Global and urban-induced local warming lead to increasing heat risk in cities. The rapid increase in urban population, weak infrastructure, poverty, as well as an ageing population, make the risk more acute in developing cities. However, heat risk is not uniformly distributed and a detailed exploration of the link between urban characteristics and local variations in heat risk is needed to aid targeted mitigation. In this paper, we demonstrate a fine-grained heat risk map using existing data combined with expert opinion in a humid tropical city (Colombo, Sri Lanka) with the objective of highlighting the relative heat risk as a function of physical and socioeconomic conditions across the city. We then simulate the effects of shading and greening on the ‘high’ heat risk areas, and greening on the ‘low’ heat risk areas, to show that a combined approach will be needed to reduce risk at ‘high’ risk areas. In ‘low’ risk areas, maintaining the green cover is crucial to heat risk reduction. The paper, thus, establishes a protocol for detailed heat risk mapping with existing data and points to the differing importance of shading and greening in different parts of the city, thus, showing where, and to what extent, mitigation actions could be beneficial.

This study presents the diagnostics and microclimate analysis of four case studies located in the Alps region in Valtellina and Valposchiavo. The primary focus is on evaluating and comparing microclimatic conditions, encompassing temperature (T°C), relative humidity (RH%), mixing ratio (MR), and dew point depression (DPD). The choice of the variables and statistic metrics depends substantially on the aim to identify the risk factor for the preservation of the historical materials of historical buildings, and the procedures for identifying the anomalies in the trends useful to study how to prevent these anomalies in the future. The paper has the target to support the activities of restorers and building managers for improving the restoration process. While various moisture detection methodologies have been studied, no single approach is preferred for analyzing moisture via microclimate monitoring in built heritage. Therefore, this research delves into the influence of various factors, including altitude, location, building type, structure, materials, orientation, and use, on the microclimatic parameters. Altitude and building use significantly influence indoor microclimates: unoccupied structures exhibit greater stability, whereas seasonal use increases condensation risks. Key risks included high RH% and critical T-RH zones (T > 25 °C + RH > 65%), exacerbating material stress. Probability density function (PDF) analysis reveals temperature and RH% distributions, highlighting bimodal T°C patterns and prolonged RH% in high-elevation exposed sites. The findings underscore the need for tailored conservation strategies and targeted interventions to mitigate microclimate-induced deterioration in Alpine heritage.

Walkability has reemerged as a central interest within planning, public health, and built environment research, yet evidence demonstrates that new urban extensions or emerging New Towns across England continue to reproduce conditions of car dependency and limited active travel options. This paper examines the structural, spatial, and sociocultural factors shaping walkability through an in-depth analysis of five residential case studies. It draws on spatial analysis and assessment of resident behaviour using sociodemographic data. Findings indicate significant disparities in walkability outcomes, with some developments characterised by fragmented layouts, weak public transport integration, and environments that make walking impractical or undesirable. The paper argues that walkability must be understood as a multidimensional, relational property of place, rather than a static design feature. The current dominant planning practices continue to prioritise vehicular access and associated infrastructure, undermining national goals for decarbonisation, health equity, and sustainable mobility. Thus, this study identifies the spatial, governance, and policy conditions necessary to deliver genuinely walkable neighbourhoods and highlights the systemic barriers that continue to constrain progress. The findings offer critical insights for planners, policymakers, and developers seeking to create environments that support healthier, more equitable, and less car dependent futures.

The paper focusses upon the challenge of uptake and scaling of sustainable housing development models for the UK. It introduces a newly created Place Building System as an emergent framework designed to challenge the dominant, volume-led practices of national housebuilders and support the transition towards more socially equitable, environmentally regenerative, and economically resilient forms of development. The Place Building System was developed through a transdisciplinary, participatory methodology, engaging a Steering Group of senior UK development stakeholders. This co-creation arena enabled iterative learning, critical interrogation, and the evolution of both the Place Building System and its supporting infrastructure: the Regional Building Foundation. Framed through Geels’ Multi-Level Perspective (MLP) of sociotechnical transitions, the Place Building System is understood as a niche innovation searching for traction, with the capacity to challenge and reconfigure entrenched regime logics within the housing development sector. Mobilising the MLP framework, the paper demonstrates how systemic change in housing development may unfold through the interaction of niche innovations, landscape pressures, and regime destabilisation and reorientation, while recognising the institutional, cultural, and structural shifts required for such a transition to take root. In doing so, it specifies how regime-level lock-ins associated with finance, planning, and project governance condition niche maturation and shape the pathways through which regime reconfiguration may occur. Empirical illustrations show how place building principles operate as niche practices offering alternative sociotechnical configurations. By integrating empirical insight with transition theory, this paper contributes a novel conceptualisation of place building for sustainability as a systemic intervention and considers how it might be scaled to gain traction and reshape the future of the housing development sector in the UK.