Inclusive Urban Planning Research Articles

Cognitive Urban Planning Enhancing Decision-Making in Local Governments.

According to the United Nations (UN), a “continuous, participatory, and inclusive urban planning process should be the starting point and framework for improving population living conditions,” and this research emerges from examining trends in smart cities. It explores the impact of collective intelligence, geographical information systems, and cognitive systems as a way of supporting the decision-making of local governments (municipalities) to face the challenges announced by the UN in the Urban Agenda 2017. This methodology employs an exploratory approach using the participatory action research method. The model was tested in three municipalities in Ecuador using a technological and collaborative platform called Cognitive Urban Planning (PUC). The results highlighted improvements in the decision-making process in urban planning, since the interactive participation processes through the PUC allowed for the suggestion of a group of strategies for an emerging neighborhood plan developed with the citizens working together in the municipality in real-time. In conclusion, the effects of the decision-making plan could be applied to improve and enhance community participation through city co-creation, supporting the decision-making process of municipalities in a way that promotes inclusive urban planning and stakeholders' awareness, as the recommended plans are supported by the desires and needs raised by citizens.

Built environment professionals’ perceptions of vertical greenery systems: a case of Delhi, India

ABSTRACT This study examines built environment professionals’ perceptions of vertical greenery systems in Delhi, a city confronting rapid urban growth and climate change challenges. Through a detailed mixed-methods approach using an online survey, this study evaluates the perceived benefits and challenges of such systems. The results indicate cautious optimism, with nearly 39% of respondents having prior experience and acknowledging their aesthetic and environmental benefits, including reducing urban heat and improving air quality. However, concerns regarding technical implementation and regular maintenance of vertical greenery systems emerge as significant barriers. This study highlights the critical need for inclusive urban planning strategies that embrace nature-based solutions, such as vertical greenery systems, to combat urban sustainability challenges considering Delhi’s distinctive climate. Furthermore, it underscores the importance of addressing the uncertainty among building owners and policymakers towards adopting these systems, despite their recognized potential for climate change mitigation. The findings advocate for further research and targeted policies to facilitate the broader application of vertical greenery systems, not only in Delhi, but also in urban settings globally facing similar environmental pressures, thereby contributing to the discourse on urban sustainability and climate resilience.

Peri-urban dynamics: assessing expansion patterns and influencing factors

BackgroundPeri-urbanization, the expansion of large metropolitan centers into adjacent peri-urban regions, is a growing concern due to land scarcity and escalating housing costs. These zones, a blend of rural and urban features, blur the line between urban and rural areas, creating new landscapes. This study examines historical, present, and potential growth trends in the peri-urban area surrounding Durgapur Municipal Corporation (DMC). Analytical techniques and spatial metrics are used to track development intensity changes over time, including built-up density, Shannon’s entropy, Landscape expansion index, Average Weighted Mean Expansion Index, Annual Built-Up Expansion Rate, Built-Up Expansion Intensity Index, and Built-Up Expansion Difference Index. Landscape indices like Patch Density, Edge Density, Landscape Shape Index, Largest Patch Index, Ratio of Open Space, and Area Weighted Mean Patch Fractal are used to understand fragmentation, connectivity, and spatial relationships. The Logistic Regression Model (LRM) is used to identify influencing factors and CA-Markov modeling for future built-up areas.ResultsBetween 1991 and 2001, built-up area in the region increased significantly, primarily due to urban development near industrial zones, roadways, and mining areas. The growth was primarily concentrated in the western sector and near National Highway-2 (NH-2). Urban sprawl was a continuous trend, with the highest built-up density in the South-South-East (SSE) direction from 1991 to 2011. Additionally, a key determinant of built-up development was the distance to the city core. By 2031, the built-up area is expected to concentrate in the western and southeast regions, reaching 177.90 km2.ConclusionsThis expansion is attributed to urban development near industrial zones, roadways, mining areas, and other infrastructure. The study identifies distance to the city center as a significant influencing factor for built-up development. The results emphasize the need for inclusive urban planning methods prioritizing sustainable development principles and prudent resource management for future growth and efficient management in the DMC’s peri-urban area.

Who are marginalized in accessing urban ecosystem services? A systematic literature review

Urban ecosystems provide many crucial services to cities and their residents, particularly in adapting to the effects of climate change. Extensive research has been conducted in this field, covering various aspects of ecosystem services. However, little is known about issues related to the limited access to these ecosystem services, particularly among marginalized populations. This review systematically screened 3961 papers and synthesized findings from 98 papers to identify groups that are marginalized in terms of access to urban ecosystem services and provide policy measures to address the issue. We conducted an inductive content analysis and thematic analysis to review the literature comprehensively. Our findings revealed that marginalization is more prevalent in cultural ecosystem services (51 %) than in other ecosystem service types. The results also show that vulnerable populations, including minorities, low-income populations, physically challenged people, children/young people/students, older people, and migrants, are particularly marginalized. Among these groups, minorities (24 %) emerged as the most extensively studied category. Additionally, we identified a marginalized group labeled as 'generic,' consisting of individuals whose identities did not neatly fit within the previously defined groups or were mentioned across multiple groups simultaneously.The marginalization across all these groups stems from income disparities, cultural norms, racial and ethnic considerations, willingness to visit, age-related disparities, physical disabilities, and geographical location. Importantly, our study underscores the adverse effects of marginalization on these groups, leading to health disparities, lower quality of life, and reduced resilience to climate change. In light of these findings, we also spotlight policies from the literature such as inclusive urban planning, community engagement initiatives, and financial support aimed at ensuring more equitable access to urban ecosystem services.

Use of the Sociogram in Participatory Planning in Contexts of Social Exclusion: A Comparative Case Study in Cordoba Neighbourhoods, Spain

Urban regeneration and spatial planning have adopted a new participatory approach in recent decades, highlighting the importance of integrating the community in urban decision-making processes, especially in disadvantaged and socially excluded areas. In this context, the sociogram emerges as an essential tool for collaborative governance, allowing the visualization and analysis of the dynamics between the different actors involved. This study employs a comparative case study approach in three disadvantaged neighbourhoods in Córdoba, Spain, to examine how the sociogram can facilitate more effective and democratic participation in urban planning. Using heat maps, scatter plots and average analysis, relationships between actors are identified and characterized, providing a solid basis for more inclusive and equitable planning decisions. This analysis not only reveals the practical utility of the sociogram in participatory research but also underscores its theoretical relevance in building resilient and cohesive communities. Findings confirm the sociogram’s effectiveness in mapping stakeholder dynamics and enhancing participatory governance, ultimately fostering more informed and inclusive urban planning processes.

Exploring Urban Service Location Suitability: Mapping Social Behavior Dynamics with Space Syntax Theory

Assessing urban service locations is a key issue within city planning, integral to promoting the well-being of citizens, and ensuring effective urban development. However, many current approaches emphasize spatial analysis focused solely on physical attributes, neglecting the equally vital social dimensions essential for enhancing inhabitants’ comfort and quality of life. When social factors are considered, they tend to operate at smaller scales. This paper addresses this gap by prioritizing integrating social factors alongside spatial analysis at the community level. By employing space syntax theory, this study investigates urban service suitability in Hajjah, a Palestinian urban community, presenting a novel approach in the literature. The research identifies good spots for essential governmental facilities like health clinics and fire stations using axial map analysis. It also suggests reallocation for some schools. Additionally, it shows ways to improve the placement of community amenities, finding ideal park locations but suboptimal mosque placements. Commercial services also exhibit areas for enhancement including gas stations and shops. The insights from this research can offer policymakers and planners insights to create more efficient, equitable, and accessible cities. The research approach incorporates social behavior dynamics into spatial analysis, promoting inclusive urban planning.

Inclusive urban planning for upgrading an informal settlement

ABSTRACT Many developing and emerging economies have experienced rapid urbanization and rising living standards in recent decades, resulting in sustainability-related problems and other hazards that may go unnoticed when considering sustainable development plans. In this context, poverty alleviation and rapid economic development typically take precedence over environmental aspects. However, better urban planning and management are needed to limit the impact of unprecedented growth on cities’ livability. This study presents the results of integrated and participatory territorial planning, which promotes efficient and sustainable territory and development governance and develops an integrated local development plan (LDP) that integrates urban-environmental and socio-economic aspects in an informal settlement in a developing country, Pemba City in Mozambique, through inclusive and collective planning decisions. We propose a multidisciplinary geographical information system-based framework methodology for spatial evaluation and visualization, which supports scenario development by involving stakeholders and citizens in decision-making processes and providing targeted suggestions for devising LDPs. The project achieved the following outcomes: (i) increased citizen participation; (ii) generation of guidelines and tools for integrated and participatory territorial planning; and (iii) improvements in human well-being, particularly among youth and women. The results can aid urban planners in designing sustainable strategies for developing countries and engage stakeholders.

Community gardens for inclusive urban planning in Padua (Italy): implementing a participatory spatial multicriteria decision-making analysis to explore the social meanings of urban agriculture

Urban agriculture is recognized as a worthy resource to support a growing population as well as to provide other positive effects on urban ecosystems and their citizens. In this context, community gardens are considered key topics in terms of food production and food security, in both developing and developed countries, as well as in terms of social inclusion and participation. The general aim of this study was to assess the main spatial criteria recognized and shared by stakeholders to identify suitable and inclusive areas for community gardens by testing and developing a participatory process. Because of its size, population, and urban fabric, Padua (northeast Italy) was selected as a representative and emblematic case study for mid-sized cities in Europe. The methodology was based on field surveys of key informants and spatial multicriteria decision-making analysis in the open-source geographic information system environment of QGIS. The results identified neighborhoods to be prioritized in the design of new community gardens according to three scenarios: the distance index, the social index, and the combination of the two (overall index). To conclude, this study highlighted the importance of adopting a decision-making methodology to support local policymakers and municipal agencies that are interested in implementing other community gardens in Padua. The case study and the methodology adopted could also serve as important guides for cities by providing step-by-step processes that can be directly applied.

Assessing the Impact of ICT, Tourism, Globalization and Urbanization on Environmental Degradation and Economic Growth

This study explores the impact of information and communication technology (ICT), tourism, globalization, and urbanization on the economic growth and environmental degradation of middle-income countries classified as overall, upper and lower-middle-income countries. It uses a micro panel dataset of 65 nations from 2000 to 2021 through a two-step Generalized Method of Moment estimation approach. The results indicate that the influence of ICT on environmental degradation differs across nation groups. Overall countries have a harmful effect, upper-middle countries exhibit a beneficial influence, and lower-middle countries show no significant link. Tourism continually causes environmental deterioration in all sorts of nations, emphasizing the need for eco-friendly tourist initiatives. Globalization has been seen to have a positive correlation with environmental degradation in countries classified as Overall and Upper-middle income, but a negative correlation in Lower-middle-income nations. Urbanization has a favorable influence on environmental deterioration in Overall and Lower-middle-income nations, but it does not have a significant impact in Upper-middle-income countries. These findings underscore the need to tackle the environmental impacts of information and communication technology (ICT), tourism, globalization, and urbanization. To attain a greener and more sustainable future while fostering economic growth, policymakers should prioritize sustainable development, introduce energy-efficient technologies, encourage responsible tourism practices, enforce environmental regulations, and advocate for inclusive urban planning.

Enabling asset-based community development solutions: Pro-poor urban climate resilience in Kumasi, Ghana

Cities of the Global South, such as Kumasi, Ghana, face elevated risks from climate change, and current adaptation efforts are failing. Ghanaian cities are beset by weak urban planning capacities and inadequate finance to contend with climate risks, with the poor being swept aside. Given that the urban poor are excluded from official climate interventions, coupled with the fact that weak institutional and stakeholder coordination presently exists, community-led approaches to climate change are critical in providing a minimum localised climate-specific capacity. A preliminary investigation of two largely established informal settlements in Kumasi assessed residents' and local planning authorities' sensitivities for community-led approaches to climate risks. Our research: (i) investigated perceptions of the nature and evidence of climate change; (ii) examined respective knowledge on the asset-based community development approach (ABCD); (iii) identified and examined the influence of the ABCD approach in building resilience to climate change impacts; and (iv) probed the challenges with its implementation in informal settlements. We surveyed 367 households, six governmental agencies and conducted focus group discussions for relevant data. Respondents demonstrated a good understanding of the most salient manifestations of climate change: flooding, heat, and drought events. The absence of formally recognised associations and the challenges associated with utilising community assets and households' high expectations for government aid impede ABCD pathways. We conclude that mainstreaming ABCD within urban planning and governance systems can be enhanced by emphasising the co-benefits, better alignment with a shared vision of climate adaptation and transitioning towards an inclusive urban planning future.

People's Participation and Governance Principles Shaping Inclusive Urban Planning

This research investigates the intricate interplay between participatory democracy and urban planning, with a focal point on fostering inclusiveness and sustainability. The literature review delves into existing perspectives on public participation, elucidating its connection to local democracy and emphasizing the symbiotic relationship with principles of good governance. The paper outlines key objectives for public participation in urban planning, underscoring the importance of transparent communication and early engagement. Examining diverse urban scenarios, the case studies spotlight instances of public participation, including the protest against Bengaluru's elevated road network, the alternative master plan in Dharavi, and environmental advocacy in Goa. These cases exemplify the transformative potential of community engagement and the challenges inherent in reconciling economic considerations with unique socio-economic fabrics. In conclusion, the research emphasizes the global impact of public participation in shaping urban development. The commitment and resilience demonstrated by citizens underscore the vital role of active community involvement in shaping the destiny of their regions. Early participation emerges as crucial for informed decision-making, fostering a sense of ownership and contributing to a more inclusive, resilient, and sustainable global future. Key Words: People's participation, Urban Planning, Inclusiveness, sustainability, Community involvement

Street Trading and Urban Distortion: Rethinking Impacts and Management Approaches from Urban Planners’ Perspective in Enugu City, Nigeria

This study investigates the relationship between street trading and urban planning in Enugu City, Nigeria, within the expanding informal economy of the global South. It particularly focuses on the perspectives of urban planners regarding the impacts and management of street trading. The research employed a mixed-method approach, including personal observation, questionnaires, and in-depth interviews, analyzed through basic statistical methods. Findings reveal that urban planners recognize the socio-economic importance and cultural relevance of street trading, despite its negative spatial externalities. Contrary to prevailing assumptions, planners favour negotiated solutions over forced evictions. This study highlights the need for inclusive urban planning practices that accommodate the socio-economic benefits of street trading while addressing its challenges, contributing to the discourse on sustainable urban development.

Knowledge Actors Engaging in “Everyday Planning” in Rapidly Urbanizing Peripheries of the Global South

This article presents original research based on the premise that inclusive urban planning is about different types of knowledges coming together, a process that enables the participation of diverse knowledge actors. In India, the urgency of peri‐urbanization is reflected in the massive transformation and roaring real estate speculation that is being unleashed through the conversion of agricultural land into profit‐making urban zones. It is the praxeology of an everyday planning modality by actors that interpret the possibility of real estate speculation at different scales that drive the rapid emergence of the peri‐urban built environment around the metropolis of Bangalore in Southern India. At the outset, I present a conceptual framework that articulates territorial‐financial mechanisms at the macro‐level with the praxiology of planning actors and their networks at the meso‐level through spatial knowledges. Then I describe the methods used. In the empirical part, this article first describes a particular site at the periphery of the city of Bangalore. Then, I delineate the prescriptive knowledge given by the local planning law. I present the praxiology of the different knowledge actors that explain the modality of peri‐urbanization, followed by a discussion of the rationales of the actors that shape everyday practices of planning. Finally, I discuss how social workers could get more involved in the urban planning process and contribute to shaping more inclusive cities because of the profession’s grounding in principles and ethics that supports human well‐being and development in cities for people and not for profit.

GPS Tracking Data on Marginalised Citizens’ Spatial Patterns: Towards Inclusive Urban Planning

Knowledge about how marginalised citizens use urban spaces is hard to access and apply in urban planning and policy. Based on current debates around “smart cities” and “smart governance,” the City of Odense, in Denmark, has tested the integration of “smart engagement” by means of GPS-tracking techniques into the municipality’s cross-sectoral strategy for an “inclusive city.” In a period of austerity, cities have the incentive to optimise public services. Hence, GPS-tracking data was produced by 64 marginalised citizens, resulting in a data inventory covering three weeks of spatial behaviour. First, this article shows how these GPS-tracking data were processed into maps without revealing person-sensitive spatial patterns. Secondly, the article explores whether such maps and the GPS-tracking techniques that underpin them are considered valid, relevant, and applicable to urban planning from the perspectives of marginalised citizens, their representatives, and municipal planners and professionals respectively. The GPS project showed shortcomings as regards the quality of the data inventory and the representativity of the mapped behaviour, which made them inapplicable for optimising dedicated public service. However, the article also finds that the GPS-based maps succeeded in being non-person sensitive and in providing a valuable platform for citizen-centric dialogues with marginalised citizens with the potential for raising awareness and increasing knowledge about this citizen group’s living conditions and urban lives. An important derived effect of the project is that it has ensured ongoing cross-sectoral collaboration among a range of professional stakeholders, imperative for ensuring creating greater equity in urban planning.

Citizen Engagement in Smart City Planning: The Case of Living Labs in South Korea

The smart city is recognized as a new city model for inclusive urban planning. Many local governments are making smart city plans to develop new policies that manage urban issues in South Korea. They identify issues through citizen surveys and decide which issues should be managed with priority. Some governments test developed policies based on citizen engagement. Most local governments use the living labs to encourage citizen engagement in smart city plans since these are public spaces where planners engage citizens to develop innovative and inclusive ideas. This study conducted a content analysis of smart city plans of local government. We analyzed the various approaches to the living lab and examined the stage of the planning process it is utilized in. Additionally, we identified the barrier to the living lab by interviewing people who participated in the smart city plan. According to the analysis, a barrier to citizen engagement exists in smart city plans; most citizen engagement is only used when planners develop ideas for setting visions and goals. It implies that citizen engagement occurs at a limited level in smart city plans and may cause planning to be less inclusive. We suggest that citizen engagement should be considered in the whole planning process to improve the inclusiveness of smart city plans and encourage sustainable citizen engagement.

A maximum entropy approach for the modelling of car-sharing parking dynamics

The science of cities is a relatively new and interdisciplinary topic aimed at studying and characterizing the collective processes that shape the growth and dynamics of urban populations. Amongst other open problems, the forecast of mobility trends in urban spaces is a lively research topic that aims at assisting the design and implementation of efficient transportation policies and inclusive urban planning. To this end, many Machine-Learning models have been put forward to predict mobility patterns. However, most of them are not interpretable -as they build on complex hidden representations of the system configurations- or do not allow for model inspection, thus limiting our understanding of the underlying mechanisms driving the citizen’s daily routines. Here, we tackle this problem by building a fully interpretable statistical model that, incorporating only the minimum number of constraints, can predict different phenomena arising in the city. Using data on the movements of car-sharing vehicles in several Italian cities, we infer a model using the Maximum Entropy (MaxEnt) principle. The model allows for an accurate spatio-temporal prediction of car-sharing vehicles’ presence in different city areas and, thanks to its simple yet general formulation, to precisely perform anomaly detection (e.g., detect strikes and bad weather conditions from car-sharing data only). We compare the forecasting capabilities of our model with different state-of-the-art models explicitly made for time-series forecasting: SARIMA models and Deep Learning Models. We find that MaxEnt models are highly predictive, outperforming SARIMAs while having similar performances of deep Neural Networks - but with advantages of being more interpretable, more flexibile—i.e., they can be applied to different tasks- and being computationally efficient. Our results show that statistical inference might play a fundamental role in building robust and general models describing urban systems phenomena.

A Neighborhood-Based Urban Water Carrying Capacity Assessment: Analysis of the Relationship between Spatial-Demographic Factors and Water Consumption Patterns in Tehran, Iran

The upward trajectory of urbanization, coupled with the ever-growing demand for more water resources, has led to increased pressure on limited water resources, particularly in cities with dry climates such as Tehran. Since the balance of Tehran’s water ecosystems has been disturbed, and the quality and quantity of water resources have been affected in recent years, conducting an assessment of water environment carrying capacity (WECC) seemed vital for this city. WECC was used as the basis of water supply sustainability evaluation concerning Tehran’s land use and demographic characteristics on a neighborhood scale. Therefore, the effect size and correlation of 12 types of land use and six variables derived from the literature with water consumption patterns were examined in warm and cold seasons. The results show that land use, population density, percentage of deteriorated area, percentage of buildings over 30 years old, residential–commercial land use, and green spaces correlate significantly with water consumption. The percentage of deteriorated areas and buildings over 30 years old has a negative, and the rest has a positive impact on water consumption. It is also recommended to use the research findings to improve Tehran’s water environment carrying capacity and apply the proposed evaluation procedure to other cities. The results of this research can be used in planning large and densely populated cities with a neighborhood-oriented approach, in which local institutions play an essential role in attracting people’s participation and inclusive urban planning.

Using explainable machine learning to understand how urban form shapes sustainable mobility

Municipalities are increasingly acknowledging the importance of urban form interventions that can reduce intra-city car travel in achieving more sustainable cities. Current academic knowledge for supporting such policies falls short in providing the spatial details required to plan specific interventions. Here, we develop an explainable machine learning framework to identify location-specific relevance of built environment for urban motorised travel, using a sample of 3.5 million car commutes over one year in Berlin and high-resolution urban form data. Results demonstrate that subcenters play a vital role in reducing commuting-related travel distance, giving support to the 15-minute city hypothesis. Observed threshold effects of induced CO 2 emissions require low-carbon-policies targeted towards densifying the inner city while releasing peripheral low income communities from car dependence. This research provides a starting point for increasingly rich big data analyses of urban form for creating low-carbon and inclusive urban planning strategies. • Subcenters in Berlin are vital to reduce commuting distances. • CO 2 inducing threshold effects require densification of the inner city. • Peripheral low-income communities necessitate release from car dependence. • Identification of location-specific urban form effects on car travel using SHAP values.

Transportation Infrastructure as a Social Justice Issue: Mixed Methods Analysis of a Suburban Boomtown

This sequential, mixed methods study assessed economic growth and transportation infrastructure development in a suburban Texas boomtown, where population growth exceeded 100% over a 20-year-period. Researchers applied empowerment theory to investigate and compare how environmental justice (EJ) and non-EJ residents perceive the growth. Results from 200 surveys and four focus groups were analyzed and paired with GIS mapping. Findings confirmed incongruence between transportation infrastructure development and economic growth, suggesting a lack of intentional planning, with the consequence of reinforcing societal inequities. Findings underscore need for innovative and inclusive urban planning in the context of rapid growth.

Transformed Wetlands and Urban Resilience: a Case Study From Bellanwila – Attidiya Wetland Sanctuary, Sri Lanka

Urbanization is a major issue that threatens natural habitats. However, carefully planned anthropogenic activities give the opportunity to transform urban natural habitats to offer new services to cities. In this study, we assessed the impact of land-use conversions on the spatial status of Bellanwila - Attidiya wetland sanctuary in the Colombo district, Sri Lanka. The Bellanwila - Attidiya wetland provides many ecosystem services but is highly vulnerable to the rapid land use and land cover changes that comes with urbanization. Multi-temporal remote sensing images were analyzed for the years 2005, 2009, and 2015 to study the changes in land use/land cover features of the wetland. The social perception of the ecosystem services was assessed by conducting semi-structured interviews with the residents. During the study period, parts of the wetland had been transformed into residential areas (10.1%) and open water systems (8.6%). Urban expansion and the construction of a storm water management system were found to be the main causes for these changes. The community perception revealed that the wetland has deteriorated, and that the ecosystem services had been altered due to the land use/land cover changes. The anthropogenic transformation of part of the wetland into a flood retention area and the addition of infrastructure for recreational purposes have added value to the wetland complex and therefore opportunities for new ecosystem services have emerged. Our findings shed light on the need for inclusive urban planning mainstreaming community perceptions. It also highlights the benefits of transforming urban spaces into anthropogenic landscapes that blends with nature to offer ecosystem services and enhance community resilience.