Skip to main content
Elsevier

Handbook of Regenerative Urbanism

Climate-Positive Pathways for Smart Cities

  • 1st Edition - February 10, 2027
  • Latest edition
  • Editors: Abdulaziz I. Almulhim, Tan Yigitcanlar, Ayyoob Sharifi, Ali Cheshmehzangi, Ali Soltani
  • Language: English

Handbook of Regenerative Urbanism: Climate-Positive Pathways for Smart Cities explores how digital innovations like AI, IoT, and digital twins can transform urban develo… Read more

End of Summer Sale

Save up to 30% off

Bright savings for research, study, and discovery

Shop the summer sale

Description

Handbook of Regenerative Urbanism: Climate-Positive Pathways for Smart Cities explores how digital innovations like AI, IoT, and digital twins can transform urban development to achieve net-positive environmental outcomes. This volume bridges the gap between ecological restoration principles and advanced smart city technologies, providing a comprehensive framework to design, implement, and scale climate-positive urban systems. Through global case studies from the Global North and South, it demonstrates how data-driven tools and nature-based solutions can restore ecosystems, enhance resilience, and deliver measurable benefits.

The book is organized into five sections covering foundational concepts, practical regenerative strategies, core smart technologies, governance and policy integration, and detailed case studies. Topics include digital modeling of urban ecosystems, AI-optimized mobility, smart water and waste management, digital twins for planning, AI-enabled governance, and blockchain for transparent resource management. Each chapter offers actionable methodologies and insights into applying technology for climate-positive urban transformation.

This reference is ideal for urban planners, architects, environmental designers, policymakers, and sustainability professionals engaged in smart city and climate-positive development. It also serves researchers and postgraduate students in urban studies, environmental science, engineering, and smart technologies. Technology developers, data scientists, and innovation managers working on AI, IoT, and digital twins will find valuable guidance, as will municipal officials and international development agencies seeking scalable strategies for the twin digital and green transitions.

Key features

  • Provides an integrated framework combining regenerative urbanism principles with advanced smart city technologies such as AI, IoT, digital twins, blockchain, and smart grids, enabling readers to achieve net-positive urban outcomes
  • Presents sector-specific methodologies and practical strategies across energy, mobility, water, waste, and biodiversity domains
  • Offers global case studies that illustrate scalable and transferable applications structured around context and challenges, smart intervention, implementation, outcomes, and lessons learned, enabling readers to adapt successful models to their own urban contexts

Readership

Urban planners, architects, environmental designers, policymakers, sustainability professionals; researchers and postgraduate students in urban studies, environmental science, civil engineering, and smart technologies, technology developers, data scientists, innovation managers, international development agencies, city networks

Table of contents

Section I: Concepts & Principles

1. Introduction: Cities in the Era of Climate Change and Digital Revolution

2. Smart Cities in the Twin Digital and Green Transition

3. From Sustainability to Net-Positive Urbanism in the Digital Age

4. Principles of Regenerative Urbanism with Smart and Data-Driven Tools

5. Social, Cultural, and Inclusivity Dimensions of Regenerative Urbanism in Smart Cities

Section II: Strategies for Regenerative and Climate-Positive Planning

6. Digital Modelling of Urban Ecosystems for Carbon Sequestration

7. Blue-Green Infrastructure as a Climate-Positive Tool in Smart Cities

8. Circular Economy in the Built Environment with Smart Material Tracking

9. Nature-Based Solutions Integrated with IoT and Remote Sensing

10. AI-Assisted Urban Planning for Biodiversity and Multispecies Urbanism

11. AI-Optimized Low-Emission Mobility Systems

12. IoT-Enabled Smart Water Management

13. Zero-Waste Strategies Powered by Digital Platforms

Section III: Smart Technologies for Regenerative and Climate-Positive Cities

14. Digital Twins for Climate-Responsive and Regenerative Urban Planning

15. IoT and Sensor Networks for Real-Time Environmental Monitoring

16. AI and Data Analytics for Predictive Climate and Resource Management

17. Smart Grids, Renewable Energy, and Net-Positive Energy Districts

Section IV: Smart Governance, Digital Policy, and Community Co-Creation

18. AI-Enabled Governance and Climate Data Integration for Smart Cities

19. Digital Platforms for Participatory Urban Planning and Co-Creation

20. Blockchain and Data Trusts for Transparent Climate and Resource Management

Section V: Case Studies and Future Directions

21. Case Study – Global North: Copenhagen’s Climate-Positive Energy Districts

22. Case Study – Global North: Vancouver’s Regenerative Urban Waterfront

23. Case Study – Global South: Curitiba’s Integrated Smart Mobility and Green Infrastructure

24. Case Study – Global South: Singapore’s Smart Water and Zero-Waste Systems

25. Conclusion: A Vision for Net-Positive Urban Futures

Product details

  • Edition: 1
  • Latest edition
  • Published: February 10, 2027
  • Language: English

About the editors

AA

Abdulaziz I. Almulhim

Abdulaziz I. Almulhim is an Associate Professor of Urban Sustainability at Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University (IAU), in the College of Architecture and Planning. He earned his Ph.D. from the University of Liverpool, UK. Dr. Almulhim’s research focuses on urban sustainability, urbanization, sustainable cities, climate change, environmental planning, the circular economy, and resource management. He has published more than 50 high-impact research papers in leading international peer-reviewed journals. He also serves as a reviewer and chief guest editor for several reputable international journals. He has edited several book volumes. Additionally, Dr. Almulhim is a Lead Author for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Special Report on Climate Change and Cities (2027), commissioned by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

Affiliations and expertise
Associate Professor, Department of Urban and Regional Planning, College of Architecture and Planning, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam, Saudi Arabia

TY

Tan Yigitcanlar

Tan Yigitcanlar is an eminent researcher with international recognition and impact in urban studies and planning. He is a Professor of Urban Studies and Planning at the School of Architecture and Built Environment, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia. Along with this post, he is an Honorary Professor at the School of Technology, Federal University of Santa Catarina, Florianopolis, Brazil, and the Founding Director position of the Australia-Brazil Smart City Research and Practice Network. His research is clustered around three interdisciplinary themes: Smart technologies, communities, cities, and urbanism; Sustainable and resilient cities, communities, and urban ecosystems; Knowledge-based development of cities and innovation districts. His research findings are disseminated in over 250 articles published in high-impact journals and 18 key reference books. Amongst urban and regional planning scholars, 2020 Science-wide Author Databases of Standardised Citation Indicators ranked him as #1 highly cited researcher in Australia and #7 worldwide.
Affiliations and expertise
Professor of Urban Studies and Planning, School of Architecture and Built Environment, Civil Engineering and Built Environment, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia

AS

Ayyoob Sharifi

Ayyoob Sharifi is Professor at the IDEC Institute, Hiroshima University. He also is Core Member of the Network for Education and Research on Peace and Sustainability (NERPS). His research is mainly focused on climate change mitigation and adaptation. Ayyoob actively contributes to global change research programmes such as the Future Earth and has served as Lead Author for the Sixth Assessment Report (AR6) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The ultimate goal of his education and research activities is to inform actions towards building sustainable and peaceful communities.
Affiliations and expertise
Professor, Hiroshima University, Japan

AC

Ali Cheshmehzangi

Ali Cheshmehzangi is Head of the School of Architecture, Design and Planning and a Professor at The University of Queensland (UQ), Brisbane, Australia. He is Editor-in-Chief of the Urban Sustainability book series with Springer Nature. He is committee member of the 2032 Games in Brisbane for Legacy and Growth sub-committee, as well as an expert member of the Olympics and Paralympic Games. With a career spanning over two decades, he has made significant contributions to the academic and professional communities, with a focus on sustainable and environmentally conscious design. Ali has published over 500 journal papers, articles, conference papers, book chapters, and reports, as well as 44 academic books, some of which have received awards at the international, national, provincial, and municipal levels. He has received international awards and recognition for his research, as well as the 2018 Vice-Chancellor’s award for his impactful contribution to higher education.

Affiliations and expertise
Head of the School of Architecture, The University of Queensland (UQ), Brisbane, Australia

AS

Ali Soltani

Ali Soltani is an active researcher and dedicated educator whose work spans road safety, transportation, environmental systems, and urban GIS applications. His research, characterised by a strong emphasis on data-driven approaches, directly informs his teaching philosophy. His work is further defined by interdisciplinary collaboration, innovative methodologies, and an unwavering commitment to sustainable development.

Affiliations and expertise
Researcher, College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University, Australia