Journal of Infrastructure, Policy and Development

Urban and Regional Development in a Digital World towards Web3: Challenges, Opportunities, Theories, and Sustainable Practices

Submission deadline: 2023-12-31
Special Issue Editors

Special Issue Information

Objective – to expand discussions on urban development after the Covid-19 pandemic and with a view to the digital revolution provided by the Web3

Dear Colleagues,

The leading role of cities is a reality because, by 2050, they will be predominant. That moment would be considered under the century status of the cities. The Covid-19 pandemic brought many changes to the post-covid urban reality. These issues involve interdisciplinary debates, numerous challenges, and opportunities for a variety of social actors: public managers, citizens, companies, NGOs, city marketing and city branding professionals, etc. Technology, sustainability, public administration, urban development, territorial development, and regional development are included in this scenario. The urban is not an isolated island because it needs an ecosystem that includes regions and countries, making their discussion complex. One of these complexities involves the immersive scenario of metaverses and blockchain and artificial intelligence. These scenarios still need to be better defined for society, although it is a reality that we are learning.

Therefore, this special edition aims to envision the future of multiple urban domains, including the theoretical scenario and urban development practices, in three moments:

           1)       Covid-19 showed that urban agglomeration is a problem that can generate new epidemics and pandemics, but the agglomeration of cities is a characteristic of the city's existence. Dealing with this urban characteristic is a challenge for cities after the Covid-19 pandemic.

           2)       Urban technology, promoted by industry 4.0 and 5.0, in which there are a variety of disruptive proposals aimed at urban society, such as smart buildings, urban forests, and urban agriculture that uses the empty spaces of roofs, worrying about sustainability. This debate includes artificial intelligence so present in society and even more present will be in future generations.

           3)     The digital moment in which there is a growing transition from web 2 to web 3, in which we try to understand the changes that will promote urban space and its development, considering the innovations of smart cities and digital cities, as well as the role of the metaverse, blockchain, smart contracts, and artificial intelligence.

Soon, contributions will contribute to a sustainable and future vision of the urban in this century of city reinvented after the pandemic of COVID-19.

For this special edition, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Specific research areas of interest include (but are not limited to) the following:

·         Sustainable urban theory

·         Urban tourism practices in the century of cities

·         Development sustainable cities

·         Responsible urban tourism in the urban scope

·         Place Branding

·         City Branding

·         Place Marketing

·         City Marketing

·         Intelligent urban management

·         Territorial brand focused on urban and digital

·         Smart City combined with sustainability

·         Digital City combined with sustainability

·         Urban, territorial, and regional involvement

·         Contemporary cities

·         Digital urban tourism

·         Place branding

·         Post-COVID urban practices for the sustainability of cities

·         Strategic digital city

·         Urban strategies

·         Cultural and urban studies

·         Urban metaverse

·         Blockchain for cities

·         Use of AI in the urban environment

·         Disruptive technologies in cities

·         Smart Neighborhoods

·         Business Improvement Districts (IDB) in the century of cities

We look forward to receiving your contributions.


Planned Papers

Keywords

Contemporary city; Urban development; Sustainability; Post-COVID urban practices; Urban strategies; Regional development; Urban Territorial Brand; Tourism management

Published Paper