The book presents a unique example of integral planning at different scales and across different types of landscapes found on the outskirts of metropolitan areas. It features a sustainability-based plan to improve the evolution of the south-central area of the Calderona Mountain Range, Spain (Sierra Calderona). It is informed and driven by social, cultural, perceptual, sustainability and economic factors supported by a participative process. The plan addresses the frequent conflict between the management of natural and cultural values found in peri-urban areas and the strong pressure for transformation and public use. Incorporating new methodologies and graphical systems for regional and local planning, the plan provides a practical example of balanced and multidisciplinary planning, based on principles of sustainability, systems thinking, new governance and local adaptation. This is volume one of a two-volume series. It elaborates on regional analysis and diagnosis, and on the definition of strategies for the following themes: natural environment, agriculture and livestock farming, urban environment and wellbeing, infrastructures and mobility, cultural heritage, tourism and public use, landscape, sustainability, socio-demography, economic development and governance. The book is intended for planners and researchers from various disciplines, including urban planning, forestry, agriculture, cultural and touristic management, and sustainability studies.

This volume gathers a selection of research contributions on Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA), including theoretical and methodological studies and real-world case studies. It sheds new light on the respective steps in the procedure defined in the SEA Directive from theoretical and operational standpoints, intended to enhance the sustainability of plans and programmes adopted by local, regional and national authorities. Improving the legitimacy and transparency of decision-making in the field of environmental management was one of the goals that led the European Commission (EU) to adopt Directive 2001/42/EC on the assessment of environmental programmes’ effects. This book provides a multidisciplinary approach to SEA, and addresses the demand for policies and strategies to strengthen resilience through concrete measures to reduce energy consumption, mitigate pollution, promote social inclusion and create urban identity.

This book attempts to provide insights into the achievement of a sustainable urban form, through spatial planning and implementation; here, we focus on planning experiences at the levels of local cities and some metropolitan areas in Asian countries. This book investigates the impact of planning policy on spatial planning implementation, from multidisciplinary viewpoints encompassing land-use patterns, housing development, transportation, green design, and agricultural and ecological systems in the urbanization process. We seek to learn from researchers in an integrated multidisciplinary platform that reflects a variety of perspectives, such as economic development, social equality, and ecological protection, with a view to achieving a sustainable urban form.​

The concept of ‘sustainable urban development’ has been pushed to the forefront of policymaking and politics as the world wakes up to the impacts of climate change and the destructive effects of the Anthropocene. Climate change has emerged to be one of the biggest challenges faced by our planet today, threatening both built and natural systems with long-term consequences, which may be irreversible. While there is a vast body of literature on sustainability and sustainable urban development, there is currently limited focus on how to cohesively bring together the vital issues of the planning, development, and management of sustainable cities. Moreover, it has been widely stated that current practices and lifestyles cannot continue if we are to leave a healthy living planet to not only the next generation, but also to the generations beyond. The current global school strikes for climate action (known as Fridays for Future) evidences this. The book advocates the view that the focus needs to rest on ways in which our cities and industries can become green enough to avoid urban ecocide. This book fills a gap in the literature by bringing together issues related to the planning, development, and management of cities and focusing on a triple-bottom-line approach to sustainability.

Regional economic development has attracted the interest of economists, geographers, planners and regional scientists for a long time. And, of course, it is a field that has developed a large practitioner cohort in government and business agencies from the national down to the state and local levels. In planning for cities and regions, both large and small, economic development issues now tend to be integrated into strategic planning processes. For at least the last 50 years, scholars from various disciplines have theorised about the nature of regional economic development, developing a range of models seeking to explain the process of regional economic development, and why it is that regions vary so much in their economic structure and performance and how these aspects of a region can change dramatically over time. Regional scientists in particular have developed a comprehensive tool-kit of methodologies to measure and monitor regional economic characteristics such as industry sectors, employment, income, value of production, investment, and the like, using both quantitative and qualitative methods of analysis, and focusing on both static and dynamic analysis. The 'father of regional science', Walter lsard, was the first to put together a comprehensive volume on techniques of regional analysis (Isard 1960), and since then a huge literature has emerged, including the many titles in the series published by Springer in which this book is published.

This book comprises a selection of the top contributions presented at the second international conference “Smart and Sustainable Planning for Cities and Regions 2017”, held in March 2017 in Bolzano, Italy. Featuring forty-six papers by policy-makers, academics and consultants, it discusses current groundbreaking research in smart and sustainable planning, including the progress made in overcoming cities’ challenges towards improving the quality of life. Climate change adaptation and mitigation of global warming, generally identified as drivers of global policies, are just the “tip of the iceberg” when it comes to smart energy transition. Indeed, equally relevant towards this current transformation – and key topics in this volume – are ICTs, public spaces and society; next economy for the city; strategies and actions for good governance; urban-rural innovation; rethinking mobility. The book’s depth in understanding and insightfulness in re-thinking demonstrate the breaking of new ground in smart and sustainable planning. A new ground that policy-makers, academics and consultants may build upon as a bedrock for smart and sustainable planning.

As global warming advances, regions around the world are engaging in revolutionary sustainability planning - but with social equity as an afterthought. California is at the cutting edge of this movement, not only because its regulations actively reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but also because its pioneering environmental regulation, market innovation, and Left Coast politics show how to blend the "three Es" of sustainability--environment, economy, and equity. Planning Sustainable Cities and Regions is the first book to explain what this grand experiment tells us about the most just path moving forward for cities and regions across the globe. The book offers chapters about neighbourhoods, the economy, and poverty, using stories from practice to help solve puzzles posed by academic research. Based on the most recent demographic and economic trends, it overturns conventional ideas about how to build more livable places and vibrant economies that offer opportunity to all. This thought-provoking book provides a framework to deal with the new inequities created by the movement for more livable - and expensive - cities, so that our best plans for sustainability are promoting more equitable development as well. This book will appeal to students of urban studies, urban planning and sustainability as well as policymakers, planning practitioners, and sustainability advocates around the world.