Future cities' theories for sustainable future: A systematic literature review

• Published in: Futures : the journal of policy, planning and futures studies planning and futures studies, 2024-12, Vol.164, p.103494, Article 103494
• Main Authors: Kahachi, Hussaen A.H., Abreu, Maria, Ehsan, Mufeed
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Future city theory; Maturity analysis; Sustainable urban development; Systematic literature review; Urban planning
• ISSN: 0016-3287
• DOI: 10.1016/j.futures.2024.103494

In recent decades, sustainability has surged as a pivotal topic in academic discourse, driven by heightened global awareness of its critical role in addressing climate change, biodiversity loss, and social inequities. Consequently, cities and local authorities are increasingly prioritizing sustainability integration into urban development strategies. However, the realization of the 2015 Sustainable Development Goals faces challenges, with only 12–15 % of targets estimated to be met by the 2030 deadline. Scholars attribute this under-performance to the absence of a comprehensive approach to sustainable urban development. This study investigates the framework and mechanisms of mature future cities’ theories in achieving sustainability, focusing on sustainable urban development principles. Through a systematic review utilizing Natural Language Processing and statistical analysis of over 27,000 SCOPUS documents, the research evaluates 43 future cities’ theories from 1900 to 2023. Criteria such as comprehensiveness, consistency, empirical support, and applicability to sustainable development are analyzed. The study identifies mature theories like Smart City, Resilient City, and Sustainable City as promising avenues for sustainable urban development, albeit requiring refinement. The findings offer valuable insights to guide research and practice towards achieving sustainable urban development in cities. •Future cities theories offer holistic and dynamic solutions to urbanization, climate change, and resource challenges.•Maturity criteria including comprehensiveness, consistency, and applicability dictates future cities’ theories’ sustainability potential.•Over 70% of future cities research addresses SUD, but an imbalance favoring certain aspects remains, requiring attention.•Future city theories use social, environmental, and economic mechanisms to achieve holistic sustainable urban development.•Mature theories like Smart, Resilient, and Sustainable City show promise, but their practical implementation needs further research.