Developing low-carbon cities (LCC) is a strategic measure to mitigate climate change. This study proposes to diagnose LCC performance from a dual perspective in order to identify problematic areas for improvement. The dual perspective refers to management processes (including Plan, Do, Check, and Act) and low carbon city performance dimensions (namely, energy structure, economic development, production efficiency, urban population, water carbon sink, forest carbon sink, green space carbon sink, and low carbon technology). A diagnosis model has been introduced based on the dimension-process dual perspective. The model has been applied for diagnosing the LCC performance in four municipalities in China. It has been found that the performance in the economic development dimension is much better than in other LCC dimensions, and the performance in Plan and Do stages are better than that in other stages. This reflects the traditional practice in China where more attention and resources are often given to urban planning and implementation with less attention to checks and feedback. The findings from this study provide important references for both further research in the discipline and practical application in promoting LCC in other cities.

The Internet plays a pivotal role in tackling global climate challenges, particularly in facilitating a transition toward low-carbon behavior. However, the

Improving urban land use efficiency is a critical pathway toward sustainable urban development, particularly in large countries undergoing rapid urbanization such as China. However, significant disparities in land use efficiency exist across cities, largely due to differences in economic development, resource endowments, and governance practices. These disparities highlight the necessity of conducting a systematic spatiotemporal assessment of land use mismatch at the city level to identify regional weaknesses and inform differentiated policy mechanisms. This study extends the land use mismatch (LUM) model, which introduces a supply–demand framework for analyzing the mismatch phenomenon of urban land use. Building on the LUM model, this study innovatively develops a classification system of five mismatch zones across eight construction land types, which provides a more systematic and comprehensive approach to identifying land use mismatch patterns. The empirical analysis is conducted using data from 283 prefecture-level cities in China. The results reveal substantial spatial heterogeneity in land use mismatch across Chinese cities. Most of the cities in East China generally fall within acceptable mismatch zones, where market mechanisms play a more effective role in land allocation. Cities in Western China exhibit more serious mismatch levels, where policy intervention seems more significant in land use planning. Cities in Central China demonstrate mixed patterns, ranging from acceptable to severe mismatch. The findings further indicate that these disparities are associated not only with economic and geographical differences but also with variations in governance practices, particularly the interaction between policy intervention and market mechanisms. This study introduces a new approach to examining the patterns of land use mismatch and provides evidence-based policy recommendations for cities in different regions to reduce land mismatch and promote more efficient use of urban land.