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Geographical Information Technology and Urban Sustainable Development
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Geographical Information Technology and Urban Sustainable Development

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Urban and Rural Development".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2026) | Viewed by 6565

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Jianbo Tang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Geo-Informatics, Central South University, Changsha 410086, China
Interests: geographical data analysis; crowdsourcing mapping; human mobility pattern; urban functional zone identification and sustainable development
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Xuexi Yang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Geosciences and Info-physics, Central South University, Changsha 410012, China
Interests: spatiotemporal data mining; spatial interaction; social sensing; geographic big data analysis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Wentao Yang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
National-local Joint Engineering Laboratory of Geospatial Information Technology, Hunan University of Science and Technology, Xiangtan 411201, China
Interests: spatiotemporal modeling and forecasting; urban and ecological environment assessment; GIS applications
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In the era of big data, the development of geographical information technology provides important technical support that enables us to understand the spatiotemporal distribution patterns and evolution mechanisms of urban land use, transportation, the ecological environment and human activities. In particular, the application of GeoAI models offers new opportunities for dynamic simulation, intelligent detection and the prediction of urban development. Employing current GIS technologies and artificial intelligence models to empower decision-making regarding urban planning and sustainable development remains a hot topic and is worthy of in-depth discussion and research. This Special Issue aims to encourage researchers to publish their new ideas, models, methods and frameworks on geographical information technologies and urban sustainable development in order to promote the usage of GIS technologies in sustainable urban studies. In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. The scope of this Special Issue includes, but is not limited to, the following topics:

  • GIS techniques and GeoAI models for urban sustainable development
  • Geographical data mining and knowledge discovery
  • Multi-model spatiotemporal data fusion
  • Urban climate change, health analysis and risk assessment
  • Land use classification and change detection
  • Simulation and forecasting of urban development
  • Urban traffic analysis and human mobility patterns detection
  • Social Sensing for urban planning and management

Dr. Jianbo Tang
Dr. Xuexi Yang
Dr. Wentao Yang
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 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

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.

Keywords

  • geospatial data analysis
  • social sensing
  • sustainable cities
  • urban land use patterns
  • simulation and forecasting of urban development
  • GeoAI

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

24 pages, 3538 KB  
Article
A Planning Support System for a Sustainable Water Supply Network: A Case Study of Multicriteria Analysis Supported by GIS
by Rafał Brodziak, Jędrzej Bylka, Jakub Drewnowski and Tomasz Mróz
Sustainability 2026, 18(6), 3028; https://doi.org/10.3390/su18063028 - 19 Mar 2026
Viewed by 367
Abstract
Ensuring a reliable and sustainable water supply in growing urban areas requires integrated planning that balances increasing demand with technical, economic, and operational constraints. This paper presents the development of a Planning Support System to support decision-making in the expansion of urban water [...] Read more.
Ensuring a reliable and sustainable water supply in growing urban areas requires integrated planning that balances increasing demand with technical, economic, and operational constraints. This paper presents the development of a Planning Support System to support decision-making in the expansion of urban water distribution networks. The proposed framework links urban development strategies with future water demand assessment, spatial analysis, hydraulic modeling, and structured evaluation of alternative network expansion scenarios. Geographic Information Systems are used to identify potential growth areas and estimate future demand based on urban planning documents, while hydraulic simulations are performed using the Water Network Tool for Resilience to assess network performance under projected operating conditions. The generated variants are subsequently evaluated using selected Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis methods, considering factors such as investment costs, energy consumption, supply security, and network resilience. A case study demonstrates the applicability of the proposed Planning Support System and confirms its effectiveness in providing a transparent and replicable basis for supporting strategic decisions in water supply network sustainable development. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Geographical Information Technology and Urban Sustainable Development)
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25 pages, 9026 KB  
Article
From Land Use to Urban Expansion: A Comparative Study of Quanzhou and Xi’an in the East and West of China
by Kexin Sun, Bin Quan and Kui Liu
Sustainability 2026, 18(6), 2907; https://doi.org/10.3390/su18062907 - 16 Mar 2026
Viewed by 353
Abstract
Regional differences in land use transitions and urban expansion patterns have become increasingly pronounced under rapid urbanization. However, conventional land use and land cover change (LUCC) analyses often rely on independent graphical presentations, limiting systematic cross-regional comparison and the identification of spatial heterogeneity. [...] Read more.
Regional differences in land use transitions and urban expansion patterns have become increasingly pronounced under rapid urbanization. However, conventional land use and land cover change (LUCC) analyses often rely on independent graphical presentations, limiting systematic cross-regional comparison and the identification of spatial heterogeneity. To address this limitation, this study constructs a comparative land use transition analytical framework integrating LUCC contrastive transition patterns, the landscape expansion index (LEI), and the PLUS model. The framework enables structured identification of transition directions, intensity differentials, and stage-specific characteristics, thereby enhancing the reproducibility and comparability of cross-regional land use analysis. Using Xi’an (inland) and Quanzhou (coastal) as representative cases, this study analyzed their land use changes from 1990 to 2020 based on Intensity Analysis and LUCC contrastive transition patterns and quantified the differences in urban expansion using the urban expansion intensity index and expansion pattern metrics. The results show that the urban expansion of Xi’an and Quanzhou was active during 1990–2020, with crops as the main stable source of urban expansion. This urban expansion mainly took the form of edge-expansion and infilling, with urban development transitioning from disorderly expansion to intensive utilization. Notable regional disparities were observed: Forest conversion to urban land was substantially higher in Quanzhou, reflecting stronger ecological land pressure in coastal areas, whereas grass conversion to crops was more prominent in Xi’an, suggesting agricultural spatial adjustment under food security constraints in inland regions. The PLUS model further demonstrates that urban expansion is jointly influenced by topographic conditions (DEM) and economic growth (GDP), highlighting the coupled effects of natural constraints and development dynamics. This study clarifies the differentiation characteristics and driving forces of coastal and inland urban expansion, providing a scientific basis for differentiated territorial spatial planning, ecological protection, and farmland management in eastern and western regions. It also helps formulate more targeted urban development policies based on regional resource endowments, promoting regional coordination and sustainable urbanization. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Geographical Information Technology and Urban Sustainable Development)
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23 pages, 5258 KB  
Article
Value Realization, Influencing Factors, and Multiple Configuration Pathways of Grassland Ecological Products: An Empirical Study of the Hexi Corridor
by Hao Guo, Qing Yang and Rong Wang
Sustainability 2026, 18(5), 2392; https://doi.org/10.3390/su18052392 - 2 Mar 2026
Viewed by 265
Abstract
Improving the mechanism for the value realization of ecological products constitutes a critical pathway to achieving the modernization of harmonious coexistence between humans and nature. Based on the logical mechanism of the supply–demand theory, this study identifies and summarizes the connotations, accounting, and [...] Read more.
Improving the mechanism for the value realization of ecological products constitutes a critical pathway to achieving the modernization of harmonious coexistence between humans and nature. Based on the logical mechanism of the supply–demand theory, this study identifies and summarizes the connotations, accounting, and value realization mechanisms of ecological products. On the basis of enriching the existing literature, this study employs panel data from 2011 to 2023 to measure the value of grassland ecological products in the Hexi Corridor and conduct a visual analysis of their spatial differentiation characteristics. It further explores the impact of social activities on value realization, performs fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA), and proposes multiple configuration pathways for the value realization of grassland ecological products. The results indicate that: (1) the value realization of grassland ecological products in the Hexi Corridor is inadequate, with a significant gap between the actual value and the theoretical value; (2) significant differences are observed among environmental beautification products, ecological cultural products, and ecological space products, forming a distribution pattern of “higher in the west and lower in the east” centered on Jiuquan City; (3) the value realization of ecological products is closely associated with social activities, whereby a relatively homogenous industrial structure and low degree of opening-up exert a significant negative impact on it, and the value of ecological products cannot be effectively realized relying solely on the market mechanism; (4) based on institutional configuration and by applying dynamic Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA), we select the primary conversion rate of ecological products as the outcome variable. Considering the actual conditions of various regions, four diversified configurational paths are proposed: namely, the conservation-driven path under ecological compensation, the development-driven path fueled by capital, the quality-upgrading path driven by the dual engines of capital and the environment, and the efficiency-enhancing path led by environmental governance. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Geographical Information Technology and Urban Sustainable Development)
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10 pages, 1649 KB  
Article
The Poorer the Neighborhood, the Harder It Is to Reach the Park: A GIS Equity Analysis from Salt Lake City
by Ivis Garcia
Sustainability 2025, 17(9), 3774; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17093774 - 22 Apr 2025
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2098
Abstract
Inequitable access to parks persists in cities where race, income, and geography shape residents’ proximity to public green space. This study analyzes 20 parks in Salt Lake City—10 in the Eastside and 10 in the Westside—using demographic, housing, and transportation data drawn from [...] Read more.
Inequitable access to parks persists in cities where race, income, and geography shape residents’ proximity to public green space. This study analyzes 20 parks in Salt Lake City—10 in the Eastside and 10 in the Westside—using demographic, housing, and transportation data drawn from GIS tools and spatial platforms. By assessing indicators such as household income, racial composition, rent burden, walkability, and transit access, the findings confirm that Westside parks—located in lower-income and more racially diverse neighborhoods—are significantly less accessible. Eastside parks, by contrast, tend to serve higher-income, majority-white areas with better infrastructure. This paper illustrates how spatial inequality in surrounding conditions limits park accessibility, and it proposes GIS as a tool for diagnosing and addressing environmental injustice in urban planning. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Geographical Information Technology and Urban Sustainable Development)
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31 pages, 6453 KB  
Article
Trajectory Forecasting for Human Mobility Considering Movement Patterns and the Heterogeneous Effects of Geographical Environments via Potential Fields
by Kaiqi Chen, Pingting Zhou, Jingyi Liu, Min Deng, Qi Guo, Chen Yao, Jinyong Chen and Xinyu Pei
Sustainability 2025, 17(4), 1483; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17041483 - 11 Feb 2025
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2388
Abstract
Trajectory forecasting for human mobility plays a critical role in the effective management and sustainable development of urban transportation, which aligns with the advocacy of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Although several approaches have been developed in other trajectory forecasting applications, such as autonomous [...] Read more.
Trajectory forecasting for human mobility plays a critical role in the effective management and sustainable development of urban transportation, which aligns with the advocacy of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Although several approaches have been developed in other trajectory forecasting applications, such as autonomous driving and intelligent robotics, there remain limitations in forecasting trajectories of human mobility. This is because they do not adequately consider the prior knowledge of human movement patterns and the heterogeneous effects of geographical environments. Therefore, in this study, we propose an environment-driven trajectory forecasting method that can adapt to distinct movement patterns. First, the indicator systems, which systematically summarize the heterogeneous effects of different environmental factors on human mobility, are, respectively, constructed for the convergence, divergence, and leadership patterns. Then, based on the corresponding indicator system, the potential field is generated, representing the calibrated probability of the human mobility direction under the environmental effects. A gradient descent algorithm is finally employed on the potential field to forecast the next-step mobility location. Extensive experiment results demonstrated the satisfactory performance of our proposed method under different movement patterns. Compared to other baselines, our proposed method also shows advantages in both long-term and real-time forecasting. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Geographical Information Technology and Urban Sustainable Development)
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