Search Results (328)

It is widely acknowledged that universities play a pivotal role in promoting sustainability by encouraging education for durable advancement, carrying out research, and overseeing sustainable campus operations. The present research primarily aims to evaluate the sustainability level of the University of Béjaïa (Algeria) using the international UI GreenMetric model, which is considered the main global framework for assessing the sustainability of a campus. The present work principally intends to assess the environmental and institutional performance of the university, according to international standards, and to propose a methodological framework that is adapted to the Algerian context. To achieve this goal, it was deemed appropriate to apply a mixed-methods approach that combines surveys, field observations, and document analysis through six categories of indicators, namely infrastructure, energy and climate, waste management, water management, transportation, and education and research. The results obtained explicitly indicate that the University of Béjaïa is still in an early phase of transition towards sustainability. This phase is characterized by strong ecological potential but with rather limited systems of governance, energy efficiency, and mobility. Therefore, the study proposes a national model, called AlgéMetric, inspired by the GreenMetric model and the contextualized sustainability assessment tools (SATs) that were developed, in order to address the aforementioned challenges. This hybrid tool includes new indicators that reflect the climatic, institutional, and cultural specificities in Algeria. This research proposes the first systematic application of the UI GreenMetric framework in Algeria. It also contributes to establishing a national network of sustainable campuses aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP 2016–2030). Full article

Food insecurity (FI) may lead to lower academic achievement, yet college students with inadequate food underutilize campus food pantries. This research aimed to identify predictors of academic success among pantry shoppers (PSs) to inform outreach. Data from AY 2021–2022 (N = 847) and 2022–2023 (N = 951) were derived from swipes of student identification cards, merged with university student-provided data, and de-identified. Multiple regression, logistic regression, and Least Absolute Shrinkage and Selection Operator (LASSO) were employed to create and validate models using Machine Learning. Grade Point Averages (GPAs) were compared by two-sample t tests. The PSs demonstrated higher GPAs in the fall term than non-pantry shoppers (p = 0.04). Validation of the models indicated strong performance. Multiple regression yielded a low prediction error (0.05), and logistic regression achieved 71% accuracy (AUC = 0.776). LASSO identified positive predictors of academic success, including graduate and honors status, junior and senior classification, females, international residency, and frequency of pantry shopping. Negative predictors included part-time status, first-year status, Black or Hispanic ethnicity, and Pell Grant eligibility. Findings underscore the complex interplay between sociodemographic and academic factors that should be considered when planning pantry outreach programs and highlight the need for standardized measures of student pantry utilization, which may aid resource allocation and sustainability. Full article

This study evaluates the service quality of smart campus dining services as a core element of sustainable school meal governance and health-promoting campus environments. A structured questionnaire grounded in the five SERVQUAL dimensions—tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, assurance, and empathy—was administered to 375 users of a smart campus catering platform, including students, faculty and staff, and education administrators from 20 counties and cities in Taiwan. The data were analyzed using gap analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, multiple regression, and Importance–Performance Analysis (IPA) to identify major service quality gaps and sustainability-oriented improvement priorities. The results show that tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, and assurance significantly predict overall service quality, with assurance exerting the strongest effect, while empathy is highly correlated with the other dimensions. IPA further indicates that outdated or insufficient smart facilities fall into the high-importance/low-performance area and thus represent a critical weakness. These findings provide empirical evidence for data-driven and user-centered management of school meal services, supporting more efficient resource allocation, AI-assisted menu planning, and IoT-based food safety monitoring. By linking service quality assessment with sustainable campus governance, the study contributes to efforts to promote healthy eating, reduce food waste, and strengthen localized food supply collaboration, in line with Sustainable Development Goals related to health, education, and responsible consumption. Full article

In Shenzhen, a high-density city facing severe land scarcity, the proliferation of compact primary school campuses poses significant challenges to the outdoor wind environment, which is crucial for outdoor thermal comfort in a hot–humid climate. This study employs Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) to systematically evaluate wind comfort across a range of high-density primary school layouts. Typical design proposals are classified and analyzed based on three key planning aspects: education building forms, courtyard openness, and sports field configuration. Wind comfort area ratio and static wind zone area ratio are adopted as key performance indicators to evaluate outdoor wind performance. The findings demonstrate that decentralized teaching building forms, multi-courtyard layouts with openings oriented towards the prevailing summer wind, and juxtaposed sports field placement significantly enhance outdoor ventilation and comfort. Additionally, positioning the main entrance on the windward side and incorporating elevated voids or terraces to form coherent ventilation corridors are effective design strategies. This research provides theoretical guidance for designing high-density school campuses in hot–humid southern China. Full article

In the context of accelerating urbanization, university students face mounting academic stress and increasingly severe psychological health challenges. University blue-green spaces are critical environments for fostering restorative experiences. They highlight the urgent need for targeted strategies to enhance their restorative potential. This study used three universities in Guangzhou as case studies, based on image collection and deep learning-based semantic segmentation methods, and employed the Perceived Restorativeness Scale (PRS) and Restoration Outcome Scale (ROS) to explore the hypothesized pathways and threshold characteristics through which visual elements of blue-green spaces are associated with university students’ psychological restoration within everyday campus environments. The results indicate: (1) the restorative effects of different space types follow a clear gradient: waterfront spaces > planar vegetation spaces > linear vegetation spaces > point vegetation spaces; (2) perceived restorativeness acts as a key mediator between visual elements and psychological restoration. The mediating pathways vary across space types. Waterfront spaces show polarized effects. Planar vegetation spaces rely on a dual pathway of being away and compatibility, supplemented by a secondary role of fascination. Linear vegetation spaces exhibit complex pathway patterns in which multidimensional positive support coexists with both positive and negative influences; (3) several visual elements display nonlinear threshold effects. This study deepens the understanding of the “environment–perception–psychology” pathway in the context of sustainable campus environments. It also proposes a three-level optimization framework (macro–meso–micro) that provides empirical references for evidence-informed planning and design of university blue-green spaces, with potential implications for sustainable campus environments and student well-being. Full article

Against the dual backdrop of the rural revitalization strategy and the pursuit of high-quality, balanced urban–rural education, optimizing rural campus spaces has emerged as an important lever for addressing educational resource disparities and improving pedagogical quality. However, conventional evaluation of campus space optimization faces two systemic dilemmas. First, top-down decision-making often neglects the authentic needs of diverse stakeholders and place-based knowledge, resulting in spatial interventions that lose regional distinctiveness. Second, routine public participation is constrained by geographical barriers, time costs, and sample-size limitations, which can amplify professional cognitive bias and impede comprehensive feedback formation. The compounded effect of these challenges contributes to a disconnect between spatial optimization outcomes and perceived needs, thereby constraining the distinctive development of rural educational spaces. To address these constraints, this study proposes a novel method that integrates regional spatial feature recognition with digital media-based public perception assessment. At the data collection and ethical governance level, the study strictly adheres to platform compliance and academic ethics. A total of 12,800 preliminary comments were scraped from major social media platforms (e.g., Douyin, Dianping, and Xiaohongshu) and processed through a three-stage screening workflow—keyword screening–rule-based filtering–manual verification—to yield 8616 valid records covering diverse public groups across China. All user-identifying information was fully anonymized to ensure lawful use and privacy protection. At the analytical modeling level, we develop a Transformer-based deep learning system that leverages multi-head attention mechanisms to capture implicit spatial-sentiment features and metaphorical expressions embedded in review texts. Evaluation on an independent test set indicates a classification accuracy of 89.2%, aligning with balanced and stable scoring performance. Robustness is further strengthened by introducing an equal-weight alternative strategy and conducting stability checks to indicate the consistency of model outputs across weighting assumptions. At the scenario interpretation level, we combine grounded-theory coding with semantic network analysis to establish a three-tier spatial analysis framework—macro (landscape pattern/hydro-topological patterns), meso (architectural interface), and micro (teaching scenes/pedagogical scenarios)—and incorporate an interpretive stakeholder typology (tourists, residents, parents, and professional groups) to systematically identify and quantify key features shaping public spatial perception. Findings show that, at the macro level, naturally integrated scenarios—such as “campus–farmland integration” and “mountain–water embeddedness”—exhibit high affective association, aligning with the “mountain-water-field-village” spatial sequence logic and suggesting broad public endorsement of ecological campus concepts, whereas vernacular settlement-pattern scenarios receive relatively low attention due to cognitive discontinuities. At the meso level, innovative corridor strategies (e.g., framed vistas and expanded corridor spaces) strengthen the building–nature interaction and suggest latent value in stimulating exploratory spatial experience. At the micro level, place-based practice-oriented teaching scenes (e.g., intangible cultural heritage handcraft and creative workshops) achieve higher scores, aligning with the compatibility of vernacular education’s “differential esthetics,” while urban convergence-oriented interdisciplinary curriculum scenes suggest an interpretive gap relative to public expectations. These results indicate an embedded relationship between public perception and regional spatial features, which is further shaped by a multi-actor governance process—characterized by “Government + Influencers + Field Study”—that mediates how rural educational spaces are produced, communicated, and interpreted in digital environments. The study’s innovative value lies in integrating sociological theories (e.g., embeddedness) with deep learning techniques to fill the regional and multi-actor perspective gap in rural campus POE and to promote a methodological shift from “experience-based induction” toward a “data-theory” dual-drive model. The findings provide inferential evidence for rural campus renewal and optimization; the methodological pipeline is transferable to small-scale rural primary schools with media exposure and salient regional ecological characteristics, and it offers a new pathway for incorporating digital media-driven public perception feedback into planning and design practice. The research methodology of this study consists of four sequential stages, which are implemented in a systematic and progressive manner: First, data collection was conducted: Python and the Octopus Collector were used to crawl online comment data related to Fuwen Township Central Primary School, strictly complying with the user agreements of the Douyin, Dianping, and Xiaohongshu platforms. Second, semantic preprocessing was performed: The evaluation content was segmented to generate word frequency statistics and semantic networks; qualitative analysis was conducted using Origin software, and quantitative translation was realized via Sankey diagrams. Third, spatial scene coding was carried out: Combined with a spatial characteristic identification system, a macro–meso–micro three-tier classification system for spatial scene characteristics was constructed to encode and quantitatively express the textual content. Finally, sentiment quantification and correlation analysis was implemented: A deep learning model based on the Transformer framework was employed to perform sentiment quantification scoring for each comment; Sankey diagrams were used to quantitatively correlate spatial scenes with sentiment tendencies, thereby exploring the public’s perceptual associations with the architectural spatial environment of rural campuses. Full article

Rapid urban expansion in tropical coastal cities has intensified vegetation moisture stress, compromising urban resilience and ecological stability. This study investigates the spatial drivers of the Moisture Stress Index (MSI) in Makassar City, Indonesia, by integrating biophysical indicators and land-use characteristics through multi-scale regression analyses. Utilizing dry-season satellite composites (May–August 2025), the research derived Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Land Surface Temperature (LST), and Normalized Difference Built-up Index (NDBI). MSI was modeled using Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) and Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR) across 240 m, 480 m, and 960 m grids. Results indicate that MSI is highly sensitive to urban morphology and land-use configuration. High moisture stress was concentrated in commercial–industrial and dense residential zones characterized by extreme population densities exceeding 28,000 people/km² and elevated NDBI. In contrast, agricultural zones and open/green spaces provided significant cooling and moisture retention. Comparative performance analysis reveals that the local GWR model significantly outperformed the global OLS model, achieving a substantial reduction in AICc (−10,475.81) and resolving significant spatial autocorrelation to achieve random residuals (z-score = 1.55). The study further confirms that NDBI is the most robust biophysical predictor of MSI. Spatial heterogeneity analysis demonstrated that land-use influences are geographically contingent, with institutional areas showing varied effects based on campus design and canopy presence. These findings emphasize the necessity of scale-aware, climate-adaptive urban planning and demonstrate that GWR provides a high-fidelity tool for identifying neighborhood-level “micro-hotspots” overlooked by global modeling frameworks. Full article

The University of Nanking, founded in the early 20th century by an American mission in Nanjing, China, boasts a unique blend of Chinese and Western architectural styles, making it a valuable subject of research. Currently part of Nanjing University’s Gulou Campus, it has been designated a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit by the Chinese government, which has also formulated a protection plan for the historical district of Nanking University. This paper uses this site as a case study, employing methods such as historical document review, on-site investigation, and architectural surveying to reveal a “growth-oriented” coordination mechanism between heritage preservation and development within the context of historical campus expansion. This mechanism involves maintaining the original spatial layout through adaptive reuse, presenting a development model of “new branches sprouting from an old trunk.” The study points out that campus expansion is the root cause of the “new versus old” contradiction in historical campuses, while the need for functional upgrades in school buildings is the driving force behind heritage preservation. Coordinating the development and functional optimization of new and old spaces can effectively enhance the vitality of historical campuses and achieve a balance between campus expansion and heritage preservation. This research provides a practical Chinese solution for the sustainable development of similar historical campuses. Full article

Smart microgrids are localized energy systems that integrate distributed energy resources, such as photovoltaics (PVs) and battery storage, to optimize energy use, enhance reliability, and minimize environmental impacts. This paper investigates the operation of a smart microgrid installed at the Hellenic Mediterranean University (HMU) campus in Heraklion, Crete, Greece. The system, consisting of PVs and battery storage, operates under a zero feed-in scheme, which maximizes on-site self-consumption while preventing electricity exports to the main grid. With increasing PV penetration and growing grid congestion, this scheme is an increasingly relevant strategy for microgrid operations, including university campuses. A properly sized PV–battery microgrid operating under zero feed-in operation can remain financially viable over its lifetime, while additionally it can achieve significant environmental benefits. The study performed at the HMU Campus utilizes measured hourly data of load demand, solar irradiance, and ambient temperature, while PV and battery components were modeled based on real technical specifications. The study evaluates the system using financial and environmental performance metrics, specifically net present value (NPV) and annual greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reductions, complemented by sensitivity analyses for battery technology (lead–carbon and lithium-ion), load demand levels, varying electricity prices, and projected reductions in lithium-ion battery costs over the coming years. The findings indicate that the microgrid can substantially reduce grid electricity consumption, achieving annual GHG emission reductions exceeding 600 tons of CO₂. From a financial perspective, the optimal configuration consisting of a 760 kWp PV array paired with a 1250 kWh lead–carbon battery system provides a system autonomy of 46% and achieves an NPV of EUR 1.41 million over a 25-year horizon. Higher load demands and electricity prices increase the NPV of the optimal system, whereas lower load demands enhance the system’s autonomy. The anticipated reduction in lithium-ion battery costs over the next 5–10 years is expected to provide improved financial results compared to the base-case scenario. These results highlight the techno-economic viability of zero feed-in microgrids and provide valuable insights for the planning and deployment of similar systems in regions with increasing renewable penetration and grid constraints. Full article

Background: Food insecurity among college students is a multidimensional challenge shaped by individual, interpersonal, institutional, community, and policy factors. Although many campuses require or provide meal plans, students may experience food insecurity when barriers related to agency (choice and autonomy), utilization (nutrition security), and availability persist. This study explored how undergraduate students at a private, urban U.S. university experience and navigate the multiple dimensions of food insecurity. Methods: We conducted in-depth, semi-structured interviews via Zoom between December 2024 and January 2025 with n = 22 undergraduate students recruited based on food security status, determined by a Fall 2024 longitudinal survey using the USDA Six-Item Short Form. Transcripts were double-coded by trained research assistants in ATLAS.ti using an inductive codebook. Thematic analyses followed a phronetic, iterative approach, organizing findings within a socio-ecological determinants framework and comparing themes by food security status. Results: We identified nine themes across four domains (individual, interpersonal, institutional and community, and political). At the individual level, constrained personal resources for groceries and cooking, time scarcity leading to skipped meals, and health impacts that detracted from academics emerged as key themes. Interpersonally, reliable family financial support was protective and informal support from peers/coaches filled gaps sporadically for some. At the institutional and community level, dining hall hours misaligned with student schedules, perceived limited variety and nutrition quality reduced food agency and utilization, and transportation impeded use of the sole grocery partner accepting university meal plan benefits. Notably, meal plans including unlimited meal swipes provided stable access but did not guarantee food security when food agency and utilization barriers persisted. Many students relied on campus events for free food; formal assistance (e.g., food pantry) was largely underused. At the policy level, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) awareness and enrollment was limited among our sample. Conclusions: Meal plan access alone is insufficient to ensure food security. Campus strategies should extend beyond access to prioritize flexibility, variety, and alignment with students’ schedules and preferences, while strengthening communication and eligibility support for external benefits. Future work should design and evaluate interventions that integrate all dimensions of food security and address institutional policies affecting students’ basic needs. Full article

Campus community gardens are expected to leverage disciplinary resources and spatial conditions to deliver ecological, educational, and social benefits beyond those of general community gardens. In China, these gardens are primarily established under the guidance of educational authorities, leading to issues such as significant homogenization and a lack of diversity, which hinders the full realization of their potential. This study investigates the potential factors influencing the development of campus gardens. Focusing on university campuses in Beijing, it employs stratified sampling and a questionnaire survey (n = 1008), utilizing methods including exploratory factor analysis (EFA), multiple linear regression, and analysis of variance (ANOVA) to systematically identify the factors affecting their differentiated development. The results indicate that: (1) the willingness to participate is collectively driven by four dimensions: “planting expectation,” “funding and site selection,” “personal motivation,” and “organizational support,” with “planting expectation” being the most significant factor. (2) Students’ academic disciplines influence their perceptions of the need for organizational support and spatial resources for gardens. (3) Campus location and size moderate the demand for gardens, with students in the urban expansion belt (between the 4th and 5th Ring Roads) and those from smaller campuses showing a stronger “pro-nature compensation” tendency. Based on campus spatial scale, urban location, and the academic backgrounds of participants, the study proposes integrated “space-organization” development strategies. This research provides targeted planning strategies for campus community gardens in China, aiming to leverage institutional disciplinary strengths, respond to participant needs, and maximize the gardens’ benefits. Full article

The rapid expansion of private universities in the past a few decades has created a unique sector in Chinese higher education system. Unlike public research-oriented institutions, Chinese private universities are tuition-dependent, resource-constrained, and primarily vocation-oriented. Lacking the prestige of academics, the campus physical environment in these institutions becomes a key strategic asset for student recruitment, retention, and performance. However, academic research addressing these contexts remains scarce. This study aims to develop a reliable measurement tool—the University Campus Environment Satisfaction Scale (UCESS)—specifically tailored to assess student satisfaction with the physical environment in Chinese private universities. Based on 1050 valid questionnaires from 4 representative universities in Guangdong province, exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses revealed a hierarchical structure comprising 10 first-order factors and 3 second-order dimensions: (1) Safety and accessibility; (2) Core living and learning environment; and (3) Developmental and amenity resources. The findings reveal that students in Chinese private universities prioritize tangible living, teaching and safety conditions over higher-level developmental amenities, reflecting a layered satisfaction logic. Furthermore, this study demonstrates the differentially weighted relationships between campus elements and overall campus satisfaction, providing administrators with a scientific diagnostic tool to optimize resource allocation and implement student-centered planning strategies. Full article

Objectives: We aimed to develop expert-informed recommendations for colleges and universities to support students with celiac disease (CeD) managing a gluten-free (GF) diet. Methods: A multidisciplinary panel of 40 stakeholders, including physicians, dietitians, a disability rights attorney, university staff, and students, was convened by the Celiac Disease Foundation to create expert-based and experience-informed recommendations. Over a 6-month period, the group conducted literature reviews, stakeholder interviews, and expert consensus discussions to identify common barriers and accommodations aligned with federal disability law. The expert panel collaboratively developed and revised an initial set of recommendations. Two rounds of structured voting were held during which panelists provided feedback to refine content and ensure clarity. All final recommendations were adopted with at least 90% of panelists voting in support. Results: The panel identified 24 accommodations across four domains: academics, housing, dining, and campus life. Academic recommendations include flexibility for illness-related absences, support for remote learning, and classroom modifications. Housing recommendations emphasize access to priority placement, appropriate appliances, and proximity to safe dining. Dining accommodations address GF food availability, ingredient transparency, staff training, and meal plan flexibility. Campus life recommendations ensure full participation in athletics, study abroad, social events, and internships, with supports for psychosocial well-being. Conclusions: This manuscript presents the first expert-informed recommendations focused specifically on the needs of college students with CeD. These recommendations are intended to support institutions as they develop strategies to enhance access to GF food, quality of life, educational supports, and student experience for those living with this chronic autoimmune condition. Full article

Higher education institutions face a critical methodological challenge in pursuing net-zero commitments: Within the amount ofhe emissions related to Scope 3, including indirect emissions from water consumption, waste disposal, business travel, and mobility, employees commuting represents 50–92% of campus carbon footprints, yet reliable quantification remains elusive due to fragmented data collection and governance silos. The present research investigates how purposeful integration of the Home-to-Work Commuting Plan (HtWCP)—mandatory under Italian Decree 179/2021—into the Climate Neutrality Plan (CNP) could constitute an innovative strategy to enhance emissions accounting rigor while strengthening institutional governance. Stemming from the University of Genoa case study, we show how leveraging mandatory HtWCP survey infrastructure to collect granular mobility behavioral data (transportation mode, commuting distance, and travel frequency) directly addresses the GHG Protocol-specified distance-based methodology for Scope 3 accounting. In turn, the CNP could support the HtWCP in framing mobility actions into a wider long-term perspective, as well as suggesting a compensation mechanism and paradigm for mobility actions that are currently not included. We therefore establish a replicable model that simultaneously advances three institutional dimensions, through the operationalization of the Avoid–Shift–Improve framework within an integrated workflow: (1) methodological rigor—replacing proxy methodologies with actual behavioral data to eliminate the notorious Scope 3 data gap; (2) governance coherence—aligning voluntary and regulatory instruments to reduce fragmentation and enhance cross-functional collaboration; and (3) adaptive management—embedding biennial feedback cycles that enable continuous validation and iterative refinement of emissions reduction strategies. This framework positions universities as institutional innovators capable of modeling integrated governance approaches with potential transferability to municipal, corporate, and public administration contexts. The findings contribute novel evidence to scholarly literature on institutional sustainability, policy integration, and climate governance, whilst establishing methodological standards relevant to international harmonization efforts in carbon accounting. Full article

This study investigates the impact of a self-built architectural intervention implemented in three areas, two intervention sites and one control site of a university campus, focusing on how such interventions can influence the use and care of open spaces. Surveys were administered before and after the intervention to a purposive sample of 54 habitual campus users, recruited through peer referrals and contacted via informal channels such as in-person interactions, phone calls, and shared student groups. The surveys were completed anonymously using Google Forms. Data were analyzed using mixed-effects models to evaluate changes over time, across sites, and time x site interaction. Results showed a significant increase over time in participants’ intention to care for the whole campus. Intentions to spend time in outdoor areas varied significantly across sites but did not change over time, and no time × site interaction was detected, indicating that observed changes were not confined to intervention sites. These findings highlight the potential of user-centered design interventions to enhance the quality, accessibility, and usability of open areas by providing empirical insights relevant to urban planning and the management of public spaces. Overall, this research suggests that self-build initiatives within university campuses can serve as scalable models for fostering sustainable urban environments, promoting citizen engagement, and improving urban well-being. Full article