Mainstreaming SDGs and city master planning share commonalities, as both try to guide future development through actionable goals and targets. It is increasingly recognized that the SDGs can be achieved through integration with master planning; however, this integration remains superficial in Pakistan despite claims of such efforts. This inductive study, based on the authors' engagement with planning departments of Sindh, Pakistan, identifies four distinct challenges in mainstreaming SDGs. First, the lack of understanding about SDGs and the approach to integration; second, inherent flaws in traditional methods of master planning; third, the treatment of the master plan as a one-time project rather than a process; and fourth, shortcomings inherent in the SDGs framework, which are further of two types: firstly, the multiplicity of SDG goals, due to which it is difficult to create synergies; and second, the absence of a spatial pillar, which involves a lack of spatial, geographic and territorial dimensions.
This paper explores women's experiences in Wallacedene, a Cape Town informal settlement, during and after the COVID-19 lockdown. Qualitative interviews and thematic analysis reveal how structural inequalities shaped healthcare access, economic security, safety, and mobility. The study identifies a spatial curfew, a restriction of movement enforced by risky geography rather than law, facilitating gender-based violence and enforcing the exclusion of women from public spaces. Findings show that spatial and socio-economic disadvantages heightened everyday risks. Although digital resilience offers a critical form of agency, the study conceptualizes this as a spatial bypass limited by the material failures of the built environment and the platform paradox. The study frames these experiences through intersectionality and spatial justice linking local realities to global development priorities (SDG 5, 10, 11). The study calls for gender-responsive interventions that dismantle the spatial curfew through inclusive urban design and leverage digital tools to foster sustainable livelihoods.
A successful refugee resettlement program requires a network of actors to collaborate to support new residents in the US. Yet little is known about how these actors collaborate with one another and empower their clients. This exploratory study of Erie County, NY and Kent County, MI maps out the network of local and county governments, local resettlement agencies, and ethnic community-based organizations that support resettled refugees. I examine how they collaborate to meet the refugee population's needs and work to empower these population groups. The need for more cross-sectoral collaboration and empowerment of clients - especially among local and county governments and resettlement agencies - is recommended.
The desire to become a homeowner has put pressure on suburban land, driving up land prices and triggering inter-communal conflicts, particularly in boundary areas. If not well managed, these conflicts may hinder the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 11 (sustainable cities and communities). This study investigates the causes of inter-communal residential land conflicts in Benin City's suburban areas and proposes measures to mitigate them, thereby improving the achievement of SDG 11. The researchers adopted a phenomenological qualitative research design. Findings show that inter-communal land conflicts threaten the achievement of Goal 11. Lax demarcation of boundaries, lax government regulation of land boundaries, and community youth restiveness are the most significant causes of inter-communal building land conflicts. The study recommended measures to prevent or mitigate future occurrences, thereby enhancing urbanization and improving the achievement of Goal 11. This study contributes to debates on inter-communal land conflicts.
Long-term spatial planning is essential for sustainable cities, yet its logical consistency is rarely evaluated. This study investigates how public participation influences the logical soundness of plans by identifying 'non-sequitur fallacies' and assessing procedural integrity using the Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan (SUMP) framework. This paper compares South Korea's National Comprehensive Territorial Plan and the 2040 Seoul Plan. The findings reveal that while the National Plan maintained logical coherence through institutionalized, deliberative participation, the 2040 Seoul Plan exhibited significant logical gaps. This paradox stems from 'technical exclusion' during Steps 3-4 and 6-7 of the SUMP process, demonstrating that the quality and timing of participation are decisive. Finally, this study proposes a three-stage framework to integrate procedural rigour with substantive logic, offering practical recommendations for planning authorities to move beyond symbolic consultation toward a democratically consistent and accountable paradigm.
Studies of the urban conservation of historic markets often focus on the physical dimension, neglecting temporal dynamics and intangible heritage, thus limiting the understanding of their sustainability as living urban systems. This research aims to bridge this gap by employing a temporal urban framework to analyze the sustainability of historic markets in Al-Rusafa, Baghdad. The study adopted a mixed-methods approach, combining longitudinal analysis (1920-2025), a questionnaire administered to a sample of 60 participants, qualitative interviews with 12 participants, and spatial analysis using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and unified urban network analysis. The results showed a high level of heritage identity and spatial belonging (4.3/5), compared to a moderate level of operational sustainability (3.6/5) and high urban challenges (4.02/5), with an inverse relationship between urban challenges and spatial belonging. This research contributes to the development of a participatory temporal sustainability model for historic markets.
Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) management challenges are increasing with rising waste production due to unchecked urban population growth in the Global South. While issues have been largely attributed to waste handling, infrastructure, local governance, management, corruption, and dearth of both expertise and assets. Objectives of this paper are twofold: first, to use the established Integrated Solid Waste Management Framework (ISWM) to evaluate the current MSWM, taking two case study cities of Pakistan (Quetta and Faisalabad); second, to assess ISWM's viability in the Global south, where informality shapes ineffective governance and socio-economic conditions departing from formal practices, given ISWM's limited adoption in Global South contrary to developed countries. This comparative study of MSW uses qualitative research methodology and focuses on two contextually relevant aspects of ISWM: socio-economic and institutional. Findings reveal shortcomings in both the existing workforce conditions and within the ISWM framework in addressing informal practices and the related socio-economic dimension.
The European Green Deal outlines the European Union's strategy to achieve a carbon-neutral society, aligning with the UN Agenda 2030. The Just Transition Mechanism extends the Green Deal to the social dimension of sustainability. Together, they compose the Just Green Transition (JGT) framework, conceived to go beyond the Sustainable Development Goals by introducing a value-driven approach supported by specific resources and governance models. Yet, its implementation is uneven due to Europe's institutional and territorial heterogeneity. Drawing on evidence from the ESPON NoStaGeo project, the contribution explores how JGT is governed across 40 European institutional contexts, with particular attention to institutional instruments and spatial arrangements. On this basis, the authors propose a preliminary typology of JGT governance, suggesting that, while no one-size-fits-all model exists, effective JGT governance requires combining strong multi-level and multisector coordination with territorial flexibility and stakeholder inclusion.
Rapid urbanization in developing countries necessitates the need for effective tools to monitor and assess urban sprawl. This study investigates land use/cover change (LULC) patterns in Ambo Town, identifies key drivers of urban expansion and examines socio-economic impacts. We used GIS models such as support vector machine (SVM) classification. Results indicate agriculture and grassland were dominant initially, covering 33.94% and 41.45%, but declined sharply as urban areas expanded. By 2024, urban land grew from 2.92% in 1992 to 16.65%. Grassland and agriculture contributed the most land to urban expansion. Rapid urban growth, driven by expanding built-up areas and the 2019 Town Structure Plan extending boundaries to 8558.37 ha, led to the eviction of 285 farming households with inadequate compensation. The study recommends farmland zoning to protect the remaining agricultural land, vertical urban development to limit urban sprawl, and the establishment of fair compensation and resettlement frameworks and support displaced communities.
This article is placed within a network of studies that aim to shed light on the complex relationships between the Cold War policies, including the European Recovery Program (ERP) or Marshall Plan and architecture and urbanism. Its main objective is to provide an understanding of how architecture and urban planning, which are related to the Marshall Plan politics, contributed to the formation of national identity in both Greece and Italy. The article emphasizes the interplay between urban planning and politics within this context. Departing from the hypothesis that the Marshall Plan played a crucial role in the reconstruction of Europe after the Second World War, it aims to show that architecture and urbanism were very important in this respect, focusing on two key players regarding the connection between the politics of the Marshall Plan and agendas for urban design: the Greek town planner Constantinos A. Doxiadis and the Italian industrialist Adriano Olivetti.
This research aims to analyze the transformations that have occurred in the urban fabric of the holy city of Najaf in light of the Eid al-Ghadir season, a religious and social event that leaves recurring spatial and behavioural impacts within the spaces of the holy city. The research seeks to explore the relationship between religious rituals and morphological transformation, and the extent to which this is reflected in the sustainability of religious spaces and the strengthening of identity and connection to place. The study adopted an analytical-interpretive approach that combined spatial analysis using Geographic Information Systems (GIS), field observation, and semi-structured interviews with residents, visitors, and officials of the Al-Alawi Shrine. Maps and aerial photographs from the period 1990-2024 were compared to reveal urban and functional changes in the historical area. The results showed that the Eid al-Ghadir season constitutes a symbolic urban force that redistributes functions within the city and reproduces collective memory and spatial identity, while simultaneously generating significant pressure on the historical fabric and infrastructure. The results also revealed a weakening of traditional spatial hierarchy and a divergence in the connection to place between visitors and local residents.
Effective urban planning is vital for mitigating vulnerability and bolstering resilience. This paper conducts a systematic literature review examining indices for urban vulnerability assessment developed between 2015 and 2025. From an initial 7,809 Scopus records, a rigorous screening process, including full-text assessment against criteria emphasizing applicability to urban planning, multi-dimensional assessment, quantitative data linkage, and explicit climate event focus, yielded 109 core studies. Bibliometric analysis (using VOSviewer and Bibliometrix) was performed on 342 articles identified after initial screening to delineate the research landscape. The 109 core studies were then analyzed in-depth. The review synthesizes the component variables of these indices into eight thematic groupings: Demographic Dynamics, Infrastructure, Ecosystem Services, Urban Living Environment, Hazard Intensity/Frequency, Governance, Resource Management, and Geomorphology. This categorization highlights current assessment practices, reveals areas of underrepresentation, and directly contributes to structuring a more holistic and integrated framework for urban vulnerability assessment, aiming to enhance urban planning practices.
This study investigates how urban street design parameters influence physiological, emotional and perceptual responses using electrodermal activity (EDA) and self-report surveys in a virtual reality (VR) environment. Six street scenarios varying in sidewalk width, greenery, building height, land use and traffic were tested with 22 participants. Unlike prior VR-EDA research focused on extreme contrasts, this study includes moderate spatial variations to better capture environmental effects. Physiological data were collected using a low-cost Arduino-based GSR sensor, increasing methodological accessibility for planning and design contexts. The results indicate that wider sidewalks, greenery and pedestrian-oriented layouts are associated with lower stress, whereas narrow sidewalks, tall buildings and vehicular traffic correspond to higher stress levels. Although EDA and self-reports were not fully consistent across all scenarios, both measures differentiated low- and high-stress environments. The findings support the use of physiological indicators as quantifiable inputs for evidence-based street design and health-oriented urban planning.
The impact of emotional dynamics has been overlooked within the field of planning. Traditional communicative planning theory, rooted in Habermas' model of communication, typically propose that emotions should be managed to facilitate rational discussions that lead to logical agreements. Conversely, some research contends that emotions are not illogical or hazardous elements to be restrained during deliberation; instead, they are a topic requiring thorough investigation to create improved public forums. We investigate this tension by analysing facework during a land-use dispute at at the Gongjin Elementary School site in Seoul, South Korea. Our analysis reveals that facework not only impedes the establishment of an ideal speech situation founded on rationality and sincerity but also encourages a cooperative attitude among participants to facilitate consensus-building. We conclude that integrating emotional dynamics into communicative planning theory is essential to more accurately represent the realities of planning practice.
Africa is projected to experience rapid urbanisation in the next three decades. This therefore requires integration of green spaces to make urban areas liveable and sustainable. This paper analyzed the inter-decadal replacement of green spaces with brown spaces in the quest for urbanisation from 1991 to 2021 in Accra, Ghana. The support vector machine learning algorithm was used to classify Landsat satellite images into greens and browns representing vegetation and non-vegetation areas respectively. The post-classification pixel modelling was performed with 80-92% map accuracy. In 1991, green spaces covered 1135.09 km2 while brown spaces constituted 367.36 km2. Brown areas which constituted 24.5% in 1991 increased to 81% in 2021 while during the same period, green areas reduced their land area from 75.5% to 19%. The study recommends making people pay for the cost of brown spaces, introducing edible greens and supporting green politics as innovative ways to stop vegetation loss.
Real estate developers' decision processes are intricate, involving many diverse variables. Understanding developers' decisions is crucial in Latin America, where a growing demand for social housing on better-located land exists. We test the effectiveness of different incentives to encourage developers to build highdensity and socially integrated projects near transport stations using a sophisticated stated choice survey designed to elicit developers' preferences. As the survey flow depended on the developers' answers, we formulated and estimated a discrete choice model to address inherent endogeneity issues. Our results reveal developers' preference for direct payment incentives and incentives that grant them more freedom to design projects. Further, we sadly confirm that social inclusion is a disincentive, reflecting a traditional Latin American aversion to mixed-income dwelling projects, suggesting a preference for segregated housing markets. Public policies planning to employ incentives must evaluate the monetary cost of such schemes and their consequences on local neighbourhoods.
Universities are where global promises meet local problems. This study examines how Pakistan's higher education sector is aligning with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) across four domains-learning and teaching, research, governance and external leadership-based on responses from 41 of 247 universities. We find energetic activity in SDG-related teaching and research, but slower movement on institutional governance and outward leadership. Engagement varies by place: provincial and regional priorities mirror local socio-economic and environmental realities, from poverty and education to water, energy and climate resilience. Common barriers persist-limited funding, weak institutionalisation of SDGs and scarce incentives for interdisciplinary collaboration. Yet the potential is clear: universities already catalyse practical, localised solutions and can do more by embedding SDGs in curricula and operations, investing in partnerships with government, industry and communities and expanding student-led initiatives. The paper offers evidence, lessons and policy directions to help align campus capabilities with national and global sustainability ambitions.
The City of London, Ontario (Canada) launched Rethink London (2012-2014) as a community-focused initiative to engage diverse stakeholders in shaping the city's long-term urban vision during its Official Plan review process. While Rethink London resulted in the adoption of The London Plan in 2016, there has been no systematic evaluation of the process through the lens of a collaborative planning framework. This paper evaluates how far Rethink London reflects collaborative planning principles, focusing on purpose and incentives, equal opportunity and resources, inclusive representation, and principled negotiation. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with municipal officials, councillors, public engagement consultants and community leaders. While Rethink London grappled with conflicting interests, the process fostered broader stakeholder engagement through tailored participatory methods such as comment cards, workshop in a box and social media among others. The study highlights the importance of intentional process design to enhance engagement and equity in complex urban planning.
This contribution investigates the planning narratives associated with urban biodiversity (UB) and analyses the obstacles and challenges that emerge to acknowledge UB in spatial plans. The case study investigated in the research is the city of Rijeka, the largest seaport in Croatia, currently experiencing a phase of transition that is redefining the city's identity, with a focus on openness, inclusiveness, and diversity. The research has highlighted the emergence of several policy tensions that are representative of a clash between the values that each social group assigns to urban biodiversity. Alongside the presence of these policy tensions and clashing values, the research has demonstrated that the formation of middle ground spaces between institutions and civil society is shaping arenas for policy experimentation in the field of nature preservation and restoration that can result in better acknowledging urban biodiversity at the level of statutory plans and planning policies.
