ABSTRACT
With the rapid surge in population growth around the world, there has been a significant reduction in the biodiversity level. The dual impacts of this sudden growth and lower-density housing have already been shown to have damaged the environment, which is now at a much worsened level. To enable sustainable living for a whole town, practices and policies that focus on both anthro- and eco-centric values must emerge at different scales. Many researchers, architects, town planners, designers and policymakers around the world are trying to put forward a systematic, holistic approach that must involve the transdisciplinary cooperation of different areas to address factors such as pollution, open spaces, habitat and recreation. The adoption of these green, smart and sustainable measures will help the living population to avert further ecological and climatic disturbances while achieving the objective of a self-reliant, sustainable, safe and eco-friendly smart town for future generations. This chapter, therefore, aims to provide an introduction to the concept of green smart town planning together with the approaches that have been employed recently in various cities around the world to bring these green townships into existence. The chapter also presents the essential features, influential factors and key elements that represent the growth of these smart towns. The importance of low-carbon smart towns along with the challenges that the world is facing while bringing this concept into practice is also described.
