Urban land use planning forms a decisive field for reconciling Europe’s pressing needs for affordable housing, sustainable growth, and ecological integrity. Across the continent, cities face the challenge of balancing multiple, sometimes conflicting, demands—housing pressures from students and migrants, commitments to biodiversity and climate mitigation, and expectations for healthy and inclusive urban spaces. Recent research has demonstrated the potential of functionally mixed neighbourhoods—where residential, educational, commercial, recreational, and ecological uses coexist—to promote vibrancy, accessibility, and resilience. However, existing evidence on how different land use configurations influence property values, investment risk, and environmental performance remains fragmented across disciplines, regions, and methodological approaches. While advances in spatial analytics, governance tools, and indicator frameworks have refined the measurement of urban sustainability, the transferability and practical application of these insights to local planning decisions are still limited. There is therefore a need for integrated, evidence-based approaches to optimize urban land use mix and achieve coherent sustainability outcomes across European contexts.

This Research Topic aims to generate a comprehensive understanding of how functional land use mixtures and sustainable planning strategies shape the economic, environmental, and social dimensions of European cities. It seeks to bridge the gaps between urban economics, environmental assessment, spatial analysis, and public policy in order to inform more resilient, equitable, and data-driven decision-making. Specifically, it invites questions such as: How do mixed-use patterns impact property market dynamics and affordability? What types of governance and policy frameworks best support inclusive and low-carbon urban development? And how can spatial and digital tools enhance predictive capacities for sustainable land management?

To gather further insights into optimizing urban land use and sustainability performance within European contexts, we welcome articles addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:

Functional mix and housing dynamics: interactions between land use diversity, property values, market risk, and gentrification.

Sustainability metrics and certification systems: comparative analysis of carbon, biodiversity, accessibility, and affordability indicators.

Governance and policy instruments: mechanisms such as inclusionary zoning, land value capture, brownfield regeneration, and density bonuses.

Spatial and computational approaches: applications of GIS, remote sensing, urban digital twins, and machine learning for land allocation and forecasting.

Resilience and risk adaptation: integrating climate risk, flood management, energy demand, and social vulnerability into land use planning.

We welcome original research, reviews, methodological contributions, and case studies that combine quantitative and qualitative perspectives to support planners, investors, and policymakers in building cities that are economically robust, socially inclusive, and environmentally sustainable.

Are you interested in contributing a manuscript to this Research Topic?

Optimizing Urban Land Use Mix, Housing Initiatives, and Sustainability Performance in European Cities