A Socio‐Spatial Extension of the Local Climate Zone Typology: Its Potential in Computational Planning Support Systems

Athanasios Votsis, Vuokko Heikinheimo, Milla Mikkola, Dina Babushkina, Aija Staffans, Tiina Merikoski and Stan Geertman
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Athanasios Votsis: Governance and Technology for Sustainability, University of Twente, The Netherlands
Vuokko Heikinheimo: Built Environment Solutions, Finnish Environment Institute, Finland
Milla Mikkola: Sustainable Urban Development, Ramboll Finland, Finland
Dina Babushkina: Philosophy, University of Twente, The Netherlands
Aija Staffans: Built Environment, Aalto University, Finland
Tiina Merikoski: Lundén Architecture Company, Finland
Stan Geertman: Human Geography and Spatial Planning, Utrecht University, The Netherlands

Urban Planning, 2025, vol. 10

Abstract: Computational planning support systems (CPSS) have been invaluable for the transparent and rational planning of climate‐resilient cities as they help clarify and optimise the trade‐offs between alternative choices. CPSS have shown great promise also as digital design boards for the co‐creation of new solutions. However, both as a tool and a theoretical stance to spatial planning, CPSS have suffered from top‐down representations of urban space. Bottom‐up, collective, and subjective processes essential for sustainable and climate‐resilient urbanism are often left unaccounted for. This article introduces one possible solution to this gap, namely structuring the information flows of CPSS according to the local climate zone framework, enriched with urban commons information. We illustrate our approach with data from the 29 largest Finnish municipalities. We combine OpenStreetMap and demographic information with local climate zone data to produce a socio‐spatially extended local climate zone typology of Finnish urban forms. The results delineate a Nordic angle to sustainable spatial planning—green and sparse, somewhat compact and mixed, but not comprehensively so, built environments—allowing a juxtaposition with normative ideas about sustainable cities. We furthermore propose a co‐design workflow that is based on our typology. The main practical applications of our work include vulnerability mapping and integrated impact assessment, multimodal communication of computer model output, and computationally‐assisted co‐design of built environments with a variety of stakeholders.

Keywords: co‐design; computational planning support systems; local climate zones; neighbourhood typology; social sustainability; urban commons (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:cog:urbpla:v10:y:2025:a:9234

DOI: 10.17645/up.9234

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