Self-Organizing Local Climate Zones by Using Integrated information in Urban Community – a case study in DaXue Village, Taipei, Taiwan

The rapid expansion of urban areas has led to significant environmental changes, most notably the Urban Heat Island (UHI) phenomenon, characterized by higher temperatures in urban areas compared to their rural counterparts. Addressing and mitigating UHIs is vital for public health, energy demand management, and enhancing urban livability, especially amidst global climate change. This study focuses on classifying Local Climate Zones (LCZs) in Taipei, Taiwan, using digital building data, satellite imagery, and urban morphological indices. LCZs offer a standardized framework to analyze urban morphology and its influence on local climates. By applying unsupervised clustering methods, we achieved a detailed classification of urban areas, enabling a data-driven exploration of their climatic and morphological characteristics.

To downscale and refine the analysis at the community level, Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was employed to reduce data dimensionality and extract key features such as building coverage, vegetation index, and sky view factor. K-means clustering was then used to categorize urban morphological types, resulting in distinct LCZs across Taipei. Our findings reveal significant differences in environmental variables among clusters. These results highlight how urban morphology, including building density and vegetation cover, impacts local climate conditions. The study also emphasizes the role of thermal comfort, underscoring the complex interplay between urban form and environmental factors.

This research demonstrates the effectiveness of unsupervised classification methods in identifying urban climate zones and provides a practical framework for urban planning and climate adaptation. By enabling targeted interventions, such as greening strategies or ventilation optimization, the study contributes to enhancing urban sustainability and resilience. The findings underscore the importance of interdisciplinary approaches to address the multifaceted challenges of urbanization and climate change.