The book Towards Socially Integrative Cities deals with the transition towards urban sustainability through socially integrative cities in Europe and China. It shares the impactful original research results of an EU-funded R&I project involving eight European and six Chinese partners (TRANS-URBAN-EU-CHINA; see www.transurbaneuchina.eu). Three each of the six editors come from European and Chinese universities and research institutions. The first articles (No. 1–4) provide an overview and insights into the conceptual basis of the book. The socially integrative city is framed by discussions in academia and practice, and it is defined in a comprehensive way as an element of urban sustainability. Sustainability transitions in China are linked to international discussions and the challenges are articulated. Moreover, the discussions touch on the strengths and weaknesses related to managing urban growth and the rapid expansion of cities. Land development tools are discussed with regard to the opportunities they offer for creating socially integrative cities. A second set of articles (No. 5–9) focus on socially integrative urban regeneration of cities. After an overview of policies and strategies in Europe and China, detailed aspects are discussed, such as community building through public engagement, challenges of place-making, and the role of education and life-long learning. Finally, a manuscript on heritage preservation and its impact on social integration in urban regeneration concludes this section. A third set of articles (No. 10–13) look into issues of the transformation of cities and sustainability transitions. Transformation is understood as a complex set of interactions. The development of tools, such as community platforms for information and dialogue transfer, are discussed as an instrument to facilitate transition processes. The transformative capacity of cities in Europe and China is discussed in an article that looks into possibilities to narrow the gaps between urban planning and development. Smart and eco-cities in Europe and China are taken as an empirical base. Advanced methods, such as the Social Cost–Benefit Analysis, may support social integration. Finally, an example of how the use of multiple data sources can speed up the digital transition in cities and provide decision support for social integration is presented. The final set of articles (No. 14 and 15) deal with questions of replicability of experiences and the role of concrete urban experiments in so-called Urban Living Laboratories. Methods to explore the replication potential of urban solutions for socially integrative cities are discussed. Finally, the potential of urban living laboratories for nurturing open urban innovation in Chinese cities is scrutinized. Several examples are discussed, and conclusions regarding the enhancement of social integration in cities are drawn. The book is edited by Bernhard Müller (Technische Universität Dresden, TUD), Baojun Yang (China Academy of Urban Planning and Design, CAUPD), Liu Jian (Tsinghua University), Jianming Cai (China Academy of Sciences, CAS), Paulina Schiappacasse (TUD) and Hans-Martin Neumann (Austrian Institute of Technology, AIT).

This study of Berlin, after German unification, examines and makes proposals for distressed areas where there is a need for targeted regeneration measures.

This book is developed from and includes the presentations of leading international experts and scholars in the 12-14 July, 2006 Wingspread Workshop. With urban waters as a focal point, this book will explore the links between urban water quality and hydrology, and the broader concepts of green cities and smart growth. It also addresses legal and social barriers to urban ecological sustainability and proposes practical ways to overcome those barriers. Cities of the Future features chapters containing visionary concepts on how to ensure that cities and their water resources become ecologically sustainable and are able to provide clean water for all beneficial uses. The book links North American and Worldwide experience and approaches. The book is primarily a professional reference aimed at a wide interdisciplinary audience, including universities, consultants, environmental advocacy groups and legal environmental professionals.

The book aims to capture, describe and convey the current significance, the values and potentials of urban biodiversity and ecosystem services to scientists and professionals in the context of sustainable urban development and ongoing urbanization processes. Current developments, different approaches and future challenges in the competition of green spaces and urban land consumption in China and Germany are elaborated, discussed and illustrated within case studies and good practice examples. The strategic goal is a long-term appreciation of the potentials and increased consideration of urban green spaces in city planning and development. This book provides tangible recommendations for urban planners, politicians and stakeholders in the fields of green infrastructure at the interface of environment and urban landscape.

This book debates on transformation of urban spaces considering heritage value, diversity and sustainability issues. It explains complexity and methodology to re-think and re-vitalise urban spaces in sensitive urban environments. Teamwork scientific findings explore evolving ways of innovative urban space transformation in different European contexts. In the first part it examines the reading and designing of historic environment in terms of character, attractiveness, functionality and sustainability of public space and its re-definition for urban quality, wellbeing and social cohesion. In the second part it presents issues on placemaking within sustainable design. In the third part it develops a dynamic transformative process in designing urban vitality of waterfronts, essential for everyday life.

Bringing together case studies from several European countries, this book provides an in-depth examination of the evolution of European spatial policy. Contributors focus on changes to the design and implementation of European policies at both national and local levels and examine institutional change, particularly Europeanization, European governance and EU enlargement. Rhetorical, discursive and representational dimensions are also interlinked to explore synergies and conflicts. The volume offers an experimentation of new interpretative approaches to spatial planning which will prove essential to the international debate.

Social innovation is identified as a mechanism response to burning social challenges and the evolution of hybrid organizations such as social enterprises. As a result, there is an overwhelming growing interest among researchers, policymakers, and practitioners to know more about the significant concept of social innovation. Despite this significance, it is often argued that the meaning of social innovation is ambiguous and vague with theory lagging social innovation practice as the field is nascent, emerging, and remains underdeveloped. This may impede the research endeavors of conceptualizing and establishing its socio-economic underpinnings and the legitimization of the field. Theoretical and Practical Approaches to Social Innovation illuminates and consolidates multiple views of social innovation theory, research, and practice, which to date have not been presented in one publication. The book provides an in-depth theoretical and practical understanding coupled with an assessment of the current research in multidisciplinary perspectives complemented by case studies representing each knowledge cluster in social innovation research. In this unique way, this book links theory to practice demonstrating praxis. While highlighting topics such as social enterprise, urban studies, management, ecological resilience, and social policy and networks, this book is ideal for students, academics, practitioners, researchers, and entrepreneurs looking to expand their knowledge, skills, and passion, and to sustainably pursue their social missions to bring about real social change that can transform communities and ignite innovative approaches to solving social challenges.