Special Session Ⅰ- Cultural Heritage Protection Towards a Green Future
Session Chair: Prof. Yifei Liu, Beijing Forestry University
Session Co-chair: Assoc. Prof. Ji Li, Southwest Jiaotong University
Special Session Information:
Our cultural heritage is not a relic of the past but a vital resource for building a sustainable tomorrow. We move beyond considering historic preservation as a barrier to progress, repositioning it as a cornerstone of climate action and ecological stewardship. The agenda explores the profound synergy between conserving our past and securing our future.
At the heart of our dialogue is the recognition that the most sustainable resource is the one that already exists. We will explore innovative strategies not only for retrofitting historic buildings with energy-efficient technologies, but also for enhancing the sustainability of diverse forms of built heritage — including traditional structures, industrial sites, and cultural landscapes. By drawing on the passive climatic wisdom embedded in vernacular design and applying circular-economy principles to the conservation of heritage properties, this agenda reframes existing cultural resources as catalysts for green transformation. The discussion will further illuminate how compact, walkable historic environments naturally model sustainable patterns of living.
This session brings together a global coalition of architects, urban planners, engineers, policymakers, scholars and community leaders to share transformative case studies and forge collaborative pathways. We will examine how protecting tangible and intangible heritage fosters the community resilience and timeless wisdom essential for navigating the climate era, discovering how our shared legacy provides the foundational blueprint for a truly green and resilient future.
Below is an incomplete list of potential topics to be covered in the Special Session:
•Protect built heritage with sustainability
•Build community resilience for historic urban landscapes
•Learn climate-adaption smartness from cultural heritage
•Identify heritage values through a sustainable perspective
•Advance low-carbon and innovative technologies
Special Session Keywords:
•Heritage Protection
•Sustainable Future
•Green Transformation
•Climate Action
•Resilient Communities
DDL: 2026-02-15
Special Session Ⅱ- Innovation and Future Trends
Session Chair: Assoc. Prof. Biao Wang, Soochow University
Special Session Information:
The "Innovation and Future Trends" sub-forum focuses on cutting-edge theoretical innovations and technological paradigm evolution in green building, covering key research areas such as future urban and architectural evolution, biomimetic architectural design, zero-waste construction guided by circular economy, digital twin-driven smart construction, biodiversity symbiosis, vertical farm, resilient buildings for extreme environments, and interdisciplinary integration. Centered on full life cycle carbon management, ecosystem coupling, and digital technology empowerment, the forum integrates interdisciplinary theories and engineering practices from architectural science, ecology, materials science, and artificial intelligence. It explores the industry's transformation path from "passive emission reduction" to "active carbon sequestration" and from "functional satisfaction" to "ecological gain." The forum aims to establish an academic exchange platform for global top scholars and innovators, reveal core driving mechanisms for green building development, and provide forward-looking theoretical support and technical references for sustainable industry transformation.
Below is an incomplete list of potential topics to be covered in the Special Session:
•Future City and Building Form Evolution Research
•Bionic architectural design theory and application
•Zero-waste construction system oriented by circular economy
•Biodiversity Synergistic Symbiosis Architecture
•Innovation of new functional materials and intelligent building materials
•Extreme environmental resilience building innovation
•Interdisciplinary Integration of Green Building Innovations
Special Session Keywords:
•Future Architecture and Cities
•Biosimilic architecture
•Zero-waste buildings
•Vertical farm
•Climate-adaptive buildings
DDL: 2026-03-08
Special Session Ⅲ- Integrated Design and Key Technologies for Renewable Energy Utilization in Solar Buildings
Session Chair: Assoc. Prof. Yuan Su, Dalian University of Technology
Special Session Ⅳ- Digital-Driven Resilient Habitats in Complex Regional Environments: From Vernacular Wisdom to AI Empowerment
Session Chair: Prof. Yin Zhang, Southwest Minzu University
Session Co-Chair: Dr. Qianru Yang, Southwest Minzu University
Special Session Information:
Global climate change poses unique challenges to human settlement safety in complex regional environments such as plateaus, basins, and mountainous areas. This session targets scholars, architects, and technology experts focusing on the digital transformation of green buildings. We will focus on the modern translation of vernacular construction wisdom—such as that of Plateau villages and Western Sichuan Linpan. Specifically, we will discuss how to leverage cutting-edge technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI), generative design, and multi-agent simulation to address low-carbon and safety issues under specific geo-climatic conditions. This session aims to explore new pathways for enhancing regional resilience driven by the dual engines of "Vernacular Wisdom + Digital Intelligence."
Below is an incomplete list of potential topics to be covered in the Special Session:
•Digital Reconstruction & Climate Adaptation of Vernacular Architecture: Knowledge graph construction, performance analysis, and AI-based generative design for traditional dwellings in Western Sichuan / Plateau regions based on Digital Twin technology.
•AI-Driven Urban Resilience & Emergency Behavior: Multi-agent based crowd evacuation simulation, cognitive behavior modeling, and resilient space optimization under complex disaster scenarios.
•Multi-Scale Low-Carbon Technologies & Data Mining: Carbon sink calculation, BIPV optimization, and big-data-based ecological benefit assessment spanning from building to urban scales.
Special Session Keywords:
•Climate Resilience
•AI & Digitalization
•Regional Architecture
•Plateau & Mountain Adaptation
•Digital Twin
•Behavior Simulation
DDL: 2026-02-15
Special Session Ⅴ- Research on Green Buildings and Zero-carbon Parks
Session Chair: Prof. Junxue Zhang, Jiangsu University of Science and Technology
Session Co-Chair: Dr. Shaoxiong Li, Shanghai Urban Construction Design & Research Institute (Group) Co., Ltd.
Special Session Information:
Against the backdrop of the global efforts to combat climate change, the building sector, as a key area of energy consumption and carbon emissions, has shifted its transformation path from pursuing individual energy efficiency to a new stage of deep integration with regional energy systems. This forum focuses on a core issue: how to redefine green buildings from efficient "consumption units" to active "prosumption units" and "regulation nodes" in zero-carbon parks, thereby systematically driving the carbon neutrality process at the park and even city scale. This discussion will particularly serve architects, park planners and operators, energy system integrators, and policymakers, aiming to build a bridge for cross-disciplinary dialogue.
Below is an incomplete list of potential topics to be covered in the Special Session:
•Green Buildings and Building Energy Efficiency
•Building Flexible Loads and Demand Response
•Construction of Digital Twin Platform for Zero-Carbon Parks
•Integration and Scheduling of Building Energy Storage Systems
•Collaborative Planning of Regional Energy Systems
•Carbon Accounting and Certification of Green Buildings
•Design of Green Electricity Trading Mechanism at the Park Level
•Energy Synergy Optimization of Buildings and Transportation
•Policy Incentives and Business Model Innovation
•Zero-Carbon Renovation Pathways for Existing Buildings
•Interaction between User Behavior and Energy
•Climate Adaptive Design Strategies
•Optimization of Building-Integrated Photovoltaic Systems
•Green Buildings and HVAC
Not limited to the above topics, all related themes of this sub-forum are welcome!
Special Session Keywords:
•Green building
•Zero-carbon park
•Intelligent technology
•Comprehensive system
DDL: 2026-04-15
Special Session Ⅵ- Digital-Intelligent Protection and Value Regeneration of Traditional Settlements and Industrial Heritage: An Interdisciplinary Perspective
Session Chair: Prof. Ying Meng, Southwest Minzu University
Session Co-Chair: Assoc. Prof. Mingming Xiang, Southwest Minzu University
Special Session Information:
The continuity of spatial genes in traditional settlements and the remodeling of value systems in industrial heritage are central issues for urban-rural planning in addressing the dual challenges of sustainable development and cultural continuity. Grounded in the interdisciplinary, cross-regional, and multi-methodological research forefront of urban-rural planning, this session focuses on the two core areas of traditional settlements and industrial heritage, bringing together scholars, planners, and technical experts. Centering on the comprehensive analytical framework of "Space—Technology—Society—Value", we systematically investigate the formation mechanisms of traditional settlements, the development logic of industrial heritage, and their contemporary integrated value. By introducing digital-intelligent technologies such as digital twins, artificial intelligence, and multi-agent simulation, along with interdisciplinary research methods, this session is committed to constructing a complete research and practice pathway from historical understanding, technical decoding, and spatial evaluation to living regeneration. It aims to advance settlement and heritage studies from descriptive narratives towards computable and intervenable structured theoretical paradigms, providing solid academic support and case references for contemporary regional development, the enhancement of habitat resilience, and the innovative regeneration of heritage value.
Below is an incomplete list of potential topics to be covered in the Special Session:
•Digital Heritage Cognition: Spatial Genes, Technical Systems, and Multi-dimensional Value Assessment This topic focuses on employing technologies such as Digital Twins, GIS, and knowledge graphs to extract and encode the "spatial genes" of traditional settlements, and to identify and analyze the technical systems and palimpsest landscapes of industrial heritage. It aims to construct a comprehensive heritage value cognition and assessment framework that integrates historical, technical, ecological, social, and economic dimensions.
•Intelligent Planning and Design: Climate Adaptation, Low-Carbon Resilience, and Heritage Activation Pathways Addressing climate change and disaster risks, this topic explores intelligent planning and design methodologies that integrate technologies like multi-agent behavior simulation, microclimate analysis, and lifecycle carbon assessment. Applications include the adaptive renewal of traditional settlements, the creative transformation of industrial heritage, and the optimization of low-carbon resilient safety patterns in their surrounding areas, aiming to achieve synergy between conservation and development.
•Interdisciplinary Theoretical Paradigms: Comparative Studies, Governance Models, and Regeneration Mechanisms Utilizing interdisciplinary methods such as big data analytics, space syntax, and social network analysis, this topic conducts systematic comparative studies on different types of traditional settlements and industrial heritage across diverse regions. It delves into their intrinsic formation mechanisms, contemporary transformation pathways, community governance models, and multi-stakeholder participation mechanisms, aiming to distill universal and culturally responsive theoretical paradigms for living conservation and value regeneration.
Special Session Keywords:
•Traditional Settlements
•Industrial Heritage
•Digital-Intelligent Conservation
•Value Regeneration
•Cross-Scale Integration
•Adaptive Transformation
DDL: 2026-02-15
Special Session Ⅶ- Low-Carbon Practices and Reflections in Urban Renewal
Session Chair: Assoc. Prof. Lijie He, China University of Mining and Technology
Special Session Information:
Against the backdrop of global efforts to address climate change and China's deep advancement of the "dual-carbon" strategy, urban renewal has become an important path for promoting green urban transformation and achieving high-quality development. This unit, themed "Low-Carbon Practices and Reflections in Urban Renewal," focuses on how to systematically integrate low-carbon concepts throughout the entire urban renewal process, exploring practical pathways, challenges, and future directions. In-depth discussions will revolve around the following core dimensions:
Practical Exploration: Sharing innovative cases and mature experiences from domestic and international cities in green renovation of existing urban spaces and buildings, renewable energy utilization, low-carbon transportation system construction, and ecological space restoration;
Technology Integration: Exploring the application and integration of new technologies such as energy-saving materials, smart energy management, and digital twins in renewal projects;
Mechanism Innovation: Studying breakthroughs in cross-departmental collaboration, market-based incentives, and inclusive carbon policies and governance models;
Sustainable Development: Considering how to balance short-term costs with long-term benefits and build sustainable operation models and mechanisms for social participation.
This special topic aims to create an interdisciplinary and cross-sector dialogue platform, bringing together perspectives from government, academia, businesses, and communities to jointly explore systematic solutions for deeply integrating urban renewal and low-carbon goals, contributing wisdom and strategies to promote people-centered, green, and livable future cities.
Below is an incomplete list of potential topics to be covered in the Special Session:
•Theory and Policy Research
Policy coordination mechanisms between the "dual carbon" goals and urban renewal
Theoretical frameworks, evaluation methods, and standard systems for low-carbon urban renewal
Comparative study of domestic and international low-carbon urban renewal policies and insights
•Theory and Policy Research
Policy coordination mechanisms between the "dual carbon" goals and urban renewal
Theoretical frameworks, evaluation methods, and standard systems for low-carbon urban renewal
Comparative study of domestic and international low-carbon urban renewal policies and insights
•Planning and Design Practice
Spatial optimization strategies under a low-carbon orientation (e.g., TOD, 15-minute community living circle)
Case studies of urban micro-renewal and green regeneration of industrial heritage
Collaborative design and public participation for community-scale low-carbon renewal
•Economics and Social Governance
Investment and financing models and cost-benefit analysis of low-carbon renewal
Carbon trading, green finance, and market-based incentive measures
Multilateral collaborative governance mechanisms and guidance of social behaviors
•Case Studies and Reflections
In-depth analysis of typical domestic and international cities/areas for low-carbon renewal
Challenges, conflicts, and reflection on transformation paths in practice
Research on post-assessment and long-term operation and maintenance mechanisms
Special Session Keywords:
•Urban Renewal
•Low-Carbon Practices
•Low-carbon strategy
DDL: 2026-03-27
SymposiumⅠ- Urban Climate and Urban Design
Session Chair: Chunping Miao, Chang'an University
Symposium Information:
Against the backdrop of intensifying global climate change, cities are both major sources of greenhouse gas emissions and areas most significantly affected by climate impacts. This sub-forum focuses on the intersection of Urban Climate and Urban Design, aiming to explore how forward-thinking planning and design can mitigate urban heat island effects, improve air quality, address extreme weather events, and enhance residents' quality of life. We will bring together urban planners, climatologists, architects, and policymakers to share innovative practices and technological solutions, jointly exploring urban development pathways that integrate both adaptation and mitigation.
Symposium Keywords:
•Urban Heat Island
•Air Pollution
DDL: 2026-02-01