Urban green spaces encourage outdoor activity and social communication that contribute to the health of local residents. Examining the relationship between the use of urban green spaces and factors influencing their utilization can provide essential references for green space site selection in urban planning. In contrast to previous studies that focused on internal factors, this study highlights the external factors (traffic convenience, population density and commercial facilities) contributing to the use of urban green spaces. We conducted a spatiotemporal analysis of the distribution of visitors in 208 selected green spaces in central Beijing. We examined the relationship between the spatial pattern of visitor distribution within urban green spaces and external factors, using the Gini coefficient, kernel density estimation, and geographical detectors. The results of the study were as follows. The spatial distribution of visitors within central Beijing’s green spaces was concentrated, forming different agglomerations. The three examined external factors are all associated with the use of green spaces. Among them, commercial facilities are the important external factor associated with the use of green spaces. For the selection of sites for urban green spaces, we recommend consideration of external factors in order to balance urban green space utilization.

The regeneration of old residential communities in China is one of the most important tasks in urban renewal. In recent years, distinctive models and pathways have emerged in the emerging practice of participatory community regeneration, all of which can be seen as applications of collaborative governance theory at the community level. Collaborative governance is considered an effective way to achieve multiple goals in urban regeneration, but there has been relatively little research on collaborative governance in small-scale regeneration projects. This paper summarizes three nuanced pathways in the collaborative governance model through case studies, which are led by different initiators, resulting in collaborative models, rights dynamics, and implementation pathways that are applicable to different scenarios, effectively resolving community conflicts and producing sustainable practical results. This study compares how the three models achieve their respective objectives in participatory regeneration projects by coordinating the different stakeholder participation processes. These three models complement and extend international experience and will provide a vivid Chinese example for other developing countries around the world.

Greater contradiction and conflict among urban green space, the development of social economy and the environment have occurred in Beijing. However, few studies have been conducted that consider the three subsystems as a whole. In this study, we defined sustainable development of green space (SDGS) as the coordinated development of the urban green system, social economy, and environment. Based on the datasets from 2000 to 2015, we forecast the SDGS in Beijing under multiple scenarios based on real-world policies using a system dynamics model. We found that the historical SDGS value increased to its highest level in 2012, but declined slightly by 2015. Second, the forecasted SDGS values declined over time in all scenarios, but the decline was greater in scenarios placing a high priority on economic development. In these scenarios, the performance of the indices only improved in certain subsystems. The simulation shows the implementation of the four policies proposed by the government failed to improve the overall level of SDGS in Beijing. This study could provide support for decision-making designed to improve the overall condition of urban green space in Beijing through integrated forecast and scenario simulation.

(1) Background: Public space is an important carrier for maintaining the cultural values of a village and the production and living customs of the villagers, but the use rights and boundaries are in an unstable and ambiguous state, and it is not a completely open and inclusive public space. The study aims to deepen the understanding of the publicness of public space in traditional villages from the perspective of subjective and objective combination, which reveals the relationship between the space and villagers’ behavior. (2) Methods: The research established an evaluation framework for assessing the “publicness” of public spaces in traditional villages by integrating space syntax and cognitive surveys. This framework facilitates the analysis of the extent and dimensions of publicness, along with corresponding behavioral patterns, and explores the underlying mechanisms influencing publicness. (3) Results: The study reveals significant variations in the publicness of traditional village spaces. High-publicness areas tend to cluster, whereas low-publicness areas are more scattered, and riverfront regions exhibit greater publicness compared to mountain-adjacent ones. Villagers exhibit notable differences in their evaluations of public spaces, and individuals aged 14–18 and those over 66 rate the highest. The utilization rate of high-publicness spaces is significantly high, catering to a diverse array of activities. In spaces with lower publicness, the duration and variety of activities tend to be more constrained, often limited to rapid exchanges or brief respites, exhibiting a narrower scope of activities. (4) Conclusions: The study underscores the variability and complexity of publicness in traditional village spaces, which manifest not only in spatial layouts and types but also in villagers’ usage patterns and behavioral preferences. This may be influenced by objective factors such as spatial accessibility, social interaction, and richness of cultural activities.

Multi-scale thermal regulation of urban green spaces is critical for climate-adaptive planning. Addressing the limited research on key indicators and cross-scale synergies in high-density areas, this study developed an integrated framework combining multi-granularity grids and boosted regression tree (BRT) modeling to investigate nonlinear scale-dependent relationships between landscape parameters and land surface temperature (LST) in the central urban area of Shijiazhuang. Key findings: (1) Spatial heterogeneity and scale divergence: Vegetation coverage (FVC) and green space area (AREA) showed decreasing contributions at larger scales, while configuration metrics (e.g., aggregation index (AI), edge density (ED)) exhibited positive scale responses, confirming a dual mechanism with micro-scale quality dominance and macro-scale pattern regulation. (2) Threshold effects quantification: The BRT model revealed peak marginal cooling efficiency (0.8–1.2 °C per 10% FVC increment) within 30–70% FVC ranges, with minimum effective green patch area thresholds increasing from 0.6 ha (micro-scale) to 3.5 ha (macro-scale). (3) Based on multi-scale cooling mechanism analysis, a three-tier matrix optimization framework for green space strategies is established, integrating “micro-level regulation, meso-level connectivity, and macro-level anchoring”. This study develops a green space optimization paradigm integrating machine learning-driven analysis, multi-scale coupling, and threshold-based management, providing methodological tools for mitigating urban heat islands and enhancing climate resilience in high-density cities.

Urban renewal urgently needs to find a new media tool to extensively promote public participation. Professionals also need strong and powerful communication tools for the public. Mass media has the ability to influence human perceptions and behaviors, but its role has been overlooked. This study aims to arouse professionals’ attention to mass media and promote interdisciplinary cooperation through empirical evidence. By observing the performance of participatory urban gardening projects in Chinese newspapers, we highlight the positive effect of mass media on participatory landscape revitalization. We selected two projects in China as samples, collected newspaper reports on them during 2017–2021, and analyzed the textual framing and report communication based on communication theory. According to the result, mass media has four positive effects that not only affect the public but also contribute to participatory landscape revitalization development. Based on the results, we discuss the consistence of views of the mass media and landscape architecture. This study suggests that landscape architecture needs to actively collaborate with public media to better leverage the role of landscape in sustainable urban transformation.