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Multi-Functional Urban Innovations
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Multi-Functional Urban Innovations

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Sustainability and Applications".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 August 2022) | Viewed by 38775

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Qi Han

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Built Environment, Eindhoven University of Technology, 5600MB Eindhoven, The Netherlands
Interests: urban sustainable transition
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Bauke de Vries

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Built Environment, Eindhoven University of Technology, 5600MB Eindhoven, The Netherlands
Interests: information system in a built environment
Dr. Yanliu Lin

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Human Geography and Spatial Planning, Utrecht University, Heidelberglaan 8, 3584 CS Utrecht, The Netherlands
Interests: collaborative planning; urban-rural land development
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In recent years, increasing attention has been paid to and investments made on different urban social, ecological, and technical innovations. The topics of these innovations vary from mainly technical solutions like digital twins or Internet of Things (IoT) related research to socioecological innovations such as the nature-based solution (NBS) or holistic approaches like the circular economy (CE). Although there are already many studies and journal articles dedicated to these topics, there are still gaps among them, and these different groups of scientists and experts mostly speak different languages. In this Special Issue, we are looking for publications that can help us to bring different aspects of these innovations together. Papers that are looking into the multiple functions and benefits that these different urban innovations can have for society and the environment are highly welcome.   

Topics include but are not limited to: 

  • The social, economic, and environmental impacts of urban innovations such as circular economic technologies and policies, NBS, smart city technological solutions (e.g., IoT);
  • The management and policy aspects of urban innovations. The role of institutional arrangement and governance structure in the successful adoption of these innovations;
  • Innovative participation and collaboration mechanisms in planning practices through digital platforms such as social media, apps, and planning support tools in order to enhance social sustainability;
  • Socioecological innovation and multifunctional green infrastructure to meet recreation needs and socioeconomic purposes;
  • The business models for successful uptake and implementation of these innovations;
  • Technologies and tools to facilitate the planning, implementation, and monitoring of these solutions, considering the multifunctionality of these innovations.

Dr. Qi Han
Prof. Dr. Bauke de Vries
Dr. Yanliu Lin
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. 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

  • Multifunctional urban innovation
  • Smart city
  • Nature-based solutions
  • Circular economy
  • Social and ecological systems
  • Internet of Things
  • Digital tools
  • Urban transition

Published Papers (6 papers)

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Research

20 pages, 3402 KiB  
Article
Population Shrinkage, Public Service Levels, and Heterogeneity in Resource-Based Cities: Case Study of 112 Cities in China
by Shouzhong Zhang, Limin Wang and Xiangli Wu
Sustainability 2022, 14(23), 15910; https://doi.org/10.3390/su142315910 - 29 Nov 2022
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1703
Abstract
Resource-based cities (RBCs) have become an important part of shrinking cities, and their population shrinkage brings many challenges for RBCs. A lot of literature analyzes the effects of shrinkage in RBCs, but very few explore the impact of population shrinkage on changes in [...] Read more.
Resource-based cities (RBCs) have become an important part of shrinking cities, and their population shrinkage brings many challenges for RBCs. A lot of literature analyzes the effects of shrinkage in RBCs, but very few explore the impact of population shrinkage on changes in their public service levels (PSLs). How the population shrinkage affects public services in RBCs, whether it is heterogeneous concerning the degree of shrinkage, and what the policy implications are all need to be studied in this paper. We propose the criteria for defining population shrinkage grades in terms of population size, population proportion, and population reduction rate, and we define the shrinkage grades of 112 RBCs. We select 12 indicators to build an index system to measure the PSLs of China’s RBCs, define the shrinkage grades of 112 RBCs, measure their PSLs, and analyze the impact of population shrinkage on the public services in China’s RBCs. The results show that there is a positive correlation between the rate of population reduction (pr) and the increased range of PSLs (PSLIR). The population shrinkage generally contributes to the improvement of PSLs in RBCs, but the effect is heterogeneous among the different shrinkage grades. In cities with population growth, it inhibits the improvement of PSLs, while in cities with population shrinkage, it promotes the improvement of PSLs. This promotion effect is phased and can only occur in the early stages of population shrinkage. The results also reveal the effects of the control variables on the PSLs of all the RBCs, as well as the RBCs with different shrinkage grades. These results can provide a reference for the sustainable development of RBCs. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Multi-Functional Urban Innovations)
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14 pages, 1672 KiB  
Article
Application of the Innovative Model NIPA to Evaluate Service Satisfaction
by Shang-Pin Li, Ying-Hsiang Lin and Chih-Cheng Huang
Sustainability 2022, 14(16), 10036; https://doi.org/10.3390/su141610036 - 13 Aug 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1574
Abstract
Customer satisfaction is one of the antecedent variables of customer loyalty, and customer satisfaction can positively affect customer loyalty. However, past research on consumer behavior has focused mainly on the direct consumption behavior of customers in service satisfaction, not in indirect behavior. This [...] Read more.
Customer satisfaction is one of the antecedent variables of customer loyalty, and customer satisfaction can positively affect customer loyalty. However, past research on consumer behavior has focused mainly on the direct consumption behavior of customers in service satisfaction, not in indirect behavior. This study takes the wedding garden as an example to explore the indirect behavior of customers, based on PZB’s service quality, and using the customer value hierarchy theory, adopts a questionnaire survey, and from the perspectives of users, investigates the current service quality, in order to analyze the quality of the service according to an evaluation formula. This study distributes a total of 380 questionnaires and collects 367 valid samples, for a valid return rate of 96.7%. In order to solve the problems caused by the original important performance analysis (IPA), the research constructs new important performance analysis (NIPA) to replace the original. This structural model presents a structured measurement process with risk management performance and judgment rules, which yielded different outcomes, as well as distinguished managerial implications. Furthermore, this new analysis model can provide managers with different perspectives in helping administrators in decision making. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Multi-Functional Urban Innovations)
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15 pages, 1564 KiB  
Article
Barriers to the Adoption of Urban Living Labs for NBS Implementation: A Systemic Perspective
by Shahryar Sarabi, Qi Han, A. Georges L. Romme, Bauke de Vries, Rianne Valkenburg, Elke den Ouden, Spela Zalokar and Laura Wendling
Sustainability 2021, 13(23), 13276; https://doi.org/10.3390/su132313276 - 30 Nov 2021
Cited by 19 | Viewed by 17469
Abstract
Urban Living Labs (ULLs) are widely believed to provide a safe environment for experimentation, co-creation and evaluation of innovations in real-life settings. A growing number of cities have been adopting ULLs to co-create and test Nature-Based Solutions (NBS). However, many of these cities [...] Read more.
Urban Living Labs (ULLs) are widely believed to provide a safe environment for experimentation, co-creation and evaluation of innovations in real-life settings. A growing number of cities have been adopting ULLs to co-create and test Nature-Based Solutions (NBS). However, many of these cities have been facing major barriers in trying to adopt the ULL approach for implementing NBS. In this study, we seek to identify these barriers and provide a systemic understanding. Barriers are identified by means of workshops and interviews. Subsequently, interpretive structural modelling serves to identify the interdependencies among the barriers, resulting in a structural model of barriers in adopting ULLs for NBS. Our results show that political and institutional barriers are significantly limiting the adoption of ULLs. Moreover, knowledge brokers and other intermediaries, as well as cross-sectoral collaboration, play a key role in getting ULLs adopted. The findings from this study can help cities to develop strategies that overcome the main barriers for ULL adoption in the context of nature-based solutions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Multi-Functional Urban Innovations)
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18 pages, 947 KiB  
Article
How Do Political Features Influence the Co-Production of Government Projects? A Case Study of a Medium-Sized Chinese City
by Wenting Ma, Rui Mu and Martin de Jong
Sustainability 2021, 13(14), 7600; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13147600 - 7 Jul 2021
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 3286
Abstract
Co-production is a solution by which the government provides public services. Co-production theory is built upon Western experience and currently focuses on the types of co-production in different policy stages, the barriers and governance strategies for co-production. However, little attention is paid to [...] Read more.
Co-production is a solution by which the government provides public services. Co-production theory is built upon Western experience and currently focuses on the types of co-production in different policy stages, the barriers and governance strategies for co-production. However, little attention is paid to how political background will influence the co-production process. To fill the gap, we analyzed a case of co-production that occurred in China, and we characterized the political background as consisting of three main political features: political mobility, central–local relations, and performance measurement. Based on an in-depth case study of a government project in a medium-sized Chinese city, the impact and the changes of political features affecting governmental projects in different co-production stages are analyzed and assessed. We find that political features play a critical role in the co-production of China’s large government projects and may separately and jointly affect co-production. Government performance measurement affects the co-design and co-implementation of projects. Political mobility and changes in local government and performance measurement also affect the co-implementation continuity of the project. Political focus affects the co-design of projects. Central-local relations influence the support from higher government and the actual practices of lower government in the co-implementation stage. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Multi-Functional Urban Innovations)
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14 pages, 17797 KiB  
Article
Using Social Media for Citizen Participation: Contexts, Empowerment, and Inclusion
by Yanliu Lin and Stijn Kant
Sustainability 2021, 13(12), 6635; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13126635 - 10 Jun 2021
Cited by 31 | Viewed by 9502
Abstract
Social media have been increasingly used by governments and planning professionals to gain public opinions, distribute information, and support participation in planning practices. Nevertheless, few studies have been conducted to understand the influence of local contexts and the extent to which social media [...] Read more.
Social media have been increasingly used by governments and planning professionals to gain public opinions, distribute information, and support participation in planning practices. Nevertheless, few studies have been conducted to understand the influence of local contexts and the extent to which social media can enhance citizen power and inclusion. This study investigates the role of social media in citizen participation by taking case studies in the Netherlands. It adopts a mixed methods approach that combines interviews, web scraping, and content analysis to understand the characteristics of social media participation. There are several key findings. First, support policies and a high level of social media penetration rate are preconditions for more inclusive participation. Second, social media enhance social inclusion by engaging many participants, who may not be able to participate via traditional methods. Third, they facilitate interactions and different levels of citizen power, though the government still plays a leading role within top-down approaches. Finally, they improve the effectiveness of participation regarding transparency, accessibility, and workable solutions. However, there are several potential political and social bias associated with social media technology. The combination of online and offline participation methods is properly necessary to engage different groups in the planning process. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Multi-Functional Urban Innovations)
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18 pages, 2788 KiB  
Article
Network Governance and the Evolving Urban Regeneration Policymaking in China: A Case Study of Insurgent Practices in Enninglu Redevelopment Project
by Nannan Zhao, Yuting Liu and June Wang
Sustainability 2021, 13(4), 2280; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13042280 - 20 Feb 2021
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 2978
Abstract
The network governance approach has been adopted by many researchers and practitioners with respect to policy analysis and modern state governance. This study utilizes a broadly defined network-based framework to trace the evolution of urban regeneration policymaking in Guangzhou, China. Drawing upon the [...] Read more.
The network governance approach has been adopted by many researchers and practitioners with respect to policy analysis and modern state governance. This study utilizes a broadly defined network-based framework to trace the evolution of urban regeneration policymaking in Guangzhou, China. Drawing upon the notions of “network” and previous scholars’ work on participatory planning, this study focuses on the changing relational networks among the various actors that are engaged in the urban regeneration process and the factors motivating these changes. In so doing, this study uses the ongoing Enninglu redevelopment project (2006–) as an illustrative case study. By examining the insurgent practices in the Enninglu redevelopment process, this study argues that urban redevelopment policymaking in China has changed twofold. First, the planning regime has transited from state-dominant practices to one that is primarily driven by the local government, the enhanced role of higher education institutions and experts as a “professional interest group”, and the increased participation of non-state actors in the policymaking process. Second, the decision-making mechanism has transformed from an interventionism-oriented system to a polyarchy-oriented system in which both the advocacy coalition and opposition coalition are embedded in the governance network. Additionally, the emergence of insurgent practices in Enninglu suggests an emerging shift toward substantive participatory governance in the Chinese context. From a network perspective, this study attempts to contribute to the understanding of the evolving urban regeneration policymaking in China and broader governance networks in urban regeneration practices. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Multi-Functional Urban Innovations)
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