Purpose: There is a resurgence in the adaptive reuse of buildings. However, there is a lack of literature that pulls all the strands of adaptive reuse together. Furthermore, despite claims that it is motivated by the 3 Es of the sustainability triangle, the authors could find no research that critiques adaptive reuse from this perspective. The purpose of this study is to review the literature to collect pertinent information in a single place and to critically examine whether adaptive reuse incorporates the 3 Es of sustainability. Design/methodology/approach: The methodological approach of this study is a literature review and a critical analysis of the practice of adaptive review. Findings: Adaptive reuse is concentrated at the environment and economic development corners of the sustainability triangle. There are positive interactions along this edge. The authors attribute this to the fact that the same actors – the private and public sectors – are located at both corners of the triangle, and they have shared interests. This is different from the wider sustainability literature, where major actors at each corner are different and tensions along each edge are resolved through mediation. In adaptive reuse, there are no actors at the equity corner of the triangle, and there are minimal attempts to address concerns along the equity–environment and equity–economic development edges of the triangle. Research limitations/implications: This study focuses on the USA. Practical implications: This study suggests policy interventions that address the equity issue in adaptive reuse. Originality/value: This is the first study to provide a succinct review of contemporary adaptive reuse and that places the practice within the framework of the 3 Es of sustainability.

To assess whether China’s emissions will peak around 2030, we forecast energy consumption and carbon emissions in China. We use an agent-based model driven by enterprises’ innovation. Results show some differences in both energy consumption peaks and carbon emission peaks when we compare trends at different levels. We find that carbon emissions and energy consumption will peak in 2027 and 2028, respectively. However, the primary, secondary, and tertiary industries will reach energy consumption in different years: 2023, 2029, and 2022, respectively, and reach carbon emission peaks in 2022, 2028, and 2022, respectively. At the sectoral level, we find a wider range of energy consumption peaks and carbon emission peaks. Peak energy consumption occurs between 2020 and 2034, and peak carbon emissions between 2020 and 2032. Commercial and catering businesses, utilities and resident services, and finance and insurance achieve peak energy consumption and carbon emissions earliest in 2020, while building materials and other non-metallic mineral products manufacturing and metal products manufacturing are the two latest sectors to reach peak energy consumption and emissions, in 2034 and 2032, respectively.

Despite evidence that households pay more for lots or houses in conservation subdivisions, developers are sometimes reluctant to build them. I use a spatial autoregressive model to shed light on this contradiction. The presence of nearby conservation lots reduces the value of a given conservation lot. I present two possible explanations for this result: (1) Lots located close to each other are indicative of higher density, which is frowned upon by Americans, and (2) conservation lots compete for views and rural aesthetics, and the construction of one lot decreases their availability to other lots. Results for other independent variables corroborate these explanations. Developers’ reluctance to embrace conservation subdivisions in some locations might be a result of regulations that discourage their development. More research is needed on how regulations for conservation subdivisions vary across the United States and how these affect developers’ decisions.

The endowment effect predicts that people value losses more than gains. I examine whether the effect sheds light on courts’ takings decisions. My findings include the following: (1) regulations that emphasize losses rather than gains are more likely to survive judicial review; (2) endowments can include comprehensive plans, development plans, permits, etc; (3) both governments and landowners can acquire endowments to sway courts in their favor; (4) occupying land creates a strong endowment; and (5) implementing plans helps to cement endowments. I suggest research that examines more cases, hypotheses that emerge from my analyses, and characteristics of the effect related to land.

There is a lack of research on how perceptions about urban spaces are associated with obesity. We surveyed 347 residents in a rapidly changing area of Detroit, Michigan about their perceptions of urban amenities and the ambient environment. We use principal component analysis to reduce the urban amenity and ambient environment variables to a manageable number. We use a spatial error model to account for spatial autocorrelation. We find that more urban amenities are associated with decreased obesity. A one-percent increase in residents’ perceptions of the availability of urban amenities is associated with a 0.13 percent decrease in obesity. Adverse ambient environments are associated with increased obesity. A one-percent increase in residents’ perceptions of adverse ambient environment quality is associated with a 0.12-percent increase in obesity. Addressing residents’ perceptions about urban spaces can provide planners with an additional tool to tackle obesity.