Document Type : REVIEW PAPER

Authors

1 School of Civil Engineering and Built Environment, Queensland University of Technology, 2 George Street, Brisbane, QLD 4001, Australia

2 School of Urban Design and Landscape Architecture, Bilkent University, Universiteler Mahallesi, 06800 Ankara, Turkey

Abstract

Rapid urbanization has brought environmentally, socially, and economically great challenges to cities and societies. To build a sustainable city, these challenges need to be faced efficiently and successfully. This paper focuses on the environmental issues and investigates the ecological approaches for planning sustainable cities through a comprehensive review of the relevant literature. The review focuses on several differing aspects of sustainable city formation. The paper provides insights on the interaction between the natural environment and human activities by identifying environmental effects resulting from this interaction; provides an introduction to the concept of sustainable urban development by underlining the important role of ecological planning in achieving sustainable cities; introduces the notion of urban ecosystems by establishing principles for the management of their sustainability; describes urban ecosystem sustainability assessment by introducing a review of current assessment methods, and; offers an outline of indexing urban environmental sustainability. The paper concludes with a summary of the findings.

Keywords

AASHTO, (2010). International scan: Reducing congestion and funding transportation using road pricing, AASHTO (American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials), Washington, DC.
Abaza, H., (2003). The role of integrated assessment in achieving sustainable development, United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). New York.
Agyeman, J.; Evans, T., (2003). Toward just sustainability in urban communities: building equity rights with sustainable solutions, An. Am. Acad. Polit. Soc. Sci., 590(1): 35-53 (19 pages).
Ahern, J., (2013). Urban landscape sustainability and resilience: the promise and challenges of integrating ecology with urban planning and design, Landscape Ecol., 28(6): 1203-1212 (10 pages).
Ahmadi, F.; Toghyani, S., (2011). The role of urban planning in achieving sustainable urban development, Int. J. Sus. Dev., 2(11): 23-26 (4 pages).
Alberti, M., (1996). Measuring urban sustainability. Environ, Impact Assessment Rev., 16(1): 381-424 (44 pages).
Alberti, M., (2005). The effects of urban patterns on ecosystem function, Int. Region. Sci. Rev., 28(2): 169-192 (24 pages).
Alberti, M., (2008). Advances in urban ecology: Integrating humans and ecological processes in urban ecosystems, Springer Science Business Media, Seattle.
ARE, (2004). Sustainability assessment: Conceptual framework and basic methodology, Swiss Federal Office for Spatial Development, Berne.
Baker, S., (2007). Sustainable development as symbolic commitment: declaratory politics and the seductive appeal of ecological modernisation in the European Union, Environ. Polit., 16(2): 297-317 (21 pages).
Bakkes, J.; Van den Born, G.; Helder, J.; Swart, R.; Hope, C.; Parker, J., (1994). An overview of environmental indicators: State of the Art and Perspectives, United Nations, Nairobi. Baldwin, J., (1985). Environmental planning and management, Westview Press, Boulder.
Barnes, C.; Bozzi, L.; McFadden, K., (2005). Exploring an ecosystem approach to management. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Washington, DC.
Berglund, B.; Brunekreef, B.; Knoppel, H.; Lindvall, T.; Maroni, M.; Molhave, L., (1991). Effects of indoor air pollution on human health, Office for Publications of the European Communities, Luxembourg. Berkowitz, A.; Nilon, C.; Hollweg, K., (2002). Understanding urban ecosystems: A new frontier for science and education, Springer, New York.
BioRegional Development Group, (2002). Beddington zero energy development case study report, www.bioregional.com.
BioRegional Development Group, (2012). The one planet living framework. www.oneplanetvision.org.
Birkeland, J., (2008). Positive development: From vicious circles to virtuous cycles through built environment design, Earthscan, London.
Blackwood, D.; Gilmour, D.; Isaacs, J.; Kurka, T.; Falconer, R., (2014). Sustainable urban development in practice: the SAVE concept, Environ. Plann. B., 41(5): 885-906 (22 pages).
Blair, J.; Prasad, D.; Judd, B.; Zehner, R.; Soebarto, V.; Hyde, R., (2004). Affordability and sustainability outcomes: A triple bottom line assessment of traditional development and master planned communities, Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute, Sydney.
Böhringer, C.; Vogt, C., (2004). The dismantling of a breakthrough: the Kyoto Protocol as symbolic policy, Eur. J. Polit. Econ., 20(3): 597-617 (21 pages).
Bolund, P.; Hunhammar, S., (1999). Ecosystem services in urban areas, Ecol. Econ., 29(1): 293-301 (8 pages).
Bonan, G., (2008). Ecological climatology: Concepts and applications. Cambridge University Press, London.
Boulanger, P., (2008). Sustainable development indicators: a scientific challenge, a democratic issue, SAPIENS, 1(1): 45-59 (15 pages).
BREEAM, (2006). Ecohomes 2006: The environmental rating for homes: the guidance, UK Foundation for the Built Environment, Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method, www.breeam.org.
Bruno, P.; Katrien, P., (2005). PRESCO WP2 Inter comparison and benchmarking of LCA based environmental assessment and design Tools, www.etn-presco.net.
Burton, E.; Jenks, M.; Williams, K., (2013). Achieving sustainable urban form, Routledge, London.
Capra, F., (2002). The Hidden Connections, Flamingo, London. CASBEE, (2007). Comprehensive assessment system for building environmental efficiency for urban development, Japan Sustainable Building Consortium, www.ibec.or.jp .
Chapin, F.; Carpenter, S.; Kofinas, G.; Folke, C.; Abel, N.; Clark, W.; Swanson, F., (2010). Ecosystem stewardship: sustainability strategies for a rapidly changing planet, Trends in Ecology and Evolution, 25(4): 241-249 (9 pages).
Cheng, H.; Hu, Y., (2010). Planning for sustainability in China’s urban development: status and challenges for Dongtan ecocity project, J. Environ. Monit., 12(1): 119-126 (8 pages).
Childers, D.; Pickett, S.; Grove, J.; Ogden, L.; Whitmer, A., (2014). Advancing urban sustainability theory and action: challenges and opportunities, Landscape Urban Plan., 125(1): 320-328 (9 pages).
City of Freiburg, (2012). Green City Freiburg: approaches to sustainability, www.fwtm.freiburg.de. Clini, C.; Musu, I.; Gullino, M., (2008). Sustainable development and environmental management experiences and case studies, Springer, Berlin.
Commonwealth of Australia, (1992). National strategy for ecologically sustainable development. Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra.
Convery, S.; Carey, T.; Clabby, G.; Brennan, C., (2008). Green city guidelines: advice for the protection and enhancement of biodiversity in medium to high-density urban developments, www.uep.ie.
Coplak, J.; Raksanyi, P., (2003). Ecocity: Planning sustainable settlements, Slovak University of Technology, Bratislava.
Cropper M.; Griffiths, C., (1994). The interaction of population growth and environmental quality. Am. Econ. Rev., 84(2): 250-254 (5 pages).
Danish Architecture Centre, (2012). The sustainable cities database, http://sustainablecities.dk.
Davidson, G., (2011). Waste management practices: Literature review, www.dal.ca.
Devuyst, D.; Hens, L.; De Lannoy, W., (2001). How green is the city: Sustainability assessment and the management of urban environments, Columbia University Press, New York.
Dijken, K.; Grisel, M.; Hafkamp, W., (2008). Levers of public action for the development of sustainable cities, NICIS Institute, Amsterdam.
Dizdaroglu, D.; Yigitcanlar, T.; Dawes, L., (2012). A microlevel indexing model for assessing urban ecosystem sustainability, Smart Sus. Built. Environ., 1(3): 291-315 (25 pages).
Dizdaroglu, D.; Yigitcanlar, T., (2014). A parcel-scale assessment tool to measure sustainability through urban ecosystem components: the MUSIX model, Ecol. Ind., 41(1): 115-130 (16 pages).
Dorsey, J., (2003). Brownfields and green fields: the intersection of sustainable development and environmental stewardship, Environ. Prac., 5(1): 69-76 (8 pages).
Downton, P., (2009). Ecopolis: Architecture and cities for a changing climate. CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood. Drumheller, B.; Quaid, A.; Wyman, M.; Liljenwall, J.; Young, A., (2001). Sustainable transportation options for protecting the climate, a guide for local governments, ICLEI, New York.
Dur, F.; Yigitcanlar, T., (2014). Assessing land-use and transport integration via a spatial composite indexing model, Int. J. Environ. Sci.Tech., DOI: 10.1007/s13762-013-0476-9.
Dur, F.; Yigitcanlar, T.; Bunker, J., (2014). A spatial indexing  model for measuring neighbourhood level land-use and
transport integration, Environ. Plann. B, 41(5): 792-812 (21 pages).
Emerson, J.; Esty, D.; Levy, M.; Kim, C.; Mara, V.; Sherbinin, A., (2010). Environmental performance index, Yale Centre for Environmental Law and Policy, New Haven.
Esty, D.; Levy, M.; Srebotnjak, T.; Sherbinin, A., (2005). Environmental sustainability index: benchmarking national environmental stewardship, Yale Centre for Environmental Law and Policy, New Haven.
European Commission, (1998). System for planning and research in towns and cities for urban sustainability, EC Environment and Climate Research Program, Helsinki.
European Economic Area, (2006). Sustainable development policy and guide, www.eeagrants.org.
Fisher, D.; Freudenburg, W., (2001). Ecological modernization and its critics: assessing the past and looking toward the future, Soc. Natural Res., 14(8): 701-709 (9 pages).
Flint, J.; Raco, M., (2012). The Future of sustainable cities: Critical reflections, The Policy Press, London.
Gabrielsen, P.; Bosch, P., (2003). Environmental indicators: Typology and use in reporting, European Environment Agency, Copenhagen.
Gasparatos, A., (2010). Embedded value systems in sustainability assessment tools and their implications, J. Environ. Manage., 91(1): 1613-1622 (10 pages).
Geertman, S.; Toppen, F.; Stillwell, J., (2013). Planning support systems for sustainable urban development, Springer, London.
Giddens, A., (1998). The third way, Polity Press, Cambridge. Gilman, S.; Urban, M.; Tewksbury, J.; Gilchrist, G.; Holt, R.,
(2010). A framework for community interactions under climate change, Tr. Ecol. Evol., 25(6): 325-331 (7 pages).
Global Footprint Network, (2006). National footprint accounts, Global footprint network, London.
Goonetilleke, A.; Yigitcanlar, T.; Ayoko, G.; Egodawatta, P., (2014). Sustainable urban water environment: Climate, pollution and adaptation, Edward Elgar, Cheltenham.
Guijt, I.; Moiseev, A., (2001). Resource kit for sustainability assessment, IUCN, Cambridge.
Hammond, A.; Adriaanse, A.; Rodenburg, E.; Bryant, D.; Woodward, R., (1995). Environmental indicators, World Resources Institute, Washington, DC.
Hancock, C., (2001). Urban ecology-city of tomorrow, www.malmo.se.
Hardi, P.; Barg, S.; Hodge, T.; Pinter, S., (1997). Measuring sustainable development, Industry Canada, Ottawa,
Hawken, P., (1993). The Ecology of commerce, HarperCollins, New York.
Herrington, S., (2010). The nature of Ian McHarg’s science, Landscape J., 29(1): 1-20 (20 pages).
HK-BEAM, (2004). An environmental assessment method for new buildings, HK-BEAM, www.beamsociety.org.hk.
Howard, E., (2010). To-morrow: A peaceful path to real reform, Cambridge University Press, London.
Hurley, J.; Horne, R., (2006). Review and analysis of tools for the implementation and assessment of sustainable urban
development, Environmental Institute of Australian and New Zealand, Adelaide.
ICSU-UNESCO-UNU, (2008). Ecosystem change and human well-being: Research and monitoring priorities based on the millennium ecosystem assessment, International Council for Science, Paris.
IPCC, (2007). Climate change synthesis report, IPCC, www.ipcc.ch.
IUCN/UNEP/WWF, (1991). Caring for the Earth: a Strategy for Sustainable Living, World Conservation Union, Gland.
Jabareen, Y., (2006). Sustainable urban forms: their typologies, models, and concepts, J.Plann. Educ. Res., 26(1): 38-52 (15 pages).
Jacobs, P.; Munro, D., (1987). Conservation with equity: Strategies for sustainable development, World Conservation Union, Gland.
Jenks, M.; Jones, C., (2010). Dimensions of the sustainable city, Springer, New York.
Joint Research Centre, (2004). Dashboard of sustainability, Joint Research Centre, http://esl.jrc.it/envind/dashbrds.htm.
Kaly, U.; Pratt, C.; Mitchell, J., (2004). The Demonstration environmental vulnerability index, SOPAC, New York.
Kamruzzaman, M.; Yigitcanlar, T.; Washington, S.; Currie, G., (2014). Australian baby boomers switched to more environmentally friendly modes of transport during the global financial crisis, Int. J. Environ. Sci. Tech., 11(8): 2133-2144 (12 pages).
Karol, P., Brunner, J., (2009). Tools for measuring progress towards sustainable neighbourhood environments, Sustainability, 1(1): 612-627 (16 pages).
Kay, J.; Regier, J.; Boyle, M.; Francis, G., (1999). An ecosystem approach for sustainability: addressing the challenge of complexity, Futures, 31(7): 721-742 (22 pages).
Kim, S.; Koo, J.; Lee, C.; Yoon, E., (2012). Optimization of Korean energy planning for sustainability considering uncertainties in learning rates and external factors, Energy, 44(1): 126-134 (9 pages).
Kissinger, M.; Rees, W., (2010). An interregional ecological approach for modelling sustainability in a globalizing world: reviewing existing approaches and emerging directions, Ecol. Model., 221(21): 2615-2623 (9 pages).
Kowarik, I., (2011). Novel urban ecosystems, biodiversity, and conservation, Environ. Pollut., 159(1): 1974-1983 (10 pages).
Kristensen, P., (2004). The DPSIR Framework, National Environmental Research Institute, Copenhagen.
Lamorgese, L.; Geneletti, D., (2013). Sustainability principles in strategic environmental assessment: A framework for analysis and examples from Italian urban planning, Environ. Impact Assessment Rev., 42(1): 116-126 (11 pages).
Leicestershire County Council, (2008). Leicestershire sustainable community strategy, Leicestershire County Council,  www.leicestershiretogether.org.
Lein, J., (2003). Integrated environmental planning, Blackwell Science, Oxford.
Leroy, P.; Tatenhove, J.,( 2000). Political modernization theory and environmental politics, in environment and global modernity, G. Spaargaren; A. Mol; F. Buttel (eds.), Sage, London.
Levin, S., (1992). The problem of pattern and scale in ecology, Ecol., 73(1): 1943-1967 (24 pages).
Levi-Strauss, C., (1961). Sad Tropics, Criterion Books, New York.
London Sustainable Development Commission, (2009). London’s quality of life indicators, www.londonsdc.org.
LUDA, (2012) E-compendium: Handbook E4 Integrating Assessment into sustainable urban regeneration, LUDA, London.
Mage, D.; Ozolins, G.; Peterson, P.; Webster, A.; Orthofer, R.; Vandeweerd, V., (1996). Urban air pollution in megacities of the world, Atmos. Environ., 30(5): 681-686 (6 pages).
Mahbub P.; Goonetilleke A.; Ayoko G.; Egodawatta P.; Yigitcanlar, T., (2011). Analysis of build-up of heavy metals and volatile organics on urban roads in Gold Coast, Australia, Water Sci. Tech., 63(9): 2077-2089 (13 pages).
Mahoney, M.; Bennett, D.; Grushack, S., (2010). City of Atlanta sustainability plan, Mayor’s Office of Sustainability, Atlanta.
Marten, G., (2001). Human ecology: Basic concepts for sustainable development, Earthscan, London.
Martens, P.; Raza, M., (2010). Is globalisation sustainable? Sustainability, 2(1): 280-293 (14 pages).
Mayer, A., (2008). Strengths and weaknesses of common sustainability indices for multidimensional systems, Environ. Int., 34(1): 277-291 (15 pages).
McDonough and Partners, (1992). The Hannover principles: Design for sustainability-Expo 2000, Island Press, Washington, DC.
Mcmanus, P.; Haughton, G., (2006). Planning with ecological footprints: a sympathetic critique of theory and practice, Environ. Urban. 18(1): 113–127 (15 pages).
Meier, R., (1984). Energy and habitat: designing a sustainable urban ecosystem, Futures, 16(4): 351-371 (21 pages).
Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, (2003). Ecosystems and human well-being: A framework for assessment, Island Press, Washington, DC.
Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, (2005). Ecosystems and human well-being: Current state and trends, Island Press, Washington, DC.
Mol, A., (2000). The environmental movement in an era of ecological modernization, GeoForum, 31(1): 45-56 (12 pages).
Mol, A.; Spaargaren, G., (2000). Ecological modernization theory in debate: a review, Environ. Polit., 9(1): 17-49 (33 pages).
Montero, J.; Chasco, C.; Larraz, B., (2010). Building an environmental quality index for a big city: a spatial interpolation approach combined with a distance indicator, J. Geogr. Syst., 12(4): 435-459 (25 pages).
Mori, K.; Christodoulou, A., (2011). Review of sustainability indices and indicators: towards a new city sustainability index, Environ. Impact Assessment Rev., 32(1): 94-106 (11 pages).
Mörtberg, U.; Haas, J.; Zetterberg, A.; Franklin, J.; Jonsson, D.; Deal, B., (2013). Urban ecosystems and sustainable urban development: analysing and assessing interacting systems in the Stockholm region, Urban Ecosystems, 16(4): 763-782 (20 pages).
Mumford, L., (2010). Technics and Civilization, University of Chicago Press, Chicago.
Nardo, M.; Saisana, M.; Saltelli, A.; Tarantola, S., (2005). Tools for composite indicators building, European Commission, Ispra.
Ndubisi, F., (2002). Ecological Planning: Historical and comparative synthesis, Johns Hopkins University Press,  New York.
Ness, B.; Urbel-Piirsalu, E.; Anderberg, S.; Olsson, L., (2007). Categorising tools for assessing sustainability, Ecol. Econ., 60(3): 498-508 (11 pages).
Newman P.; Jennings I., (2008). Cities as sustainable ecosystems: Principles and practices, Island Press, Washington DC.
Newton, P.; Flood, J.; Berry, M.; Bhatia, K.; Brown, S.; Cabelli, A., (1998). Environmental indicators for national state of the environment reporting, Department of the Environment, Canberra.
Nguyen, L., (2004). Environmental indicators for ASEAN: Developing an integrated framework, United Nations University, Tokyo.
Nixon, J., (2009). Sustainable economic development: Initiatives, programs, and strategies for cities and regions, Urban Sustainability Associates, New York.
O’Connor, J., (1994). Is capitalism sustainable? Guilford Press, New York. Ojima, D.; Galvin, K.; Turner, B., (1994). The global impact
of land-use change, BioScience, 44(5): 300-304 (5 pages).
Olmsted, F., (2013). The Papers of Frederick Law Olmsted: The Early Boston Years, 1882–1890, JHU Press, New York.
Owens, S.; Cowell, R., (2011). Land and limits: Interpreting sustainability in the planning process, Routledge, New York.
Parmesan, C.; Burrows, M.; Duarte, C.; Poloczanska, E.; Richardson, A.; Schoeman, D.; Singer, M., (2013). Beyond climate change attribution in conservation and ecological research, Ecol. Lett., 16(1): 58-71 (14 pages).
Pauleit, S.; Ennos, R.; Golding, Y., (2005). Modelling the environmental impacts of urban land use and land cover change: a study in Merseyside UK, Landscape Urban Plan., 71(2-4): 295-310 (16 pages).
Pearce, D.; Barbier, E., (2013). The economic system and natural environments, in S. Wheeler; T. Beatley (Ed.), Sustainable urban development reader, Routledge, New York.
Pearsall, H.; Pierce, J., (2010). Urban sustainability and environmental justice: evaluating the linkages in public planning/policy discourse, Local Environ., 15(6): 569-580 (12 pages).
Pellow, D.; Schnaiberg, A.; Weinberg, A, (2000). Putting the ecological modernization thesis to the test: the promises and performances of urban recycling, in ecological modernisation around the world: Perspectives and critical debates, A. Mol; D. Sonnenfeld (eds.), Frank Cass, Essex.
Pettersen, T., (2000). Ecoprofile for commercial buildingssimplistic environmental assessment method, GRIP Centre, Oslo.
Pittock, B., (2003). Climate change: an Australian guide to the science and potential impacts. Commonwealth of Australia, www.ccma.vic.gov.au.
Prescott-Allen, R., (2001). The Well-Being of Nations: A country-by-country index of quality of life and the environment, Island Press, Washington D.C.
Rana, M., (2011). Urbanization and sustainability: challenges and strategies for sustainable urban development in Bangladesh, Environ. Dev. Sustain., 13(1): 237-256 (20 pages).
RCEP, (2002). Twenty-third report environmental planning, Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution presented to Parliament by Command of Her Majesty, London.
Rebele, F., (1994). Urban ecology and special features of urban ecosystems, Global Ecol. Biogeography Lett., 4(6): 173-187 (15 pages).
Reyers, B.; Biggs, R.; Cumming, G.; Elmqvist, T.; Hejnowicz, A.;  Polasky, S., (2013). Getting the measure of ecosystem services: a social-ecological approach, Front. Ecol. Environ., 11(5): 268-273 (6 pages).
Ridd, M., (1995). Exploring a V-I-S (vegetation-impervious surface-soil) model for urban ecosystem analysis through remote sensing: comparative anatomy for cities, Rem. Sens., 16(12): 2165-2186 (12 pages).
Roseland, M., (1997). Dimensions of the eco-city, Cities, 14(4): 197-202 (6 pages).
Runhaar, H.; Driessen, P.; Soer, L., (2009). Sustainable urban development and the challenge of policy integration, Environ. Plan. B, 36(3): 417-431 (15 pages).
Saisana, M.; Tarantola, S., (2002). State-of-the-art report on current methodologies and practices for composite indicator development, European Commission, Rome.
Schepelmann, P.; Ritthoff, M.; Santman, P.; Azapagic, A.; Jeswani, H., (2008). Report on the SWOT analysis of concepts, methods and models potentially supporting LCA, European Commission, Brussels.
Schwela, D.; Zali, O.; Schwela, P., (1997). Motor vehicle air pollution public health impact and control measures, World Health Organization, Geneva.
SEDAC, (2007). Compendium of environmental sustainability indicators, Columbia University, http://sedac.ciesin.columbia.edu.
Segnestam, L., (2003). Indicators of environment and sustainable development theories and practical experience, Wold Bank, New York.
SenStadtUm, (2012). BAF-Biotope area factor, www.stadtentwicklung.berlin.de.
Seo, S., (2002). International review of environmental assessment tools and databases, CRC for Construction Innovation, Brisbane.
Shu-Yang, F.; Freedman, B.; Cote, R., (2004). Principles and practices of ecological design, Environ. Rev., 12(1): 97-112 (16 pages).
Singh, R.; Murty, H.; Gupta, S.; Dikshit, A., (2009). An overview of sustainability assessment methodologies, Ecol. Indicators, 9(1): 189-212 (14 pages).
Smith, S., (1995). Ecologically sustainable development: integrating economics, ecology, and law, Willamette Law Rev., 31(1): 261-272 (12 pages).
Spiekermann, K.; Wegener, M., (2007). The PROPOLIS model for assessing urban sustainability, in M. Deakin; G. Mitchell; P. Nijkamp; R. Vreeker (Ed.), Sustainable urban development, Routledge, London.
Steiner, F., (2000). The living landscape: An ecological approach to landscape planning, McGraw Hill, New York.
Steiner, F., (2011). Landscape ecological urbanism: origins and trajectories, Landscape Urban Plan., 100(4): 333-337 (5 pages).
Sum M.; Hills, P., (1998). Interpreting sustainable development, J. Environ. Sci., 10(2): 129-143 (15 pages).
Sustainable Measures, (2012). Sustainability indicator projects, www.sustainablemeasures.com.
Tan, L., (2006). ABGR and green star rating schemes compliance analysis for ATP-Seven, Bassett Applied Research, Sydney.
Teriman, S.; Yigitcanlar, T.; Mayere, S., (2009). Urban sustainability and growth management in South-East Asian city-regions: the case of Kuala Lumpur and Hong Kong,
Plann. Malaysia, 7(1): 47-68 (21 pages). Torjman, S.; Minns, D., (2001). Sustainable development: Innovation and the quality of life, Caledon Institute of Social Policy, Ottawa.
Tweed, C.; Sutherland, M., (2007). Built cultural heritage and sustainable urban development, Landscape Urban Plan., 83(1): 62–69 (8 pages).
U.S. Green Building Council, (2005). LEED for neighbourhood developments rating system, U.S Green Building Council, www.usgbc.org.
UNEP, (2004). UNEP initiative on capacity building for integrated assessment and planning for sustainable development, UNEP, Geneva.
UNEP/IETC, (2002). International seminar on cities as sustainable ecosystems, the United Nations Environment Programme/International Environmental Technology Centre. www.naf.org.au.
United Nations, (2011). Shanghai manual-A guide for sustainable urban development in the 21st century, www.un.org.
Vancouver City Council, (2009). Creating a more sustainable Vancouver, www.cityofvancouver.us.
Varol, C.; Ercoskun, O.; Gurer, N., (2011). Local participatory mechanisms and collective actions for sustainable urban development in Turkey, Habitat Int., 35(1): 9-16 (8 pages).
VicUrban, (2006). Sustainability charter: Creating thriving communities, VicUrban, Melbourne. Vitousek, P.; Mooney, H.; Lubchenco, J.; Melillo, J., (2008). Human domination of earth’s Ecosystems, in J. Marzluff; E. Shulenberger; W. Endlicher; M. Alberti; G. Bradley; C. Ryan
(Ed.), urban ecology: An international perspective on the interaction between humans and nature, Springer, New York. Waheed, B.; Khan, F.; Veitch, B., (2009). Linkage-based frameworks for sustainability assessment: making a case for driving force-pressure-state-exposure-effect-action (DPSEEA) frameworks, Sustainability, 1(3): 441-463 (23 pages).
WCED, (1987). Our common future: The Brundtland Report, World Commission on Environment and Development, Oxford University Press, New York.
Weins, J., (1989). Spatial scaling in ecology, Funct. Ecol., 3(1): 385-397 (13 pages).
Wheeler, S., (2013). Planning for sustainability: Creating livable, equitable, and ecological communities, Routledge, New York.
Williams, K.; Burton, E.; Jenks, M., (2000). Achieving sustainable urban form, Routledge, London.
Wilson, E.; Piper, J., (2010). Spatial planning and climate change, Routledge, London.
Winograd, M., (1997). Horizontal and vertical linkages in the context of sustainable development Indicators, in B. Moldan; S. Billharz (Ed.). Indicators of sustainable development, John Wiley and Son, London.
Wong, T.; Yuen, B., (2011). Understanding the origins and evolution of eco-city development: An introduction, in T. Wong; B. Yuen (Ed.), Eco-city planning policies, practice and design. Springer, New York.
World Bank, (1997). Expanding the measure of wealth: Indicators of environmentally sustainable development, World Bank, New York.
Wright, F., (2012). Drawings and plans of Frank Lloyd Wright: The early period (1893-1909). Courier Dover Publications, New York.
Yigitcanlar, T.; Sipe, N.; Evans, R.; Pitot, M., (2007). A GISbased land use and public transport accessibility indexing model, Aust. Plan., 44(3): 30-37 (8 pages).
Yigitcanlar, T., (2009). Planning for smart urban ecosystems: information technology applications for capacity building in environmental decision making, Theoretical and empirical researches in Urban Manage., 3(12): 5-21 (17 pages).
Yigitcanlar, T., (2010a). Rethinking sustainable development: Urban management, Engineering and Design, IGI Global, Hersey.
Yigitcanlar, T., (2010b). Sustainable urban and regional infrastructure development: Technologies, applications and management, IGI Global, Hersey.
Yigitcanlar, T.; Dur, F., (2010). Developing a sustainability assessment model: the sustainable infrastructure land-use environment and transport model, Sustainability, 2(1): 321-340 (20 pages).
Yigitcanlar, T.; Kamruzzaman, M., (2014). Investigating the interplay between transport, land use and the environment: a review of the literature, Int. J. Environ. Sci. Tech., 11(8): 2121-2132 (12 pages).
Yigitcanlar, T.; Lee, S., (2014). Korean ubiquitous-eco-city: a smart-sustainable urban form or a branding hoax? Tech. Forecasting Soc. Change, 89(1): 100-114 (15 pages).
Yigitcanlar, T.; Teriman, S., (2014). Rethinking sustainable urban development: towards an integrated planning and development process, Int. J. Environ. Sci. Tech., DOI: 10.1007/s13762-013-0491-x.
Yigitcanlar, T.; Dur, D.; Dizdaroglu, D., (2015). Towards prosperous sustainable ci ties: a multiiscalar urban sustainability assessment approach, Habitat Int., 45(1): 36-46 (11 pages).
Zhang, Y.; Yang, Z.; Li, W., (2006). Analyses of urban ecosystem based on information entropy, Ecol. Model., 197(1): 1-12 (12 pages).

Letters to Editor

GJESM Journal welcomes letters to the editor for the post-publication discussions and corrections which allows debate post publication on its site, through the Letters to Editor. Letters pertaining to manuscript published in GJESM should be sent to the editorial office of GJESM within three months of either online publication or before printed publication, except for critiques of original research. Following points are to be considering before sending the letters (comments) to the editor.

[1] Letters that include statements of statistics, facts, research, or theories should include appropriate references, although more than three are discouraged.
[2] Letters that are personal attacks on an author rather than thoughtful criticism of the author’s ideas will not be considered for publication.
[3] Letters can be no more than 300 words in length.
[4] Letter writers should include a statement at the beginning of the letter stating that it is being submitted either for publication or not.
[5] Anonymous letters will not be considered.
[6] Letter writers must include their city and state of residence or work.
[7] Letters will be edited for clarity and length.

CAPTCHA Image