Article
Urban Studies
Duran Fiack, Jeremy Cumberbatch, Michael Sutherland, Nadine Zerphey
Summary: Climate adaptation plans play a crucial role in urban planning, with social equity concerns being more prominent in local climate adaptation discussions compared to issues related to environmental quality and economic development.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Angel Hsu, Glenn Sheriff, Tirthankar Chakraborty, Diego Manya
Summary: The study shows that people of color and those living in poverty are disproportionately affected by urban heat exposure in nearly all major cities in the continental United States. This highlights the unequal distribution of heat exposure across different income groups and racial backgrounds and its potential impacts on public health and economic outcomes.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Agnes Ovari, Andras Donat Kovacs, Jeno Zsolt Farkas
Summary: Climate change poses a significant challenge for cities, leading to increased responsibilities for urban communities in climate protection. Hungarian cities have taken measures to reduce GHG emissions and carbon footprint since the late 2000s, with a new push after 2018 due to the growing focus on environmental issues and the European Green Deal. Research findings indicate that the quality of local climate strategies (LCSs) is negatively impacted by the mandated planning process and reliance on EU funds, resulting in limited room for innovative and efficient climate actions at the local level.
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Elena Lioubimtseva, Charlotte da Cunha
Summary: There is a consensus on the need for user-friendly tools and reliable data to adapt to climate change in cities. This study examines the availability of information used in the climate adaptation plans of small municipalities in the US and France. The integration of non-climatic spatial data with climate tools is crucial for effective vulnerability assessment and equitable adaptation planning. However, most climate adaptation plans neglect existing structural inequalities and environmental injustices. Methodological and ideological barriers, data quality issues, and a lack of community connections are challenges that need to be addressed in reassessing adaptation approaches.
Article
Construction & Building Technology
Rongbin Xu, Xiuqin Xiong, Michael J. Abramson, Shanshan Li, Yuming Guo
Summary: Research shows a positive correlation between rising city temperatures and increased sexual crime rates, with this association more pronounced in hot and cold seasons. Sexual offenses tend to occur in public spaces, educational institutions, and streets rather than in residential areas. Furthermore, understanding the relationship between temperature and sexual crime provides valuable information for targeted prevention efforts.
SUSTAINABLE CITIES AND SOCIETY
(2021)
Review
Environmental Sciences
Fan Huang, Sida Jiang, Wenfeng Zhan, Benjamin Bechtel, Zihan Liu, Matthias Demuzere, Yuan Huang, Yong Xu, Lei Ma, Wanjun Xia, Jinling Quan, Lu Jiang, Jiameng Lai, Chenguang Wang, Fanhua Kong, Huilin Du, Shiqi Miao, Yangyi Chen, Jike Chen
Summary: This study provides a comprehensive review of the LCZ mapping literature from 2012 to 2021, with an analysis of literature statistics, research topics, LCZ cities, and active research groups. It further elaborates on remote sensing and GIS-based LCZ mapping methods, as well as their combination methods. Finally, it discusses challenges and future directions for LCZ mapping.
REMOTE SENSING OF ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Remote Sensing
Rui Cao, Cai Liao, Qing Li, Wei Tu, Rui Zhu, Nianxue Luo, Guoping Qiu, Wenzhong Shi
Summary: This study proposes an effective method to integrate satellite and street-level images for local climate zone (LCZ) mapping, as well as a simple yet effective street-level image sampling method. Experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed data fusion method in improving the performance of LCZ mapping, and the sampling method can increase data representativeness and reduce the number of required images while maintaining high classification accuracy. This study contributes to the development of multi-source data fusion for LCZ map production and benefits urban climatic research.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF APPLIED EARTH OBSERVATION AND GEOINFORMATION
(2023)
Article
Business
William J. Scarborough, Rowena Crabbe
Summary: This study examines the relationship between place brands in U.S. cities and high-technology industry growth, identifying five dimensions of place brands. Among these dimensions, Vibrancy has been found to be the most effective in attracting tech investment and driving growth.
JOURNAL OF BUSINESS RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Emily K. Burchfield
Summary: Climate change is projected to transform agricultural systems globally. Understanding how climate interacts with human activity to shape cultivation possibilities is crucial for assessing the impacts of climate change on agriculture. This study models the cultivation geographies of six major crops and finds that agricultural activities, such as the use of crop insurance and inputs, amplify and expand cultivation geographies, even into regions unsuited for cultivation. The projected shifts in cultivation geographies due to climate change indicate significant agricultural adaptation will be necessary, particularly in the Central and Eastern U.S.
ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH LETTERS
(2022)
Article
Urban Studies
Taher Osman
Summary: This paper explores the concepts of resilient cities and environmental resilience, developing indicators to assess the environmental resilience of local governments. Results from a questionnaire distributed to local governments in Japan reveal that they are mainly concerned about threats such as earthquakes, population decline, and increased greenhouse gas emissions, with resilience measures including promoting renewable energy and improving disaster-related information provision.
Article
Economics
Brian Beach
Summary: This article examines the impact of technological, scientific, economic, and bureaucratic innovations on water and sanitary infrastructure provision in the 19th and early 20th centuries. The author finds a clear link between infrastructure investments and declines in waterborne diseases, and suggests that the benefits of such investments outweigh the costs.
REGIONAL SCIENCE AND URBAN ECONOMICS
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Antje Otto, Kristine Kern, Wolfgang Haupt, Peter Eckersley, Annegret H. Thieken
Summary: This article examines the relationships between mitigation and adaptation efforts in urban areas, ranking 104 different sized German cities based on climate policy indicators. The study identifies six clusters of cities, each with different roles in climate policy, influenced by structural factors such as city size, historical climate policies, and funding programs for mitigation and adaptation.
Article
Construction & Building Technology
Matteo Basso, Stefania Tonin
Summary: This paper provides a policy-making perspective on the Covenant of Mayors initiative and examines the barriers and difficulties faced by cities in implementing the initiative. The study suggests that closer collaboration between EU policy-makers and national governments can overcome barriers and diversify the goals of the initiative, while improvements in financial and technical assistance can advance the implementation of proposed actions.
SUSTAINABLE CITIES AND SOCIETY
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Paul D. Bates, Niall Quinn, Christopher Sampson, Andrew Smith, Oliver Wing, Jeison Sosa, James Savage, Gaia Olcese, Jeff Neal, Guy Schumann, Laura Giustarini, Gemma Coxon, Jeremy R. Porter, Mike F. Amodeo, Ziyan Chu, Sharai Lewis-Gruss, Neil B. Freeman, Trevor Houser, Michael Delgado, Ali Hamidi, Ian Bolliger, Kelly McCusker, Kerry Emanuel, Celso M. Ferreira, Arslaan Khalid, Ivan D. Haigh, Anais Couasnon, Robert Kopp, Solomon Hsiang, Witold F. Krajewski
Summary: This study presents a new and significantly improved analysis of flood hazard in the United States, incorporating updated hydrography data, rigorous flood frequency analysis, downscaled output to property tract level, and the impact of local interventions. For the first time, pluvial, fluvial, and coastal flood hazards are considered within the same framework, providing projections for both current and future conditions centered on 2035 and 2050. Validation against high-quality models shows clear improvements, particularly in high-frequency events and coastal zones. The study demonstrates changing flood hazard patterns, even under a stabilization emissions scenario, with significant implications for land use and flood defense protection in the future.
WATER RESOURCES RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Isabel P. De Ramos, Mariana Lazo, Alina Schnake-Mahl, Ran Li, Ana P. Martinez-Donate, Ana V. Diez Roux, Usama Bilal
Summary: This study examined racial/ethnic disparities in COVID-19 outcomes between Hispanics and Whites. The results showed that Hispanics had higher incidence, hospitalization, and mortality rates compared to Whites in most cities. Additionally, Hispanics had lower vaccination coverage. Disparities in incidence and hospitalizations narrowed in 2021, while disparities in mortality remained similar. Cities with lower social vulnerability had wider disparities.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH
(2022)
Review
Environmental Sciences
Mary A. Fox, L. Elizabeth Brewer, Lawrence Martin
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH
(2017)
Review
Environmental Sciences
Mary A. Fox, Kristen Spicer, L. Casey Chosewood, Pam Susi, Douglas O. Johns, G. Scott Dotson
ENVIRONMENT INTERNATIONAL
(2018)
Review
Environmental Sciences
Mary Fox, Christopher Zuidema, Bridget Bauman, Thomas Burke, Mary Sheehan
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH
(2019)
Article
Health Care Sciences & Services
Mary C. Sheehan, Mary A. Fox
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF HEALTH SERVICES
(2020)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Barrak Alahmad, Ahmed F. Shakarchi, Haitham Khraishah, Mohammad Alseaidan, Janvier Gasana, Ali Al-Hemoud, Petros Koutrakis, Mary A. Fox
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2020)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Barrak Alahmad, Hussam Kurdi, Kyle Colonna, Janvier Gasana, Jacqueline Agnew, Mary A. Fox
Article
Environmental Sciences
Andrew N. Patton, Misti Levy-Zamora, Mary Fox, Kirsten Koehler
Summary: Research found that benzene exposure risk from pumping gasoline at gas stations in the United States is relatively low, with consumer and occupational risk control within acceptable levels. In approximately 30% of occupational trials, the risk from pumping gasoline exceeded that of ambient benzene exposure.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH
(2021)
Review
Environmental Sciences
Mary A. Fox, Richard Todd Niemeier, Naomi Hudson, Miriam R. Siegel, Gary Scott Dotson
Summary: Protecting worker and public health involves understanding multiple determinants, such as exposures to biological, chemical, or physical agents, in combination with other factors like employment type and health status. Data on combination exposures can improve assessments and inform protective strategies for occupational health risks.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH
(2021)