AI-IoT for Smart Urban Planning and Sustainable Development

Abdulaziz I. Almulhim is an internationally recognized scholar in urban sustainability, urban resilience, and climate change. He is Associate Professor of Urban Sustainability at Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Saudi Arabia. His research critically examines urban planning under conditions of rapid urbanization, climate stress, and environmental constraint. He has published over 70 peer-reviewed articles and is recognized among the world's top 2% of scientists (Stanford University). He serves as a Lead Author for the IPCC Special Report on Climate Change and Cities (2027) and sits on the editorial boards of leading international journals. He has led and edited major scholarly volumes published by Springer, Palgrave Macmillan, and Elsevier. His research focuses on climate change adaptation, sustainable smart cities, and the transformation of rapidly urbanizing regions toward climate-positive futures. His work integrates theory, policy, and practice to advance resilient and sustainable urban transitions globally.

Ayyoob Sharifi is a globally recognized expert in sustainable and resilient urban development and climate change mitigation. He is a professor at Hiroshima University, leading the Urban Environmental Science (URBES) lab and serving as the director of the Social Innovation Science program of the Graduate School of Innovation and Practice for Smart Society. He has published over 300 peer-reviewed articles and five books, earning accolades such as the Clarivate Highly Cited Researcher Award and Hiroshima University Phoenix Outstanding Researcher Award. He has contributed to global initiatives like Future Earth and served as a lead author for the IPCC Sixth Assessment Report. His work focuses on urban sustainability frameworks and post-SDG indicator development.

Bao-Jie He is a (Full) Professor of Urban Climate and Sustainable Built Environment with the School of Architecture and Urban Planning at Chongqing University, China. He is leading the Centre for Climate-Resilient and Low-Carbon Cities with the focus on Heat-Resilient and Low-Carbon Planning and Design. He is also an Associate Professor at University of Queensland, Australia. He has published more than 250 peer-reviewed publications in high-ranking journals and has a SCOPUS H-index of 61. He is the Editor-in-Chief and Associate Editors of more than 10 reputable international journals. He has chaired more than 20 national and state-level research projects. He received the received the Most Cited Chinese Researcher Title from 2024 onwards, Highly Cited Researcher Title (Clarivate) from 2022 onwards, and the Global Top 2% Scientists by the Mendeley from 2020 onwards.

Ali Cheshmehzangi is an internationally recognized scholar in sustainable urbanism and urban resilience. He is Professor and Head of the School of Architecture, Design and Planning at The University of Queensland, Australia. His research critically examines the intersection of urban planning, environmental change, and societal well-being under conditions of climate uncertainty and rapid urban transformation. He has authored and edited over 58 academic books and has published more than 650 papers, articles, book chapters, and reports, mostly in urban sustainability and resilient city research. His current research focuses on climate-resilient cities, urban health-sustainability integration, and AI-enabled urban systems. His work integrates theory, policy, and practice to advance regenerative, inclusive, and climate-positive urban transitions across global contexts.

Martin de Jong is scientific director of the Erasmus Initiative for the Dymanics of Inclusive Prosperity and professor at the Rotterdam School of Management and Erasmus School of Law. He is also guest professor at the Institute for Global Public Policy, Fudan University in Shanghai, and at the Smart City Institute of HEC-Liège, University of Liège. He publishes and lectures extensively on topics of urban and infrastructure development, inclusive and sustainable cities, planning and decision-making in China.