Ergan, Merve FeyzaGormus, Sevgi2026-04-042026-04-0420262366-33402364-5687https://doi.org/10.1007/s41101-026-00481-5https://hdl.handle.net/11616/109741Urban flooding increasingly challenges cities characterised by complex landscape structures, heterogeneous land-use patterns, and limited adaptive capacity. Addressing these challenges requires approaches that move beyond site-specific hydraulic solutions and enable strategic, context-sensitive planning at the urban scale. Water-Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) provides a promising framework for integrating hydrological processes with urban form; however, its application often remains focused on technical performance, with insufficient consideration of landscape structure and spatial context during early planning stages. This study develops a spatially explicit, landscape-oriented WSUD transition framework for Malatya, T & uuml;rkiye, aiming to support planning-level decision-making prior to detailed hydrological modelling. A two-stage methodology was applied. First, GIS-based spatial analyses of topography, hydrology, imperviousness, and precipitation were used to identify flood-prone areas within the urban core. Second, priority areas were evaluated by matching site-specific spatial characteristics with core WSUD functional capacities, including retention, infiltration, evapotranspiration, conveyance, and harvesting. Rather than evaluating hydrological performance, this approach translates landscape and morphological conditions into context-sensitive WSUD strategies. Conceptually, the framework synthesises the Urban Water Transitions perspective with the notion of attainable water sensitivity, reframing WSUD as a landscape-based transition process rather than a collection of isolated engineering measures. Landscape architecture is positioned as a structuring discipline that establishes the spatial logic linking green-blue infrastructure, landscape thresholds, and urban morphology within water-sensitive planning. The findings demonstrate that WSUD effectiveness emerges from its alignment with landscape structure and spatial context, highlighting the role of landscape-based conceptualisation as a critical pre-implementation layer supporting adaptive urban water transitions.eninfo:eu-repo/semantics/closedAccessWater-Sensitive urban design (WSUD)Urban flood riskLandscape-based planningContext-sensitive frameworksArticle11110.1007/s41101-026-00481-5WOS:001715027100002Q3