Amid global warming and urbanization, outdoor thermal comfort has become a critical consideration in landscape architecture. This study integrates a systematic review and bibliometric analysis of 1417 empirical studies (1980–2024) sourced from Web of Science, aiming to clarify the current state of research, identify core themes, and propose future directions. This study examines key evaluation models, the influence of spatial morphology, and their practical applications using keyword co-occurrence, citation networks, and thematic analyses. Findings show a significant rise in research over the past decade, particularly in tropical and subtropical regions. Core themes include thermal comfort indices (PMV, PET, and UTCI), microclimate regulation, and important spatial indicators (height-to-width ratio, sky view factor, and greening). The field is increasingly shifting towards simulation tools (such as ENVI-met and CFD) rather than traditional field measurements, with artificial intelligence emerging as a tool for predictive and regulatory purposes, though its application remains limited. However, much of the research focuses on small-scale morphological optimization and lacks a systematic framework for spatial representation. Future research should prioritize developing a comprehensive evaluation system adaptable to diverse landscapes, investigating the interplay between spatial form and thermal comfort, and advancing sustainable, low-carbon design strategies. The insights from this study provide a solid foundation for improving outdoor thermal comfort and guiding sustainable urban development through landscape architecture.

In the context of global climate change, the rising frequency of extreme weather events has increasingly highlighted their impact on human settlements. This study examines the influence of courtyard layout on the wind environment in coastal, traditional villages, focusing on its relevance and importance for enhancing living comfort and preserving cultural heritage. Utilizing data from 204 typical courtyards in Quanzhou City, Fujian Province, China, 18 representative courtyard models were abstracted and analyzed for their winter wind conditions using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations. The study findings indicate (1) that an increase in the courtyard area index gradually decreases wind comfort, with the most optimal wind comfort, stability, and adaptability observed in courtyards of 15 m², 15 m², and 110 m². (2) Wind comfort follows a fluctuating pattern as the aspect ratio changes. Courtyards with aspect ratios of 0.8, 1, and 1.2 demonstrate the highest levels of wind comfort, stability, and adjustability. (3) Wind comfort varies in a wave-like manner depending on orientation, with courtyards facing northeast, southeast, and northwest providing superior wind comfort, stability, and adjustability. These findings offer insights into optimizing courtyard designs to enhance environmental quality and promote sustainable living in coastal, traditional villages.

The coastal regions of Fujian, characterized by a subtropical maritime monsoon climate, experience a high frequency of windy days throughout the year, which significantly impacts residents’ lives. Local traditional villages, through long-term practical exploration, have developed a unique “maze-like” spatial layout adapted to withstand harsh wind conditions. This study aims to quantitatively analyze the climatic adaptability advantages of this traditional layout, providing theoretical support for the protection of historical cultural heritage and guidance for modern village construction. The methodology includes field wind measurement for data acquisition, construction of current and regularized divergent models, and comparative numerical simulations under scenarios of strong winter winds and typhoons. The results indicate that wind speeds within traditional villages are generally lower. The layout’s nonlinear roads and clusters of buildings form multiple buffer zones that effectively reduce wind speeds. In contrast, areas in the divergent model experience excessively high wind speeds, impacting outdoor activity safety and comfort. The traditional “maze-like” layout encapsulates the climate adaptation wisdom of ancestors, enhancing wind environment regulation, thermal comfort, and disaster resilience. This layout concept merits promotion and innovative application in the new era to construct livable, green, and sustainable human environments.

Even though the interaction between plants and the outdoor wind environment has been a focus of interest for scholars from various disciplines in recent years, the relationship between campus outdoor wind comfort and plant configuration in subtropical coastal areas remains poorly understood. Using the outdoor space of a typical subtropical coastal campus (the Donghai Campus of Quanzhou Normal University) as a case study, we explore the connection between plant configuration and outdoor wind comfort. The campus outdoor area is segmented into roads, squares, and courtyards to investigate this relationship. To achieve this goal, a 9-h fixed-point measurement method and the PHOENICS software (2016) were utilized. The following are the findings of the research: (1) Within the realm of trees, the banyan, Bischofia javanica, and kapok species exhibit a notable impact on wind speed reduction, with respective wind reduction ratios of 1.22, 1.31, and 1.29. Notably, among shrubs, waringin stands out with a wind reduction ratio of 1.83. (2) The tree + shrub + grass combination is the most effective method for reducing wind among the three plant facade configurations. Specifically, the combination of Bischofia javanica, waringin, and carpet grass has the best wind reduction effect, with a wind reduction ratio of 2.55. (3) Adding Bischofia javanica, waringin, and grass plants in areas with high wind speeds can effectively improve wind comfort. This provides directions for creating a comfortable wind environment on university campuses situated in subtropical coastal areas.

The design of the enclosure layout is crucial in establishing a comfortable wind environment in Chinese classic landscape gardens. The Ruins Park of the Old Summer Palace exemplifies the mountain construction techniques used in classical Chinese flat gardens, with a diverse and illustrative spatial layout of the hills. In this study, we focused on the earthen hill space of the Old Palace in the Summer Palace Ruins Park. We compared and analyzed the effects of different enclosure layouts of earthen hill spaces on the summer monsoon wind environment. This was achieved via on-site measurements and simulations using computational fluid dynamics (CFD). The results show the following: (1) The direction index of the enclosure layout of the earthen hill space affects wind speed, comfort, and ventilation. Increasing the index reduces speed and comfort but improves ventilation. (2) Increasing the density index of the enclosure layout of the earthen hill space leads to a decrease in wind speed and wind comfort and improved ventilation. (3) Conversely, increasing the area index of the enclosure layout of the earthen hill space results in an increase in wind speed, which can result in better wind comfort but can also lead to poor ventilation. Overall, the results suggest that careful consideration should be given to the enclosure layout of landscape gardens to ensure optimal wind conditions within the space.

As cities worldwide strive to promote healthy and sustainable non-motorized transport, the equity of dockless bike-sharing has become a central issue in urban transport planning. This study investigates the relationship between human-scale urban environmental perceptions and the equity of bike-sharing usage within 15-minute cycling catchments of metro stations. Using Shenzhen, China, as a case study, we integrated bike-share trip records from August 2021 (around 43 million trips), population grid data, and Baidu Street View images analyzed with deep learning models. The study first quantified the spatial inequality of bike-sharing usage within each metro catchment area using a per capita trip Gini coefficient. Subsequently, we assessed the correlation between these equity metrics and human-scale urban qualities quantified from street-level imagery. The findings reveal significant intra-catchment usage disparities, with some central urban station areas showing relatively equitable bike-sharing distribution (Gini as low as 0.37), while others, particularly on the urban fringe, exhibit highly inequitable patterns (Gini as high as 0.93). Spearman correlation analysis showed that catchments perceived as “livelier” and more “interesting” had significantly lower Gini coefficients, whereas other perceptual factors such as safety, beauty and wealth showed no significant linear relationship with equity. A Random Forest model further indicated that “liveliness” and “lack of boredom” are the strongest predictors of usage equity, highlighting the critical role of vibrant street environments in promoting equitable access. These findings bridge the fields of transportation equity and urban governance, suggesting that improving the human-scale environment around transit hubs, thereby making streets more engaging, safe, and pleasant, could foster more inclusive and equitable use of bike-sharing.