Journal of Sustainable Urban & Regional Development Studies (JSURDS)

Abstract Background and Objective: Mental health represents a fundamental dimension of women's overall well-being and is deeply influenced by various individual and environmental factors. Among these, access to urban public spaces plays a significant role in shaping women’s psychological and emotional experiences in cities. Public spaces—such as parks, plazas, and green areas—can provide opportunities for social interaction, relaxation, physical activity, and a sense of safety, all of which contribute to improved mental health. This study aims to investigate the relationship between access to urban public spaces and women's mental health in Ardabil, Iran, by examining multiple influencing dimensions.
Methods: This applied study uses a descriptive-analytical research design. Data were collected from a sample of 400 women in Ardabil through a structured questionnaire, using a systematic random sampling method. The instrument included 58 items across six core indicators: physical-spatial features, socio-cultural dimensions, perceived safety, access to parks, mental health status, and depression levels. Data analysis was performed using one-sample t-tests in SPSS software and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) in AMOS to explore relationships between variables.
Results and Conclusion: The results indicated that physical-spatial (mean = 3.17) and socio-cultural (mean = 3.05) components were in relatively favorable condition. The SEM path analysis demonstrated that the physical-spatial factor (β = 0.89) exerted the most significant effect on improving urban space quality. Environmental safety, socio-cultural characteristics, access to parks, mental health, and depression followed in descending order of impact. The study underscores the importance of inclusive urban design and planning, suggesting that enhancing physical and environmental aspects of public spaces can foster women's presence in cities and significantly support their mental well-being.

Abstract Background and Objective: Geotourism is a type of sustainable tourism that emphasizes education and protection of geological and geomorphological attractions in addition to them. Geotourism is one of the important aspects of ecotourism with a responsible and conservation-oriented approach; which emphasizes popularizing earth sciences and the cultural, social, and economic development of the local community. The purpose of this study is to assess the ecotourism potential of natural areas of the tourist village Shtibin is in East Azerbaijan Province.
Methodology: The method of this research is the use of two quantitative models: Kobalikva and Feulet. Kobalikva's method, which emphasizes scientific, educational, economic, conservation and cultural criteria, and Feulet's model, which examines geotourism areas based on four criteria: origin of formation, geographical distribution, tourism and accessibility, was also used.
Results and findings: The results showed that based on the evaluation of the Kobalikva model, the Aras tourist region, with the highest score of 4.5, has a high potential among the studied areas. The results also showed that terraced houses, with a total score of 2.5, have the least development among the studied areas. The results of the national park model showed that among the studied areas, Arasbaran forests have the highest score of 10.25. Therefore, it is concluded that, based on the aforementioned models, the Aras and Arasbaran forests have a high potential for tourism development in East Azerbaijan Province. Finally, it is suggested that artificial intelligence tools be used in future studies to assess the ecotourism potential of the regions.

Abstract Abstract Background and Aim Land use change modeling is an essential tool for environmental analysis, planning, and management. Among the basic objectives of this research is to investigate and understand the changes in land uses in Region 7 of Tabriz between 2000 and 2020 using remote sensing technology and satellite images. And also to predict these changes for the next 20 years. To predict the changes, the Markov chain cell model was used for prediction. Among other objectives, it can be mentioned to find out the use that has and will have the most changes and increases.
Methodology: Land use change modeling is an essential tool for environmental analysis, planning, and management. The main objective of this research is to investigate and evaluate land use changes in Tabriz city over a 20-year period (from 2000 to 2020). This goal is achieved by extracting land use maps for the years 2000 and 2020 through satellite images and obtaining the changes that have occurred in land use during this period, and finally predicting these changes using a Markov model.
Results and Findings: The results indicated that although the region has a large area of barren land, the residential area has grown significantly between 2000 and 2020 and will continue to grow in the future. This indicates a positive and increasing trend in urban and residential areas that should be taken into account. Between 2000 and 2020, we have witnessed a sharp decrease in green space, which can be a warning for managers and decision-makers. Urban green space is an important land use within the city and on the outskirts of the city, and its absence causes environmental problems and .... Also, residential land use will have the most changes at the regional level for the next 20 years, and it was proven that the maximum likelihood classification model has appropriate accuracy for classifying satellite data.
Conclusion: The overall results showed that although the region has a large area of barren land, the residential area has grown significantly between 2000 and 2020 and will continue to grow in the future, indicating a positive and increasing trend in urban and residential areas that should be taken into account. Between 2000 and 2020, we have witnessed a sharp decline in green space, which can be a warning for managers and decision-makers. Urban green space is an important use within the city and on the outskirts of the city, and its absence causes environmental problems and .... Industrial areas have also enjoyed significant growth in the past 20 years, and the growth of this use and its positive and increasing

Abstract Geotourism focuses on human interaction with geomorphological phenomena, where natural landforms as geomorphosites play a key role in attracting tourists and sustainable tourism development. This type of tourism is of interest to both experts and nature enthusiasts. The present study, with an integrated approach, follows an analysis Geotourism and geomorphological potentials of the Heyran Pass region in Astara County, which is considered one of the mountainous regions prone to the development of natural tourism in northwest Iran. For this purpose, two valid analytical models, namely the "Kobalikova" model for the evaluation of geosites and the "Feuillet" model for the examination of management and application indicators, were used. Research data were extracted and weighted through a combination of field observations, specialized questionnaires (with a statistical population consisting of 28 experts and 15 tourists) and spatial analysis. The evaluation of five key indicators including scientific, educational, conservation, economic and added value was carried out in the three regions of Mashand, Chamlar and Gilde.The research findings showed that Gilde village, with a final score of 4.75 out of 5 in the K.F model, has the highest potential for the development of geotourism; while Mashand has the lowest level of readiness with a score of 3.25. Effective factors such as inadequate infrastructure, weak education and lack of documented cultural connection have reduced its score. Chamlar with a score of 4.25 ranked second and is in a good position in terms of geomorphological diversity and local community participation. Overall, the article shows that by developing educational, cultural and management infrastructure, these areas can be exploited for the sustainable development of geotourism.

Abstract Background and Objective : Women’s mental health, as one of the essential dimensions of public health, is influenced by various factors, including the quality and accessibility of urban public spaces. This study aimed to analyze the impact of urban public spaces on women’s mental health in Ardabil within the framework of women-friendly city indicators.
Methodology: This applied research adopted a descriptive–analytical approach. The required data were collected through the distribution of 400 questionnaires among women residing in Ardabil, using a systematic random sampling method. The research tool included 58 items covering five main indicators (physical–spatial, socio–cultural, safety, accessibility, and mental health). Data were analyzed using the one-sample t-test in SPSS software and structural equation modeling (SEM) in AMOS software.
Findings and Conclusion: The results showed that the physical–spatial (mean = 3.17) and socio-cultural (mean = 3.05) indicators were in a relatively favorable condition. Moreover, based on the path analysis results, the physical–spatial indicator had the greatest role in enhancing women’s mental health, with an impact coefficient of 0.89. Following this, the indicators of environmental security, socio-cultural, accessibility, and mental health ranked next in terms of influence. These findings emphasize the importance of designing public spaces with a focus on physical and environmental components to promote women’s mental health and highlight the necessity for urban planners to pay attention to these dimensions. The innovation of this research lies in the simultaneous analysis of five key women-friendly city indicators using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) and focusing on the city of Ardabil as a localized case, which has received less attention in previous studies.

Abstract Background and Objective: With the rapid pace of urbanization and its associated environmental challenges, novel approaches such as the smart sustainable city and green infrastructure have become essential. However, the gap between theory and practice, particularly regarding the prioritization of interventions, persists. This study was conducted with the objective of analyzing the impact of green infrastructure on the realization of a smart sustainable city and providing a data-driven framework for spatial prioritization in the metropolis of Karaj.
Methodology: This is an applied study employing a descriptive-analytical method. Initially, 24 key variables were identified and distributed to 30 experts via a questionnaire. Subsequently, using a hybrid approach, the Cross-Impact Matrix Multiplication Applied to Classification (MICMAC) technique was utilized to identify key drivers, and the Combined Compromise Solution (CoCoSo) method was employed to rank the readiness of the 11 urban districts of Karaj.
Results and Findings: The results indicated that seven drivers, including "permeable surfaces," "ecological corridors," "investment," and "integrated governance," are the most powerful factors influencing the system. Furthermore, the CoCoSo analysis identified District 5 as the most suitable area for initiating projects. The findings emphasize that a successful transition to a smart sustainable city requires an integrated strategy that simultaneously focuses on physical infrastructure, governance factors, and economic incentives, and that policies must be formulated based on spatial priorities. Ultimately, this study shows that the realization of a smart sustainable city in Karaj is only possible through an integrated strategy that incorporates the key physical, governance, and economic drivers within specific spatial priorities.

Abstract Background and Aim: City furniture is actually a manifestation of the aesthetics and identity of a society. Therefore, functional design, appropriate location, and proper and principled use of furniture in the city context are very important. Although city furniture is one of the most important categories of a city, it is not possible to equip and improve the current situation of this important thing at a time and simultaneously in all regions of a city; therefore, a comparative comparison in this regard can be effective and help urban managers perform better and make decisions in accordance with the priority of intervention at the level of each region. On this basis, the present study has been developed with the aim of a comparative study of the regions of Tabriz metropolis based on the components of city furniture.
Methodology: This research is applied in nature and descriptive, analytical and survey in terms of method. The statistical population of the research includes 30 experts and specialists in the urban field. In order to evaluate and prioritize the target areas, 5 components (environmental quality, beauty and proportion of urban furniture, correct placement of urban furniture, balanced urban structure, quality of urban furniture components) were used. In this regard, 10 areas of Tabriz city were prioritized using the MABAC model.
Findings and Conclusion: The results of implementing the model showed that Region 2 was in the first place with a final score of 0.513 and was in a favorable position, while Regions 5 and 9 were in the second and third places with scores of 0.388 and 0.362, respectively. In contrast, Region 1 was in the last place with the lowest score of -0.382. According to the findings of the present study, planning and management in accordance with the ranking made in the present study can, in turn, pave the way for urban managers to make future plans in the study area.

Abstract Background and Aim Land use change modeling is an essential tool for environmental analysis, planning, and management. The main objective of this research is to investigate and evaluate land use changes in Ardabil city over a 23-year period (from 1998 to 2021). This goal is achieved by extracting land use maps for 1998 and 2021 through satellite images and obtaining the changes that have occurred in land use during this period.
Methodology: Land use change modeling is an essential tool for environmental analysis, planning, and management. The main objective of this research is to investigate and evaluate land use changes in Ardabil city over a 23-year period (from 1998 to 2021). This goal was achieved by extracting land use maps for 1998 and 2021 through satellite images and obtaining the changes that have occurred in land use during this period, and finally predicting these changes for 2038 using a Markov model.
Findings and Conclusion: This research was conducted with the aim of investigating the changes that have occurred in the land uses of the city of Ardabil. In this research, satellite images from the years 1998 of the Landsat TM sensor and 2021 of the Landsat OLI sensor were used to investigate the changes in land use between the years 1998 and 2021. Then, land use changes were predicted for the year 2038 according to the current trend of changes. This research showed that by using appropriate tools such as remote sensing and geographic information systems and the models and algorithms available in these systems and tools, we can have appropriate spatial and temporal modeling for land uses and related issues. This research also showed that if images with higher accuracy and better quality are used and multiple models are also used, we can witness a more detailed examination of such issues, which can definitely help urban managers, officials, and decision-makersforbetterplanninganddecision-making.The overall results showed that built-up areas had a decreasing trend and this trend will continue for the year 2038. Also, road use had a growing trend from the past to 2021, which will maintain its growing trend for the year 2038. Green space also had a growing trend and will continue for the year 2038.