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Sustainable Development for Urban Built Environment

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Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue is dedicated to advancing the understanding and practice of sustainable development within urban built environments, particularly optimising the planning, design, construction, and operation of urban infrastructure. With the accelerating pace of urbanisation and escalating environmental challenges, it is imperative to explore strategies that foster sustainability in urban settings. This Issue will collate interdisciplinary research and innovative solutions that promote sustainable, resilient, and inclusive urban development.

Cities, housing over half of the world's population, are major centres of economic activity and energy use, leading to high carbon footprints. By integrating energy-efficient building designs, promoting renewable energy sources, and enhancing green infrastructure, sustainable urban development can considerably reduce carbon emissions. Moreover, sustainable urban planning encourages compact, transit-oriented developments that minimise fossil fuel reliance in transportation. These efforts not only mitigate climate change but also foster healthier, more liveable communities, contributing to broader sustainability goals such as improved air quality, resource conservation, and social equity. Sustainable urban development thus plays a pivotal role in achieving global sustainability by transforming cities into hubs of innovation and resilience against environmental challenges.

The topics may include, but are not limited to, the following:

Urban Sustainability Strategies:

Sustainable urban growth and smart city concepts
Resilience and adaptive capacity in urban planning

Green Building and Sustainable Architecture:

Energy-efficient building designs and green building standards
Retrofitting and rehabilitation of existing buildings

Urban Mobility and Transportation:

Sustainable public transportation systems and infrastructure

Role of Smart/Digital Technologies in Promoting Urban Sustainability:

IoT, big data, and AI in sustainable urban management
Digital tools and platforms for urban planning and monitoring
Case studies of smart city implementations and outcomes

Policy, Governance, and Implementation:

Urban sustainability policies and legislative frameworks
Governance models for effective urban management
Implementation challenges and success stories in sustainable urban projects

Dr. Xiang Xie
Dr. Manuel Herrera
Guest Editors

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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. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly 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 2400 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.

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Research

19 pages, 3425 KB

Open AccessArticle

Tendencies in Green Surface Design in Contemporary Remodels of Market Squares: The Example of Lesser Poland

by Piotr Langer and Tomasz Bajwoluk

Sustainability 2025, 17(20), 9135; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17209135 - 15 Oct 2025

Viewed by 315

Abstract

This paper presents the results of a study on manners of green area design, with green areas understood as areas with biologically vital surfaces, in the context of contemporary remodelling of historical market squares. This study approaches this problem comprehensively with the example of Lesser Poland—a region in southern Poland. The presented detailed analysis covers cities and towns where a major town or city square was remodelled in the period between 2009 and 2024. The findings of this study of these spaces’ development—both before and after the completion of their respective remodelling projects—have been presented as comparative diagrams. Based on this, essential quantitative parameters linked to green area surface area and the biologically vital area to square ratio were calculated for the pre- and post-remodel stages. Interpreting the findings enabled the identification of the quantitative changes that occurred during the remodelling of each square, and thus outlining of the general tendencies in the design of greenery in these spaces. Research shows that the process of redevelopment of urban markets most often results in a reduction in green space, regardless of its initial condition. In some cases, this phenomenon becomes radical, leading to the almost complete elimination of green spaces from the market square. We compared our findings with those of other studies on the remodelling and redevelopment of the city centres of Polish cities and referred to the literature on diagnosing the phenomenon dubbed as ‘concretosis’ (betonoza in Polish). We also discussed this tendency in the context of the revitalisation of city centres and the programming of functions that city market squares feature after remodelling, as well as the specificities of Polish law in terms of requirements in the planning and design of public spaces. This study’s subject matter also references the general tendencies in planning downtown public spaces that are often historic and which are highly distinct and attractive places in numerous cities and towns around the world. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Development for Urban Built Environment)

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