Land | Special Issues

Urban Land Expansion and Regional Inequality

edited by

and

submission deadline 5 Feb 2026 | 4 articles | Viewed by 11046 | Submission Open

Keywords: urban sprawl and planning; regional inequality; territorial management; sustainable urban development; demographic challenge; public participation and municipal governance; metropolitan areas; rural areas; geographical accessibility issues

(This special issue belongs to the Section Urban Contexts and Urban-Rural Interactions)

New Perspectives in the Management and Monitoring of Mountain Ecosystems

edited by

Oimahmad Rahmonov

and

Michał Sobala

submission deadline 9 Feb 2026 | Viewed by 704 | Submission Open

Keywords: mountains vegetation; disturbances of vegetation; ecosystem services; soil erosion; landscape diversity; land use/cover; livestock rangeland; land abandonment; historical grazing; mountain tourism

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Systems and Global Change)

Influence of Urbanization-Related Radical Land Modification on Urban Extreme Climate: 2nd Edition

edited by

Guoyu Ren

and

Yali Luo

submission deadline 12 Feb 2026 | 6 articles | Viewed by 6472 | Submission Open

Keywords: land use; land cover; LULC change; urbanization effect; urban area; extreme climate; climate change; observation; simulation

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land–Climate Interactions)

Recent Progress in Land Degradation Processes, Control and Restoration

edited by Jianye Li, Weida Gao, Wei Hu,

Qiang Chen

and Xingyi Zhang

submission deadline 13 Feb 2026 | 2 articles | Viewed by 6410 | Submission Open

Keywords: land degradation pathways; land degradation progress; land use; soil erosion; soil carbon; environment effects; ecosystem functions and services; control measures; land restoration; ecosystem restoration and reconstruction

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Use, Impact Assessment and Sustainability)

Urban Landscape Transformation vs. Heritage and Memory

edited by

Bojana Bojanic Obad Scitaroci

,

Nerma Omićević

and

Tamara Zaninović

submission deadline 13 Feb 2026 | 2 articles | Viewed by 2939 | Submission Open

Keywords: urban landscape transformation; memorialisation; heritage resilience; active vs. passive land use; cultural heritage; natural heritage; heritage urbanism; forgotten urban layers

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Planning and Landscape Architecture)

Cultural Landscapes in Transition: Balancing Heritage, Development, and Sustainability

edited by

Isabel Vaz De Freitas

and

Fátima Matos Silva

submission deadline 15 Feb 2026 | 12 articles | Viewed by 14648 | Submission Open

Keywords: cultural landscapes; preservation and conservation; cultural heritage; modern development; urbanization; land abandonment; sustainable practices; economic growth; cultural integrity; community engagement; traditional techniques; regenerative tourism; sustainable tourism; sustainable planning; reuses; adaptation; carrying capacity

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Socio-Economic and Political Issues)

Adaptation Strategies of Sustainable Agriculture to Climate Change and Land Use

edited by

Christina-Ioanna Papadopoulou

and

Dimitrios Kalfas

submission deadline 15 Feb 2026 | 4 articles | Viewed by 7362 | Submission Open

Keywords: sustainable agriculture; climate change; land use; precision agriculture; agroecology; biodiversity

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land–Climate Interactions)

Innovations in Soil Erosion Assessment and Management Along Rivers and Coastal Areas：2nd Edition

edited by

,

,

,

and Francesca Minniti

submission deadline 15 Feb 2026 | 1 articles | Viewed by 4291 | Submission Open

Keywords: soil erosion; assessment; management; modeling; natural and anthropogenic factors; extreme events and climate change; river and coastal dynamics; remote sensing; decision making

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land, Soil and Water)

Spatial Optimization of Land Use: A Perspective on Carbon Emission and Energy Landscape Planning

edited by Jing Huang, Wenjing Han, Chai Duo, Jing Lan and Shan Guo

submission deadline 15 Feb 2026 | 2 articles | Viewed by 2276 | Submission Open

Keywords: spatial optimization; land use planning; climate resilience; carbon neutrality; climate change mitigation; environmental impacts; energy transition; resilient energy landscapes; energy infrastructure planning

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Planning and Landscape Architecture)

Reimagining Cities and Landscapes: AI, Sustainability, Exaptation and Inclusive Urban Futures

edited by Alessandro Melis and Antonio Lara-Hernandez

submission deadline 15 Feb 2026 | 1 articles | Viewed by 1781 | Submission Open

Keywords: architectural exaptation; adaptive reuse; urban resilience; vacant spaces; sustainable urbanism; socio-ecological design

(This special issue belongs to the Section Urban Contexts and Urban-Rural Interactions)

Potential for Nature-Based Solutions in Urban Green Infrastructure (2nd Edition)

edited by

Petra Schneider

submission deadline 15 Feb 2026 | Viewed by 239 | Submission Open

Keywords: ecological engineering; ecosystem services; nature-based solutions; green infrastructure; land recycling; land transformation; animal-aided design; sustainable urban drainage; climate adaptation; biotope networks

(This special issue belongs to the Section Urban Contexts and Urban-Rural Interactions)

The 15-Minute City: Land-Use Policy Impacts

edited by

Mara Ladu

,

Ginevra Balletto

,

Giuseppe Borruso

and Daniela Paddeu

submission deadline 20 Feb 2026 | 4 articles | Viewed by 11141 | Submission Open

Keywords: 15-minute city model; land use; transport planning; demographic transition

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Planning and Landscape Architecture)

Land, Security, and Digital Transformation

edited by

Rohan Bennett

, Kirsikka Riekkinen,

Trias Aditya

, Daniel Paez,

Jerome Donovan

and Jaap Zevenbergen

submission deadline 20 Feb 2026 | Viewed by 377 | Submission Open

Keywords: land administration; land management; cadastre; land registration; entrepreneurship; cybersecurity

Urban Spatial Planning for Health and Well-Being

edited by

, Zhiqiang Feng,

,

and

submission deadline 21 Feb 2026 | 2 articles | Viewed by 2467 | Submission Open

Keywords: remote sensing and street view image; spatio-temporal statistics and disease mapping; GeoAI and LLM; health impact assessment; urban spatial planning; nature-based solution; walkability and bikeability; sustainable development goal; urban built environment; 15-minute city and well-being

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Planning and Landscape Architecture)

Feature Papers on Land Use, Impact Assessment and Sustainability

edited by

Lucia Rocchi

and

Giovanni Ottomano Palmisano

submission deadline 23 Feb 2026 | 8 articles | Viewed by 9046 | Submission Open

Keywords: land use and land management policies; land use and land management practices; land use impact assessment; sustainable land management; land use decision making; nature restoration

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Use, Impact Assessment and Sustainability)

Vegetation Facing Environmental Changes in Terrestrial Systems: Research, Management and Education

edited by

Eusebio Cano Carmona

submission deadline 25 Feb 2026 | 6 articles | Viewed by 10125 | Submission Open

Keywords: botany; soil science; grasslands; forests; shrublands; dynamics; ecology; teaching; management; climate

(This special issue belongs to the Section Landscape Ecology)

Urban Planning in a Time of Crisis

edited by

Kinga Rybak-Niedziółka

,

Janusz Marchwinski

,

Luis Araújo Santos

and

Eduardo Natividade-Jesus

submission deadline 25 Feb 2026 | 1 articles | Viewed by 653 | Submission Open

Keywords: resilience of urban spaces; sustainability in planning of the built environment; green-blue infrastructure; energy consciousness in urban planning; social equality and quality of life in urban spaces; multifunctional spaces and flexibility in urban design; resident safety in urban design

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Planning and Landscape Architecture)

Land Resource Assessment (Second Edition)

edited by

Weiguo Fan

and

Xuechao Wang

submission deadline 27 Feb 2026 | 2 articles | Viewed by 2967 | Submission Open

Keywords: land resource efficiency; functional differences evaluation; land resource capitalization; process evaluation and simulation; energy system language and LCA; typical model of land use; ecological security and carrying capacity

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Use, Impact Assessment and Sustainability)

Sustainable Brownfield (Re)Developments Versus Urban Growth Demands: Opportunities and Challenges

edited by

Talib E. Butt

submission deadline 27 Feb 2026 | 1 articles | Viewed by 1674 | Submission Open

Keywords: sustainability; urbanization; brownfield; (re)development; urban growth demands; spatial planning; risk assessment; contaminated land

(This special issue belongs to the Section Urban Contexts and Urban-Rural Interactions)

Rethinking Rural-Urban Interactions in Terms of Food Security and Agriculture Development

edited by Yingnan Niu, Gaodi Xie and Luoman Pu

submission deadline 28 Feb 2026 | 6 articles | Viewed by 11185 | Submission Open

Keywords: rural– urban interactions; food security; ecological agriculture; agricultural economy; agricultural policy; sustainable development

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Systems and Global Change)

United Nations Sustainable Development Goals in Land-Use Systems from Resource-Nexus Perspectives

edited by

Jingying Fu

,

Dong Jiang

and

Gang Lin

submission deadline 28 Feb 2026 | 6 articles | Viewed by 10840 | Submission Open

Keywords: SDGs; resource coupling; resource policy; water-energy-food-materials-land nexus; sustainable development

(This special issue belongs to the Section Water, Energy, Land and Food (WELF) Nexus)

Rural Social Movements and the Question of the Land in the 21st Century

edited by

Peter Rosset

submission deadline 28 Feb 2026 | 5 articles | Viewed by 9337 | Submission Open

Keywords: rural social movements; agroecology; land grabbing and the defense of land and territory; food sovereignty; peasant and indigenous autonomy; land and territory; peasants and indigenous people

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Socio-Economic and Political Issues)

Urban Green Spaces: An Effective Tool to Regulate Urban Climate and Biodiversity, 2nd Edition

edited by

Nikolaos Proutsos

and

Alexandra D. Solomou

submission deadline 28 Feb 2026 | 4 articles | Viewed by 8966 | Submission Open

Keywords: urban green spaces; urban climate and climate change in cities; urban biodiversity; urban trees and vegetation management; meteorological monitoring of urban green areas; Urban Heat Island (UHI) and Urban Cool Island (UCI); thermal comfort; natural and artificial climate-friendly materials; nature-based solutions and good practices in cities; plant species selection criteria in cities; water and maintenance requirements of urban vegetation

(This special issue belongs to the Section Urban Contexts and Urban-Rural Interactions)

Urban Forestry Dynamics: Management and Mechanization

edited by

Leonardo Bianchini

,

Marcello Biocca

and

Valerio Di Stefano

submission deadline 28 Feb 2026 | 3 articles | Viewed by 8618 | Submission Open

Keywords: urban forest; mechanization; urban forest operations; soil impact; environmental effects; technical and economic performance; new technologies

(This special issue belongs to the Section Landscape Ecology)

Application of Multi-Source Geographical Big Data in Land Use Decision-Making

edited by

Shi Shen

,

Antonio Miguel Martínez-Graña

,

Sijing Ye

,

Zhuolin Tao

and Min Zhao

submission deadline 28 Feb 2026 | 7 articles | Viewed by 8303 | Submission Open

Keywords: geographic information systems (GISs); land use decision-making; land use simulation; GeoAI; multi-source data integration; geospatial big data; land use decision-making; remote sensing data; land use classification; land management; global land use patterns

Grassland Ecosystem Services: Research Advances and Future Directions for Sustainability: 3rd Edition

edited by

Michael Vrahnakis

and

Yannis (Ioannis) Kazoglou

submission deadline 28 Feb 2026 | 7 articles | Viewed by 7636 | Submission Open

Keywords: grassland abandonment; grassland ecology; grassland management; grassland biodiversity; grassland hydrology; issues and threats; supporting; provisioning; regulating and cultural grassland ecosystem services; grass cultivation and management

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land, Biodiversity, and Human Wellbeing)

Land Use/Land Cover Mapping Changes Using Earth Observations Techniques

edited by

Frédéric Frappart

,

Lien Rodríguez López

, Bertrand Ygorra and

Luc Bourrel

submission deadline 28 Feb 2026 | 4 articles | Viewed by 6873 | Submission Open

Keywords: land use; land cover; land use and land cover dynamics; passive and active remote sensing; artificial intelligence; spatio-temporal dynamics

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land – Observation and Monitoring)

The Mechanism of Land-Water Interaction and Management Strategies: Recent Discoveries and the Way Forward

edited by

Carla Rolo Antunes

and

Shiliang Liu

submission deadline 28 Feb 2026 | 4 articles | Viewed by 4575 | Submission Open

Keywords: land use change; hydrological processes; models; hydrological variables; runoff; infiltration

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Systems and Global Change)

Net Zero Target and Land Use in Agriculture and Forestry: Carbon Auditing, Offsetting and Trading

edited by

Naser Khan

submission deadline 28 Feb 2026 | 1 articles | Viewed by 4242 | Submission Open

Keywords: net zero emissions; agricultural and forestry land use strategies; artificial intelligence; carbon auditing; carbon offsetting; carbon trading; climate change mitigation; sustainable agriculture and forestry; emissions management; greenhouse gas reduction; artificial intelligence; emission factor databases

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Socio-Economic and Political Issues)

Landscape Fragmentation: Effects on Biodiversity and Wildlife

edited by

Jesús Alejandro Prieto-Amparán

,

Federico Villarreal-Guerrero

and

Alfredo Pinedo-Alvarez

submission deadline 28 Feb 2026 | 5 articles | Viewed by 4035 | Submission Open

Keywords: landscape fragmentation and biodiversity conservation; ecological connectivity modeling; land use/land cover changes (LULCC); habitat quality (HQ); ecosystem services; remote sensing and spatial pattern analysis; machine learning applications; multi-criteria evaluation; sustainable land management; artificial intelligence in landscape analysis

(This special issue belongs to the Section Landscape Ecology)

Geodiversity, Land Use and Ecosystem Services: Integrating Abiotic and Biotic Perspectives of Regional Development with Methodological Advances

edited by Ana Vovk, Laura Melelli and

Borut Stojilković

submission deadline 28 Feb 2026 | 3 articles | Viewed by 2664 | Submission Open

Keywords: geodiversity; ecosystem services; geosystem services; abiotic-biotic interactions; sustainable land management; biodiversity and resilience; geoconservation; diversity evaluation techniques

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Use, Impact Assessment and Sustainability)

Urban Morphology: A Perspective from Space (3rd Edition)

edited by

Marco Maretto

and Nicola Marzot

submission deadline 28 Feb 2026 | 4 articles | Viewed by 2639 | Submission Open

Keywords: urban morphology; public space; urban design; new technologies; trans-disciplinarity

(This special issue belongs to the Section Urban Contexts and Urban-Rural Interactions)

Science-Based Approaches to Promote Sustainable Land and Resource Management in Protected Areas: Latest Insights from the Fields of Geography and Recreation Ecology

edited by Ting Wang,

Teiji Watanabe

and

Yu-Fai Leung

submission deadline 28 Feb 2026 | 2 articles | Viewed by 2498 | Submission Open

Keywords: protected areas; recreation use; impacts monitoring; visitor management; voluntary data analysis; partnership; resource management; participatory assessment approach

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Socio-Economic and Political Issues)

National Parks and Natural Protected Area Systems

edited by

Chris Zevenbergen

, Liang Li and Liyuan Qian

submission deadline 28 Feb 2026 | 3 articles | Viewed by 1954 | Submission Open

Keywords: national park management; natural protected area system construction; ecological connectivity; biodiversity conservation; climate change; ecosystem governance; urban threats; tourism control; human– environment interation; restoration

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Planning and Landscape Architecture)

Feature Papers for Land Systems and Global Change Section: 3rd Edition

edited by

Le Yu

,

Xin Chen

, Zhenrong Du and

Pengyu Hao

submission deadline 28 Feb 2026 | 2 articles | Viewed by 1834 | Submission Open

Keywords: land system; global change; datasets; models; time series

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Systems and Global Change)

AI-Enabled Decision Support Systems for Sustainable Agricultural Land Use

edited by

,

,

and

submission deadline 28 Feb 2026 | Viewed by 532 | Submission Open

Keywords: artificial intelligence in land use; agricultural decision support systems (DSS); sustainable agriculture; precision agriculture; smart farming; machine learning for soil and crop analysis; deep learning for remote sensing; spatial decision support systems (SDSS); climate-smart agriculture; AI for land degradation assessment; land suitability mapping; internet of things (IoT) in agriculture; big data analytics for agroecosystems; multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA); environmental sustainability and land use

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Socio-Economic and Political Issues)

Land Use Sustainability from the Viewpoint of Carbon Emission: 3rd Edition

edited by

Xuechao Wang

,

Weize Song

and

Yingjie Li

submission deadline 28 Feb 2026 | Viewed by 341 | Submission Open

Keywords: land use; sustainability; carbon emissions; carbon emissions neutrality; carbon source; carbon sink; climate change; agriculture; forestry

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Systems and Global Change)

Urban Planning Innovation Based on Big-Data, AI, and Digital Technology

edited by

Heechul Kim

, Sungjoo Hwang, Seungho Yang and Jihyon Hwang

submission deadline 28 Feb 2026 | Viewed by 266 | Submission Open

Keywords: urban planning innovation; big data analytics; artificial intelligence (AI); digital technology; data-driven urban governance; sustainable and resilient cities; urban informatics; integrating AI with planning theory

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Planning and Landscape Architecture)

Smart Green Infrastructure: Nature-Based Solutions for Sustainable Urban Spatial Planning and Resilient Cities

edited by

Hrvoje Tomić

,

Jaroslaw Janus

, Josip Križanović,

Goran Andlar

and

Samanta Bačić

submission deadline 28 Feb 2026 | Viewed by 174 | Submission Open

Keywords: land administration; green infrastructure; spatial data infrastructure; sustainable development goals; resilient cities; urban growth

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Planning and Landscape Architecture)

Ecosystem and Biodiversity Conservation in Protected Areas

edited by

Patrick J. Comer

and Gregory E. Eckert

submission deadline 1 Mar 2026 | 6 articles | Viewed by 8695 | Submission Open

Keywords: ecosystem condition assessment; ecosystem degradation; landscape dynamics; alteration; and stress; place-based conservation priorities; ecosystem management and restoration; socio-ecological systems; climate change vulnerability and adaptation; biodiversity conservation planning; ecosystem monitoring

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land, Biodiversity, and Human Wellbeing)

Spatial Patterns and Urban Indicators on Land Use and Climate Change

edited by

Federica Gaglione

, Ayiine-Etigo David and

Richard Laing

submission deadline 1 Mar 2026 | 1 articles | Viewed by 3029 | Submission Open

Keywords: urban planning; land use prediction; land use change; climate change; spatial analysis; GIS; scenario simulation; spatial metrics

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Planning and Landscape Architecture)

Integrating Spatial Analysis into Sustainable Urban Planning

edited by Apostolos Lagarias,

Despina Dimelli

and

Georgia Pozoukidou

submission deadline 1 Mar 2026 | 2 articles | Viewed by 2061 | Submission Open

Keywords: spatial analysis; urban planning; land use modelling; sustainable development; policy making; environmental management; risk management; climate change

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Planning and Landscape Architecture)

Sustainable Water and Soil Conservation and Management for Agriculture

edited by

Juan M. Trujillo Gonzalez

and

Raimundo Jimenez-Ballesta

submission deadline 3 Mar 2026 | 2 articles | Viewed by 1185 | Submission Open

Keywords: precision irrigation; conservation agriculture; water-footprint assessment; soil mapping; organic amendments; remote sensing monitoring

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land, Soil and Water)

Blue-Green Infrastructure and Territorial Planning

edited by

Osvaldo Moura Rezende

,

Marcelo Miguez

and Adriana Piperno

submission deadline 5 Mar 2026 | 2 articles | Viewed by 4120 | Submission Open

Keywords: blue-green infrastructure; hybrid infrastructure; nature-based solutions; sustainable territory planning; climate change adaptation; sponge watersheds

Strategic Planning for Urban Sustainability (Second Edition)

edited by

Carlos José Lopes Balsas

and

Awais Piracha

submission deadline 11 Mar 2026 | 3 articles | Viewed by 3876 | Submission Open

Keywords: infill redevelopment; urban and suburban retrofit; novel approaches to land use planning; new forms of eco-urbanism; land use planning strategies; tools; and instruments; coordinated land use and transportation planning interventions; land markets and sustainable urbanism; greenway planning and urbanization; parks and urban growth; infrastructure and commercial interventions; science and business parks; vacant land and community economic development; green gentrification; land value capture mechanisms

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Planning and Landscape Architecture)

Sustainable Forest Landscape Management Towards Ecosystem Services and Biodiversity (Second Edition)

edited by

Guillermo Martinez-Pastur

,

Robert Baldwin

,

Mónica Del Rosario Toro-Manríquez

and

Serban Chivulescu

submission deadline 13 Mar 2026 | 1 articles | Viewed by 530 | Submission Open

Keywords: sustainable forestry; ecosystem services; biodiversity conservation; multi-objective forest planning; synergies and trade-offs; landscape management

(This special issue belongs to the Section Landscape Ecology)

Builders of the Middle Landscape: The Role of Urban Elites in the Construction of Rural Landscapes Between Antiquity and the Renaissance

edited by

Joan Negre

and Julio Navarro Palazón

submission deadline 15 Mar 2026 | 1 articles | Viewed by 905 | Submission Open

Keywords: antiquity; middle ages; renaissance; villa; almunia; periurban; rural landscape; urban elites

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Planning and Landscape Architecture)

Relationship Between Land Use and Land Degradation

edited by Dajing Li, Hongqi Zhang and Fang Liu

submission deadline 15 Mar 2026 | Viewed by 519 | Submission Open

Keywords: land-use/cover change; land degradation; desertification; human activities; ecosystem services; ecologically fragile regions; sustainable development

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Use, Impact Assessment and Sustainability)

Navigating the Balance: The Role of National Parks in Ecological Conservation and Socioeconomic Development, 2nd Edition

edited by

Fanglei Zhong

and Lihua Zhou

submission deadline 16 Mar 2026 | 7 articles | Viewed by 4936 | Submission Open

Keywords: sustainable development goals; national parks; mode of management; socioeconomic development; conservation

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Socio-Economic and Political Issues)

Land Degradation: Global Challenges and Sustainable Solutions

edited by

Weicheng Wu

,

Claudio Zucca

and

Eddy de Pauw

submission deadline 17 Mar 2026 | Viewed by 389 | Submission Open

Keywords: land degradation; sustainable land management; soil quality and health; remote sensing; GIS; artificial intelligence; land degradation neutrality (LDN); policy evaluation; participatory approaches; interdisciplinary research

(This special issue belongs to the Section Land Use, Impact Assessment and Sustainability)

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