Cities and energy consumption: strategies for an energy saving planning

A growing body of international researchers has been studying the complex relationship between cities and energy consumption so to support local policy makers’ decisions and foster the transition towards a low-carbon future. However, despite the great interest of the literature for this topic, a consistent number of interactions between urban features and energy use at urban scale still lacks consensus. Therefore, this research aims to identify the urban factors that significantly affect a city’s energy and carbon footprint, thus supporting policy-makers in the definition of effective strategies and policies that can be implemented on an urban scale to reduce energy consumption and resulting CO2 emissions. Using a holistic approach rather than a sectorial one, we consider together a comprehensive set of urban factors – physical, functional, geographical, and socio-economic – describing the complexity and multidimensionality of cities for measuring their impacts on CO2 emissions. The results of the statistical analyses show that the two main categories of urban factors directly affecting CO2 emissions per capita are the geographical and physical features, whereas the functional and socio-economic characteristics of urban areas have an indirect effect on CO2 emissions. In other words, the climate condition of a city and its physical structure (both in terms of urban density and buildings characteristics) are in large part responsible for the use of energy and the resulting CO2 emissions within the urban perimeter. Given that the geographical factors of cities cannot be changed by human intervention, the key role of urban policies and spatial planning in addressing energy and environmental issues becomes of strategic importance for addressing climate change

How to assess walkability as a measure of pedestrian use: First step of a multi-methodological approach

One of the most important problems to face over the past thirty years is how to make cities sustainable and resilient, with the overall changes that are affecting cities, resulting from the constant urbanization of the current century. In this perspective, designing walking networks is important to create a functional and multi-modal city in transport choices and make urban settlements sustainable and inclusive, because a sustainable city is also a walkable city. This is what the UN also aims for, among other topics, in its SDGs’ 2030 Agenda. Despite the positive impact of walkability on public space, it is still difficult fully include it in government strategies, because of its novelty in the scientific debate. This paper has a double purpose: (i) to argue the problem, related to what trends and strategies have been implemented to face it; (ii) to investigate in depth walkability, understanding its definition in the scientific panorama, how is evaluated and how its evaluation could be useful in urban transformation processes

Visual representations in crime prevention: exploring the use of building information modelling (BIM) to investigate burglary and crime prevention through environmental design (CPTED)

© 2018 Macmillan Publishers Ltd., part of Springer Nature Criminological research has long utilized visual representations of environments in seeking to explore perceptions of crime and personal safety and to investigate the relevance of specific design and security features. Much of this research has been in the field of environmental psychology and crime prevention through environmental design (CPTED). This paper traces the development of visual representations and the use of environmental stimuli in criminological research. We briefly review the contributions made by various visual media, including maps and drawings, photographs, models, video, virtual reality and gaming engines. These developments in visualization, building design and management technology have drastically improved the realism of representations of environments, and the potential for more standardized, widespread exploration and application of CPTED principles to reduce crime. To scope and evaluate the future potential of such emergent technologies, we critically review the literature concerned with virtual reality and building information technology (BIM), outlining uses in practice and new opportunities for criminological research. We frame the discussion with specific focus on analysing proposed residential dwellings to reduce vulnerability to burglary. A layered exploration for how BIM technologies may assist in implementing increasingly sophisticated assessments of crime vulnerability for proposed residential building designs brings the paper to a close. These discussions provide both a comprehensive overview for interested practitioners and chart specific opportunities for further research