Editorial: Expanding pathways to resilient urban futures

Cities today are confronted by numerous challenges that range from rapid urbanisation to environmental degradation and social inequality. The revolutionary classical work of Jacobs (1961) argued for vibrant, mixed-use cities that nurture community interaction. Later scholars argued for collaborative planning approaches that engage people affected by planning and design decisions in the process of making those decisions (Healey, 1997; Innes and Booker, 2004; Sanoff, 1999). These fundamentals have informed a growing body of knowledge that postulates that urban resilience can meet contemporary challenges but should be regarded as both a reaction to crises and a positive process that roots sustainability within urban design decision making.

This issue of Urban Design and Planning (URDP) builds on these foundational positions and examine the way in which contemporary urbanism can employ both traditional wisdom and innovative practices to address multifaceted urban challenges. The issue features articles that echo a commitment to address questions relevant to environmental management, socio-cultural preservation, methodological innovation, and digital participation. They demonstrate that achieving urban resilience involves responding to emergencies or crises and an anticipatory approach that blends economic, environmental, and social sustainability into cohesive urban design strategies.