Pub Date : 2025-10-25DOI: 10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100254
Alesi Teixeira Mendes , Conceição de Maria Albuquerque Alves , Francisco Silva Pinto , Rui Cunha Marques
Around the world, cities face diverse challenges in planning, implementing, and updating urban drainage and stormwater management (UDSM) services, challenges that often reflect the specific characteristics of each urban context. Urban heterogeneity directly influences how UDSM services are provided. This study proposes a typology for cities centered on UDSM services, using Brazil as a case study. Applying the k-prototype clustering algorithm, four distinct city types were identified, along with a fifth group composed of cities with missing UDSM data. The application of typologies allowed for the identification of significant variation in how Brazilian cities approach UDSM service provision. The findings reveal governance challenges and opportunities for transitioning to more sustainable solutions across all groups, highlighting the importance of typological approaches in understanding urban service provision more effectively. As cities change from Type 1 to Type 4, both their structural complexity and their institutional capacities increase. Furthermore, the proposition contributes to establishing a common classification system for UDSM services in Brazil and beyond, providing a flexible framework that can evolve in tandem with public policy cycles.
{"title":"Strategic typologies for urban drainage and stormwater management services: A tailored approach to address cities specificities","authors":"Alesi Teixeira Mendes , Conceição de Maria Albuquerque Alves , Francisco Silva Pinto , Rui Cunha Marques","doi":"10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100254","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100254","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Around the world, cities face diverse challenges in planning, implementing, and updating urban drainage and stormwater management (UDSM) services, challenges that often reflect the specific characteristics of each urban context. Urban heterogeneity directly influences how UDSM services are provided. This study proposes a typology for cities centered on UDSM services, using Brazil as a case study. Applying the k-prototype clustering algorithm, four distinct city types were identified, along with a fifth group composed of cities with missing UDSM data. The application of typologies allowed for the identification of significant variation in how Brazilian cities approach UDSM service provision. The findings reveal governance challenges and opportunities for transitioning to more sustainable solutions across all groups, highlighting the importance of typological approaches in understanding urban service provision more effectively. As cities change from Type 1 to Type 4, both their structural complexity and their institutional capacities increase. Furthermore, the proposition contributes to establishing a common classification system for UDSM services in Brazil and beyond, providing a flexible framework that can evolve in tandem with public policy cycles.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":52395,"journal":{"name":"City and Environment Interactions","volume":"28 ","pages":"Article 100254"},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2025-10-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145415073","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-10-24DOI: 10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100256
Swarnali Bhattacharjee , Mohammad Ismail Hossain , Md Nahid Ferdous
Child health is strongly influenced by the quality of waste management, sanitation, and hygiene particularly in rapidly urbanizing regions. This study examined the spatial distribution of Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) services and their effects on child health in Ward No. 26 of Khulna City Corporation, Bangladesh, using Geographic Information System (GIS) techniques. Data was collected through 184 household surveys, focus group discussions (FGDs), key informant interviews (KIIs), and spatial analyses. Results revealed substantial disparities in access to WASH facilities: the proportion of areas with functional toilets ranged from 44.5% to 61.4%, access to safe drinking water varied from 9% to 32%, hygienic practices ranged from 14% to 82%, and effective waste management was as low as 10% in some neighborhoods. In high-risk clusters, 47% of children were affected by at least one disease. Correlation analysis showed that open waste dumping was strongly and positively associated with child illness (r = 0.86), while personal hygiene practices exhibited a strong negative relationship with disease prevalence (r = − 0.73). In contrast, functional toilets demonstrated a weak but negative association (r = − 0.22). Spatial mapping identified clusters of typhoid, dysentery, and diarrhea near open disposal sites and contaminated water sources. The findings highlight that untreated water use and poor waste management substantially heighten environmental health risks. The study underscores the urgent need for improved sanitation infrastructure, community-based waste management, and hygiene education to reduce preventable childhood illnesses in urban Bangladesh.
{"title":"Exploring the spatial Nexus of wash and child health in Khulna using geospatial techniques","authors":"Swarnali Bhattacharjee , Mohammad Ismail Hossain , Md Nahid Ferdous","doi":"10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100256","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100256","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Child health is strongly influenced by the quality of waste management, sanitation, and hygiene particularly in rapidly urbanizing regions. This study examined the spatial distribution of Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) services and their effects on child health in Ward No. 26 of Khulna City Corporation, Bangladesh, using Geographic Information System (GIS) techniques. Data was collected through 184 household surveys, focus group discussions (FGDs), key informant interviews (KIIs), and spatial analyses. Results revealed substantial disparities in access to WASH facilities: the proportion of areas with functional toilets ranged from 44.5% to 61.4%, access to safe drinking water varied from 9% to 32%, hygienic practices ranged from 14% to 82%, and effective waste management was as low as 10% in some neighborhoods. In high-risk clusters, 47% of children were affected by at least one disease. Correlation analysis showed that open waste dumping was strongly and positively associated with child illness (r = 0.86), while personal hygiene practices exhibited a strong negative relationship with disease prevalence (r = − 0.73). In contrast, functional toilets demonstrated a weak but negative association (r = − 0.22). Spatial mapping identified clusters of typhoid, dysentery, and diarrhea near open disposal sites and contaminated water sources. The findings highlight that untreated water use and poor waste management substantially heighten environmental health risks. The study underscores the urgent need for improved sanitation infrastructure, community-based waste management, and hygiene education to reduce preventable childhood illnesses in urban Bangladesh.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":52395,"journal":{"name":"City and Environment Interactions","volume":"28 ","pages":"Article 100256"},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2025-10-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145415074","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-10-19DOI: 10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100253
Hayati Sari Hasibuan , Mari Eko Mulyani , Muhammad Attorik Falensky , Muhammad Fadel Aginda , Rudy Parluhutan Tambunan
As the world’s largest archipelagic nation, comprising 17,024 islands, Indonesia faces distinct challenges in managing urban expansion within its island cities, particularly given that 90% of its urban areas are situated along the coastlines. This study provides a critical analysis of Sofifi the designated as capital of North Maluku Province three decades ago, with the aim of informing scholarly debates and policy considerations surrounding the ongoing development of Indonesia’s new national capital Nusantara. By examining landscape changes in Sofifi between 1994 and 2024, the research assess the extent to which its administrative status as the provincial capital influenced urbanisation. It addresses a gap in global scholarship on landscape transformation in island-based cities as most existing literature focuses on mainland contexts. The analysis utilised satellite imagery from the Google Earth Engine (GEE) platform. In addition to multitemporal Landsat imagery field surveys were conducted in early October 2024 to collect land cover samples. These data were processed through land cover classification and transformation analysis using the Change Detection Wizard in ArcGIS Pro. Findings revealed that despite administrative designation Sofifi experienced no significant urbanisation over the three decades. Lessons learned for Indonesia’s New National Capital (Nusantara) include the critical need to address the evident reluctance of populations to migrate to newly established capitals, which underscore the importance of inclusive planning and infrastructure readiness to ensure urban vibrancy.
{"title":"Capital city status and policy influence on land dynamics: a case study of Sofifi, North Maluku Archipelago, Indonesia","authors":"Hayati Sari Hasibuan , Mari Eko Mulyani , Muhammad Attorik Falensky , Muhammad Fadel Aginda , Rudy Parluhutan Tambunan","doi":"10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100253","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100253","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>As the world’s largest archipelagic nation, comprising 17,024 islands, Indonesia faces distinct challenges in managing urban expansion within its island cities, particularly given that 90% of its urban areas are situated along the coastlines. This study provides a critical analysis of Sofifi the designated as capital of North Maluku Province three decades ago, with the aim of informing scholarly debates and policy considerations surrounding the ongoing development of Indonesia’s new national capital Nusantara. By examining landscape changes in Sofifi between 1994 and 2024, the research assess the extent to which its administrative status as the provincial capital influenced urbanisation. It addresses a gap in global scholarship on landscape transformation in island-based cities as most existing literature focuses on mainland contexts. The analysis utilised satellite imagery from the Google Earth Engine (GEE) platform. In addition to multitemporal Landsat imagery field surveys were conducted in early October 2024 to collect land cover samples. These data were processed through land cover classification and transformation analysis using the Change Detection Wizard in ArcGIS Pro. Findings revealed that despite administrative designation Sofifi experienced no significant urbanisation over the three decades. Lessons learned for Indonesia’s New National Capital (Nusantara) include the critical need to address the evident reluctance of populations to migrate to newly established capitals, which underscore the importance of inclusive planning and infrastructure readiness to ensure urban vibrancy.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":52395,"journal":{"name":"City and Environment Interactions","volume":"28 ","pages":"Article 100253"},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2025-10-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145361542","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-10-16DOI: 10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100252
Yingqi Zheng , Minttu Havu , Huizhi Liu , Qun Du , Shaojun Zhang , Yuyu Zhou , Qingzu Luan , Leena Järvi
Urban areas are significant contributors to global carbon dioxide (CO) emissions, highlighting the need to comprehend CO flux dynamics within cities for effective climate change mitigation. Neighbourhood-scale assessments of land-atmosphere CO exchange are needed due to the intricate interactions between human activities, infrastructure, and vegetation. In this study, surface CO flux (Scope 1 direct emissions) was modelled over the urban area of the megacity Beijing, China, in 2016 at 500-m resolution to examine the relative contributions of the different local sources and their dependencies on different Local Climate Zones (LCZs). The model considered direct CO emissions from on-road traffic, local fuel combustion within buildings, human metabolism, soil and vegetation respiration, and CO uptake by vegetation photosynthesis.
The results showed that the spatial average of anthropogenic CO emission was 4.5 kg C m−2 yr−1. Traffic and local building emissions contribute 38% and 37%, respectively, of total CO emissions, followed by human metabolism with 13%. Vegetation uptake offset only 4% of emissions, playing a minor role in climate mitigation due to limited areal coverage. CO fluxes showed high heterogeneity, with hot spots resulting primarily from traffic emissions. Net CO flux increased and then decreased with distance from the city centre, following the pattern in the impervious surface fraction and population density. LCZs helped explain patterns in biogenic and building-related CO fluxes, but they were less effective at capturing the complexity of traffic-related emissions. Simulating both anthropogenic and biogenic fluxes provides insight into their relative magnitudes on the neighbourhood scale and helps to identify the areas where emission reductions would be most critical to be made and nature-based solutions are most urgently needed.
城市地区是全球二氧化碳（CO2）排放的重要贡献者，因此需要了解城市内的二氧化碳通量动态，以有效减缓气候变化。由于人类活动、基础设施和植被之间错综复杂的相互作用，需要对陆地-大气二氧化碳交换进行邻域尺度的评估。在本研究中，以2016年中国特大城市北京市区为研究对象，在500米分辨率下对地表CO2通量（范围1直接排放）进行建模，以检验不同本地源的相对贡献及其对不同局地气气带（lcz）的依赖关系。该模型考虑了道路交通、建筑物内当地燃料燃烧、人体新陈代谢、土壤和植被呼吸以及植被光合作用对二氧化碳的吸收。结果表明，该区人为CO2排放的空间平均值为4.5 kg C m−2 yr−1。交通和当地建筑排放分别占总二氧化碳排放量的38%和37%，其次是人体代谢，占13%。植被吸收仅抵消了排放量的4%，由于面积覆盖有限，在减缓气候变化方面的作用较小。CO2通量表现出高度的异质性，热点主要来自交通排放。CO2净通量随距离市中心的远近先增加后减少，与不透水地表比例和人口密度的变化规律一致。lcz有助于解释生物成因和建筑相关的二氧化碳通量模式，但它们在捕捉交通相关排放的复杂性方面效果较差。模拟人为通量和生物通量，可以深入了解它们在邻里尺度上的相对大小，并有助于确定哪些领域最需要减少排放，哪些领域最迫切需要基于自然的解决办法。
{"title":"Direct CO2 emissions and uptake at neighbourhood-scale across the urban area of Beijing","authors":"Yingqi Zheng , Minttu Havu , Huizhi Liu , Qun Du , Shaojun Zhang , Yuyu Zhou , Qingzu Luan , Leena Järvi","doi":"10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100252","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100252","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Urban areas are significant contributors to global carbon dioxide (CO<span><math><msub><mrow></mrow><mrow><mn>2</mn></mrow></msub></math></span>) emissions, highlighting the need to comprehend CO<span><math><msub><mrow></mrow><mrow><mn>2</mn></mrow></msub></math></span> flux dynamics within cities for effective climate change mitigation. Neighbourhood-scale assessments of land-atmosphere CO<span><math><msub><mrow></mrow><mrow><mn>2</mn></mrow></msub></math></span> exchange are needed due to the intricate interactions between human activities, infrastructure, and vegetation. In this study, surface CO<span><math><msub><mrow></mrow><mrow><mn>2</mn></mrow></msub></math></span> flux (Scope 1 direct emissions) was modelled over the urban area of the megacity Beijing, China, in 2016 at 500-m resolution to examine the relative contributions of the different local sources and their dependencies on different Local Climate Zones (LCZs). The model considered direct CO<span><math><msub><mrow></mrow><mrow><mn>2</mn></mrow></msub></math></span> emissions from on-road traffic, local fuel combustion within buildings, human metabolism, soil and vegetation respiration, and CO<span><math><msub><mrow></mrow><mrow><mn>2</mn></mrow></msub></math></span> uptake by vegetation photosynthesis.</div><div>The results showed that the spatial average of anthropogenic CO<span><math><msub><mrow></mrow><mrow><mn>2</mn></mrow></msub></math></span> emission was 4.5 kg C m<sup>−2</sup> yr<sup>−1</sup>. Traffic and local building emissions contribute 38% and 37%, respectively, of total CO<span><math><msub><mrow></mrow><mrow><mn>2</mn></mrow></msub></math></span> emissions, followed by human metabolism with 13%. Vegetation uptake offset only 4% of emissions, playing a minor role in climate mitigation due to limited areal coverage. CO<span><math><msub><mrow></mrow><mrow><mn>2</mn></mrow></msub></math></span> fluxes showed high heterogeneity, with hot spots resulting primarily from traffic emissions. Net CO<span><math><msub><mrow></mrow><mrow><mn>2</mn></mrow></msub></math></span> flux increased and then decreased with distance from the city centre, following the pattern in the impervious surface fraction and population density. LCZs helped explain patterns in biogenic and building-related CO<span><math><msub><mrow></mrow><mrow><mn>2</mn></mrow></msub></math></span> fluxes, but they were less effective at capturing the complexity of traffic-related emissions. Simulating both anthropogenic and biogenic fluxes provides insight into their relative magnitudes on the neighbourhood scale and helps to identify the areas where emission reductions would be most critical to be made and nature-based solutions are most urgently needed.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":52395,"journal":{"name":"City and Environment Interactions","volume":"28 ","pages":"Article 100252"},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2025-10-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145361541","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-10-11DOI: 10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100251
Yujie Zhao , Weichen Zhang , Shuojun Mei , Jingjing Liang , Liyue Zeng , Jian Hang , Riccardo Buccolieri
The anthropogenic heat (AH) from buildings significantly influences urban microclimate. While AH release from buildings with distinct functions originates from different locations (e.g., sidewalls and rooftops), the integrated effects of AH locations and urban morphologies remain underexplored. By computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations, as a novelty, this study numerically investigated the coupling impacts of AH emission locations (sidewall or rooftop) and building arrangements (uniform-height buildings, varied-height buildings, and elevated buildings) on urban airflows, air temperature, and pollutant dispersion in typical (H/W = 1) and deep (H/W = 5) street canyons.
Results indicate that rooftop AH produces a much weaker influence on urban microclimate than sidewall AH. It confirms urban airflows near and above the rooftop have much stronger dilution capacity and releasing AH at the rooftop can effectively reduce its negative impacts. For H/W = 1, sidewall AH reduces intra-canyon velocity by up to 10 % and significantly increases pollutant intake fraction (IF) and air temperature by ∼ 1 mg/m3 and 1 K. Conversely, for H/W = 5, sidewall AH enhances the near-ground velocity by around 100 times and reduces the pedestrian-level pollutant concentration by 10 to 100 times, but raises the intra-canyon air temperature by ∼ 2–10 K. The single-sidewall heat source only increases air temperature by 1–3 K, increases velocity from 10-4 to 10-2 m/s, and reduces pollutant concentration by 1–2 times. Elevated building designs mitigate AH impacts by improving ventilation. These findings underscore the importance of strategic heat source placement and urban morphology in balancing thermal comfort and pollution exposure.
{"title":"Integrated impacts of anthropogenic heat locations and building configurations on urban wind-thermal environments and pollutant exposure in two-dimensional street canyons","authors":"Yujie Zhao , Weichen Zhang , Shuojun Mei , Jingjing Liang , Liyue Zeng , Jian Hang , Riccardo Buccolieri","doi":"10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100251","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100251","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The anthropogenic heat (AH) from buildings significantly influences urban microclimate. While AH release from buildings with distinct functions originates from different locations (e.g., sidewalls and rooftops), the integrated effects of AH locations and urban morphologies remain underexplored. By computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations, as a novelty, this study numerically investigated the coupling impacts of AH emission locations (sidewall or rooftop) and building arrangements (uniform-height buildings, varied-height buildings, and elevated buildings) on urban airflows, air temperature, and pollutant dispersion in typical (<em>H/W</em> = 1) and deep (<em>H/W</em> = 5) street canyons.</div><div>Results indicate that rooftop AH produces a much weaker influence on urban microclimate than sidewall AH. It confirms urban airflows near and above the rooftop have much stronger dilution capacity and releasing AH at the rooftop can effectively reduce its negative impacts. For <em>H/W</em> = 1, sidewall AH reduces intra-canyon velocity by up to 10 % and significantly increases pollutant intake fraction (<em>IF</em>) and air temperature by ∼ 1 mg/m<sup>3</sup> and 1 K. Conversely, for <em>H/W</em> = 5, sidewall AH enhances the near-ground velocity by around 100 times and reduces the pedestrian-level pollutant concentration by 10 to 100 times, but raises the intra-canyon air temperature by ∼ 2–10 K. The single-sidewall heat source only increases air temperature by 1–3 K, increases velocity from 10<sup>-4</sup> to 10<sup>-2</sup> m/s, and reduces pollutant concentration by 1–2 times. Elevated building designs mitigate AH impacts by improving ventilation. These findings underscore the importance of strategic heat source placement and urban morphology in balancing thermal comfort and pollution exposure.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":52395,"journal":{"name":"City and Environment Interactions","volume":"28 ","pages":"Article 100251"},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2025-10-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145319989","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-10-03DOI: 10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100249
Weeberb J. Requia , Reizane Maria Damasceno da Silva , Leonardo Hoinaski , Francisco Jablinski Castelhano
The role of environmental disparities in exposure to ambient temperature and its impact on health, focusing solely on temperature exposure may not fully capture the complexity of thermal stress experienced by individuals. Thermal comfort conditions, encompassing factors such as humidity and wind speed alongside temperature, provide a more complete understanding of human comfort and well-being. In this study, we investigated the socioeconomic and racial disparities in thermal comfort conditions across Brazil. We conducted an ecological analysis at the census-tract (sub-municipal) scale across Brazil (n = 34,016 tracts). Thermal comfort indices (Discomfort Index, Humidex, Heat Index, Net Effective Temperature) were computed from ERA5-Land meteorology at 0.1° (∼10 km) and linked to tracts via centroid-within-grid–cell assignment. We employed a Generalized Additive Models (GAMs) adjusted for socioeconomic status (SES), race/ethnicity, and geographic factors to assess the associations between these variables and thermal comfort indices. Our findings suggest that lower SES indicators, such as income and education, are associated with higher exposure to thermal stress, indicating significant discomfort conditions with potential health implications. We also observed nuanced associations across different racial/ethnic groups, with variations in exposure levels at different percentiles. Our results suggest that the disparities in thermal comfort conditions persist across urban and rural areas, highlighting the pervasive nature of these inequalities. These findings underscore the need for targeted interventions and policy initiatives aimed at addressing environmental justice and promoting health equity in Brazil.
{"title":"Socioeconomic and racial disparities in thermal comfort conditions in Brazil","authors":"Weeberb J. Requia , Reizane Maria Damasceno da Silva , Leonardo Hoinaski , Francisco Jablinski Castelhano","doi":"10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100249","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100249","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The role of environmental disparities in exposure to ambient temperature and its impact on health, focusing solely on temperature exposure may not fully capture the complexity of thermal stress experienced by individuals. Thermal comfort conditions, encompassing factors such as humidity and wind speed alongside temperature, provide a more complete understanding of human comfort and well-being. In this study, we investigated the socioeconomic and racial disparities in thermal comfort conditions across Brazil. We conducted an ecological analysis at the census-tract (sub-municipal) scale across Brazil (n = 34,016 tracts). Thermal comfort indices (Discomfort Index, Humidex, Heat Index, Net Effective Temperature) were computed from ERA5-Land meteorology at 0.1° (∼10 km) and linked to tracts via centroid-within-grid–cell assignment. We employed a Generalized Additive Models (GAMs) adjusted for socioeconomic status (SES), race/ethnicity, and geographic factors to assess the associations between these variables and thermal comfort indices. Our findings suggest that lower SES indicators, such as income and education, are associated with higher exposure to thermal stress, indicating significant discomfort conditions with potential health implications. We also observed nuanced associations across different racial/ethnic groups, with variations in exposure levels at different percentiles. Our results suggest that the disparities in thermal comfort conditions persist across urban and rural areas, highlighting the pervasive nature of these inequalities. These findings underscore the need for targeted interventions and policy initiatives aimed at addressing environmental justice and promoting health equity in Brazil.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":52395,"journal":{"name":"City and Environment Interactions","volume":"28 ","pages":"Article 100249"},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2025-10-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145265190","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-10-03DOI: 10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100250
Oqab Jabali
Urban infrastructure in occupied territories is shaped more by political constraint than technical design. This study explores how Israeli occupation affects essential systems–water, electricity, roads, and waste management—in the West Bank town of Beita. Drawing on interviews with municipal officials, engineers, business owners, youth leaders, and residents, it reveals a landscape of infrastructural decay, bureaucratic obstruction, and spatial neglect. Despite these challenges, residents have adopted adaptive strategies such as improvised repairs, shared water storage, and informal livelihoods. These grassroots efforts reflect a form of resilience rooted in everyday resistance and community cooperation. While local institutions attempt to sustain basic services, their work is often limited by external political control and inconsistent aid. The study contributes to political ecology and decolonial urbanism by arguing that sustainability under occupation is a contested, collective practice shaped by power and place. It calls for context-sensitive urban planning that centers local agency in militarized settings.
{"title":"Urban infrastructure under occupation: Reimagining sustainability in Beita municipality","authors":"Oqab Jabali","doi":"10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100250","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100250","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Urban infrastructure in occupied territories is shaped more by political constraint than technical design. This study explores how Israeli occupation affects essential systems–water, electricity, roads, and waste management—in the West Bank town of Beita. Drawing on interviews with municipal officials, engineers, business owners, youth leaders, and residents, it reveals a landscape of infrastructural decay, bureaucratic obstruction, and spatial neglect. Despite these challenges, residents have adopted adaptive strategies such as improvised repairs, shared water storage, and informal livelihoods. These grassroots efforts reflect a form of resilience rooted in everyday resistance and community cooperation. While local institutions attempt to sustain basic services, their work is often limited by external political control and inconsistent aid. The study contributes to political ecology and decolonial urbanism by arguing that sustainability under occupation is a contested, collective practice shaped by power and place. It calls for context-sensitive urban planning that centers local agency in militarized settings.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":52395,"journal":{"name":"City and Environment Interactions","volume":"28 ","pages":"Article 100250"},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2025-10-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145265957","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-09-24DOI: 10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100248
Ivana Vujić , Sanda Lenzholzer , Gerrit J. Carsjens , Robert D. Brown , Silvia G. Tavares
Urban climate phenomena significantly affect the well-being of city populations. However, recent studies reveal limited awareness of urban climate among key stakeholders who shape climate adaptation efforts. Communication offers a promising means of addressing this gap and mobilising stakeholders towards effective adaptation. Yet, the effectiveness of communication in engaging these groups remains unclear. This study investigates how urban climate communication functions among key stakeholder groups: citizens, politicians, urban planners and designers, and urban climate experts, and examines its role in fostering awareness and driving action. This study employed a qualitative research design using key informant interviews with 92 experts across nine countries. The findings reveal a widespread need for improved communication, particularly stronger collaboration between urban climate experts and urban planners and designers. These groups hold essential knowledge and complementary expertise and should form closer partnerships with political decision-makers. Interviews revealed that two-thirds of urban planners and designers struggle to translate climate data into actionable strategies, citing inaccessible communication from experts. Two-thirds of respondents also identified a persistent disconnect between policymakers and citizens, resulting in fragmented adaptation efforts. The study underscores the importance of tailored, interactive communication strategies that account for diverse governance structures, socio-economic conditions, and development contexts across the countries examined. The findings highlight the urgency of strengthening urban climate communication to enable more inclusive, coordinated, and effective adaptation responses.
{"title":"Communicating Urban Climate: An International Overview","authors":"Ivana Vujić , Sanda Lenzholzer , Gerrit J. Carsjens , Robert D. Brown , Silvia G. Tavares","doi":"10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100248","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100248","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Urban climate phenomena significantly affect the well-being of city populations. However, recent studies reveal limited awareness of urban climate among key stakeholders who shape climate adaptation efforts. Communication offers a promising means of addressing this gap and mobilising stakeholders towards effective adaptation. Yet, the effectiveness of communication in engaging these groups remains unclear. This study investigates how urban climate communication functions among key stakeholder groups: citizens, politicians, urban planners and designers, and urban climate experts, and examines its role in fostering awareness and driving action. This study employed a qualitative research design using key informant interviews with 92 experts across nine countries. The findings reveal a widespread need for improved communication, particularly stronger collaboration between urban climate experts and urban planners and designers. These groups hold essential knowledge and complementary expertise and should form closer partnerships with political decision-makers. Interviews revealed that two-thirds of urban planners and designers struggle to translate climate data into actionable strategies, citing inaccessible communication from experts. Two-thirds of respondents also identified a persistent disconnect between policymakers and citizens, resulting in fragmented adaptation efforts. The study underscores the importance of tailored, interactive communication strategies that account for diverse governance structures, socio-economic conditions, and development contexts across the countries examined. The findings highlight the urgency of strengthening urban climate communication to enable more inclusive, coordinated, and effective adaptation responses.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":52395,"journal":{"name":"City and Environment Interactions","volume":"28 ","pages":"Article 100248"},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2025-09-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145319988","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Rapid urbanisation with unexpected reductions in permeable surfaces is considered to be a cause of increasing flood vulnerability in many cities worldwide, in parallel with the increasing demand for green spaces resulting from rising urban concentrations. The development of urban public parks, which are expected to contribute to water infiltration and storage for water absorption capacity by increasing green space and water area, is necessary in urban development planning to reduce flood risk. However, the increasing urban concentration resulting in the scarcity of land has become a significant challenge to this strategy, particularly in urban centres. Based on the literature review of some emerging theories of sponge city and flood resilience, and some early concept of vertical development for cities and parks, this paper presents a concept of a Model of Spatial Level Structure (MSLS) including three elevated levels for different groups of activities, with the aim of helping urban multi-function parks allocate more areas for green spaces and water storage on the ground level. With a case study of the 23–9 park in the city centre of Ho-Chi-Minh-City (HCMC), the application of this model shows evidence of an increase in area for greenspace development by 30%. This implies that urban parks should dedicate areas on the ground level for developing green spaces and water storage, by leveling up certain functional activities along with the vertical spatial development. The concept is expected to be useful for other public parks in other cities worldwide, particularly in mega-coastal cities facing a shortage of green spaces and water areas due to the uncontrolled rise in impermeable areas.
{"title":"Conceptual model of spatial level structure for developing multi-functional parks to reduce urban flood risk: A case study in Ho Chi Minh city","authors":"Phan Nhut Duy , Pham Anh Tuan , Nguyen Phuong Thao Nguyen","doi":"10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100247","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100247","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Rapid urbanisation with unexpected reductions in permeable surfaces is considered to be a cause of increasing flood vulnerability in many cities worldwide, in parallel with the increasing demand for green spaces resulting from rising urban concentrations. The development of urban public parks, which are expected to contribute to water infiltration and storage for water absorption capacity by increasing green space and water area, is necessary in urban development planning to reduce flood risk. However, the increasing urban concentration resulting in the scarcity of land has become a significant challenge to this strategy, particularly in urban centres. Based on the literature review of some emerging theories of sponge city and flood resilience, and some early concept of vertical development for cities and parks, this paper presents a concept of a Model of Spatial Level Structure (MSLS) including three elevated levels for different groups of activities, with the aim of helping urban multi-function parks allocate more areas for green spaces and water storage on the ground level. With a case study of the 23–9 park in the city centre of Ho-Chi-Minh-City (HCMC), the application of this model shows evidence of an increase in area for greenspace development by 30%. This implies that urban parks should dedicate areas on the ground level for developing green spaces and water storage, by leveling up certain functional activities along with the vertical spatial development. The concept is expected to be useful for other public parks in other cities worldwide, particularly in mega-coastal cities facing a shortage of green spaces and water areas due to the uncontrolled rise in impermeable areas.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":52395,"journal":{"name":"City and Environment Interactions","volume":"28 ","pages":"Article 100247"},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2025-09-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145265958","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-09-17DOI: 10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100244
Yanfeng Zhang , Xiaohui Wang , Yu Ye , Longsheng Wang , Yige Zhang , Weishan Qin , Yihao Chi , Guodong Liu , Shimou Yao
Investigating urban vitality and understanding the influence mechanisms of built environments are crucial for achieving sustainable urban development and improving residents’ quality of life. This study employs XGBoost and SHAP models to examine the nonlinear impacts and interaction effects of the built environment on daytime and nighttime urban vitality in the main urban area of Yantai City. The built environment is quantified across four dimensions—functionality, building form, accessibility, and human perception—while urban vitality is measured using multi-source geospatial big data. Key findings include:(1) For daytime and nighttime urban vitality in Yantai’s main urban area, the functionality dimension contributes most significantly, followed by building form, accessibility, and human perception. Among the factors influencing urban vitality, BPOI (business POI) density, floor area ratio, POI diversity, and betweenness exhibit the strongest nonlinear effects. (2) Distinct nonlinear effects exist between the built environment and urban vitality, with variations in these effects between daytime and nighttime. (3) Built environment elements synergistically or antagonistically interact to influence urban vitality, requiring a holistic consideration of multielement interactions in urban planning. This study proposes that Yantai City synergistically optimizes its built environment through functional zoning, vertical mixed-use development, transportation network optimization, and environmental quality enhancement.
{"title":"Nonlinear relationships and interaction effects of urban built environment on urban vitality based on explainable machine learning","authors":"Yanfeng Zhang , Xiaohui Wang , Yu Ye , Longsheng Wang , Yige Zhang , Weishan Qin , Yihao Chi , Guodong Liu , Shimou Yao","doi":"10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100244","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cacint.2025.100244","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Investigating urban vitality and understanding the influence mechanisms of built environments are crucial for achieving sustainable urban development and improving residents’ quality of life. This study employs XGBoost and SHAP models to examine the nonlinear impacts and interaction effects of the built environment on daytime and nighttime urban vitality in the main urban area of Yantai City. The built environment is quantified across four dimensions—functionality, building form, accessibility, and human perception—while urban vitality is measured using multi-source geospatial big data. Key findings include:(1) For daytime and nighttime urban vitality in Yantai’s main urban area, the functionality dimension contributes most significantly, followed by building form, accessibility, and human perception. Among the factors influencing urban vitality, BPOI (business POI) density, floor area ratio, POI diversity, and betweenness exhibit the strongest nonlinear effects. (2) Distinct nonlinear effects exist between the built environment and urban vitality, with variations in these effects between daytime and nighttime. (3) Built environment elements synergistically or antagonistically interact to influence urban vitality, requiring a holistic consideration of multielement interactions in urban planning. This study proposes that Yantai City synergistically optimizes its built environment through functional zoning, vertical mixed-use development, transportation network optimization, and environmental quality enhancement.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":52395,"journal":{"name":"City and Environment Interactions","volume":"28 ","pages":"Article 100244"},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2025-09-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145121020","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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