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Dear Colleagues,
I invite you to submit your latest research for this special issue of Sustainability. Urban planning and social well-being together constitute a challenging topic and critical real-world problem to be solved. It is also a polyhedral theme that requires the attention of all of us. We need different disciplines, cross-disciplinary studies, and adventurist ideas toward the future of sustainable urban planning that incorporates the well-being of the urban population.
Hundreds of cities are planned or being built in the world. Cities are high-concentration places with complex problems of livability related to density and climate-changing conditions. Cities are spaces where the rise of inequality is clearer than in any other locale. In relation to the environment, there is no doubt that cities concentrate enormous amounts of waste and emissions, yet cities and urbanization at the same time provide a more efficient way to live. Concentrating people in space allows delivering services at scale with fewer resources, intensifying the adoption of recycling and reuse. Additionally, there are enormous innovations coming from cities. Unfortunately, that’s not been the model of urban growth, which instead has been about increasing consumption and areas of disparity where the social fabric has been cut off and greenery is nonexistent. The modern environmental approach has demonstrated little capacity for problem solving.
Changes are in order mainly to dramatically reduce cities’ dependence on fossil fuels, boost the deployment of renewable energy, reintroduce water to the hydrological cycle, and promote sewage reprocessing. To transform cities into livable habitats, a common goal should engage citizens, governments, and public and private sectors. Cities and urban areas are major contributors to diminishing the natural capital of the planet and eroding its resilience. Nevertheless, sustainable urbanization has the potential to help in a new era of well-being, resource efficiency, and economic growth.
According to the UN, addressing the impacts of climate change is a strategic issue that requires a comprehensive and sustainable approach. Building resilience is about building the right kind of infrastructure, to make sure that people are in places that are not more vulnerable, and are not in fragile areas, ensuring equitable access to essential services. It is about guaranteeing that individuals have the capacity to deal with emerging problems of air and water pollution and a multitude of other environmental challenges. Consequently, in rethinking the model, the benefits of urbanization can be leveraged and the wealth of resources can be deployed much more efficiently.
Therefore, this Special Issue provides a forum to discuss and identify new trends and developments in urban planning and social well-being, with an emphasis on sustainability.
Prof. Dr. Montserrat Pallares-Barbera
Guest Editor
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