Creating Sustainable Built Environments That Support Disability. Technical and Socioeconomic Research

Dear Colleagues,

The ecological context of sustainability in the built environment has been a popular subject for researchers, activists, and political leaders for over forty years. Scientists have been studying and reporting on sustainable practices during the construction process, during the use of the building throughout its life, on the use of ecological materials and systems, on the increase of the number and area of natural elements in the urban environment, and other design strategies that increase resilience of the environment. However, the technical world has largely ignored the social context of sustainability and especially the importance of inclusivity in the built environment. 

The United Nations (UN) published the Disability and Development report in 2018, which includes recommended actions for the realization of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the 2030 UN Agenda for Sustainable Development for persons with disabilities. Goal 11 of the report is about “Making cities and communities inclusive and sustainable for persons with disabilities”, explicitly stating that sustainable development cannot be achieved without working for and with people with disability. This Special Issue aims to provide integrated knowledge about the ways disability, accessibility, and inclusivity are linked to sustainability in the built environment through social, economic, and technological practices and systems. 

We invite authors from disciplines such as sustainability, environment, building science, design, energy, social sciences, economics, and other related disciplines to submit their papers. Submissions could relate, but are not limited, to the following topics: 

• Inclusive and accessible buildings, communities, and cities;
• Challenges and opportunities of design for disability;
• Social and economic inequalities linked to disability;
• Sustainable design/systems/practices aiming to eliminate discrimination;
• Working with people with disability to achieve an inclusive world;
• Access of people with disability to energy;
• Innovative assistive technology systems.

Dr. Konstantina Vasilakopoulou
Prof. Dr. Catherine Bridge
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. World is an international peer-reviewed open access quarterly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1000 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• Inclusive and accessible buildings, communities, and cities
• challenges and opportunities of design for disability
• social and economic inequalities linked to disability
• sustainable design/systems/practices aiming to eliminate discrimination
• working with people with disability to achieve an inclusive world
• access of people with disability to energy
• innovative assistive technology systems.