Innovative Technologies and Circular Solutions for Sustainable Urban Communities - Volume 1

This book offers a rich compilation of diverse research, innovative practices, and forward-thinking strategies that redefine how cities can grow sustainably while effectively adapting to climate impacts. In an era characterized by rapid urbanization and escalating climate challenges, the need for sustainable cities has never been more urgent. This comprehensive book, compiled from conference proceedings, explores how cities can evolve and transform into resilient, inclusive, and ecologically balanced urban environments through holistic, integrated approaches.

The book is organized into four parts, each addressing a key dimension of green urbanism and resilience.

This book serves as a valuable resource for urban planners, environmental researchers, policymakers, and stakeholders in community development. It goes beyond theoretical discussions, showcasing case studies and practical examples from different parts of the world, including Belgium, Italy, Brazil, and Indonesia. By addressing diverse geographic and socio-economic contexts, the book presents a well-rounded perspective on the opportunities and challenges inherent in transitioning to more sustainable urban forms.

Through its interdisciplinary approach, this collection encourages readers to think broadly and act locally. It illuminates how the collective power of urban planning, technological innovation, community engagement, and circular economy can be harnessed to foster environmental sustainability and social resilience and equity. Ultimately, it inspires hope for the future of urban environments, where cities become models of resilience, inclusivity, and ecological harmony.

Israa H. Mahmoud, Ph.D., is a polyglot urban planner and architect. She is an assistant professor of Urban and Regional Planning at the Laboratorio di Simulazione Urbana Fausto Curti, Department of Architecture and Urban Studies (DAStU), Politecnico di Milano. After five years of Research Fellowship in several European Projects, such as:  CLEVER Cities, Nati00ns, Maps-Led and others, she is currently working at the National Biodiversity Future Center (NBFC) as a researcher on co-creation and co-governance themes related to urban biodiversity in living labs. With more than 45+ publications, her research focuses on green urbanism, nature-based solutions, urban biodiversity, social inclusivity, co-creation processes, Urban Living Labs and urban governance. Recently, she has completed a visiting research period at the Knowledge Center for Biodiversity at the European Commission—Joint Research Center seat in Ispra, Italy as well as a month of Exchange at the Department of Human Geography and Spatial Planning, Faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht University. She takes part in several task forces on NBS induced by Network Nature (and NN+) such as TF2 on monitoring and TF6 on co-governance and co-creation and co-leading the NBS Italy hub group for the PoliMi team.

Simon Elias Bibri, PhD, is a senior researcher and globally recognized expert specializing in sustainable smart cities and smarter eco-cities. Currently, he serves as a Senior Research Scientist and Project Coordinator at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL), Institute of Computer and Communication Sciences (IINFCOM), School of Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering (ENAC). He has a diverse professional background, having served as head of computer department, software and IT business engineer, IT project manager, green ICT and environmental sustainability strategist, research associate, assistant professor, and consultant. He was also a visiting scholar at Lund University and a visiting senior researcher at Royal Institute of Technology in Sweden. He has served as an expert in Artificial Intelligence and Applied Machine Learning for Climate Action for UNFCCC and an international expert in Sustainable Cities for the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO). He currently serves as an expert for Focus Group for Smart Sustainable Cities, Environmental Sustainability, and Digital Twins for ITU. He also holds the position of the Editor‑in‑Chief of the International Journal of Environmental Studies at Taylor & Francis Group. 

Dr. Bibri’s academic journey exemplifies both interdisciplinarity and transdisciplinarity. His intellectual background encompasses computer science, computer engineering, systems science, innovation science, environmental science, social sciences, and humanities. He holds a bachelor’s degree in computer engineering and a postgraduate degree in management science. Notably, he earned multiple master’s degrees from esteemed Swedish universities, namely Lund University, West University, Blekinge Institute of Technology, Stockholm University, Malmö University, and Mid‑Sweden University. He received his PhD in computer science from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), specializing in computational technology and urban informatics, with a focus on data‑driven smart sustainable cities. Dr. Bibri is a prolific author with numerous highly cited journal articles, 8 authored books, 3 edited books, and 10 co‑edited books to his credit. His work has been cited over 13000 times, resulting in an h‑index of 50. His impact has been recognized by Stanford University and Elsevier as one of the top 1% of scientists worldwide, a distinction he has held for five consecutive years. He has also been listed by ScholarGPS as the #1 highly ranked scholar in sustainable cities, #4 in big data, and #8 in environmental sustainability in the world.