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Sacred forests are biocultural landscapes deeply rooted in centuries-old traditions of spiritual veneration. These sacred sites, including shrines, temple forests churches and graveyards, have historically been significant reservoirs of traditional resource management practices underpinned by spiritual reverence. However, despite their cultural and ecological importance, the cultural ecosystem services inherent to these sacred forests remain unexplored, particularly in urban settings.

This study focused on six sacred sites within Kanazawa City, Japan, using a meticulous face-to-face survey with 342 participants. We collected data on the extent of forest utilisation, the breadth of activities engaged in by visitors and their holistic appraisal of the rendered cultural ecosystem services. The findings illustrate the multifaceted benefits of urban sacred forests, encompassing participation in religious ceremonies, cultural events and festivals, complemented by educational programming that elucidates the historical and traditional underpinnings of the shrines and their surrounding communities.

It has been observed that urban forests have a crucial role in providing spiritual and communal connectivity, preserving traditional heritage, offering vital aesthetic values as green spaces and making visitors connected with nature while they are in the urban landscape. However, a concerning trend has emerged, as the younger demographic appears to lack interest in participating in the stewardship and cultural activities associated with these biocultural landscapes. Community engagement strategies must be strengthened, conservation measures should be implemented and cultural awareness programs need to be established to ensure the perpetuation and appreciation of these valuable urban sacred forests.

This study provides original perspectives on the measurable cultural ecosystem services and intangible values associated with urban sacred forests using the sacred forests in Kanazawa City, Japan. Our research illuminates the various advantages that visitors derive by examining the intersection of spiritual traditions, resource management practices and cultural significance, which has been relatively unexplored. The present study provides a significant basis for establishing initiatives that seek to promote the cultivation of respect and responsibility towards urban sacred forests.

One of the crucial elements of addressing global climate challenges through urban tourism is the continuing existence of urban forests. The reasoning is that the ecological attraction of urban forests can impact visitors’ intention to conduct pro-environmental behavior, including low-carbon actions. Thus, more visitors to urban forests will positively affect enhancing the quality of the urban environment. However, the extent to which ecological attraction can influence pro-environmental behavior warrants further investigation due to the complexity of psychosocial factors that impact behavioral intention. The main objective of this research is to examine the effects of the ecological attractiveness of urban forests on the pro-environmental behavior of visitors by exploring motivation, ecological experience, perceived value and knowledge as mediators. Moreover, whether the nature of the urban forest and facilities attract visitors simultaneously is also studied.

Data were collected from 615 respondents who visited three urban forests in Bandung, the second-most populous city in Indonesia, by five-point Likert questionnaires. As an analytical tool, SEM PLS was applied to establish the effect of the ecological performance of the urban forest on the increase in environmentally conscious behavior among urban forest visitors.

The findings demonstrate that the attractiveness of an urban forest affects the growth of environmentally responsible behaviors. Nonetheless, the attractiveness of urban forests is dictated more by their infrastructure than their ecological function. On the contrary, the visitors’ knowledge level can improve their motivation, environmental experience and perceived environmental value. These findings show the significance of developing educational programs with an emphasis on the experience of the visitors so that their ecological performance can contribute to improved low-carbon behavior. In conclusion, this work contributes to the management of sustainable urban tourism.

This work also has some limitations. First, the medium R-square on intention behavior to low-carbon action suggests investigating other influential factors to produce a more robust conscious behavior. Mkono and Hughes (2020) mention that many complex factors that cause positive intention do not necessarily lead to environmental action. Thus, many psychosocial variables need to be explored in different models. Second, the convenient sampling used here does not represent the whole population, making generalization difficult. Thus, further work needs to apply more rigorous sampling techniques to validate the findings. Further investigations may also need to be conducted in other urban forests in another Asian country with a similar and different social context for benchmarking, as this study found that the type of attractive urban forest design is a more dense forest, which differs from other studies based in Europe. Exploring more influencing behavioral factors of pro-environmental action in the model is also suggested. Thus, we could contribute more to support recreational activities in urban forests.

As an implication for planning an urban forest to increase its recreational function, the authors illustrate the importance of producing educational programs. Although the improved knowledge of visitors has been shown to strengthen their commitment to perform pro-environmental actions, the mediating role of motivation, experience and perceived value reveals that some activities are required to achieve visitor motivation to actual behavior. Consequently, designing an urban forest requires not only the enhancement of eco-attractions and artificial elements for the convenience of visitors but also the development of an environmental education program that can improve visitors’ environmental experience and perception of ecological value. The designed educational program may use an experiential education approach incorporating objective knowledge of Earth’s current state. The urban forest education program must encourage visitors’ connection and participation with nature. Moreover, knowledge and information about Earth’s environmental quality can increase visitors’ perceived value, ensuring that their activities in the urban forest contribute to improved health, environmental quality and social environment. Thus, with well-managed and provided education, they are encouraged to adopt low-carbon action because it complements their contribution to a better quality environment.

The theoretical contribution of this research is generated through the role of urban forest attractiveness in the intention to conduct low-carbon action, which influences solutions to existing urban environmental problems. This work exhibits that both ecological attractiveness and attractiveness of artificial elements in urban forests can attract visitors and subsequently boost their outdoor recreation motivation, ecological experience and perceived value and then turn them to boost their intention to conduct low-carbon action. The physical characteristics of a site are behavioral stimuli that can increase a person’s motivation, experience and perception of the value of the environment, thereby increasing their intention to engage in low-carbon actions. This environment behavioral construction is fundamental in understanding that urban forests offer ecological benefits and influence the social quality of urban communities. Nevertheless, without visitor activity, urban forests are merely physical entities that become increasingly demanding to maintain. Due to this, an urban forest that is socially active and has an influence on promoting environmentally conscious behavior is needed, and its presence is becoming ever more crucial. This work shows the significance of integrating psychosocial approaches into managing tourism in urban forests.

This study aims to enrich our understanding of the characteristics of non-urban coworking spaces (CSs) that focus on corporate users, as well as the benefits that companies expect to gain from incorporating those CSs into their corporate real estate (CRE) portfolios.

This study leverages a series of in-depth interviews with owners and managers of CSs in non-urban locales that focus on serving corporate clients.

The research reveals various CS characteristics and forms within non-urban areas, focusing on corporate clients. It suggests that implementing a CS in corporate premises is perceived to enhance CRE use-value strategies with a focus on the employee's well-being, innovation and the attraction of talents. Moreover, exchange-value strategies with a focus on portfolio flexibility may benefit from the implementation of a CS. However, strategies related to life-cycle cost optimization or gains are not perceived to be supported. Social events for the surrounding neighborhood and the choice of location emerge as critical success factors for non-urban CSs. Besides infrastructure and connectivity, non-urban corporate-centric CSs built their location decisions rather on a personal connection to the location and place of residence of potential users than on lower rental prices.

This research pioneers in providing a comprehensive understanding of non-urban CSs, particularly in the context of their perceived implications for corporate real estate management. The nuanced perspectives it offers are invaluable for stakeholders looking to leverage CSs as part of their corporate strategies.

While previous studies have highlighted the importance of incorporating environmental sustainability in building designs, there is a paucity of studies that assess the extent to which design teams in developing countries consider environmental sustainability at the building design stage. Therefore, using Zambia as a case study, this study examined the extent to which infrastructure design teams in a developing country consider environmental sustainability at the design stage.

The study used a qualitative research approach using structured interviews because there are hardly any studies which have explored the extent to which designers incorporate environmental sustainability in infrastructure designs in developing countries. The data is analysed thematically using the ATLAS.ti software.

The results show that environmental sustainability is not an important design consideration because it is secondary to functional, technical and aesthetic considerations. Environmental considerations are also made in an ad hoc manner and when it is cost-effective for the project. Regulatory requirements pertaining to environmental protection are adhered to without any cost considerations. It was, therefore, theorised that building design teams in developing countries make technical, functional and aesthetic consideration during the infrastructure design stage ahead of environmental considerations.

There is a paucity of studies that have investigated whether building infrastructure designers consider issues of environmental sustainability at the design stage in developing countries. The findings have practical implications on how developing countries can foster environmental sustainability at the design stage and avoid generating a building infrastructure stock that will require environmental resilience adaptation in the future.

This paper introduces the YouWalk-UOS mobile application, a tool that revolutionises the assessment of urban open spaces (UOS). The paper demonstrates how integrating real-time, on-ground observations with users’ reactions into a digital platform can transform the evaluation of urban open spaces. It seeks to address the existing shortcomings of traditional UOS assessment methods and underscore the need for innovative, adaptable and inclusive approaches.

Emphasizing the necessity of UOS for mental and physical health, community interaction and social and environmental resilience in cities, the methodology involves a comprehensive analysis of a number of theoretical frameworks that have historically influenced urban open space conceptualisation, design and assessment. The approach includes a critical review of traditional UOS assessment methods, contrasting them with the capabilities of the proposed YouWalk-UOS application. Building on the reviewed theoretical frameworks, the methodology articulates the application’s design, which encompasses 36 factors across three assessment domains: functional, social and perceptual and provides insights into how technology can be leveraged to offer a more holistic and participatory approach to urban space assessment.

YouWalk-UOS application represents an important advancement in urban space assessment, moving beyond the constraints of traditional methods. The application facilitates a co-assessment approach, enabling community members to actively participate in the evaluation and development of their urban environments. Findings highlight the essential role of technology in making urban space assessment more user-centred, aligning more closely with community needs and aspirations.

The originality lies in the focus on the co-assessment approach and integration of mobile technology into urban open space assessment, a relatively unexplored area in urban design literature. The application stands out as an innovative solution, offering a new perspective on engaging communities in co-assessing their environments. This research contributes to the discourse on urban design and planning by providing a fresh look at the intersection of technology, user engagement and urban space assessment.

The inadequacy of regulations, the uncertainty of the quality of houses produced and the needs of users all highlight the need for a house analysis in Turkey. The goal of this study is to understand housing quality in Turkey based on the gap between expectations and existing housing stock, to identify the main housing expectations and the problematic issues in the current housing situation.

The authors designed a survey using the quality indicators of several well-known housing quality assessment tools to reveal residents' housing preferences and current housing situation in Turkey. The authors analyzed the survey results to identify the gap between housing preferences and existing conditions to reveal the housing quality of Turkish housing.

Overall results show that residents in Turkey, regardless of their demographics, want and need better houses. It was determined that physical conditions, safety, aesthetics and accessibility are the issues for which the expectations of the participants are high and the lack of which is most felt.

This paper reveals the residents' perspective on housing and their housing quality. It emphasizes the need for more research on housing quality, the need for updated regulation and necessity of a housing quality assessment tool in Turkey.

The facility management (FM) sector, which is developing rapidly, is making slower progress in Turkey compared to Europe and the USA. This paper aims to research the underlying issues leading to FM practices and offer insights into the implications of FM-related policies, especially for large urban transformation projects.

The study used a mixed-methods research design and collected qualitative data through semi-structured interviews with building/site managers and quantitative data through structured surveys with residents. Forty-nine building/site managers and 660 residents participated in the interview and survey from Turkey’s North Ankara and Dikmen Valley urban transformation projects.

The FM by residents, performed by the managers selected among homeowners, was preferred to the professional FM in Turkey. Education level, age, homeownership and duration of living in the region were associated with selecting FM practices. Cost also had an important place among the selection criteria, and the standard view from the residents was that professional FM would cause a cost increase. However, interviews with building/site managers in North Ankara and Dikmen Valley Urban Transformation areas revealed that a significant part of the problem resulted from insufficient knowledge and experience in FM.

Within the scope of the research, two urban transformation projects in Ankara Province were selected, and the survey was limited to the North Ankara Entrance Urban Transformation Project and Dikmen Valley Urban Transformation Project areas. Although there is a need to improve the understanding of FM in all facilities, built environments and collective buildings, collective buildings in urban transformation areas due to several constraints, those other identified areas are postponed for future study. In addition, collective buildings located in transformation areas differ from others in discussing the social dimension and the impact of management.

Within the scope of the research, two urban transformation projects in Ankara Province were selected, and the survey was limited to the North Ankara Entrance Urban Transformation Project and Dikmen Valley Urban Transformation Project areas. Although there is a need to improve the understanding of FM in all facilities, due to several constraints built environments and collective buildings in urban transformation areas, are postponed for future study. In addition, collective buildings located in transformation areas differ from others in discussing the social dimension and the impact of management.

This study evaluates two different FM approaches: FM by residents and professional FM, implemented in Turkey and identifies the criteria for choosing the FM practice. In addition, both building/site managers and residents evaluate different perspectives on FM. This study is unique because it compares different FM practices in Turkey and the criteria for residents to prefer different FM practices.

This study aims to present a methodological experience using geodesign as a process and instrument that facilitates citizen awareness and the use of alternative urban parameters in a discipline of an undergraduate course in architecture and urbanism, about urban planning at a local scale.

Aiming to develop solutions more suited to the reality of the area and attentive to contemporary practices of collaborative urban planning – for and with people – the methodological approach was divided into two complementary steps. The first step was elaborated through a general plan of ideas, with the aid of the Geodesign Hub platform, and for the more detailed second step, we used the Brazilian virtual GISColab geodesign platform. Both steps were conducted in workshop format.

In this experience, by incorporating geoinformation technology resources, geodesign proved to be a potential tool for creating opinions and decision-making regarding co-creative planning and experimenting with alternative urban parameters.

In the context of a current scenario of city growth oriented from the perspective of motor vehicles, the urban sprawl and in turn, the progressive loss of the human dimension in the urban space, students were introduced and encouraged to reflect on the different functions of the street and on the possibility of measuring urban quality from alternative parameters: completeness indicators.

The paper aims to describe the positive and negative effects of night lights in historical sites, as well as the most salient challenges faced by the visitors of these sites and determine ways to address them. The study aims to suggest several light-and-shadow approaches and designs to enhance the experience of visiting historical sites.

This study identifies problems of nightlife in historical sites with an online international questionnaire to determine the preferences and difficulties faced by visitors of historical sites during day and night. After that Egypt was determined as a sample case of a developing country; its archaeological sites need to be improved. The main problems of historical Egyptian sites were investigated and approaches in developing historical sites with interactive lighting design were presented after an online questionnaire to the Egyptian society.

The paper shows that archaeological sites need some development, especially in their technological and lighting aspects, to overcome visitors’ low night-time interest in archaeological sites. Research has found certain limitations in the effects of constructing artificial illumination. The study provides modern sustainable solution for some light challenges in historical sites with approaches and solutions to solve it.

The results of that research could be applied in developing countries, but with larger specific studies to the historical urban locations according to the politics of the country.

The paper includes sustainable approaches in developing historical sites with technological lighting design required to enhance historical sites at night-time and make visits more interactive and interesting.

This paper presents an identified need of historical sites visitors’ to study applying modern approaches in enhancing urban historical sites.

This study, a conceptual paper, analyses the growth of curation in tourism and hospitality and the curator role in selecting and framing products and experiences. It considers the growth of expert, algorithmic, social and co-creative curation modes and their effects.

Narrative and integrative reviews of literature on curation and tourism and hospitality are used to develop a typology of curation and identify different curation modes.

Curational techniques are increasingly used to organise experience supply and distribution in mainstream fields, including media, retailing and fashion. In tourism and hospitality, curated tourism, curated hospitality brands and food offerings and place curation by destination marketing organisations are growing. Curation is undertaken by experts, algorithms and social groups and involves many of destination-related actors, producing a trend towards “hybrid curation” of places.

Research is needed on different forms of curation, their differential effects and the power roles of different curational modes.

Curation is a widespread intermediary function in tourism and hospitality, supporting better consumer choice. New curators influence experience supply and the distribution of consumer attention, shaping markets and co-creative activities. Increased curatorial activity should stimulate aesthetic and stylistic innovation and provide the basis for storytelling and narrative in tourism and hospitality.

This is the first study of curational strategies in tourism and hospitality, providing a definition and typology of curation, and linking micro and macro levels of analysis. It suggests the growth of choice-based logic alongside service-dominant logic in tourism and hospitality.