Design Enabled Innovation in Urban Environments

The paper deals with the definition of urban mobility, assuming that inside the city, the flow of mobility is deeply connected with the distribution, quality and use of the urban activities that "polarize" different users (residents, commuters, tourists and city users). In this vision, ICT assume a strategic role, but the need to reconsider their role emerges in respect to the concept of a smart city. The consideration that "urban smartness" does not depend exclusively on the ICT component or on the quantitative presence of technologies in the city, in fact, represents a shared opinion within the current scientific debate on the subject of the smart city. The paper assumes that, for the present urban contexts, the smart vision has to be related to an integrated approach, which considers the city as a complex system. Inside the urban system, the networks for both material and immaterial mobility interact with the urban activities that play a supporting role and have characteristics that affect the levels of urban smartness. Changes in urban systems greatly depend on the sorts of innovation technology that have intensely modified the social component to a far greater extent than others. Big Data, for instance, can help with knowledge of urban processes, provided they have to be well-interpreted and managed, and this will be of interest within the interactions among urban systems and the functioning of the system as a whole. Town planning has to take on responsibility in regard to approaching cities according to a different vision and updating its tools in order to steer the urban system steadfastly into a smartness state. In a systemic vision, this transition must be framed within the context of a process of governmental transformation that is carefully oriented towards the individuation of interactions among the different subsystems composing the city. According to this vision, the study of urban mobility can be related to the attractiveness generated by the different urban functions. The formalization of the degree of polarization, activated by urban functions, represents the main objective of this study. Among the urban functions, the study considers tourism as one of the most significant in the formalization of urban mobility flow inside the smart city.

Urban System Changes in Maebashi and Takasaki

The expansion, densification and proliferation of urban areas around the world is currently occurring at a rate that is unprecedented in human history. It is predicted that global urban land cover will triple between 2000 and 2030, with some regions (including biodiversity hotspots) experiencing a ninefold increase in urban land cover over the same time period (Seto, G€ uneralp & Hutyra 2012). Accompanying the expansion of urban landscapes, it is anticipated that the human population living in cities and towns globally will increase from 3 5 to 5 billion people within the next 20 years (Fragkias et al. 2013). Thus, the demands of an expanding and urbanizing human population are one of the pressing ecological problems our world is facing (Sanderson et al. 2002), alongside, and in combination with, global climate change and changes to biodiversity at local and global scales (Pimm et al. 2014). Yet, urban environments also present a unique opportunity to expand our fundamental knowledge related to ecology and evolution due to the presence of intense and often novel selection pressures. In the inaugural issue of this journal, Calow (1987) defined functional ecology as the sum of three interactive processes: (i) those occurring between organisms and their environment, (ii) biotic interactions between organisms and (iii) adaptive processes driven by natural selection. The same three processes were highlighted 1 year earlier by Jared Diamond in Nature, when he called for biologists to pay more attention to the potential of using the unprecedented environmental conditions that exist within towns and cities to develop and test evolutionary and ecological theory (Diamond 1986). There is thus a natural synergy between functional ecology and urban ecology, as exemplified by some of the classic papers that have appeared in this journal, such as Rydell (1992) who demonstrated that the form of echolocation system determined the impact of light pollution on bat foraging behaviour. The potential of combining functional ecological research with urban ecology is, however, a long way from being fully realized. This is in part explained by the youth of urban ecology as a discipline. Scientific enquiry into the ecological consequences of urban environments has been underway for over half a century, although most of the momentum emerged after the mid 1990s (McDonnell 2011; Wu 2014). Thus, the focus of much urban research to date has involved describing patterns along environmental gradients (Gagn e 2013; McDonnell & Hahs 2013) rather than investigating the mechanistic processes that lie at the heart of functional ecology. To be effective in addressing the global challenges of urbanization, a much better understanding of how the urban environment affects the ecology and evolution of organisms needs to be developed (Grimm et al. 2008; Marzluff 2012; Gil & Brumm 2014; McDonnell & Hahs 2015). The purpose of this special feature is to draw attention to the plethora of opportunities that await researchers investigating the ecology and evolution of organisms in urban environments. The combination of environmental stressors and conditions within urban areas provides a novel opportunity to test and expand our theories related to ecology and evolution of organisms, and some intriguing insights are already beginning to emerge. For example, the detailed understanding of the molecular, genetic and developmental mechanisms of beak evolution that has arisen from studying Galapagos finches has been significantly advanced by studying beak evolution in the house finch Carpodacus mexicanus in response to novel urban food sources and its consequences for acoustic communication (Badyaev 2010, 2014). Thus, urban ecology has the potential to extend our understanding of extremely well-studied ecological and evolutionary problems.

Exile and the City F. Scott Fitzgerald's “The Lost Decade”

This WSBE24 Conference Proceedings comprise the selected papers presented at the 2024 World Sustainable Built Environment Conference (WSBE24). The world conference, held on a triennial basis, is the premier event of the Sustainable Built Environment (SBE) Conference Series managed by the SBE Partners and Permanent Co-hosts – consisting of the International Initiative for a Sustainable Built Environment (iiSBE), the International Council of Research and Innovation in Building and Construction (CIB), the International Federation of Consulting Engineers (FIDIC) and the UN Environment Programme (UNEP). WSBE24 was conducted online from 12-14 June 2024, under the overarching theme of “Innovation Pathways & Partnerships for Sustainable Built and Urban Environments”. This conference not only facilitated a diverse array of talks and discussions but also ensured wide accessibility by publishing its proceedings as an open access document, with both the whole proceedings and the individual papers available online. The video recordings of the presentations are also available online in another platform. This Proceedings include the articles that underpin the conference’s scientific program. Each submission underwent a double-blind peer-review process. A globally represented Scientific Committee and the Editors carefully reviewed initial abstracts and full paper submissions, ensuring that only those meeting the necessary scientific standards were presented at the conference and included in these proceedings. The breadth of topics covered in these papers is vast, spanning current trends and innovations, challenges and solutions, and empirical findings across the fields of science, industry, policy, and governance. A major focus was placed on reducing greenhouse gas emissions within the construction, building and real estate sector, reflecting discussions in line with those at the Buildings and Climate Global Forum held in Paris in March 2024, organized by UNEP and the French Government, amongst others. This collection reflects the field’s most pressing challenges and emerging solutions. Papers examine greenhouse gas reduction strategies, the integration of climate action and resource conservation, and the transition toward a circular economy. Tools for environmental performance assessment – including the expanding role of lifecycle assessment (LCA) in design and management workflows, especially in a digital environment (e.g., BIM) – feature prominently. Questions and innovative research and solutions range from specific materials and building physics in individual buildings to broad urban development strategies, always guided by the principles of sustainable development. The continuing needs for enhanced educational and capability development – which is also an emerging subject within the Global Alliance for Building and Construction (GlobalABC) – and expanded scope of SBE issues and impacts on people and communities and economics, and vice versa, in future editions are highlighted. The first principles concept of sustainability continues to be a suitable umbrella for topics such as circularity, resilience and regenerative design. List of Reviewers is available in this Pdf.

Background: The study was carried out in the scientific research laboratory of the Urban Eco-design as part of the research project “Theory and Methodology of Research on Eco-design of the Metropolis Urban Environment: Scientific and Educational Discourse”, done at the Minin Nizhny Novgorod State Pedagogical University in the framework of the state project N 2014/362. Methods: The methodological tools used in the research include interconnected system of synergetic, environmental, ecological, cultural and historical approaches, seen from the perspective of sustainable development, as well as corresponding basic methods: information search, system structural analysis, the methods of functional integration, retrospective reflection, expert diagnostics, scientific forecasting. Findings: The article presents the results of the conducted research which enabled to determine the educational potential of a new cultural integrative area - eco-design of a metropolis. The article states the relevance of eco-design as it allows implementing the environmental approach when designing the urban environment for the purpose of harmonizing the relations in the urban system “the man and the nature” and increasing the man’s responsibility for it. These scientific findings are of certain theoretical and practical value, they can also become the basis for further research regarding the conceptual development of theoretical and methodological grounds and methods of studying ecodesign from the perspective of pedagogical innovations. This research is the first attempt to provide a scientific definition of the categories and educational mission of eco-design of the urban environment, and it is understood as an instructional setting with a high potential for forming values, developing cognitive abilities and skills as well as creativity and personality in general. The authors identify and prove the conceptual framework, which include the leading ideas and principles of the ecological design of the metropolis urban environment. The article presents a pedagogical model for studying eco-design of the urban environment on three levels: theoretical and methodological, psychological and pedagogical, individual and didactic. The authors have devised the software and methodological support for the study of eco-design in the metropolis urban environment including original programs and manuals. Applications/Improvements: The study findings can be used by professionals working in the field of environmental education and can be implemented in the course of urban eco-design by the bachelors of environmental, architectural and construction university programs. Keywords: Eco-Design, Environmental Consciousness, Educational Potential, Metropolis, Urban Environment

The significance of unfinished building object as elements of urban systems of modern Russian cities is shown. The existence of these objects can impact on urban environment conditions at a significant distance from the places where they are located. The urban environment is considered as a dynamically developing urban system, which includes a combination of potential-controlled natural and technical systems. The appearance of areas of uncontrolled environmental degradation around objects under incomplete construction reduces the level of comfort of urban environment. The main types of incomplete objects under construction and their impact on the environment are given. The article is based on observations of the state of more than 30 objects under construction and on the results of studies of environmental processes at the areas where they are located. The classification of objects under construction is proposed. The classification takes into account the stages of destruction of objects under construction and related environmental impacts. The need for a integrated hazard assessment of long-term construction objects as unmanageable degrading natural and technical systems is justified.

Toward sustainable management of phosphorus flows in a changing rural–urban environment: recent advances, challenges, and opportunities

Abstract. The current on-going boom in the field of Building Information Modeling (BIM) and 3D GIS is widely being explored for vast urban related applications, analyses and simulations. Large amount of 3D city models are created using various sources of data. Substantial studies are carried out for above-surface features in 3D city models. This ensures providing relevant information about various spatial analyses over the urban systems and environment. Relevant researches explored the numerous applications of 3D GIS such as disaster management, city administration, urban and environment planning, environmental studies, etc. Utility infrastructures (overhead, subsurface or on-surface) play the critical role in the urban space; still they are not considered in 3D city models. OGC CityGML is acting well behind these applications by integrating the geographic information, semantics and the various interdependencies information with the 3D city model. Moreover, comparative studies over the existing network data models make Utility Network ADE as the perfect approach for data modelling. This research proposes the methodology for 3D semantic modelling of subsurface water supply network along with its various „subsurface, overhead and on-surface‟ utility network components with the help of OGC CityGML Utility Network ADE. This study is conducted for Dehradun area. As a result, semantically modelled utility network data is utilised for successful implementation of use cases such as 1) areas affected by utility failure; 2) street space affected by utility maintenance; and; 3) visualisation. These cases are investigated along with urban space.

Urban environments are heterogeneous landscapes of social and environmental features, with important consequences for human–nature entanglements, such as that of mosquito‐borne disease. Investigations into this intra‐urban heterogeneity in mosquito dynamics find conflicting results, likely due to the complex socio‐ecological interactions and the importance of place‐based context. Integrative research, which synthesizes multiple disciplines and epistemologies, can place ecological results into their social context to explore these place‐based differences and reveal novel solutions for mosquito‐borne disease management. Here, we develop an integrative approach to understanding spatial patterns of mosquito burdens in urban systems by combining entomological surveys, semi‐structured interviews and sketch maps. We highlight this approach using a mixed‐method study conducted in Bengaluru, India, a rapidly urbanizing city with a high burden of mosquito‐borne disease. Although we found no evidence for a difference in mosquito abundance across an urban gradient, there were differences in individuals' everyday experiences with mosquitoes. These differences were mediated by how individuals moved through outdoor space and their vulnerability to hazards in these spaces. This example of integrative research illustrates what can be gained from the inclusion of multiple epistemologies, particularly for research in urban systems. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.

The use of tobacco will lead to the littering of a large number of filters, and the leakage of pollutants from them into the urban environment is a serious concern. The aim of this study was to analyze the leakage of heavy metals from filter and estimate the annual concentration of pollution leakage in different waste routes and different climatic conditions. The results showed that the highest and lowest density of filter in the studied urban environment were 0.51 and 0.01 number/m2, respectively. According to the estimated annual production of 306 million cigarette butts in the studied area, the leakage of the studied metals was estimated to be 401 g. The share of copper, chromium, and cadmium from the total leakage was 67%, 8.3%, and 1.88%, respectively. The leakage of studied metals in rainy conditions was 2.86 times more than sunny conditions. In different scenarios, the minimum and maximum annual leakage of metals were estimated 23,043 and 350,419 mg/year, respectively. Filters are a little but important source of heavy metal emission into the urban environment, the amount of pollution from which is affected by the consumers’ behavior and the efficiency of the urban cleaning system. Education on the correct disposal of filters and increasing the efficiency of the urban cleaning system will lead to a reduction in pollution caused by tobacco consumption.

Courthouses are one of the founding pillars of the modern rule of law, being a sovereign body. But courthouses are not just buildings where justice is applied, administered, and written. From Max Weber on, courts have been associated with the urban dimension and the place they occupy in the geography of the cities. As in a mirror game, both city and court building look at each other, both shape each other, they belong to one another. And yet, how often do we think of their intimate interactions? Having this in mind, and by examining a number of geographically disparate cases, I intend to discuss correlated variations of the mirror game between city and courthouse building, where variables such as 'the proxemics of the courthouse', the (dis)alignment amid centre and periphery, 'the sense of loss' and the significance of control/discipline will be central to comprehend the 'court/city' narratives involved. Such semiotic analysis aims to foster reflection on the socio-political weight the location of the court—the connections of the building (comprising its architecture) and the city—may express. I conclude by arguing that courthouse buildings must rediscover their place and legitimacy, not only in the community's collective imagination, but also in the urban space, promoting a closer dialogue with the cities in which they operate, as essential axes of city life. Particularly at a time when the likely way forward suggests a digital trajectory, possibly without the need for buildings.

Forensic nurses operating in the urban environment frequently find themselves at the intersection of trauma and healing, often providing care in communities disproportionately affected by structural violence, poverty, and systemic inequities. While conventional trauma assessments tend to focus on pathology and risk, this article proposes an assets-based approach that centers resilience, cultural knowledge, and community strength. Drawing from frameworks such as Trauma-Informed Care, Strengths-Based Nursing, Resilience Theory, and the Community Cultural Wealth Model, this manuscript outlines how nurses can incorporate patient-identified coping strategies, relational supports, and community resources into violence and trauma assessments. Through illustrative case studies, ranging from school-based care to street outreach, this article demonstrates how assets-based nursing practice affirms patient agency, builds trust, and improves health outcomes. The approach aligns with anti-oppressive and equity-focused principles, reframing trauma narratives through a lens of possibility rather than pathology. Benefits of this model include enhanced therapeutic alliance and culturally responsive care, while limitations include time constraints, institutional barriers, and the potential romanticization of resilience without structural reform. The article concludes with actionable strategies for embedding this model across clinical settings, nursing education, and health policy, advocating for systemic changes that empower nurses to address trauma with cultural humility and justice-informed care. By shifting the lens from “what is wrong” to “what is strong, nurses can help transform urban health systems into spaces of recovery and empowerment.

Nowadays, there is an increase in the demand for optimized services in urban environments. However, ground transportation in big urban centers has been facing challenges for many years (e.g., resilience and congestion) and new paradigms have been proposed, such as the Urban Air Mobility (UAM) concept. UAM aims to enhance the urban transportation system using manned and unmanned aerial vehicles (i.e., Electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing - eVTOL - vehicles). Although UAM offers many benefits (e.g., cost reduction and increase in transportation capacity), many challenges need to be faced to enable safe and efficient operations. Furthermore, trajectory planning is challenging in the National Airspace System (NAS) and UAM operations due to several factors. Finally, new initiatives concerning UAM trajectory planning can be accelerated with the support of an automatic what-if platform capable of evaluating trajectories feasibility and efficiency. This research aims to propose a simulation platform for enabling trajectory evaluation in UAM operations. This platform, named Trajectory-Based Urban Air Mobility Simulator (TUS), focuses on simulating trajectories in the urban aerial environment. TUS enables users to test new UAM algorithms (e.g., flow management strategies, real-time evaluation of maneuvers effectiveness, airspace configurations) and simulate both manned and unmanned vehicles. Furthermore, TUS operation relies on a set of inputs and evaluates the trajectories generated from efficiency and safety perspectives. This process is performed using a Discrete Event Simulation (DES) approach. The experiments performed showed that TUS can perform a realistic evaluation of UAM trajectories and can be effortlessly used to simulate hundreds of scenarios.

The Impact of Commercial Parking Utilization on Cyclist Behavior in Urban Environments