Despite the fact that vulnerable communities are the most affected by unplanned cities, considerably less attention has been given to involving them in urban development in order to ensure equitable outcomes. In this regard, there is an urgent need for governments to introduce and enforce processes that allow citizens, including vulnerable communities, to participate in development planning and policymaking. However, at present, there is a lack of guidance for practitioners regarding the definition of a clear purpose of community engagement and the selection of appropriate participatory methods to fulfil the set purpose. This study provides a thorough account of the participatory methods that can be used to achieve various engagement goals throughout the urban development process. This structured literature review used 71 reports published from 2000 to 2020. The review revealed 34 participatory methods, wherein most of the methods are devoted to informing, consulting and involving communities, whilst only a few methods are available for interactive public participation that supports true collaboration and empowerment. The study identified 12 purposes of community engagement in urban development, and mapped the 34 participatory methods for achieving them. The analysed case studies showed that the current community engagement practices are mainly in the pre-design and briefing stages of the urban development processes, and that most projects are aiming to achieve the ‘inform’ and ‘consult’ levels of engagement, with a few aiming to achieve the ‘involve’ and ‘collaborate’ levels. This study shows that community engagement is often overlooked during the professional design, development and post-development phases. The paper presents an onion model which can be used by practitioners to choose appropriate participatory methods based on the intended urban development phase, the engagement level and the purpose of the community engagement.

Running expenses of a building consume a substantial share of its total life cycle cost and range between 70 and 80% in commercial buildings. Despite this, investment decisions are primarily based on construction costs due to the absence of a reliable estimate or forecast of costs in-use. In such a context, having running cost indices that incorporate building characteristics would enable investors to predict the running costs of a building at the early phase. This study is aimed at developing running cost indices for commercial buildings by taking Sri Lanka as a case. The running costs and building characteristics data were collected from a sample of 46 commercial buildings and analyzed using the hedonic price imputation approach, which enables the prediction of costs in absence of cost/quantity data. The hedonic indices developed in the study shows an increasing trend of running costs with varying degree of 0.37, 0.30, and 0.28% quarterly for offices, banks, and all commercial buildings, respectively. This prediction of trend would assist commercial developers to capture the movement of the running costs of commercial buildings and thereby optimize the running costs in the early design stage. This study further highlights the hedonic price imputation approach as a promising method for constructing index values where there is no adequate and reliable historical cost data.

During the last two decades, global disasters have impacted over 5.2 billion people, with economic losses exceeding USD 2.97 trillion. This underscores the critical need for inclusive risk-sensitive urban planning (RSUP) that integrates community insights. Community-based disaster risk reduction (CBDRR) has demonstrated a potential reduction of up to 40% in mortality rates during disasters and cost savings in disaster response and recovery. However, research has shown that only 20% felt they are involved in decisions related to neighborhood planning, despite communities’ lived experience in surviving local hazards. This highlights a gap where practitioners dominate the development of mitigation and development plans, sidelining local perspectives. Using Sri Lanka as a case study, this study investigated the barriers to effective community participation in the decision-making of RSUP and thereby developed an interpretive logic model to establish an understanding of why they occur and how each barrier is interlinked. The data gathered from a sample of 44 experts and community representatives revealed 19 factors that impede community inclusion in the decision-making of RSUP in Sri Lanka. The Total Interpretive Structural Modelling (TISM) analysis adopted identified that the absence of legal provisions for inclusive development, political dynamics, and corruption are the most significant barriers. The Matrix Impact of Cross Multiplication Applied to Classification (MICMAC) further revealed that fewer financial provisions and the absence of an institutional framework for community engagement are the linking barriers to the other 17 barriers. This study not only extends the theoretical debate on barriers to community engagement for risk-responsive and equitable development but also helps urban planners, disaster management practitioners, and strategy policymakers focus on critical areas that need major reforms.

Despite the emphasis in sustainable development goals (SDG) 11, 13, and 17 on collaborative efforts to address climate change‐induced disaster risks through inclusive planning, stakeholders' role in fostering community engagement in risk‐sensitive urban planning (RSUP) remains underexplored. This study, focusing on Sri Lanka, employs a two‐mode social network analysis to examine stakeholders' roles in overcoming barriers and promoting enablers of inclusive RSUP. Through documentary review, expert interviews, and focus‐group discussions, 62 stakeholders, 19 barriers, and 19 enablers were identified. State agencies for urban development and disaster management, non‐governmental organisations (NGOs), and inter‐governmental organisations (IGOs) were found to influence over half of the barriers and enablers. Most stakeholders demonstrate the capacity to address gaps in community knowledge, skills, and competencies while incorporating lived experiences into development planning. NGOs and IGOs are vital for securing resources, knowledge, and technical support. The findings emphasise a multistakeholder approach for enhancing national‐level decision‐making, policy design, and offer insights into fostering partnerships and addressing challenges for resilient urban environments.

Renewable energy is a central component of global sustainable energy development, with solar energy experiencing substantial growth over recent decades. Solar power is widely regarded as one of the most accessible routes to clean energy generation. However, high upfront costs remain a major barrier to adoption. Many potential users are reluctant to invest in solar photovoltaic (PV) systems because of the longer payback period. To address this financial constraint, a range of business models has been developed. This study used a systematic literature review to examine existing and emerging business models for promoting Solar PV solutions. The review included peer-reviewed journal articles published in English from 2020 to 2026. In total, 39 articles were critically evaluated considering their characteristics. Nine potential business models were identified, several of which are commonly used internationally and have shown positive results that could also be applied in the UK. Importantly, Community Energy Models have shown success in Europe, Sub-Saharan and Asian regions. This has been widely supported by the government due to sustainability and climate change targets. The UK has set their target to achieve net-zero in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Beyond financial barriers, reliance on weather conditions and the mismatch between energy demand and supply remain substantial barriers to wider solar PV deployment.