A state-of-the-art review of studies on urban green infrastructure for thermal resilient communities

Abstract

Urban Green Infrastructure (UGI) plays a critical role in creating Thermal Resilient Communities (TRCs) by mitigating the adverse climate change impacts and enhancing thermal resilience. In this paper, we consider a range of UGI types, from street trees, urban parks, green spaces, and building-integrated UGI components, such as green roofs and green walls. It is intended that the thermal/aerodynamic effects of UGI be analyzed and the influence of UGI at three spatial scales within urban communities be provided; more specifically: microclimate scale, building scale, and individual scale. The study discusses the findings of 218 papers published since 2010 to elaborate on recent progress in this field. This review delves into three fundamental aspects related to UGI: a) the underlying mechanisms allowing UGI to affect the environment and human health, b) the modeling efforts undertaken to simulate these effects, and c) measurement studies providing empirical data and verifying the models. Additionally, the effects of UGI across the three scales and related aspects are discussed, and the importance of integrative mechanisms and coupled modeling approaches is emphasized. Key methodologies for integrating microclimate and building simulations are summarized, highlighting the data exchange protocols and software tools. In contrast to previous reviews, this study has analyzed major measurement studies, categorizing them into full-scale and sub-scale studies. As a conclusion, several potential directions for future research are identified, including advanced physical and data driven UGI models, enhanced coupled simulations for indoor-outdoor interactions, establishment of measurement datasets for benchmarking both UGI modeling and coupled simulations.