Resilient Sustainable Systems for Urban Development. Literature Review and a Debate on the Situation in Romania and Portugal
Resilient Sustainable Systems for Urban Development. Literature Review and a Debate on the Situation in Romania and Portugal

Summary/Abstract: This paper investigates the critical intersection between “urban resilience and sustainability”, asserting that resilience (the capacity of a city to withstand, recover from, and adapt to shocks) is a fundamental prerequisite for achieving long-term sustainability goals. Utilizing the Social-Ecological-Technological Systems (SETS) framework, the study proposes a systemic approach to urban development that integrates human, natural, and engineered components. The research identifies four strategic pillars essential for this transition: (1) Integrated planning for multifunctionality, which seeks to maximize the co-benefits of urban interventions across social and ecological dimensions; (2) Holistic valuation and risk financing, arguing for a shift from traditional cost-benefit analysis (CBA) to a model that internalizes the value of ecosystem services and social capital; (3) Managing scale mismatches to align local interventions with regional governance and infrastructure; (4) Ensuring equity and justice, focusing on the fair distribution of resilience benefits to avoid issues like “green gentrification”. The article further provides a comparative debate on the practical situations in Romania and Portugal. The paper concludes that moving from fragmented to systemic integration is vital for transforming vulnerable urban centers into adaptive and truly resilient sustainable systems.

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