Third International Conference on Sustainable Devleopment and Planning

 Overview

The Meeting addressed the subject of regional development in an integrated way as well as in accordance with the principle of sustainability.

The Conference was opened by Professor Carlos A Brebbia, Director of WIT, who spoke of the importance of this meeting in terms of the strategy of the Institute, acting as a link between different institutions and organisations for knowledge transfer.  This, Prof Brebbia explained, is achieved by:

• Training programmes at Master and PhD level in collaboration with different institutions around the world
• Research in conjunction with many institutions in Europe as well as many other countries
• Support of industrial users through the development of computer software and consulting services as well as carrying out industrial research
• Publishing of journals, conference proceedings and other books

 Opening Address

Professor Elias Beriatos of the University of Thessaly and Honorary Chairman of the Meeting, welcomed the delegates, explaining the importance of the Conference.  Prof A. Kungolos, Co-Chairman of the Conference, then explained the aims of the International Journal of Sustainable Development and Planning.

 Keynote Address

The keynote address of the Conference was given by Prof Beriatos and was entitled “Towards a Sustainable Spatial Planning and Development of Greek islands and Highlands”.  The talk set the tone for the different sessions of the Meeting.

 Special Session by Proffessor Francesco Russo

There was a special session on “Emergency Evacuation” organised by Professor Francesco Russo from the University of Reggio Calabria.  The presentations in the session covered a series of important topics dealing with Risk Assessment and Management in Transportation focused on the evacuation.

The keynote presentation in the session was given by Prof Russo on “General Methodology and Main Results” followed by papers on:

• Demand model
• Supply and supply-demand interaction model for users
• Simulation of refuge’s area for users
• Design of path choices models for emergency vehicles
• Pedestrian outflow models in a building
• Planning process and guidelines

 Conference Sessions

The sessions of the Conference covered the following topics:

• Regional planning
• City planning
• Environmental impact assessment
• Environmental management
• Social and cultural issues
• Environmental legislation and policy
• Transport issues
• Resources management
• Urban landscapes
• Safety of users in road evacuation
• Ecosystem analysis, protection and remediation
• Rural development

Invited Presetations

In addition to the many papers, there were a series of invited presentations by well known colleagues:

• “Environmental monitoring of urban areas by using a remote sensor network”, by V. Ferrara, University of Rome La Sapienza, Italy
• “Sustainable urban mobility: the role of bus priority measures”, by S. Basbas, University of Thessaly, Greece
• “Cultural clusters in the post-industrial city: the Greek experience”, by A. Gospodini, University of Thessaly, Greece
• “Implementation of the EU directive on the energy performance of buildings in Austria”, by R. Brandtweiner, Danube University, Austria
• “Small size metropolitan areas: the case of Patras”, by V. Pappas, University of Patras, Greece
• “Comparative analysis of decision-making methodologies used in environmental planning”, by A. Kungolos, University of Thessaly, Greece

 Editorial Meeting

The Editors of the International Journal of Sustainable Development and Planning met during the Conference to discuss ways to continue to improve the quality of the volume following the successful launch in 2006. The whole of Volume 1, now published and consisting of four issues, has been well received by the scientific community. The Editors decided to strengthen the Editorial Board by appointing a series of well known colleagues. The idea is to offer a wider geographical and topics coverage.

 Conference Dinner

The Conference dinner took place in a typical Portuguese restaurant in an old village famous for the quality of its cuisine. The excellent courses, including local fish, were accompanied by a selection of national wines and port. A local musical ensemble played ‘fado’ during the banquet. Fado is an old, unique and traditional type of Portuguese music, sometimes melancholic, but most usually expressing a joie de vivre. At the end of the evening, Carlos thanked the participants for coming to the banquet, hoping that they had occasion to appreciate the unique heritage of Portugal in terms of its architecture, music and cuisine. He gave the delegates a piece of hand-painted ceramic, typical of the region, in the hope that it would remind them of the special occasion and the successful conference.

 Publicaton of Papers

The proceedings of Sustainable Development and Planning III (2 volumes) 512 and 608pp (ISBN: 1-84564-069-9 and 1-84564-102-3) are available in hard back from WIT Press priced at £165 and £195/US$325 and US$385/€247.50 and €292.50. 

Set price: £325/US$595/€487.50 (ISBN: 978-1-84564-103-0)

Orders can be placed by telephone: +44 (0) 238 029 3223, fax: +44 (0) 238 029 2853, e-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or via the WIT Press web site at www.witpress.com

Papers from the conference will also be hosted online at the WIT eLibrary as volume 101 of WIT Transactions on Ecology and the Environment (ISSN: 1743-3541). For more details visit the WIT eLibrary at www.witpress.com