15-minute city: identifying current and setting future research directions

Purpose: The main aim of the research was to identify the most common research areas in scientific publications addressing the issue of the 15-minute city, which were expressed by researchers of the concept through the author's keywords. An additional aim of the analyses undertaken was to identify key green research areas in the scientific studies analyzed. Design/methodology/approach: The study was planned and conducted from November 2023 to May 2024. To achieve the aims of the study, the method of systematic literature review and classical literature review was used. 126 scientific publications were analyzed. Findings: The analyses conducted showed that the issue of the 15-minute city is a relatively new and still area-evolving research concept. Numerous research threads are raised around this issue. Nonetheless, the most frequently discussed issue is the proximity and accessibility to city residents of facilities with social functions, which are defined as essential or basic. Even though green issues have been discussed in most of the scientific publications analyzed (mainly the issue of green spaces, green areas, and green zones), issues that can be directly linked to the issue of the green economy have been a marginal research thread. Research limitations/implications: The study is limited by the choice of the database for bibliometric analysis (Scopus database) and the content of the bibliometric query. Hence, the same study based on a different database may result in different results (a problem further described in the article). The Q1 bibliometric query can be repeated in the future or applied to other databases (provided the record is adjusted). Thus, the study is reproducible and can provide a point of comparison for other researchers of the 15-minute city in the future. Originality/value: Directions for future research at the intersection of the 15-minute city concept and green economy issues were proposed. In terms of this issue, among other things, the research issue of green jobs (one of the key pillars of the green labor market) was highlighted. In addition, it was pointed out that the concept of the 15-minute city applied in practice can stimulate the formation of a green business ecosystem in cities. The article is addressed to anyone interested in the issues of the 15-minute city.