The concept of "Park Vitality Area" signifies a new phase of urban park development in China and represents a new practical paradigm promoting parks as "landscape catalyst." With a review of the relevant theoretical context and international background, this article proposes dual-dimensional connotations for Park Vitality Area from both a broad sense (sustainable perspective) and a narrow sense (recreational perspective). In response to current practical demands in China, this article focuses on the narrow sense using Beijing as an example to demonstrate its spatial characteristics and three-tiered implementation pathways: enhancing internal vitality, linking internal and external vitality, and cultivating virtual vitality communities of parks. Functionally, the Park Vitality Area promotes innovative transformation of parks from single-type land use into spatial catalyst-driven sustainable development in surrounding areas. Spatially, the fragmented, pointbased configuration of parks is reconceptualized as a composite "point–line–plane" system. The conceptualization of Park Vitality Area can propel research and practice of urban parks into a new stage of systematic development. The future research can encompass a series of issues in the umbrella of Park Vitality Area, including its internal structural characteristics, the spatial extent of radiative influence, mechanisms of spatial interconnectivity, multidimensional driving factors, and spatiotemporal evolution patterns. As an innovative pathway for parks to engage in urban renewal and governance, Park Vitality Area underscores the disciplinary value and professional contribution of planning and design within the broader agenda of building a beautiful China. Moreover, it offers a practical paradigm and a Chinese solution for the sustainable development of global cities.

Cities face a growing threat from compound rainstorm and heatwave (CRH) extremes. However, prevailing research and practice remain fragmented, treating the hazards in isolation and neglecting the critical need for integrated solutions. While Ecosystem-based Disaster Risk Reduction (Eco-DRR) is a theoretically promising approach, its practical application is hampered by a lack of integrated, multi-scale risk assessment and design frameworks. To address this gap, this study proposes a novel Eco-DRR design framework for CRH extreme mitigation and adaptation. First, it identified CRH extreme events and assessed the spatial distribution of CRH extreme risk in Shanghai using Random Forest models. Results reveal that CRH extreme risk is intensively driven by urbanization, with a distinct spatiotemporal concentration in central districts during the plum rain and summer seasons. Then, we operationalized the framework through an Eco-DRR Toolbox, demonstrating its efficacy in a site on Jiangchuan Street. The demonstration site shows that the Toolbox forges site-specific, synergistic combinations of Eco-DRR and traditional measures, guided by a structured process of selection, integration, and monitoring and evaluation (M&E). This design framework provides an actionable pathway for robust CRH risk assessment and moves beyond theory by offering a replicable Toolbox for embedding Eco-DRR into urban climate adaptation, thereby advancing urban resilience against compound climate extremes.

In high-density cities that lack public outdoor fitness facilities, engaging in physical activities such as jogging, walking, and cycling in linear spaces like streets has increasingly become a significant option for individuals. In recent years, a substantial body of research has emerged globally examining the associations between the built environment and physical activity behaviors, yet there is a lack of research that systematically compares preferences for environmental factors to different linear physical activity spaces and explores collaborative design approaches within cities. This study, based on a quantitative review of 103 articles, examines the mechanism between 15 environmental factors and three types of activities—jogging, walking, and cycling—at both macro and micro scales. It quantitatively assesses the synergy and divergence in the directionality of environmental factors on different activities through K-means cluster analysis. Based on the collaborative or differentiated manifestations of various environmental factors across different linear physical activities, this study identifies seven general synergistic factors and eight differentiated synergistic factors, and proposes five spatial design models. It summarizes key differentiated factors and their applicability to urban environments, providing theoretical support and practical application evidence for constructing urban health-supportive environments.

Recreational ecosystem services (RES) are diverse recreational opportunities offered by nature, playing a vital role in enhancing urban residents’ physical and mental well-being. Urban parks serve as key venues for outdoor recreation, yet evolving resident preferences for different RES remain insufficiently understood. This knowledge gap hinders the adaptation of urban green spaces to shifting public demands. Social media data (SMD) offers rich insights into public perception, yet its potential remains underexplored and requires further development. To overcome these challenges, we developed a method that combines graphical and textual SMD to mitigate bias in single-data approaches and investigate landscape preferences for different RES. In this study, we took Chaoyang Park, one of the most popular urban parks in Beijing, as a case study. We performed topic analysis and image coding via NVivo to merge image and textural data. The Random Forest algorithm was utilized to identify the contribution of different landscape elements and scenes to RES. Our findings revealed that picnic and panoramic view were the most favored RES in parks, and people prefer scenes with various landscape elements, such as multiple scenes of lawns, water, and buildings. Notably, the contribution of specific elements varies across RES. For example, lawns significantly enhance social recreation, while bushes and flowers play a key role in supporting flora and fauna appreciation. These insights offer a practical foundation for timely adjustments in green space planning in high-density cities. By enhancing the understanding of landscape preferences for different RES via introducing a novel approach for integrating multiple SMD types, this study contributes to the refined management and sustainable development of urban parks.