bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Indifferent or Devoted: An Exploration of Student Identity Through the Design Studio
Authors: Galil Rania Abdel , Kandil Yasmin
Published: January 2021

In the wake of the Egyptian revolution, the role of the youth and their sense of belonging, the level of their understanding and responsibility have all been reevaluated in the society at large. It was a general belief that the youth were disconnected from the surrounding political events, their living environment, their history and any consideration of the future. The revolution challenged many of these convictions and this resonated in educational institutions. This paper presents a design studio experiment where students were given an area at the heart of the city, which carries historical significance, both in terms of events and its built environment. The area witnessed drastic change over the years, transforming it from elegance to chaos, where listed buildings have come to decay, occupied by ill uses. The area rarely attracts the youth who instead are attracted to emerging hubs in the city.

The paper explores an important pedagogical query; the capacity of the design studio to reinforce issues of identity, sense of ownership and belonging. It also raises questions of the role of the teaching staff in fostering cultural responsibility. Literature strongly recommends relating academic scope to the students’ surroundings and environment and for topics to be discussed in an integrated manner. It also suggests that the studio offers the ideal setting for integrating knowledge; where synthesis and application, reflection and action take place and where a student’s architectural identities develop. Less is mentioned in literature of a student’s cultural identity and sense of belonging.

Through a project in 2012, the students were divided into groups tackling four main aspects for a given location (the social, economic, physical and environmental aspects), then discussed and debated among themselves, facilitated by the tutors, in an active learning environment. Students collected their data using surveys, interviews, observations and document analysis which informed their design of a master plan and single buildings in the area. A critical pedagogy was adopted in the studio, encouraging students to think critically about the area reflecting on experiences and social contexts in which they are embedded. The studio experience was assessed using focus groups, interviews and individual project content analysis at two stages over the students’ final year. Assessing the learning experience over a long term, clarified the changes that occurred to the students’ vision towards the issues and problems that their design projects dealt with as well as their affiliation with the historic area. Results have implications both to the quest of identity and to the methods used to support a critical pedagogy.
Transforming Lifestyles and Evolving Housing Patterns: A Comparative Case Study
Authors: Khan Smita , Bele Archana
Published: January 2021

The wisdom of developmental activities that propose voluminous increase in the built infrastructure is questionable. These can seriously undermine the ability of quintessential small cities to retain the sociocultural and people centric character leading to a saner lifestyle in comparison to the burgeoning metros. This study is based in Nagpur, a Grade II city of central India. It presents a comparative analysis of three unique housing neighbourhoods developed in distinct temporal periods: historic, pre-globalisation, and post-globalisation. It focuses upon seminal parameters that are intrinsic to emotional well-being of residents and encourage positive behavioural responses. The methodology follows a qualitative approach through a study of morphological maps, non-participatory observation, and photo documentation. An argument is developed for a comprehensive urban development process, based upon respect for intrinsic socio-cultural values. It emphasises the need to celebrate and rejuvenate the thread of continuum for betterment of small cities. This enquiry resolves that to make a city smart and sustainable, efforts at people centricity are imperative along with ICT and other smart technologies of the future.
Perception Based Method for Measuring the Aesthetic Quality of the Urban Environment
Authors: Nia Hourakhsh Ahmad , Atun Resmiye Alpar , Rahbarianyazd Rokhsaneh
Published: January 2021

This study assesses changing aesthetic values and their characteristics in urban environments based on human perception. With this in mind, a model for assessing the aesthetic values of the urban environment based on the three steps of human cognition has been developed to elaborate the user's perception in different urban environments.

The results of the survey confirm that by changing urban morphology the aesthetic perception of the environment also changes. The finding of this research opens up a new window for urban planners to assess the aesthetic effects of the elements of urban spatial configuration for future urban development.
A Field Study on Climate Comfortable Conditions of Urban Public Open Spaces in Marginal Season of Winter Cities
Authors: Hong Leng , Cun-Yan Jiang
Published: January 2021

In order to study the importance of climate comfortable conditions of urban public open spaces in marginal season of winter cities for people's outdoor activities, first, the paper ascertained the specific times of Harbin's outdoor and marginal seasons based on meteorological data from 1984 to 2013. Second, this paper conducted field survey, which includes in situ measurement and structured interview, in three typical urban public open spaces in marginal season. The calculated results show that Harbin has an outdoor season from Apr 25th to Oct 1st, and the spring marginal season is from Apr 4th to Apr 24th, the fall marginal season is from Oct 2nd to Oct 24th. At the same time, the results of in situ measurement show that there is great room for the improvement of climatic conditions of urban public open spaces in the marginal season of winter cities, especially the public open spaces near to the high-rise buildings and waterfront, and the apparent temperature in these two open spaces is about 3°C lower than the air temperature simultaneously. The results of structured interview show that people would like to do some outdoor activities when it is nice weather outside in marginal season, and the regression analysis results show that people's outdoor activities time are severely affected by climate comfortable conditions in marginal season. They feel that fine microclimate is much more important for a person than enough facilities and green landscape of urban public open spaces in marginal season. The paper suggested that the specific times of outdoor and marginal seasons should be added to some urban design guidance as a specification in urban planning practice, and this paper advanced some urban planning strategies related to urban design to improve climatic conditions of urban public open spaces in the marginal seasons of winter cities.
Sustainable Urban Development in the Green City: Kyrenia White Zone
Authors: Atakara Cemil , Akyay Gizlem
Published: January 2021

Cities were first formed, they have been developed and advanced together with the development of humanity and technology. The cities in urbanization process have been going through technological, economical, social and cultural changes. These changes have brought along lots of problems affecting the environment humans live in. The environmental pollution caused by increasing population and degeneration of the environmental resources, and the problems caused by local economic and social disorganization have become the basic concerns of this area. The rapid population growth affects also the cities in social, cultural and economic manners. Especially with the increasing number of multi-story structure demolished in acts of urban centers, because of new and larger settlements housing, water, general health conditions, transportation, environmental degeneration, decrease in green fields etc. like these problems have been arose. The physical structure of a city is comprised of its habitants' social, cultural, economic aspects and their interaction with each other.

In this study, in Kyrenia White Zone and Environmental Protection Area encountered in the development process like economic, ecological, environmental problems, and the green field areas that being destroyed day by day are analyzing for the city effects. While evaluating this analysis, LEED ND neighborhood scale, which is created for the advancement in urban sustainability and which is one of the environmental-performance certificate and evaluation systems have been preferred. In this study, the green fields, environmental problems, economic and ecological developments of the region were also taken into account. In order to learn the size of the development and problems, 5 regions-including environment protection region-with different aspects were chosen and a survey was conducted.
Developing a Sustainable Strategy for Coastal Lands: Case Study Taiwan
Authors: Yu-Sheng Lin , Lai Pi Ying
Published: January 2021

All countries are addressing the drastic climate changes as high priority issues. The impact of climate change on coastal land use in Taiwan has been especially severe due to the country's long coastline. As such, developing strategies to promote the protection of coastal land is critical for the sustainable development of the land. At present, even though the central government has developed the relevant adaptation strategies and implementation plans in response to climate change. Due to the limited resources, determining which protection strategy should be implemented as a top priority will require a strategic evaluation for planning and reference purposes.

While most of the existing literature on coastal land use has been focused on the establishment of a vulnerability index along with an analysis of adaptation strategies very little of the existing literature discusses research that has been conducted in relation to an in-depth analysis of climate change and coastal land use. Therefore, this study uses the fuzzy analytic hierarchy process to conduct an exploration of coastal land use and protection strategy. The study compiled the literature and related data to establish five major assessment dimensions and 16 protection strategy evaluation indicators. After the empirical investigation and analysis, the findings demonstrated that the designation of coastal conservation areas is the most important aspect in terms of strategies to protect coastal land, followed by land subsidence control and the establishment of land disaster warning systems.
Sustainable Building Façades: Modern Usages of the Traditional Mashrabiya
Authors: Abdelkader Reem , Park Jin-Ho
Published: January 2021

Architecture is considered to be a mirror of societies that reflect the natural environment and social values of its people. The vocabularies oftraditional architecture are used for specific functions to respond to various issues. Mashrabiya, as a wooden window screen in old times, was introduced to cover openings and windows for social and climatic reasonsthat reflectparticular eras in Middle Eastern areas. With modern technology, Mashrabiya has been reintroduced with changes in its design, mechanism, and materials.

This study examined the use of Mashrabiya inhistorical and environmental aspects of architecture in Middle Eastern areas. First, this paper discusses the historical and cultural background, and comparesthe different typologies of Mashrabiya indifferent areas because its shapes differslightly from country to country. The techniques of Mashrabiya in contemporary architectureare then investigated in terms of how it has been adapted in contemporary buildings. Finally, its potential optionsin contemporary buildings are discussed.
Housing Careers for Social Tenants in France: A Case Study
Authors: Robin Stéphane R.
Published: January 2021

In France, social housing provides a significant proportion of housing services. The present contribution seeks to identify housing careers for social tenants, using event history analysis on a sample of over 40,000 households located in the Lille metropolitan area (in northern France). The data was provided by a local social housing company, and contains extensive geographical information. The analysis was conducted for the metropolitan area and for its three main cities (Lille, Roubaix and Tourcoing). This made it possible to measure the effect of geographical location at both the agglomeration and neighbourhood levels. Our main results are threefold. First, access to better housing depends more on individual characteristics than on residential location; thus, it appears that comparatively favoured households may use social housing to increase their “upward mobility.” Secondly, forced mobility (eviction) depends on household histories and characteristics, but is spatially heavily concentrated. Finally, urban renewal, by increasing the quality of the built environment, tends - at least in some neighbourhoods - to make social housing more desirable (by giving households a stronger incentive to stay). It may thus improve the quality of life of people who are less likely to become homeowners or to access larger/more comfortable houses.
New Life Courses and Postponed Timing of Home Establishment
Authors: Sandlie Hans Christian
Published: January 2021

Housing consumption has been rising throughout the post-war era in Norway. However, at the end of the 1990s there was a decline in consumption among young age groups. This tendency is confirmed by newer data: consumption among younger households has stabilised at a lower level than used to be the case. Less of these households are owner-occupiers and they live in smaller dwellings compared to fifteen years ago.

In this paper the life course paradigm is used to explain these consumption changes. We find no signs of altering housing preferences among today's youth. The reduced housing consumption among this group can instead be seen in relation to new ways of organising the life course. Postponement of important life events such as completing one's education, entering the labour market, and starting a family of one's own will also postpone the point at which one becomes a homeowner for the first time. The observed decline in housing consumption among young household can, in other words, be understood as a delay in consumption. New life courses among today's youth entail new ways of adapting to the housing market.
Lessons From Practice: Architectural Education and the Notion of Critical Inquiry
Authors: Mitchell Kevin
Published: January 2021

The second-year studio presented here investigates the potential of reducing the gaps between the academy and professional practice by using the results of practice as a teaching tool. Part of a two-semester sequence intended to introduce students to the fundamentals of architectural form and space, the design studio emphasizes discipline-specific notions of inquiry, exploration and process. The range of fundamental concerns is addressed through in-depth analyses of exemplary buildings in order to discover how practicing architects have incorporated basic design principles into overall design strategies. The “design in the style of” methods that characterized architectural education at the École des Beaux Arts and the pattern books which served as sources for 19th and early 20th century practice in North America provided definitive models that were subject to limited interpretation. In contrast, the analyses projects described here do not provide “answers” to questions regarding style, but rather focus questions on a range of concerns which are fundamental to architectural practice. Employing exemplary projects in beginning-level studios assists in demonstrating that highly regarded practitioners aspire to a synthesis of program/use requirements, conceptual ideas, structural solutions and constructional systems. The fact that the students were able to make concrete connections between their activities and the profession resulted in an intensity and sense of purpose that is evident in both the process and products of the studio.
Book Reviews
Authors: Datta Ayona , Conteh Fodei M.
Published: January 2021

THE CODE OF THE CITY: STANDARDS AND THE HIDDEN LANGUAGE OF PLACE MAKING

CULTURE, ARCHITECTURE AND DESIGN
Editorial
Authors: Noguchi Masa
Published: January 2021

Homes need to be socially, economically, and environmentally sustainable in response to societal pressure on our common future. The concept of ‘Sustainable Development’ was first advocated by the World Commission on Environment and Development, dated back to 1987, and it was considered as ‘a process of change in which the exploitation of resources, the direction of investments, the orientation of technological development, and institutional change are all in harmony and enhance both current and future potential to meet needs and aspirations.’ In 1992, this notion was given additional impetus at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (or the Earth Summit) held in Rio de Janeiro where an initial international treaty on environment was produced; however, this had neither limits on green house gas emissions nor legal enforcement provisions for individual nations. In 1997, the text of the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change was adopted eventually at the 3rd Conference of the Parties held in Kyoto, Japan. As of April 2008, 178 states signed and ratified the Protocol; in consequence, most industrialized nations and some central European countries agreed to legally binding the reductions of greenhouse gas emissions of an average of 6 to 8% below 1990 levels between the years 2008 and 2012.
Urban Second Homes: Temporal-Dwelling in London
Authors: Bar-Sinai Karen Lee
Published: January 2021

Despite the extensive attention given to second and recreation homes in rural areas, their urban appearance has had only limited examination. This paper focuses on the trend as it is manifested in London and suggests urban second homes are an emerging phenomenon in contemporary cities. Drawing links between recreation homes and other aspects of mobility and dwelling in the global metropolis, the phenomenon is situated beyond local housing markets and placed in the context of globalization and urban restructuring. The part-time dwelling patterns it introduces are shown to challenge attempts to define and evaluate its spread. Additionally, the cross-spatial nature of urban second homes turns their owners into temporal occupants of several built environments simultaneously. They are thus defined both as a product and an emerging force in global cities, and as such beg unique attention. The phenomenon calls for the development of effective monitoring and tracking systems for addressing its development in cities. Lessons from the rural experience are used to propose policy approaches and the challenges posed by property market environment are emphasized. It is concluded that the transnational nature of urban second homes, and the inter-city connections they form and represent, call for cooperation between cities in addressing them. This may allow the creation of a global data-base and policy-bank as part of the challenge to maintain sustainable cities in the face of disappearing national borders.
‘Homelessness & Hope’ - Johannesburg's Ponte City
Authors: Erasmus Judith
Published: January 2021

This paper focuses on Ponte City, a high rise residential tower within the inner city of Johannesburg, South Africa - the highest of its kind in the southern hemisphere. This equally visually and socially notorious cylindrical building has since its erection in the 1970's become an icon and simulacrum of Johannesburg city life. It is located on the border of the suburb of Hillbrow, a restless transcendental suburb, known for its well mixed population of locals and migrant non South Africans, especially from other African countries. The inner city suburbs of Hillbrow and surround is furthermore notorious for being overcrowded and dangerous, with crime and xenophobia reaching peak statistics within the country.

Famous for its peculiar shape and size, and somehow the epitome of what has and is happening in these areas, are Ponte City. It has become the first point of arrival for thousands of migrants from the rest of Africa and functions as a beehive of tangible and non-tangible systems and myths. Although it primarily provides a big concentration of homes for many, its purpose and influence has always been about something bigger - a reference to visual and structural feat, to social elitism, to African migration, and to urban legend of both horror and delight.

The paper investigates the significance of Ponte as built form within this milieu of fear and transition. The building is seen as an urban body that has moved beyond the borders of its physical existence. It is described how it functions and exercises influence in the collective imaginations of its users and spectators. It also looks into how it asserts traditional definition and the significance of volatility in such inner-city environments. Experimental theories of homelessness, concept cities and cities with people as infrastructure are investigated and utilized in order to grasp a new understanding of the building within this unique milieu.
Design Principals of Narrow Townhouse; For Affordability and Adaptability
Authors: Friedman Avi , Whitwham Robyn
Published: January 2021

Recognized for their high density and resources conservation, townhouses are attracting homebuyers and builders once again. With housing affordability being an issue in many nations, the interior and the exterior must be cost effective. Their proportions, however, pose a particular design challenge. The typically narrow width limit design options and the long footprint restrict the amount of light that reaches the dwelling's center.

This article presents strategies used by designers of notable townhouses with a width smaller than 6 meters to best solve those challenges. The authors studied interior design of 28 narrow units and drew conclusions about key principles that facilitated their planning. The research demonstrates that space efficiency can be achieved by employing open plans, minimizing circulation, using light colors, varying ceiling heights, suitable window placement and creative storage fixtures.
Casazeroenergy: An Italian Prototype of Zero Energy Building
Authors: Frattari Antonio
Published: January 2021

CasaZeroEnergy is the prototype for a building that does not use energy produced from non-renewable sources, but produces its require energy by using alternative energetic systems. Designed according to the principles of bioclimatic architecture, the building was integrated with passive systems for optimizing the site's climatic conditions for heating in winter and for cooling and ventilation in summer. The house was constructed with natural, renewable, recycled and recyclable materials. For this reason it can be classified as a “natural building”. Its main feature is the integration between the building and the alternative systems in order to produce energy from renewable sources: sunspace, solar collectors, photovoltaic panels, a geothermal system and a pellet boiler system. Home automation manages all the mechanical systems to ensure comfort and reduced energy consumption at the same time. The sunspace is a passive solar system used mainly for heating indoor spaces during the winter season. The building's cooling system is based on natural ventilation strategies and on geothermal heat pumps. The building is provided with shading systems. A smart system was devised to guarantee user safety and security. This kind of system can be controlled remotely and provides constant security for the building.
Mass Housing and Sustainability
Authors: Røstvik Harald N.
Published: January 2021

The world population just passed 7 billion. Fear of growth towards 35 billion, if the “high fertility rate scenario” was maintained, is reduced. The “stable fertility rate scenario” is more likely, stabilising the population around 10 billion in 2050 (Le Monde Diplomatique, 2011). In 1987, as a response to the need for focusing on housing for the lower end of the cost scale, on homelessness, the United Nations chose 1987 to be “Year of Shelter for the Homeless”. An international architectural competition was organized. 123 architects from 44 countries competed in the final (UIA, 1987). Many proposals focused on energy challenges. This paper recoups the UN initiative 25 years ago. It contrasts the challenges of developing countries with those of the developed world, by studying examples from the North European cold climate's typical mass housing in Norway. One of the examples is from after the Second World War, when in 1948 attempts at building cheap housing was initiated. They met resistance from the establishments of engineers and architects (Hasselknippe, 1982). Another example is from 2012. The paper also studies an example from a South European cooling demanding climate, in France. The aim of the contrasting is to map the progress over the 65 years since 1948, discussing area- and material efficiency as well as methods of reducing costs and achieve a more sustainable mass housing development as signs of an environmental shift of paradigm emerge. Through the comparative analysis, the paper studies combination possibilities between the architecture that is built anyway for the upper cost segment and solutions for the lower cost segment. It explores and discusses if experiences and synergies between them can strengthen both and it proposes a way forward.
Global and Regional Paradigms of Reconstruction Housing in Banda Aceh
Authors: O’Brien David , Ahmed Iftekhar
Published: January 2021

This paper draws on research conducted after the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake and Tsunami in Aceh, Indonesia, where more than 100,000 houses were built by various agencies following the massive disaster. The research reveals that the residents in Aceh rarely see their reconstruction houses as ‘complete’ and modify these houses to suit their personal needs and aspirations. The relationships between the global and regional forces that drive reconstruction agency housing procurement and production are explored, and compared with the outcomes of user-initiated modifications to the houses. From the hundreds of houses reviewed, here four houses are discussed in detail, built by the Asian Development Bank, representing a global paradigm, and Bank Mandiri, representing a regional paradigm. These houses were modified and extended to varying degrees by their residents, exemplifying the ways in which reconstruction agencies, perhaps inadvertently, empowered residents by enabling them to improve their own housing. The outcomes of this transformation process underscore the advantages of a hybrid between global and regional styles, and the desire of the reconstruction housing residents to recapture some of the local housing culture and reflect regional housing characteristics.
Cordaid’s Post-Disaster Shelter Strategy in Haiti: Linking Relief and Development
Authors: Janse Harmen , Flier Kees van der
Published: January 2021

Haiti was struck by a heavy earthquake in 2010 and international aid poured into the country. News reports in 2011 were not very positive about the results of post-disaster reconstruction: “The relief efforts are only putting Haiti on life-support instead of evolving into the next stage of development”. One of the non-governmental organisations (NGOs) involved in Haiti was Cordaid, implementing a ‘transitional shelter strategy’ to support the transformation of neigh-bourhoods from a state of life-support into a state of self-sustaining development. The strategy was implemented in both a rural and an urban area. The main feature of the strategy was the provision of structures that could be adapted from simple shelters to permanent houses. Since the results of the strategy were mixed and ambiguous, a comparative case study was conducted to evaluate the shelter strategy in both areas. The objective was to draw lessons about what has to be taken into account when formulating future urban shelter strategies. The case study is discussed in this article. The main finding from the case study is that producing the intended number of shelters within the financial and time budgets that were set (efficiency), was more difficult in the urban area than in the rural area. But the conditions for linking relief and development (effectiveness) are more favourable in the urban context. NGOs may achieve long-term (effective) results in the urban context when a lower efficiency can be justified. That is why NGOs need to engage in a debate about the extent to which they are able to focus on long-term shelter or housing strategies. The important element in the debate is communication with the donors who are often focused on short-term relief measures. However urban areas cannot be rebuilt with only short-term interventions. The link between relief and development has to be made by a process-orientated approach focusing on capacities of local participants.
Urban Design Build: The Frederick Douglass Peace Park - Community-Based Learning Through Making
Authors: Grichting Anna , Sturgeon Kyle
Published: January 2021

By way of its uniquely concurrent practice + academic learning model, the Boston Architectural College (BAC) has begun a thriving tradition of community engagement through design. This paper uncovers how design/build formats -cast as a service-learning projects - have the potential to foster profound student learning opportunities, improve the urban environment through design engagement and community action, and inform architectural accreditation. Though exceptionally rewarding, the design/build model is not without challenges. The authors utilize their unique perspectives as design educators and community members to deliver both a narrative account and critical analysis for a case study of one such learning model.

The Frederick Douglas Peace Park project, conducted in 2008 as part of the authors’ Urban Design Build (UDB) format is an example of a grassroots initiative met with the support of an institution of design education. The project revitalizes a neglected neighborhood by activating forgotten space - rebuilding a sense of community and creating a place of memorial for a much-revered American Civil Rights Activist. Emanating from Grichting’s neighborhood peace park, Sturgeon’s UDB project extended grassroots momentum to community event programming and served as a catalyst for additional reclamation projects: a string of public spaces and the rehabilitation of a community center once on the verge of being torn down and privatized.
Meaningful Sequences of Activities in Qashqai Dwellings
Authors: Afshari Mohsen , Coolen Henny
Published: January 2021

Sequences of activities in people’s living environments have observable features that depend on subjective and meaningful aspects in their culture and lifestyle. Spatial and temporal sequences of activities are two ways of separating or aggregating activities. The theoretical framework of this study, based on cultural viewpoints, studies the activities, spatial and temporal distances and sequences of activities and their meanings in the dwelling environment. For the purposes of this study, a case study was done in the residential environment of the Qashqai tribe. For this study, a qualitative research method with data gathering techniques such as taking pictures from the environment and activities, drawing residential units’ maps, behaviour settings diagrams and semi-structured laddering interviews was used. Analytical findings were classified as either ‘spatial sequence’ or ‘temporal sequence’ of activities. The Means-End model, representing consequences and meanings of the sequences of activities, was presented in the form of ‘Feature-Consequence-Meaning’ diagrams. The results show that the sequences of activities in ‘Qashqai’ dwelling are influenced by such meanings as ‘social status’ and ‘family privacy’. Other consequences such as ‘desirable conditions of activities occurrence’ form conditions for lifestyle habitus in dwelling. In addition to providing a theoretical framework for the study of the human-environment relationship and the presentation of activity sequence properties, the results emphasize the meaningfulness of spatial and temporal sequences of activities in dwellings.
Construction Innovation of Urban Green Logistics Centers for Agricultural Products
Authors: Zhou Lingyun , Wu Jie , Mu Dong , Wu Yachao , Gu Zhonghua
Published: January 2021

As a crucial element of city planning, an adequately planned logistics center for agricultural products can improve the circulation efficiency of agricultural products, thereby contributing to a convenient lifestyle of urban residents. First, this study analyzed the functional zones of urban green logistics centers for agricultural products based on low-carbon idea. A method was also proposed to calculate the area of each functional zone. Moreover, this study proposed a layout planning innovation method of urban green logistics centers for agricultural products based on logistics motion line analysis and logistics intensity calculation. Lastly, this study analyzed the application processes of the layout planning methodology according to the topographical conditions of Huai’an logistics center project case in China. Results of the case study show that the construction innovation method proposed in this study is scientific, reasonable, and practical. The construction innovation method can be also used for the planning and designing of similar urban logistics centers.
Preservation Strategies of Longdong Ancient City Walls in Systematic Perspective
Authors: Yu Xiaohui , Wang Fei , Wang Lina
Published: January 2021

City wall is an important symbol of ancient Chinese cities with unique geographical and cultural characteristics. Thus, the preservation of this historic landmark is considered significantly important. However, numerous residential construction activities and changes in ecological environment have destructed a great portion of the city walls in recent years. This study looks into the preservation of the ancient city walls from the systematic perspective and in line with the actual characteristics of Longdong Region to provide guideline measures for the protection and restoration of such landmark. Cognition and preservation are adopted extensively to investigate the specific situation of and the factors that influence the ancient city walls in this region. Preservation strategies for the city walls, including the “Axis-Point” system, planning control, and authenticity readability, are presented. The ancient city walls in Longdong Region can be preserved by protecting the entire region, the city, and the main wall body. The systematic method and preservation strategies at the “macro perspective,” “medium perspective” and “micro perspective” levels can solve the preservation problems of the ancient city walls in Longdong Region effectively.
Design of Building Evaluation System of Ecological Urban Agglomeration in Qinling Mountains of China
Authors: Yu Kanhua
Published: January 2021

Constructing livable eco-civilized cities has become one of the important tasks of the reasonable planning of urban development. The construction of an ecological city aims to achieve the harmonious coexistence of society, resource, and environment. However, the current evaluation method system of an ecological building encounters problems from a defective evaluation index. Hence, a relatively perfect evaluation index system is built. First, the analytic network process (ANP) is combined with the existing standards online. Then, a rapid calculation of the index weight is performed using Super Decisions software. Based on the needs of complicated problems, the classical TOPSIS model algorithm is improved by introducing the weight coefficient; this improved TOPSIS algorithm is then taken as the core to build a whole set of comprehensive evaluation method system for ecological buildings. The ecological urban agglomeration in Qinling Mountains of Xi’an is used in this study as the example to perform verification in practice. Contrastive analysis is performed on the evaluation results of the new and old buildings using this method system; the results indicate that the ecological effect of the buildings in the new area is much better than that of buildings in the old area. These results are mostly consistent with the evaluation results given by the expert group. Thus, the comprehensive evaluation system proposed in this article is reliable, and effective, as well as practical to some extent. This method can be used in a wider range of building evaluation and further improved in future studies.
The Role of Ancient Chinese Philosophy in the Designs of Chinese Buildings
Authors: Zhang Ning
Published: January 2021

Buildings are the condensation of the national, ethnic, or cultural identity. They are also the specific materialized form of the national social systems, folk customs, and ideologies. Architectural design and philosophy constitute an isomorphic relationship with each other. This study focuses on the Chinese traditional philosophy. Using Kuanzhai Alley in Chengdu as an example, philosophical expressions, such as “holistic thinking,” “group form layout,” “heaven and man,” “yin–yang and the five elements,” “ancient architecture design,” “good” aesthetic concepts, and “conformal”rationalism, are discussed from the aspects of the selection of the environment, spatial layout, architectural symbol, planning, and design significance. The traditional architectural forms and types are analyzed and interpreted based on the Chinese traditional philosophy. The role of the ancient Chinese philosophy in the Designs of Chinese Buildings is summarized. Traditional ideas on Chinese architecture should be recognized from the aspect of philosophy to propose a new design direction for developing modern Chinese architectural designs.
Preservation and Utilization of Historical Sites: Construction of Urban Linear Culture Landscapes
Authors: Wu Yong-qiu , Xiao Hong-wei
Published: January 2021

Many historical urban cultural landscapes are suffering the effect of rapid urban economic development. This paper integrally relates historical sites in dispersed and point-shape distributions in cities and proposes strategies and methods for constructing urban linear cultural landscapes. As such, our work aims to form urban cultural landscape communities with an organic and linear distribution. The urban linear cultural landscape is not only an important means for integrally protecting and utilizing historical sites in historical cities but is also a special type of urban cultural landscape. The urban linear cultural landscape’s extensive application can enrich the theory of cultural landscape and protection methods of urban cultural heritage.
Interactive Evolution and Coordination of Urban Transport
Authors: Jin Yufang , Zhang Xiangjian
Published: January 2021

With the continuous expansion of urban scale, blindly increasing or controlling transportation infrastructure possibly creates a short board in an urban system. In this study, a macro traffic integrated system was constructed according to a city's economic size distribution and transportation infrastructure. The planning strategy of traffic, industry, space interaction and coordinated development was put forward. Through theoretical model, the evolution mechanism between transportation infrastructure and economic scale distribution was revealed. Starting from the center of the city and inter city level, China's new urbanization strategy was implemented, and a comprehensive transportation system model was built. The traffic planning in Singapore was taken as an example, and the solution to traffic problems such as congestion, traffic jam, and distance was obtained. Practice has proved that the rational and effective urban transportation infrastructure construction can effectively promote the coordinated development of economy and resources, and comprehensively enhance the level of integrated transport services.
Planning a Sustainable, Green Industrial Road with an Ecological Recycling Economy in Mind
Authors: Pei Weiqi
Published: January 2021

With the development of the new rural construction action of beautiful industries, the problem of uncoordinated development of the rural economy and ecological protection has become increasingly prominent. Based on this, in the process of planning, design, construction and management, ecological construction technology was introduced. The planning and design of ecological recycling economy and rural greenway were studied, and the planning types of greenway in industrial villages were deeply explored. Taking the planning and construction of industrial rural greenway in Anji county as an example, the research and analysis were carried out. From the rural road, landscape space, ecology, service facilities, logo and so on, the planning was carried ou, and the greenway network of industrial villages in Anji county was constructed. Combined with practical engineering research, the scientific and rational development of rural greenway in the urban and rural construction throughout the countryn was promoted, the contradiction between urban and rural construction and ecological protection was effectively solved, and the construction of beautiful countryside was promoted.
Vernacular Architectural Culture Versus Concession in the Late Qings Dynasty: The Case of Tianjin and Shanghai
Authors: Qiong Liu
Published: January 2021

During the late Qing Dynasty, Western colonists plundered and divided the land as concession where they consequently built European and American architectures. These architectures, such as concession garden architectures, are a result of relevant cultural exchange. Thus, concession garden architectural culture should be studied. In this study, the historical records of the concession and the concession garden in the late Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China were examined on the basis of the representative architectures of Shanghai and Tianjin in China. The origin, classification, characteristic, and development of the concession garden architecture were regarded as the starting point, and the characteristics of the garden architecture in different regions were discovered. Further insights into the development of conservation concession garden buildings in China and the use of modern landscape architectures were provided, and new perspectives for studies on concession landscape architectures were presented through an in-depth understanding and analysis of concession landscape architectures.
Tourism Initiated Changes on the Sustainability of Historical Texture: Yeni Cuma Mosque Trabzon
Authors: Açıcı Funda Kurak , Ertaş Şebnem
Published: January 2021

Since the first periods of humanity, the reflections of emerging cultures have created the living texture and architecture. The continuing accumulations from older periods transfer a history by layering at certain environments. While these environments which appear as the evidence of development and advancement present the artifacts of previous generations; they create a common language by creating a link between past, today and present. The necessity for protection and transfer of architecture which is the physical reflection of this accumulation, history and culture continuing through ages to the future generations is a clear fact. Preventing the disappearance of historical buildings which show the difference of a geography, country or city from others and create its identity is an important issue for sustainable architecture. When sustainability unites with history and tourism, it can achieve the protection, development and transfer of natural and cultural resources from one generation to the other. For this reason, in the scope of this study, Camii Cedid/St Eugenios Church (Yeni Cuma Mosque) transformed into a mosque after the conquest of the city of Trabzon, which has an important historical texture within its geography, will be examined in terms of the sustainable development it created in the region and the changes it went through
Urban Historical Landscape Construction Methods and Designs: The Case of the Old Town of Jingdezhen
Authors: Dong Cui
Published: January 2021

With the rapid development of modern economy and the process of urbanization is faster, a large number of historical relics have been mercilessly destroyed in the urban reconstruction. In order to balance the contradiction between urban development and historical heritage and promote the harmonious development of new and old urban areas, it is necessary to research on the old urban areas from the perspective of historical landscape. Old urban area of Jingdezhen is taken as an example in this paper, the present situation of the reconstruction of the old city in Jingdezhen is analyzed. Then, by using the methodology of urban historical landscape, some specific methods for updating and designing the old urban area reconstruction of Jingdezhen is put forward, such as the elements of spatial form, urban texture, historical and cultural landscape elements, streets and alleys, the Changjiang River, public facilities and landscape sketches, and so on. A new design method of landscape transformation of old urban area is established. As the renewal method of respecting the urban history and cultural heritage is a very intelligent urban renewal model, it is found that the application of urban historical landscape in the old urban city is reasonable and effective, which is based on the development of the old urban area and pursues the coexistence of protection and development.
Safety Urban Planning and Design Based on Disaster Prevention, Crime Prevention and Psychological Safety
Authors: Yang Jinke
Published: January 2021

In order to ensure the public safety of residential areas, starting with the urban public safety of Xi'an, the construction environment of defense safety, fire safety and traffic safety, and the public safety environment of residential areas are investigated. According to the characteristics of housing in Xi'an planned economy era and market economy era, the existing situation is analyzed from the aspects of overall planning layout, road traffic space, building monomer, public activity space, greening space, and lighting facilities. Based on the analysis results, the principles of planning and design of public safety space environment in Xi'an residential areas are put forward. The planning and design methods of residential space environment are discussed and studied in detail from the aspects of residential defense safety, fire safety, and traffic safety, so as to provide reference for the planning and design of urban residential safety and to create a safe, healthy and harmonious living environment for residents.
Editorial
Authors: Diacon Diane
Published: January 2021

For twenty years the World Habitat Award competition organised by the Building and Social Housing Foundation has identified innovative and long-lasting solutions to housing problems faced by countries of the global South as well as the North. Included in this special edition of Open House International are eighteen housing projects which demonstrate successful approaches to some of the most prevalent housing problems in the world today. These are all winners or finalists in the competition over the last five years. A brief description is provided of each project, together with a summary of the key innovative approaches used. Details are provided at the end of each chapter as to where further information can be obtained.
The Fairfield Estate- People's Sustainable Development
Authors: Liddell Howard
Published: January 2021

The Fairfield Estate in Perth, Scotland has shifted in one generation from being an ‘estate from hell’ to a model settlement. In 1989 there was a waiting list of 200 people trying to get out, but by 2005 there are 400 people waiting to get in. Over 16 years the project has delivered green buildings for previously socially excluded people within social housing cost yardstick limits.