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Land
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Human–Nature Relations in Urban Landscape Planning
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Human–Nature Relations in Urban Landscape Planning

A special issue of Land (ISSN 2073-445X). This special issue belongs to the section "Urban Contexts and Urban-Rural Interactions".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 May 2025 | Viewed by 3209

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Rob Roggema

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Escuela de Architectura, Artes y Diseño, Tecnológico de Monterrey, Monterrey 64849, Mexico
2. Cittaideale, Herenstraat 26A, 6701DL Wageningen, The Netherlands
Interests: regenerative design; nature-driven urbanism; foodscapes; climate adaptation; spatial sea level landscapes; sustainable urban design; complexity
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Nico Tillie

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Architecture, Delft University of Technology, 2628BL Delft, The Netherlands
Interests: sustainable development; urban planning; land use planning

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The role that current urbanization processes play in increasing the pressure on the planetary system requires a fundamental rethink of the way cities are planned, designed, and developed. The current planning of urban landscapes is dominated by a human-centric view. This often leads to the planning being orientated toward the short term, predictable planning outcomes based on recent history, and decisions being taken by a small group of human decision-makers. Alternatively, a symbiotic human–nature relationship could be the prelude to a balanced future in which sustaining human and non-human organisms prevails.

This Special Issue asks for novel research that focuses on the use of landscape and local and regional ecosystems, and uses the ecological landscape as a determinant for how human and urban activities function, are laid out, are planned for, and are designed. Such a resilient (urban) ecosystem is paramount for further urban development, and therefore it creates the spatial conditions for the urban landscape to function in its most natural way.

We look forward to receiving your original research articles and reviews.

Prof. Dr. Rob Roggema
Dr. Nico Tillie
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Land is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • urban landscape
  • urban ecosystem
  • landscape planning
  • spatial planning
  • resilient design
  • landscape design
  • landscape-based urban design
  • design-led approach
  • green and blue grids
  • nature-based solutions
  • biourbanism
  • regenerative design

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue polices can be found here.

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

23 pages, 11469 KiB  
Article
Rediscovering Valley Hillslopes: Their Forms, Uses, and Considerations in Urban Planning Documents
by Giacomo Dallatorre, Lauriano Pepe and Serge Schmitz
Land 2024, 13(9), 1353; https://doi.org/10.3390/land13091353 - 25 Aug 2024
Viewed by 645
Abstract
Re-considering the interactions between society and natural resources is fundamental in pursuing sustainability and adaptation to climate change in cities. The representation in urban planning instruments reveals an inadequate consideration of valley hillslopes as interface systems or as ‘places’ with possible multiple roles [...] Read more.
Re-considering the interactions between society and natural resources is fundamental in pursuing sustainability and adaptation to climate change in cities. The representation in urban planning instruments reveals an inadequate consideration of valley hillslopes as interface systems or as ‘places’ with possible multiple roles and meanings for populations. Beyond landslide and flooding considerations, valley hillslopes are scarcely identified as distinct entities from the valley and the plateau, investigated as sites of diverse possible uses, and analysed in terms of which variables related to the relief’s forms influence their use. Confronting urban planning instruments that reduce slopes to building spaces, this contribution advocates for a specific representation of valley hillslopes, highlighting the environment’s variety within which the system interacts, the diversity of uses, and the interrelationships between form and land cover. By combining GIS mapping and statistical analysis, this research proposes a multi-scalar approach based on identifying valley hillslopes delineated through minimum units (geochore), integrated with land cover clustering and an analysis of the potential relations between land cover and six explanatory variables. The research points out the singularity and complexity of valley hillslopes, which should be incorporated into urban planning policy as potential cultural, ecological, or recreational resources for populations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Human–Nature Relations in Urban Landscape Planning)
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17 pages, 12607 KiB  
Article
A Reflection on the Implementation of a Waterfront Greenway from a Social–Ecological Perspective: A Case Study of Huangyan-Taizhou in China
by Huang Huang, Jiaxin Qi, Suili Xiao, Wolfgang Wende and Yingdu Xin
Land 2024, 13(7), 989; https://doi.org/10.3390/land13070989 - 4 Jul 2024
Viewed by 957
Abstract
In recent years, awareness has grown of the vital importance of ecological systems, provoking increased research into how to improve their resilience. Here, one popular new technical/management solution is the creation of greenways along riversides. In practice, however, the practical outcomes of such [...] Read more.
In recent years, awareness has grown of the vital importance of ecological systems, provoking increased research into how to improve their resilience. Here, one popular new technical/management solution is the creation of greenways along riversides. In practice, however, the practical outcomes of such greenways have sometimes been disappointing due to an excessive focus on technical solutions at the expense of a sufficient consideration of the social impact. This study intends to reflect on the problem by looking at the dynamics of land use for ecosystem functions at the macro scale as well as the relationship between the implementation of greenways and the local demand for diverse everyday activities, in particular, recreation opportunities, at the micro scale. Based on this, it aims to reveal practical solutions to bridge ecological usages and everyday needs that achieve better preservation and services of ecosystems. Taking the greenways along the Yongning River (YRG), which runs through the urban–rural areas and the urban–rural interface of Huangyan-Taizhou, as a case study, GIS analysis and anthropology approaches were applied. The results show that the YRG has systematically improved the riparian ecosystems by better connecting the eco-land use and preserving the waterfront. At the same time, its ability to fulfil the large potential for leisure and recreation services needs to improve. Residents living in different parts of the city had disparate requirements depending on their patterns of daily behaviour. We conclude that the successful implementation of greenways in cities should not only consider technological and nature-based solutions but also consider the socio-cultural background. The diversity of local needs regarding everyday activities and recreation will lead to an equivalent diversity in riparian landscape design. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Human–Nature Relations in Urban Landscape Planning)
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26 pages, 9757 KiB  
Article
Reconciling the Mismatch: Creating a Regenerative Framework for Regional Planning
by Rob Roggema and Rodrigo Junco
Land 2024, 13(6), 867; https://doi.org/10.3390/land13060867 - 16 Jun 2024
Viewed by 957
Abstract
The world is urbanizing rapidly, and many urbanized regions deplete and degrade their environment. The additional polycrisis of climate change, biodiversity loss, epidemics, food insecurity, and reduced water, air, and soil quality asks for a transformational vision for the design and planning of [...] Read more.
The world is urbanizing rapidly, and many urbanized regions deplete and degrade their environment. The additional polycrisis of climate change, biodiversity loss, epidemics, food insecurity, and reduced water, air, and soil quality asks for a transformational vision for the design and planning of these urban regions. Current planning practices are not able to respond to the complexity of the problems associated with the polycrisis. At the same time, regenerative thinking has not yet been practical enough to be accepted into spatial planning practices and create regenerative regions that can respond to the global polycrisis. This mismatch reinforces the status quo of well-thought-through regenerative frameworks on the one hand and ongoing spatial planning in urban regions on the other. The aim of this study is to create a regenerative framework for regional planning. A range of regenerative frameworks have been analyzed and integrated into one ‘framework of frameworks’, highlighting clusters of attributes describing the ‘what’, ‘when’, ‘how’, and ‘who’ of what needs to happen to create a regenerative world. On the other hand, expert judgement of planning practices in nine urban regions around the world provided insight about the priorities for regional regenerative development. This clarified the ‘what’ and ‘where’ of different aspects of urban planning in the region. Bringing the theoretical frameworks and practical understanding of urban planning together, the regenerative framework for regional planning provides a practical approach for navigating the complexities of creating a regenerative region. It starts by backtracking to the 1st generation city (of first settlements and indigenous understanding of the land). When this equilibrium is found, it is used to create a vision for the 3rd generation city (in which regenerative potentials are fully used). The comparison with the 2nd generation city (a current anthropogenic industrial city) clarifies what must change, how this change can be achieved, and who the agents of change are to make it happen. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Human–Nature Relations in Urban Landscape Planning)
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