Governing Sustainable Cities: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Resilience and Innovation
Keywords:
Urban Sustainability, Participatory Planning, Green Infrastructure, Urban Resilience, Policy Integration, Socio-Economic Inequality, Smart City GovernanceAbstract
Urban and regional planning in the context of sustainable development has become a pressing global priority. This narrative review explores how diverse socio-economic, institutional, and technological factors shape the effectiveness of sustainability initiatives in urban settings. Utilizing a structured literature synthesis, the study evaluates empirical findings from Asia, Europe, and the Global South, guided by thematic analysis. The review identifies key social drivers—including education levels, income disparities, and cultural norms—that influence public engagement and access to sustainability programs. Economically, local fiscal capacity and national policy priorities play crucial roles in determining the scale and scope of green interventions. Institutional fragmentation and inconsistent policy implementation are highlighted as systemic barriers to resilience, particularly in flood-prone and politically influenced areas. Technological adoption, especially in smart city planning and green infrastructure, is recognized for its potential, though success remains contingent on context-sensitive governance and stakeholder inclusion. The findings suggest that sustainability outcomes improve significantly when participatory planning, intersectoral collaboration, and adaptive policy frameworks are employed. This study concludes by recommending policy reforms that integrate ecosystem-based design and technology-supported governance, and calls for future research to fill empirical gaps and test the effectiveness of integrated planning models in diverse urban environments.
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