrialization have led to the beginning of migration from rural areas to cities. Problems such as globalization, distorted urbanization and increasing consumption in cities that are growing rapidly and uncontrollably have emerged. In response to this, the Slow Food Movement (International Slow Nutrition Movement) was organized in Italy in 1989. With the encouragement of this movement, in order to reduce the consumption rate, improve the local economy and ensure sustainable development, ensure the sustainability of local resources and transfer them to future generations, the International Slow City (Cittaslow) Association of 4 small Italian cities was established in Italy in 1999. Within the scope of this research, the activities carried out by the cities of Bra, one of the founders of the International Slow City Association, and Seferihisar, which was selected as the first slow city (Cittaslow) city of Turkey in 2009, based on the Cittaslow membership criteria, were compared and examined in the context of sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this article is to compare two European cities, Malmö and Ostrava, in terms of the implementation of the assumptions of sustainable urbanization with particular emphasis on environmental management. The research was carried out using the two techniques of field research and content analysis of these cities' websites. Results of the research show that when implementing the strategy of sustainable urbanization in Malmö and Ostrava, city authorities adopt two different approaches. In Malmö the dominant activities are those which support the environment, in Ostrava, however, preference is given to more 'passive' initiatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The level of urbanization worldwide rises. The increase in urban population stimulates economic growth, improvements in healthcare and education systems, and the creation of new jobs. However, the concentration of urban population leads to air and water pollution, the depletion of arable land, and other challenges. These issues hinder the achievement of sustainable development in countries. To regulate and control this issue, government authorities worldwide are developing and implementing strategies and development plans for cities to steer the urbanization process towards the desired sustainable development indicators. To gauge the success of these strategies, a set of indicators has been developed to show the resilience of urban development. The list of indicators varies significantly in global practices as they are tailored to specific city needs. This paper presents a list of indicators that are consistently applied across six strategies for the development of Ukrainian cities (Kharkiv, Kyiv, Lviv, Odesa, Dnipro, Vinnytsia). The indicators are grouped into three categories: economic, social, and environmental. For each indicator in these categories, a standardized unit of measurement was established, and additional indicators that may not be directly comparable but are included in international urban sustainability indicator lists were also incorporated. This set of indicators is not comprehensive and can be adjusted - either expanded or reduced - as needed to align with the city's short-term and long-term sustainable development plans. Through comparative analysis, measures are justified regarding the use of indicators to assess the sustainability of city development. This study demonstrates the necessity of aligning the indicator selection process based on benchmark indicators derived from advanced global experiences, taking into account successful practices. Future research will strive to combine these indicators to establish a universal approach for calculating a city's sustainable development index. Such an index would provide a valuable tool for policymakers, urban planners, and stakeholders to monitor progress, identify areas needing improvement, and implement targeted interventions. By fostering a holistic and integrated approach to urban development, cities can achieve sustainability goals, enhance the quality of life for their residents, and contribute to global efforts in promoting sustainable urbanization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Urban spatial carrying capacity is the comprehensive support capacity of natural resources for urban development, which is of great significance in guaranteeing the sustainable urbanization. The middle-east section of North Slope of Kunlun Mountains in Xinjiang, China, is characterized by harsh climate and sparse population, whereas it is important for the initiative of the new Silk Road Belt because of its important location. Cities in this area have begun to take shape, and the implementation of the Silk Road Belt Initiative will inevitably stimulate the urbanization in this area. The extent to which the cities in this area will be supported by natural resources and how to fulfill the requirements of sustainable socioeconomic development needs to be investigated. In view of this, the present study evaluated the urban spatial carrying capacity and discussed feasible approaches that could support the sustainable urbanization in this area. The results show that 97.59% of the study area belongs to the low and relatively low levels of spatial carrying capacity for urban construction, and the area of medium, relatively high and high levels is 1.12 × 104 km2, accounting for 2.41% of the total study area, mainly distributed in small clusters in the central alluvial fan oasis plains. Resource and environmental factors highly constrain urban construction, and low spatial matching of land and water resources, harsh climatic conditions and high risk of geological disasters are three major shortcomings. In addition, lagging transportation infrastructure construction and the resulting weak internal and external spatial connections also affect urban development. On this basis, the scientific arrangement of urban distribution, steady promotion of regional economic development based on local characteristics, further improvement of transportation infrastructure construction and strengthening the cooperation between the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps and local governments are suitable approaches for sustainable urbanization in the study area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China’s urbanization has received as much attention as its economic growth in recent years. While rapid urbanization has promoted modernization and wealth creation, it has also brought many problems and challenges. So, since 2014, the Chinese government has implemented a new urbanization policy nationwide. However, few researchers have examined whether China’s new urbanization policies promote sustainable urbanization. This paper evaluates the sustainable urbanization of 19 urban agglomerations in China using the elastic coefficient. The results indicate a significant increase in the number of cities achieving sustainable urbanization since the implementation of China’s new urbanization policy. The number has risen from 46 in the period of 2010–2015 to 71 in the period of 2015–2021. Considering the impact of the new coronavirus on economy, there would have been even more cities entering sustainable urbanization during the latter period. This indicates that the new urbanization policy has a positive influence on the sustainable urbanization of China’s urban agglomerations. The sustainable urbanization status is not static and changes with different policies that are implemented in different time periods. Therefore, it is important to find useful policies that can guide and enhance the urbanization process in these cities. In addition, cities that have a sustainable urbanization status are not perfect. To address this issue, it is important to categorize and implement targeted policies for cities experiencing both sustainable and non-sustainable urbanization. Changes in a city’s size or urbanization rates are not related to the city’s sustainable urbanization status. A larger city size does not indicate sustainable urbanization, and, similarly, cities with faster urbanization rates do not exhibit a higher level of urbanization sustainability.

Tropical regions are known for their complex ecosystems and biodiversity, which play a vital role in regulating the global climate. However, researching tropical cities can be challenging due to the need for multi-disciplinary and multi-dimensional approaches. In this study, we conducted a bibliometric analysis to gain a structured understanding of the developments and characteristics of tropical cities research in the last decade. We identified the fundamental influences in tropical cities research, based on four major sub-topics: climate change, sustainable urbanization, protecting biodiversity, and urban resource management. We examined the connections between these themes and performed a systematic literature review on each. Our analysis provides a comprehensive trend analysis of tropical cities, both quantitatively and qualitatively. Our findings aim to provide a solid foundation for bridging the gaps for future crosscutting research.

Urbanization is a phenomenon that not only contributes to the development of the country but also brings with it some problems. Sustainable urbanization, on the other hand, is the realization of the growth of cities at the economic, social and environmental levels of the society, with urban structures where long-term resources are used effectively and efficiently, and pollution can be kept at a minimum level. Turkey has been exposed to rapid urbanization in recent years and the number of people living in cities is increasing. When the literature about the studies on sustainable urbanization in Turkey examined, no study has been found that evaluates sustainable urbanization performance over the years via structural equation modelling. In this study, it is aimed to measure and evaluate the sustainable urbanization performance of Turkey between 2000 and 2019. Socio-economic and environmental variables are used in the structural equation model to measure Turkey's sustainable urbanization. Second-order confirmatory factor analysis is used to estimate the model. Based on the findings, it is observed that there has been a significant increase in environmental performance in 2016 and beyond. It is seen that environmental performance and socio-economic performance, which shows a relatively stable increase, have almost the same effect on the country's sustainable urbanization performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Smart cities are becoming a popular urban development strategy to address complex and multiple challenges confronting cities globally, including in Africa. Using the 3RC framework, this paper critically analyses smart cities using experiences from Nairobi (Kenya), Johannesburg (South Africa), Lagos (Nigeria), Kigali (Rwanda) and Casablanca (Morocco). Are smart cities a panacea to Africa's quest for sustainable urbanization? Our analyses demonstrate that, if carefully planned and implemented, smart city interventions have the potential to transform the ways African cities are planned, managed, and governed. At the same time, smart city interventions in Africa are being implemented in contexts characterized by socio-economic inequalities, chaotic transport systems and massive governance failures among other challenges. We demonstrate that if ineffectively deployed, smart urban technologies might deepen existing inequalities and amplify spatial exclusion through privatization and marketization of urban space. Therefore, the adoption of smart city ideas in Africa must be rooted in contextual realities and properly calibrated to create urban spaces that are sustainable and inclusive. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Nature can make important contributions to the mitigation of climate extremes through urban green infrastructure (UGI) as of nature‐based solutions (NbS). Ecosystem‐related planning methodologies are a comprehensive approach to foster sustainable development. Moreover, NbS contribute to land recycling and soil restoration, as well as wastewater purification and disaster risk reduction. In the frame of sustainable urbanization, NbS may support the water cycle restoration on all catchment scales, as well as the improvement of water quality. In addition, NbS generate further additional benefits like ecosystem services and can be considered more cost‐effective on the long term. The present contribution illustrates the options for the development of tailored UGI in the urban realm through a showcase from Holguín (Cuba) and the estimation of the respective ecosystem services net benefits using the i‐Tree software. Here, beside the development of an UGI potential map, three pilot sites are investigated to apply ecological engineering solutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]