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Open AccessSystematic Review
A Megacities Review: Comparing Indicator-Based Evaluations of Sustainable Development and Urban Resilience
by
Brian R. Mackay
Brian R. Mackay 1,* and
Richard R. Shaker
Richard R. Shaker
Prior to joining the State University of New York College of Environmental Sciences and Forestry Dr. [...]
Prior to joining the State University of New York College of Environmental Sciences and Forestry (SUNY-ESF), Dr. Richard Ross Shaker was an Associate Professor of Environmental and Urban Sustainability at Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU; formerly Ryerson University). Attaining his Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, his dissertation investigated sustainable urbanization and landscape function, which was supported by a Fulbright Fellowship to the Academy of Sciences of Moldova. Dr. Shaker's current research is in the realm of human-landscape coevolution and global ecology. As Homo sapiens continue to stretch the Earth beyond its biocapacity, it is integral to elucidate their patterns and processes through space and time. Dr. Shaker's research group has actively investigated interactions between natural and social systems for sustainable development, ecosystem management, global change resilience, and environmental planning purposes. Dr. Shaker's future applied research looks at operationalizing sustainable development across spatial and temporal scales while theoretically focusing at the nexus of evolutionary theory, learning and behavior change, planning, and policy responses. Lastly, to operationalize sustainable development research into practice, Dr. Shaker consults through his environmental design and planning company, GEOECO Inc.
2
1
Graduate Programs in Environmental Applied Science & Management, Toronto Metropolitan University, Toronto, ON M5B 2K3, Canada
2
Department of Sustainable Resources Management, State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Syracuse, NY 13210, USA
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Sustainability 2024, 16(18), 8076; https://doi.org/10.3390/su16188076 (registering DOI)
Submission received: 1 August 2024
/
Revised: 2 September 2024
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Accepted: 8 September 2024
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Published: 15 September 2024
Abstract
Urbanization is defining global change, and megacities are fast becoming a hallmark of the Anthropocene. Humanity’s pursuit toward sustainability is reliant on the successful management of these massive urban centers and their progression into sustainable and resilient settlements. Indicators and indices are applied assessment and surveillance tools used to measure, monitor, and gauge the sustainable development and urban resilience of megacities. Unknown is how indicator-based evaluations of sustainable development and urban resilience of the world’s largest 43 cities compare. In response, this review paper used the PRISMA reporting protocol, governed by 33 established and 10 emerging megacities, to compare and contrast evaluations of sustainable development and urban resilience. Results reveal that applied assessments of sustainable development of megacities appeared earlier in time and were more abundant than those of urban resilience. Geographically, China dominated other nations in affiliations to scientific research for both sustainable development and urban resilience of megacities. Among the 100 most recurrent terms, three distinct key term clusters formed for sustainable development; seven budding key term clusters formed for urban resilience suggesting breadth in contrast to sustainable development depth. The most cited assessments of sustainable development emphasize topics of energy, methodological approaches, and statistical modeling. The most cited assessments of urban resilience emphasize topics of flooding, transit networks, and disaster risk resilience. Megacities research is dominated by few countries, suggesting a need for inclusion and international partnerships. Lastly, as the world’s people become increasingly urbanized, sustainable development and urban resilience of megacities will serve as a key barometer for humanity’s progress toward sustainability.
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MDPI and ACS Style
Mackay, B.R.; Shaker, R.R.
A Megacities Review: Comparing Indicator-Based Evaluations of Sustainable Development and Urban Resilience. Sustainability 2024, 16, 8076.
https://doi.org/10.3390/su16188076
AMA Style
Mackay BR, Shaker RR.
A Megacities Review: Comparing Indicator-Based Evaluations of Sustainable Development and Urban Resilience. Sustainability. 2024; 16(18):8076.
https://doi.org/10.3390/su16188076
Chicago/Turabian Style
Mackay, Brian R., and Richard R. Shaker.
2024. "A Megacities Review: Comparing Indicator-Based Evaluations of Sustainable Development and Urban Resilience" Sustainability 16, no. 18: 8076.
https://doi.org/10.3390/su16188076
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