Waterfront brownfield urban public parks (WBUPPs) are complex regeneration projects that require comprehensive assessment of environmental remediation, climate resilience, urban connectivity, and social well-being. This study proposes a structured GIS-based spatial analysis protocol that operationalizes key attributes of brownfields, waterfronts, public parks, and sustainability, with the aim of examining how digital tools can support WBUPP planning processes. Using free and open source resources and datasets (QGIS and OpenStreetMap), the approach produces eight core thematic maps that spatially organize 39 of 50 criteria identified from the literature and classified under economic, environmental, and social sustainability dimensions. This mapping protocol streamlines navigation for planners through complex datasets and offers researchers a foundation for thematic spatial analyses aligned with these literature-based criteria. The protocol is illustrated with Brooklyn Bridge Park in New York City—an 85-acre waterfront redevelopment that demonstrates heritage conservation, ecological restoration, and financial viability. The results highlight identifiable spatial patterns such as dual zones (urban buffer and recreation), winding pathways, and clustered amenities. At the same time, the analysis underscores the importance of data validation, as inconsistencies in volunteered geographic information require cross-referencing with multiple sources and field verification. The analysis shows that WBUPPs require tailored approaches that integrate land–water mobility, heritage adaptation, nature-based solutions, and equitable service distribution. This criteria-driven protocol offers adaptable guidance for future waterfront brownfield regeneration, while emphasizing that digitalization enhances the process, but it cannot replace hybrid analytical methods that combine quantitative spatial analysis with qualitative evaluations.

Rapid climate change and accelerated urbanization expose the limitations of land use planning approaches grounded in static spatial allocation and assumptions of predictable futures. Contemporary urban systems are increasingly characterized by continuous socio-economic–ecological transformation, requiring planning paradigms capable of engaging with change as a persistent condition rather than an episodic disruption. This paper develops a conceptual framework that reframes urban land use planning as the governance of land use change over time. Drawing on resilience thinking, systems perspectives, and the Time Quality Assessment (TQA) approach, the framework conceptualizes urban form as a temporally dynamic system whose performance must be assessed across duration, adaptability, and long-term trajectories of change. Rather than relying on empirical case studies, the paper advances a theory-driven synthesis that foregrounds temporal resilience as a core dimension of spatial performance under climate uncertainty. By positioning TQA as a conceptual–operational interface for engaging with temporal dynamics, the paper challenges static and deterministic planning models and argues for a shift from managing land use toward stewarding land use change. The framework offers a coherent foundation for future empirical research and for the development of planning practices oriented toward robustness, adaptability, and long-term responsibility in uncertain urban futures.

Against the backdrop of global warming, grassland degradation (GD) in arid and semi-arid regions has become a critical issue constraining ecosystem stability and socio-ecological resilience. This study aims to reveal the spatial differentiation of drivers of GD across four functional zones in Inner Mongolia—resource-oriented (RO), center-service-oriented (CSO), agro-pastoral-oriented (APO), and ecological-oriented (EO)—at the county level, using grassland conversion processes as a structural proxy. The results show that land cover changed in 19.29%, 18.69%, 17.28%, and 4.67% of the RO, CSO, APO, and EO regions, respectively, with GR mainly occurring in the RO region, while GD was more prevalent in the other zones. Drivers of GD exhibit significant variations across functional zones. In the RO zone, land use change is primarily associated with human disturbance. In the CSO and APO zones, it is associated with human activities, climatic factors, and urbanization. In the EO zone, the identified drivers show strong spatial heterogeneity, with urbanization, grazing intensity, and climate change emerging as key associated factors in the Hulunbuir, Xilingol, and Arxar regions. Overall, the results reveal a spatial gradient in the relative importance of anthropogenic pressure and climatic stress, with broader implications for adaptive and place-specific dryland governance under ongoing warming and increasing aridification.

This study examines how vernacular cultural landscapes (VCLs) contribute to community well-being, addressing fragmented evidence across cultural geography, environmental psychology, and public health. It aims to develop an integrated understanding of the mechanisms linking VCL characteristics to health outcomes. A hybrid narrative–scoping review, following the PRISMA-ScR guidelines, synthesizes the interdisciplinary literature (2016–2026). The findings show that VCLs support well-being through interconnected pathways, including physical activity, psychological restoration, social cohesion, and environmental sustainability, although these effects are shaped by governance, access, and socioeconomic conditions. The study concludes that VCLs function as context-dependent, health-supportive socio-ecological systems. Its key contribution lies in developing a conceptual framework that operationalizes VCL–health relationships and informs spatial planning and public health policy.

In the context of climate change and the challenge of strengthening urban biodiversity, this paper examines the potential of speculative drawing as a methodological tool for developing biodiversity scenarios of the cityscape within the framework of the New European Bauhaus initiative. The research is based on the initiative’s core values of beautiful, sustainable, and together, and is conducted using a drawing-based methodology grounded in inductive reasoning across three spatial scales in Block 30, which is part of the spatial cultural-historical unit of the Central Zone of New Belgrade. The potentials for biodiversity development are explored at the scale of the apartment, the facade, and the open space of the block. By examining the interactions between the indoor and open spaces of mass housing, ecological potentials emerge. The experimental process demonstrates that drawing can function as a methodological tool that reveals opportunities for community engagement through drawing practices. The proposed layering of drawings offers interpretations of cityscape transformation at each of the three scales. Through speculative scenarios, the drawings provide a methodological tool to co-create biodiversity interventions in mass housing as a sensitive architectural layer within the design process, fostering a new understanding of the relationship between nature and the cityscape.

Rail-trail corridors in the agricultural Midwest exhibit layered ecological conditions influenced by the material legacy of railroad infrastructure and contemporary land use pressures. This study uses a mixed-methods approach integrating GIS analysis, field documentation, and open-response surveys with trail managers to characterize the structural and ecological heterogeneity of two rail-trails within the Corn Belt. Spatial methods quantify variation in right of way width, land cover context, connectivity, and patterns of fragmentation, revealing that corridors shift in response to agricultural edges, successional woodlands, riparian zones, and urban conditions. Field visits and on-site sketching provide fine-grained insight into vegetative structure, topography, and edge dynamics, while the thematic analysis of survey responses highlights how management regimes, resource limitations, invasive species, and adjacent land uses shape ecological patterns along the trail. Together, these methods support the development of a typology of rail-trails based on their vegetative, hydrological, and disturbance patterns. We argue that design and management should work with the nuance of the corridors, noting the potential for landscape experimentation. Novel design approaches can support the performance of rail-trails as ecological infrastructure while enabling meaningful human–environment interactions within the right of way.

Urban railway corridors—including abandoned, redesigned, and in-use lines—can support biodiversity and ecological connectivity in fragmented cities, yet their ecological dynamics and roles in Nature-based Solutions (NbS) remain poorly understood. Addressing this requires a context-sensitive approach that differentiates corridor types and compares their ecological functions. This study compares vegetation dynamics along railway corridors in two cities with contrasting socio-ecological contexts—Perth (Western Australia) and Beijing (China)—using a typology-based comparative approach. The results show that: (1) vegetation dynamics differ fundamentally between the two cities, with Perth characterized by vertically structured vegetation dominated by native tree layers and non-native disturbance-tolerant annual groundcover, while Beijing supports more continuous vegetation with widespread natural regeneration of native species; and (2) these differences correspond to distinct suggested NbS strategies. For Perth, NbS should combine phenology-aware management (wet versus dry seasons) with disturbance-based zoning and staged native planting strategies. In contrast, Beijing corridors are characterized by more uniform disturbance patterns but differentiated corridor typologies, indicating NbS structured around corridor-type management with a stronger emphasis on the support of native groundcover establishment and allowing for self-sustaining regeneration. These findings highlight how different contexts shape vegetation dynamics and provide comparative ecological insights for developing context-specific NbS for urban railway corridors.

Africa’s rainfed agricultural systems are highly exposed to climate change, making shifts in temperature and rainfall a major concern for staple-food crop production. Using a MaxENT ecological niche modelling approach with crop occurrence, elevation, soil and climatic predictors, this study assessed current and future suitability for rainfed maize, millet and sorghum under RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5. The projections show a notable expansion of 11.1–22.0% in areas suitable for maize cultivation, and a decline of 1.6–7.3% in areas suitable for production of millet and sorghum, indicating likelihood for increased food-security risks in regions dependent on drought-tolerant cereals. These differing shifts highlight the need for targeted adaptation measures, including crop diversification and region-specific planning to help sustain crop production under a changing climate.

Protected areas are increasingly expected to reconcile biodiversity conservation with socio-economic sustainability, yet operational tools for assessing local sustainability are limited. This study develops a replicable viability index as an operationalization of socio-economic sustainability at the settlement scale, focusing on the capacity of rural communities to maintain demographic balance and housing dynamics over time. The framework was applied to the West Estonian Archipelago Biosphere Reserve (WEABR), an inhabited UNESCO “Man and the Biosphere” site. Using harmonized census data from 1979 to 2021, the index combines three village-level binary indicators: population dynamics, residential construction activity, and demographic balance. Binary scoring reduces statistical volatility in small settlements and enables comparison across time. Approximately 60% of rural settlements remained viable over four decades, while highly viable settlements declined from 14% to 7%. Population stabilization increased, but ageing intensified and new construction decreased. Viability concentrates near urban centres, ports, transportation corridors, and coastal areas, while inland peripheral villages stagnate. Compared with mainland rural Estonia, WEABR shows a relatively resilient middle tier of viable settlements. The framework provides a transferable tool for monitoring settlement level socio-economic sustainability in inhabited protected areas.

Urban green spaces provide essential ecosystem services, yet mismatches between subjective perceptions and objective assessments may constrain effective planning. This study examines the correspondence between perceived and measured ES across two contrasting urban green spaces in Shanghai: Century Park, a managed urban park, and Sanlin Green Space, a naturalistic urban forest. Objective ecosystem services (regulating, supporting, and cultural) were quantified using UAV-based biotope mapping and indicators including biophysical metrics (Net Primary Production, Water Retention, PM10 removal, and Land Surface Temperature), structural diversity indices (Shannon Diversity of land cover, vegetation, and tree structure), and visual–spatial proxies (Green View Index, Sky View Index, Water View Index, color metrics, and spatial openness). Subjective perceptions were derived from panoramic image-based questionnaires, with perception scores predicted using XGBoost and aggregated via SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP). Correlation analyses, spatial regression models, and partial least squares structural equation modeling were applied to explore relationships and pathways. Results show weak but significant positive associations in the urban park, whereas no overall correspondence was observed in the urban forest. Spatial mismatches were concentrated in biotopes with distinctive visual–ecological features and in fragmented areas. Green View Index is associated with higher perceptions in both sites, while the Sky View Index reduced perception in the forest context. These findings highlight strong context dependence in perceived–measured ecosystem service relationships and underscore the importance of integrating ecological structure and visual legibility in the design and management of the studied urban green spaces in Shanghai.