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Abstract Historical city centers are one of the reasons that give cities their identity, memory, and sense of belonging. The commercial areas within these centers are particularly important, as they contribute significantly to the vitality of the urban environment. However, due to rapid developments in recent times, many of these historic commercial streets have lost their significance and fallen victim to informal usage, resulting in the erosion of their historic identity. Consequently, it becomes imperative to renovate these historic commercial streets to preserve the community’s identity. The proposed methodology aims to foster local culture by revitalizing these streets and emphasizing the principles and criteria of heritage preservation that not only preserve the community’s identity but also serve as vibrant and inclusive spaces for residents and visitors alike to fulfill the concept of vitality and livability. In this context, the focus is on protecting historical areas and ensuring their ongoing relevance and benefits, extending not only to street users but also to the entire community. To achieve this, a series of steps are suggested for the renovation of historic commercial streets within city centers, accompanied by a reliable set of criteria that preserve their visual identity rooted in history. To demonstrate the application of these criteria, a case study was conducted for the proposed renovation of Mahmud Al-Banna Street, a historic commercial street in downtown Tanta, Egypt. The objective of the study was to develop strategies that would effectively address various aspects, including urban, visual, environmental, and economic issues. As a result, the research concluded that the proposed regeneration strategies, if implemented, could enhance the vitality and livability of the historic commercial districts for other urban environments.

Starting from the relationship between urban planning and mobility management, TeMA has gradually expanded the view of the covered topics, always remaining in the groove of rigorous scientific in-depth analysis. This section of the Journal, Review Notes, is the expression of continuously updating emerging topics concerning relationships between urban planning, mobility and environment, through a collection of short scientific papers written by young researchers. The Review Notes are made of four parts. Each section examines a specific aspect of the broader information storage within the main interests of TeMA Journal. In particular, the Urban strategies, programmes and tools section presents the different strategies and tools for active mobility implemented internationally. The purpose of this review is to provide an overview of the instruments and strategies implemented in Europe to encourage active mobility. In addition, some solutions to promote active transport implemented in several European cities have been reported. These initiatives represent an opportunity for European communities to act in a necessary, indispensable and continuous process of improving urban mobility in the direction of environmental sustainability. These measures, enhanced by dedicated tools such as SUMPs, promote behavioral change and support mobility planning, setting active mobility as a winning strategy to improve city life and urban efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Historical city centers are one of the reasons that give cities their identity, memory, and sense of belonging. The commercial areas within these centers are particularly important, as they contribute significantly to the vitality of the urban environment. However, due to rapid developments in recent times, many of these historic commercial streets have lost their significance and fallen victim to informal usage, resulting in the erosion of their historic identity. Consequently, it becomes imperative to renovate these historic commercial streets to preserve the community's identity. The proposed methodology aims to foster local culture by revitalizing these streets and emphasizing the principles and criteria of heritage preservation that not only preserve the community's identity but also serve as vibrant and inclusive spaces for residents and visitors alike to fulfill the concept of vitality and livability. In this context, the focus is on protecting historical areas and ensuring their ongoing relevance and benefits, extending not only to street users but also to the entire community. To achieve this, a series of steps are suggested for the renovation of historic commercial streets within city centers, accompanied by a reliable set of criteria that preserve their visual identity rooted in history. To demonstrate the application of these criteria, a case study was conducted for the proposed renovation of Mahmud Al-Banna Street, a historic commercial street in downtown Tanta, Egypt. The objective of the study was to develop strategies that would effectively address various aspects, including urban, visual, environmental, and economic issues. As a result, the research concluded that the proposed regeneration strategies, if implemented, could enhance the vitality and livability of the historic commercial districts for other urban environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Architectus is the property of Oficyna Wydawnicza Politechniki Wroclawskiej 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.)

Starting from the relationship between urban planning and mobility management, TeMA has gradually expanded the view of the covered topics, always remaining in the groove of rigorous scientific in-depth analysis. This section of the Journal, Review Notes, is the expression of continuously updating emerging topics concerning relationships between urban planning, mobility and environment, through a collection of short scientific papers written by young researchers. The Review Notes are made of four parts. Each section examines a specific aspect of the broader information storage within the main interests of TeMA Journal. In particular, the Urban strategies, programmes and tools section presents the different strategies and tools for active mobility implemented internationally. The contribution aims to address the issue of active mobility in the context of sustainable urban planning on a global scale. In this direction, this review provides an overview of strategies and tools that promote active mobility options in urban areas and identify best practices from cities around the world. In recent sustainable urban mobility policies, at all levels of governance, the focus has been on active mobility identified as one of the key components for the transition to a neutral climate and an inclusive urban future, more resilient and safer.

Soil is now a central issue on the European as well as the national political agenda, as it represents a fundamental ecosystem for human survival on the planet. Today, more than ever, its protection and proper use in various contexts (agricultural, natural, urban) require stringent policies that can be implemented immediately. The difficult reversibility of urban transformations is the main threat to the ecosystem integrity of soil. Starting from this statement, the main objective of the proposed work is to analyze how the main European countries (Italy, France, Germany, and Spain) are addressing the issue of the goal of zero net land take by 2050 by examining the current laws and strategies. The results highlight how the regulatory aspect plays a key role in managing the phenomenon and how the absence of a national framework law can generate strong distortions and different interpretations of the soil ecosystem. The analysis of the Nature Restoration Law, adopted by the European Commission in July 2023, enables us to assess whether the regulations and measures adopted by the major European countries align with the European Union's trends. Through a comparative perspective, the study aims to contribute to a comprehensive understanding of sustainable development practices and provide valuable insights for policymakers, urban planners, and academics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Starting from the relationship between urban planning and mobility management, TeMA has gradually expanded the view of the covered topics, always remaining in the groove of rigorous scientific in-depth analysis. This section of the Journal, Review Notes, is the expression of continuously updating emerging topics concerning relationships between urban planning, mobility and environment, through a collection of short scientific papers written by young researchers. The Review Notes are made of four parts. Each section examines a specific aspect of the broader information storage within the main interests of TeMA Journal. In particular, the Urban strategies, programmers and tools section presents the different strategies and tools for active mobility implemented internationally. The contribution aims to address the issue of active mobility in the context of sustainable urban planning on a global scale. In this direction, this review provides an overview of strategies and tools that promote active mobility options in urban areas and identify best practices from cities around the world. In recent sustainable urban mobility policies, at all levels of governance, the focus has been on active mobility identified as one of the key components for the transition to a neutral climate and an inclusive urban future, more resilient and safer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Temporary architecture is a powerful tool to draw attention to the context and historical sites. It offers a dynamic approach to Stimulating sites that may have been neglected or forgotten. Dormant sites often hold historical or cultural significance, which may not be immediately evident to passersby. Designing and adding temporary structures can highlight and stimulate these aspects, serving as a visual reminder of the importance of the sites. After thoroughly reviewing the existing literature, the research problem was identified as "a lack of a clear cognitive understanding of the mechanisms of temporary architecture as a strategy for urban stimulation in historical sites." This assumption is based on the idea that temporary architecture and structures stimulate the context and historical sites. To verify the hypothesis, the vocabulary of the conceptual model was analyzed in one of the temporary global projects within the architecture of the historical place. This was done by employing Descriptive Analysis. The results have shown that temporary architecture stimulates the historical context in a contemporary language through mechanisms of contrast with the urban origin to showcase and attract attention to it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the 1950s, African cities in a quest for modernity and prosperity have been urgently playing catch up to deal with the increasing demand for adequate urban systems and infrastructure. At the turn of the 21st century, many spatial planning models, technological trends, environmental challenges, and socio-economic realities are influencing African cities’ dynamics largely causing confusion and a lack of consistent planning policies. To efficiently guide a coherent and coordinated vision, frame an integrated long-term spatial logic, and give a precise direction for sustainable urban development, this paper aims to develop a localized and contextualised analysis of urban planning challenges and development strategies shaping African cities. The study provides a broad perspective looking at the potentiality of spatial planning practices to envision and transform urban life by prospecting integrated urban planning and development strategies to face increasing urban challenges in Africa. Through Systematic Literature Review (SLR) and machine-learning tools, the study brings, for the first time, consolidated and updated knowledge of urban planning practices in Africa. We analysed 243 urban studies, published between 2000 and 2023, in 107 African cities. We identified and scrutinised 17 most pressing urban challenges and 16 most applied urban strategies to address those challenges. Accordingly, the study’s findings suggest shifting the spatial planning paradigm towards urban resilience as an interoperable system of different spatial planning policies and their relevant urban development strategies. Furthermore, the study’s key arguments are to improve urban infrastructure and optimize existing cities to reverse environmental degradation and guide urban fast transformation to adapt and mitigate growing climate change catastrophes.

Soil is now a central issue on the European as well as the national political agenda, as it represents a fundamental ecosystem for human survival on the planet. Today, more than ever, its protection and proper use in various contexts (agricultural, natural, urban) require stringent policies that can be implemented immediately. The difficult reversibility of urban transformations is the main threat to the ecosystem integrity of soil. Starting from this statement, the main objective of the proposed work is to analyze how the main European countries (Italy, France, Germany, and Spain) are addressing the issue of the goal of zero net land take by 2050 by examining the current laws and strategies. The results highlight how the regulatory aspect plays a key role in managing the phenomenon and how the absence of a national framework law can generate strong distortions and different interpretations of the soil ecosystem. The analysis of the Nature Restoration Law, adopted by the European Commission in July 2023, enables us to assess whether the regulations and measures adopted by the major European countries align with the European Union’s trends. Through a comparative perspective, the study aims to contribute to a comprehensive understanding of sustainable development practices and provide valuable insights for policymakers, urban planners, and academics.

Copyright of Afyon Kocatepe University Journal of Social Sciences / Afyon Kocatepe Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi is the property of Afyon Kocatepe University (AKU) Sosyal Bilimler Enstitusu 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.)

This paper reviews the literature on urban sustainability with the objective of drawing more attention to the social aspect of sustainability in urban planning. Given that social capital is a crucial component of moving towards more progressive smart cities and urban innovation, it is important to investigate the social dimension of sustainability and the opportunities that just cities can bring to improve the quality of life for urban dwellers. This paper is divided into three sections. The initial section provides an introduction to urban sustainability, discussing the historical roots of sustainability and sustainable development ideas, the three fundamental elements of sustainability, and the process of defining and measuring sustainability in an urban setting. Moving on to the second section, it delves into the body of work related to linking urban sustainability with urban strategies. The third section finally addresses the emergence of literature on just sustainability and just cities, which can give valuable insights to city policymakers who are trying to improve balanced sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cities involve units of time and space, being part of historical, social, economic, cultural, and tourist imaginary constructions. The goal is to understand how the territorial brand, based on regional development theories, is being used in the metaverse city of Seoul, South Korea. The method used was a case study associated with bibliographic and documentary research, using a protocol with four analytical categories. The main results referred to a metaverse territorial-regional brand, bringing discussions about a new geographical-virtual-immersive metaverse scale. It also addressed the use of recognition and competitiveness strategies between interactive-immersive territories. The conclusion confirms that Seoul's metaverse territorial-regional brand is strategically divided into three situations: (1) For city marketing purposes, positioning it as the first metaverse global city; (2) in city branding to strengthen the reputation and identity of the territory; and (3) to drive the transformation of physical territory with urban revitalization projects from the metaverse environment. Moreover, it serves Metaverse Seoul as an interactive and immersive field laboratory in virtual reality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Strategies to combat climate change may be based on mitigation of the phenomenon or on adaptation to its consequences. This paper aims to identify the driving factors of the choice between these two categories of strategies in the context of urban climate plans. The fight against climate change being characterized by a logic of free riding, the situation tilts the balance towards adaptation strategies in an urban context, to the detriment of mitigation. This hypothesis is tested here through a review of the existing literature on urban climate strategies. This study shows that, counterintuitively, mitigation prevails over adaptation in urban climate strategies up to now. This paper explores the explanations for this seemingly paradoxical situation. We argue that a big part of the explanation has to do with the institutional context of urban climate strategies, specifically the decision-making capacities of municipalities, or the fact that they take part in international networks promoting mitigation over adaptation. Other explanations rely on the cost/benefit impact of adopting mitigation or adaptation, like the collateral local/private benefits of urban climate strategies that are often bigger with mitigation than adaptation. Another finding is that there is no systematic planning making it compulsory to choose between mitigation and adaptation strategies, as they are in some instances complementary, providing co-benefits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Storia dell'Urbanistica is the property of Associazione Storia della Citta 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.)

Strategies to combat climate change may be based on mitigation of the phenomenon or on adaptation to its consequences. This paper aims to identify the driving factors of the choice between these two categories of strategies in the context of urban climate plans. The fight against climate change being characterized by a logic of free riding, the situation tilts the balance towards adaptation strategies in an urban context, to the detriment of mitigation. This hypothesis is tested here through a review of the existing literature on urban climate strategies. This study shows that, counterintuitively, mitigation prevails over adaptation in urban climate strategies up to now. This paper explores the explanations for this seemingly paradoxical situation. We argue that a big part of the explanation has to do with the institutional context of urban climate strategies, specifically the decision-making capacities of municipalities, or the fact that they take part in international networks promoting mitigation over adaptation. Other explanations rely on the cost/benefit impact of adopting mitigation or adaptation, like the collateral local/private benefits of urban climate strategies that are often bigger with mitigation than adaptation. Another finding is that there is no systematic planning making it compulsory to choose between mitigation and adaptation strategies, as they are in some instances complementary, providing co-benefits.

Copyright of Human Review is the property of Eagora Science 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.)

“Poor but Sexy” is Berlin, in a well-known institutional slogan. The city has experienced a unique evolution since the end of World War II and the Cold War years, attracting creative talents who crafted a metropolitan and cosmopolitan network of fertile connections and exchanges. Berlin appears to be structured in micro-areas: kiez8 is the urban and social unit, a small commons where shared views and actions define the neighbourhood. Since the fall of the Wall, the Berlin community has lived in a multiple-layered town whose dynamics revealed many contradictions, due to the virtual walls and maps that end up opposing to the elaboration of a consistent metropolitan strategy. This article discusses the role of cultural commons in urban development, which do not fit a unique model or mechanism. An effective administrative action can encourage the diffusion and location of creative industries and cultural enterprises, generating a sustainable value chain for Berlin’s identity, based upon cultural commons.

When the dominion of the sacred is read against the light, what are the morphological and urban implications of spaces, architecture and religious presences that must give way to logics and policies that dominate them? As an interesting key study, we can analyse the demolition of the cathedral in Mondovì, a flourishing cultural centre in Piedmont, when it was decided to transform the magnificent temple into a military structure in 1573. The overall architectural and urban dimension of the building was totally transformed. The civil and religious architecture, that was consolidated in the post-Tridentine period, underwent disruptive transformations when the city was the seat of Bishop Michele Ghislieri (later Pius V). Mondovì was characterised by exceptional intellectual vivacity, if compared to other Piedmontese centers, with the university, an avant-garde typography, the Jesuit college. At a time when the choices and priorities regarding the urban vocation were renewed, new real estate and demographic dynamics were defined, linked to the resilience of religious orders and new social groups. This paper deals with the analysis and comparison between different documentary and iconographic sources, which are not a homogeneous corpus but allow the study of the religious presence in the city and the verification of urban policies. The essay also tries to focus on dynamics not yet explored and by direct comparison with other cities, in particular with Savona and its transformations after the loss of autonomy in 1528.

Climate-related phenomena historically have had an impact on the lives of urban dwellers of Luanda and Maputo. Recently, however, urban expansion and congestion of different sorts, aggravated by climate change impacts, call for renewed responses on the part of residents. Rising sea levels and harder impacts of flooding are the most disturbing issues in the two coastal capitals, demanding both institutional responses and strategies of urban residents, particularly the most vulnerable. Based on qualitative data collected in Luanda and Maputo, this article describes how urban residents aim to mitigate and adapt to the effects of climate change and by doing so, shape the cities they live in and their environment.

Cities are dynamic systems; consist of physical and social networks which interact each other constantly. In this age, an emergent term: Big Data -which is generated with activities that are taken shape in cities integrated with information technologies- provides wide range of inputs for analysing relational structure of cities and uncovering behavioural patterns of city users. This study, searches for methods to develop urban strategies based on the feedback relationship between city's physical and social networks, by considering the data generated from Location Based Social Networks (LBSNs) - that becomes a significant part of daily life as a result of rapidly-developing technologies - together with the outcomes of space syntax analyses. In the case study of the research, for the center Kadıköy region, analyses are held in 3 sequential steps: 1) Acquiring crowdsourced data that users generated in location-based social networks and helding the density analyses in GIS. 2) Helding the space syntax analyses for urban physical network for the study area. 3) Superposing the outcomes in GIS to analyse relationships between the density of urban activity areas and topological characteristics of the physical networks in the study area. In the case study, by considering results of the analyses, making predictions for expansion trends and developing urban strategies compatible with expansion trends of Kadıköy center, are targeted.

The historical heritage of Finale Emilia was significantly and tragically affected by the earthquake of May 2012. The demage has mainly injured the landmarks of the historic center: in Town Hall, the Castel of the Fortnesses and Tower of Modena, has become the symbol of this dramatic event. The contribution aims to propose a working methodology applicable to contexts strongly affected that will have to, necessarily integrate reconstruction with a more general urban regeneration process. Traditional local conservation and rehabilitation policies are unable to salve these structural problems, and new spatial strategies and regional plans are necessary.

The article highlights the existence of a non-deliberate strategic approach in the process of urban transformation and development of Timisoara city, in its imperial period, strategic approach practiced by the city magistracy. As a way of treating the subject, we used multidisciplinary analysis of the historical contexts in holistic optics (urban analysis, community analysis, territorial organization analysis, etc.). Deconstructing the historical language (Derrida, 2009, 29-70) and the related concepts, in order to theorize, from a strategic point of view, the reality unexplored so far, namely the strategic valences (Koselleck, 2009, p 42) of magistrate activity of Timisoara during 1716-1776. The practice of this research methodology helps us confirm the strategic character of urban transformation development and to make intelligible the evolution of europeanness of the city in the period mentioned.

Different international agendas (OECD, Europe 2020) consider the promotion of knowledge based activities and innovation. The objective of this research is to analyze the strategic role of high technology-intensive industries, knowledge-intensive services and the cultural industries in Madrid. The paper begins by reviewing the approaches to strategic sectors in large European capitals. The analysis of firm networks in the region confirms the importance of these sectors in Madrid’s global connections and the articulation of their economic flows, but also the heterogeneous nature of the temporal and spatial trends of employment. Without losing sight of the tendency by large cities to replicate the selection of similar strategic sectors, their role in urban and regional development strategies would have a solid base in the case of Madrid.

This paper concerns the future of small towns with an old industrial specialisation which have undergone growth processes during the 1900s and now experience de‐industrialisation and identity crises in an economic scenario characterised by the role played by global cities and emerging countries. The concept of resilience has been adopted as the main analytical tool to study this phenomenon. Following an evolutionary approach, resilience is here understood as the dynamic capabilities a system can use to react to negative events and changes, to emphasise its distinctive contextual factors and promote new development trajectories, by also considering the contribution of institutions and urban strategies. With regard to the empirical part of the research, three comparable small industrial towns have been examined: Sochaux, the historical town of Peugeot; Ivrea, developed around the Olivetti company; Pontedera, the town of Piaggio and the famous Vespa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

After modifying its urban planning legislation, Castilla y León has approved an Urban Regeneration Strategy -an instrument to facilitate decision making-. The paper analyse Spanish and regional context for urban regeneration delving into three aspects: degree of integration achieved in the urban planning system, capacity to direct and to balance the transformations of the existing city, and possibilities of promoting inclusive interventions. The Strategy looks for measuring the needs and the potential for transformation of projected interventions, but there are also some weaknesses and unknowns that hover over its still early application.

Climate-related phenomena historically have had an impact on the lives of urban dwellers of Luanda and Maputo. Recently, however, urban expansion and congestion of different sorts, aggravated by climate change impacts, call for renewed responses on the part of residents. Rising sea levels and harder impacts of flooding are the most disturbing issues in the two coastal capitals, demanding both institutional responses and strategies of urban residents, particularly the most vulnerable. Based on qualitative data collected in Luanda and Maputo, this article describes how urban residents aim to mitigate and adapt to the effects of climate change and by doing so, shape the cities they live in and their environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Different international agendas (OECD, Europe 2020) consider the promotion of knowledge based activities and innovation. The objective of this research is to analyze the strategic role of high technology-intensive industries, knowledge-intensive services and the cultural industries in Madrid. The paper begins by reviewing the approaches to strategic sectors in large European capitals. The analysis of firm networks in the region confirms the importance of these sectors in Madrid's global connections and the articulation of their economic flows, but also the heterogeneous nature of the temporal and spatial trends of employment. Without losing sight of the tendency by large cities to replicate the selection of similar strategic sectors, their role in urban and regional development strategies would have a solid base in the case of Madrid. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Megaron is the property of KARE Publishing 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.)

Informal settlements have increasingly become a topic of discussion and experimentation in architecture and urban planning, and Latin America is home to notable interventions in this area. The improvement of these environments is still the main challenge for cities in the region, which require contemporary architecture to contribute by reviving its social function, without which concepts like sustainability and resilience lose their meaning. This article presents the case of Jundiaí, Brazil: an example of the connection between housing and urban policies supported by new legal instruments and public financing to upgrade four slum areas. The case illustrates how these local political milestones helped the city to increase the scale of its intervention, although the results are often unremarkable. However, the connection of different policies creates an opportunity for architecture to broaden its social impact, thus becoming fully sustainable and resilient. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reviews how the UK is implementing Integrated Territorial Investment (ITI) as part of the Sustainable Urban Development (SUD) agenda in 2014-20, in line with ERDF Article 7 requirements and the use of ITI outwith the Article 7 requirements. This article provides an overview of the current status of these instruments in the UK and how they are being implemented. The specific case of London is used to provide a detailed example at local level of the operationalisation of SUD using the ITI instruments. This is compared with the ITI in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly which is implemented as a non-SUD ITI. The article reflects on the main differences between the two approaches and their policy implications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reviews how Greece is implementing sustainable urban development (SUD) strategies in 2014-20 as a part of ERDF Regulation Article 7 requirements, through the use of Integrated Territorial Investments (ITIs). The article provides an overview of the current status of these instruments in Greece and how they are being implemented. The specific case of Patras is used to provide a detailed example at local level of the operationalisation of SUD and ITI instruments, along with policy recommendations gathered from implementation experience so far. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article is based on a research carried out for the European Commission's Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy. The importance of assessing the impact and results of public policy interventions is clear. The Commission expects integrated, place-based strategies and their interventions to be developed with results in mind. For reasons of accountability and efficiency, policy-makers, stakeholders and beneficiaries require knowledge and understanding of the progress and effectiveness of the strategies. It is, therefore, important to gather information with which to better understand the role of the interventions and an evidence base comparable to other interventions. However, measuring effectiveness presents several challenges, related to the specific characteristics of these strategies and to the fact that, at least in some Member States, integrated approaches to territorial and urban development are relatively new. Against this background, this article explores the challenges involved in assessing the achievements of integrated place-based strategies and reviews existingmethodological approaches to assessing territorial provisions under Cohesion policy and under urban development. It then explores emerging approaches to the assessment of territorial and urban strategies launched under the territorial provisions set out for 2014-2020. Looking forward, the article then outlines options for developing frameworks for future assessments before presenting conclusions and recommendations on a framework and approach for measuring effectiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reviews how Poland is implementing Integrated Territorial Investments (ITIs) and sustainable urban development (SUD) strategies. Enhancing integrated, partnershipbased approaches to the governance of urban development initiatives is seen by policy-makers as an important added value in these initiatives in Poland, as traditions of inter-municipal cooperation are weak and there are few instruments that provide incentives to Polish local authorities to coordinate their investments. The article provides an overview of the current status of these instruments in Poland and how they are being implemented. It compares the cases of two SUD strategies in Katowice and Lublin that have adopted different implementation models, providing detailed examples at local level of the operationalisation of SUD, along with policy recommendations gathered from implementation experience so far. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reviews how Finland is implementing its sustainable urban development (SUD) strategy in 2014-20 as a part of ERDF Regulation Article 7 requirements, through the use of an Integrated Territorial Investments (ITI) called the 'Six City Strategy'. The article provides a detailed analysis of the Six City Strategy, describing its development, implementation and progress, and distilling some elements of good practice and lessons learned fromthis unique city network approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reviews how the Czech Republic is implementing sustainable urban development (SUD) strategies in 2014-20 as a part of ERDF Regulation Article 7 requirements, through the use of Integrated Territorial Investments (ITIs). The article provides an overview of preparation of these instruments in the Czech Republic and how they are being implemented. The specific case of the Brno metropolitan area is used to provide a detailed example at local level of the operationalisation of SUD and ITI instruments, along with policy recommendations gathered from implementation experience so far. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article provides an overview of the mechanisms that are used to implement integrated territorial development strategies in the 2014-20 ESIF programme period. It is based on the research conducted as part of a European Commission project which examined the added value of integrated territorial and urban strategies.1 It sets out how ESIF funding is being used to support integrated development strategies. The article also considers the different rationales for selecting a type of implementation mechanism. The final section will consider some of the conclusions and policy recommendations made as part of the study in relation to the specific implementation mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the last quarter of last century, the traditional elements of centrality located in historic centers of medium-sized Andalusian cities have cohabitated alongside other, very distinct focuses of urban attraction. A multiple diversity of new centralities takes place, whose appearance and location on the urban and territorial scene is grounded in the crystallization of distinct factors. On the one hand, the incorporation of new activities and a greater development and diffusion of the already existing ones has given rise to a new scale of architecture in these cities. On the other hand, the substitution of the traditional uses by others of greater directionality produces a specialization of the urban center. Likewise, the infrastructures, understood as central elements which interact with the city, tend to stimulate or strangle the urban fabric, depending on the suitability of their type and layout. This article seeks to show the traditional centralities and to elucidate the processes which have given rise to those which are most contemporary, different from the previous ones; to sketch the future urban situation of these cities, passing through the reformulation of their old and new centralities in consideration of adequate urban strategies.