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An in-depth literature review was undertaken to uncover (1) what are described as the desired outcomes for 20 minute neighbourhoods (20MNs) – the normatively based ends which planners, architects and decision-makers want 20MNs to achieve; (2) the means (the mechanisms, levers, triggers and causal factors) that have to be correctly assembled and lined up for 20MNs to operate as intended and (3), in order to avoid naive environmental determinism, the behavioural changes required to support the operation of 20MNs even where the required configuration of means can be achieved. The content analysis was conducted following guidelines offered by the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) criteria.

Growing interest in the urban design concept of the “20MNs” has been greatly accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic. It has been presented as a way of increasing the quality of local environments by enabling people to meet their daily needs through access to safe walking and cycling routes or by public transport. Internationally, it has captured the imagination of political decision-makers, built-environment practitioners and communities alike, as a life-affirming post-pandemic vision, held up as achieving environmental, health and economic improvements as well as reducing inequalities experienced by many. This paper's overall purpose is to separate the ends pursued in 20MNs from means available for achieving them.

The paper concludes that the ambition to see the 20MNs widely woven into existing urban, suburban and rural neighbourhoods will require significant effort to ensure all that all the component parts of, and key players in, planning's place-delivery systems are aligned and mutually supportive. Even where this can be achieved, further guidance will be needed on (1) how to operationalise the practical implementation of 20MNs and (2) how their success can be measured.

The originality of the paper lies in its efforts to discriminate between ends and means – between desired outcomes of 20MNs and the means available for achieving them. The significance of the paper lies here in this attempt to initiate a discussion on possible causal relationships between what is wanted and what would need to be done to achieve it. Without clarity about these relationships, misunderstanding, confusion and barriers to communication may arise across the many different organizations, stakeholder groups and actors involved. This lack of clarity could undermine trust and confidence, potentially undermining both the process and to its outcomes.

The document underscores the need for systematic smart mobility policies to advance smart cities, addressing resource waste and environmental issues. Recognizing challenges in adopting efficient smart mobility, the paper seeks to fill a literature gap by identifying governance-related best practices and success factors. The objective is to develop a clear framework for smart mobility adoption with policy implications, especially for Euro-Mediterranean (EuroMed) Smart Cities, reducing congestion and costs while promoting sustainability through data-driven decision-making and integration models.

To conduct the study, we adopt a multiple-case approach, examining different smart mobility applications in three of the world's most relevant smart city contexts according to international rankings, namely New York, Copenhagen and Singapore. Starting with the framework emerging from the research sample, which is representative of three different continents and cultures, a comparative assessment is then made with two EuroMed Smart Cities, highlighting their relative gaps.

The paper presents an innovative framework for smart mobility that highlights five key success factors. In addition to highlighting related gaps with a sample of EuroMed Smart Cities, it offers guidelines and implications for administrators, policy makers and mobility managers.

This success framework is a powerful tool, framework and guideline with numerous theoretical and managerial implications. Indeed, it directs policymakers, policymakers and mobility managers toward creating innovative business models for sustainable smart mobility, maximizing the efficiency of the centralized urban system, reducing negative externalities, breaking down barriers and pursuing greater efficiency, resilience and equity in the accessibility, mobility and sustainable livability of smart cities.

The “unplannable” is a welcomed exception to the formal order of urban planning. This opinion article explores some examples of informal urbanism and discusses its ambiguous relationship to public space and unplanned activities in the city. The informal sector offers important lessons about the adaptive use of space and its social role. The article examines the ways specific groups appropriate informal spaces and how this can add to a city’s entrepreneurship and success. The characteristics of informal, interstitial spaces within the contemporary city, and the numerous creative ways in which these temporarily used spaces are appropriated, challenge the prevalent critical discourse about our understanding of authorised public space, formal place-making and social order within the city in relation to these informal spaces.

The text discusses various cases from Chile, the US and China that illustrate the dilemma of the relationship between informality and public/private space today. One could say that informality is a deregulated self-help system that redefines relationships with the formal. Temporary or permanent spatial appropriation has behavioural, economic and cultural dimensions, and forms of the informalare not always immediately obvious: they are not mentioned in building codes and can often be subversive or unexpected, emerging in the grey area between legal and illegal activities.

This paper aims to explore the interplay between industrial diversity and sustainable economic development in US counties.

Among other popularly used measures, this study uses an underused measure, Hachman index, to gauge the degree of industrial diversity in the models. To capture the impact of industrial diversity on the local community, this study estimates the relationship of two diversity measures to four traditional socioeconomic indicators: per capita personal income growth, gross domestic product per worker, income inequality ratio and poverty rate.

Statistical results suggest that industrial diversity, which is measured by Hachman index, is significantly related to the four socio-economic indicators. Industrial diversity can positively contribute to regional per capita personal income growth and mitigate income inequality and poverty stress; however, it is negatively related to the gross domestic product (GDP) per worker, which means industrial specialization may contribute to GDP per worker growth.

The findings of this study show that there is a nonlinear relationship between industrial diversity and all socioeconomic indicators. Most of the control variables, human capital variables and business and industry profile variables also display significant and positive impacts on economic development.

The concept of a creative place has been considered by experts, but a review of the research background shows that the definitions provided for creative place are different, and the factors that make an urban space a creative place are not clear. The main purpose of this study is to investigate the concept of creative place and to extract the indicators that make an urban space considered a creative place.

By extensive library studies and using a specialized panel, 59 items in the form of 12 indicators were extracted as identifiers of a creative place and a researcher-made questionnaire was prepared and tested in a case study. Data analysis of this study was performed in two stages by using the factor analysis method in R software.

The factors of “competitive advantage (economically)”, “freedom”, “attractiveness”, “entrepreneurship and professionalism”, “culture and art”, “vitality”, “diversity”, “distinction”, “participation”, “reconstruction, nobility and infrastructure”, “meaning” and “creative experiences” are important as identifiers of creative place, respectively. The evaluation of the case study showed that the total score of creative places in this urban space is 69.6 (out of 100) and “meaning” gained the most point in this urban space.

The factors of this research can be provided to architects and urban planners as identifiers of a creative place and a case study can be evaluated in terms of the degree of compliance with creative place identifiers.

Through the study, we identified four effective paths to improve governance performance and also found the key direction for future research on digital twin urban implementation of public crisis governance, i.e. how to find a balance between the cost and the effectiveness of governance.

A total of 22 urban public emergencies were selected based on key influencing factors, and four action paths to improve the performance of public crisis governance in digital twin cities were obtained using a fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis model.

This paper identified digital twin technologies in urban public crisis governance, analyzed the key factors of public crisis governance in the digital twin city and proposed a path of action to improve the performance of public crisis governance in digital twin cities.

This study focuses on the influencing factors of public crisis governance in digital twin cities and the action paths to promote improved governance performance.

This study aims to demonstrate how women's involvement in urban planning and design in Gulf cities improves urban space's inclusivity and strengthens identity through cultural heritage revitalisation. It also promotes the participation of women in architecture and city-making by showcasing how shaping urban spaces offers local communities opportunities for social interaction and a more inclusive environment.

The paper critically compares two case studies in the Gulf region—one in the United Arab Emirates and the other in Bahrain—according to four inclusion criteria: context connection, cultural sensitivity, community engagement and choices of amenities. These inclusion criteria are also applied to an experimental project by women architects' students in Saudi Arabia to inspire the future female architects of the Gulf region. From urban to architectural scales, the project offers a glance into the heritage design by women architects.

In light of this critical analysis, this study highlights the sensitivity to issues related to the revitalisation of urban areas by women architects. The case studies identified show the role of the female architect in making architecture and linking cultural heritage with contemporary themes. These projects stitch the past with the present and link cultural identity with aspects related to sustainable architecture. Therefore, valorising women's architectural experience is necessary to contribute to sustainable urban development in the Gulf region and beyond.

The present study addresses the importance of the role of women architects in the Gulf region. The research promotes the full and equal participation of women in the architecture and construction of the city to recognise their achievements by increasing their involvement in the work in a more integrated and balanced way.

In urban planning, sustainability is closely linked to the quality of urban public spaces (UPS). However, some UPS encounter issues of low attractiveness and underutilisation. Vitality serves as a crucial measure in this context. The research perspective on the vitality of UPS centres on the balance between human activities and the built environment. Therefore, this article aims to systematically review critical aspects of UPS vitality evaluation system, including research objects, vitality components and research methods, from the dimensions of crowd activity and the built environment.

A systematic literature review using PRISMA analysed English-language publications from 2008 to 2023 in Scopus and Web of Science (WOS) databases, employing keywords related to UPS and vitality, with defined inclusion and exclusion criteria.

(1) Research objects, including parks, squares, waterfronts, blocks and streets. (2) The factors contributing to crowd activity characteristics originate from five dimensions, namely spatial, temporal, visitor, activity and feedback. Environmental factors, both external (accessibility, surrounding function mix and population density) and internal (service facility mix and water presence), significantly impact vitality. (3) The study primarily relies on quantitative data, including traditional surveys and emerging significant data sources like dynamic location and traffic, social media, geospatial and point of interest (POI) data. Data analysis methods commonly used include correlation analysis and comprehensive evaluation techniques.

The findings contribute to a comprehensive understanding of the vitality evaluation system for UPS from multiple perspectives for urban planners, aiding in identifying key factors and research methods in the vitality evaluation of various types of UPS.

This research aims to shed light on the utilization of open spaces at Effat University through a gender lens. By eliminating gender segregation, the study seeks to examine how these spaces are equitably shared between genders, while also delving into the realm of gender sensitive urban design (GSUD). Furthermore, the research strives to gain valuable insights into the experiences of female students in open spaces to propose a framework for the design of fair shared open spaces.

To achieve these objectives, a multi-faceted approach was adopted. First, the research started by reviewing the literature about gender sensitive urban design and inclusive urban design to conclude the indicators examine how open spaces are shared fairly between both genders; second, an online questionnaire was administered to gather comprehensive data. Third, meticulous observations were conducted, involving the study, analysis and mapping of students' activities using maps and photos. Lastly, a walk shop was organized, with a focus group comprising of female participants. The collected data was then analyzed using SPSS descriptive statistics and the Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient, enabling the identification of key patterns and evaluating female students' satisfaction levels.

The findings unearth a distinctive perspective on the perception and needs of females within a unique subset of open spaces, referred to as “campus open spaces,” in the context of a gender sensitive urban design. This exploration provides valuable insights into the intricacies of gender dynamics within public spaces, contributing to a more inclusive and equitable environment for all individuals at Effat University, framework shows some of significant indicators that effect on other indicators strongly as sense of safety and security and the diversity of activities that increase visiting rates, sense of belonging.

This research presents a framework aimed at improving the concept of equitable and inclusive, open spaces, particularly on campuses within significant communities like KSA. The focus is on creating fair shared places that facilitate interaction and cater to the social and cultural needs of students, with a particular emphasis on supporting female students. By enhancing their sense of belonging and addressing their unique requirements, this framework aims to positively impact their academic performance while fostering an inclusive and engaging campus environment.

This study uses computer-aided design to improve the ecological and environmental sustainability of early-stage landscape designs. Urban expansion on open land and natural habitats has led to a decline in biodiversity and increased climate change impacts, affecting urban inhabitants' quality of life and well-being. While sustainability indicators have been employed to assess the performance of buildings and neighbourhoods, landscape designs' ecological and environmental sustainability has received comparatively less attention, particularly in early-design stages where applying sustainability approaches is impactful.

The authors propose a computation framework for evaluating key landscape sustainability indicators and providing real-time feedback to designers. The method integrates spatial indicators with widely recognized sustainability rating system credits. A specialized tool was developed for measuring biomass optimization, precipitation management and urban heat mitigation, and a proof-of-concept experiment tested the tool's effectiveness on three Mediterranean neighbourhood-level designs.

The results show a clear connection between the applied design strategy to the indicator behaviour. This connection enhances the ability to establish sustainability benchmarks for different types of landscape developments using parametric design.

The study allows non-expert designers to measure and embed landscape sustainability early in the design stages, thus lowering the entry level for incorporating biodiversity enhancement and climate mitigation approaches.

This study expands the parametric vocabulary for measuring landscape sustainability by introducing spatial ecosystem services and architectural sustainability indicators on a unified platform, enabling the integration of critical climate and biodiversity-loss solutions earlier in the development process.