The trajectory of water sensitive urban design: integrating water management with urban planning and design

Since the late 1990s, the development of Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) has evolved to include broader concepts such as water-sensitive cities, offering a complementary alternative to conventional urban water management. While widely accepted in principle, WSUD continues to face critical shortcomings in practice. Through the bibliometric analysis of 688 publications and an in-depth content analysis of the 30 most highly cited articles, this study identifies persistent discrepancies between WSUD’s stated objectives and its real-world outcomes. Key gaps are evident in areas such as long-term performance monitoring, socio-economic impacts, climate resilience, policy integration, and community engagement. The findings also point to recurring social, institutional, technological, and economic limitations that hinder implementation and diffusion. These insights call for a re-evaluation of existing WSUD approaches and underline the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration. Future directions in urban planning and design should place greater emphasis on the socio-economic dimensions, climate adaptability, governance structures, and technological innovation necessary to advance WSUD as a core component of sustainable and resilient urban development.