bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The Concept of Urban Agriculture Renewed for Cities of the South
Authors: Ba A. , To H. , Fleury A. 
Published: January 2021

The major challenge for the peri-urban agriculture in the South is to maintain the food supply of cities because the food chains are often local and made up of a number of humble actors: Families seek out their living from small parcels of land, farmers sell directly to consumers, on street markets, or deliver their crops to small collectors who in turn sell to retailers. This differs greatly with the North where food chains provision societies through hyper- and supermarkets and are linked to large producers. Moreover, such chains use modern transportation and preservation systems and they are global. Similar technological and social advancement can also be observed today in the South. Consequently, a social turmoil forces out rural growers from the traditional chains can be observed; as a result, they become city dwellers and engage in urban food production.
This article deals with the significant transformations of agriculture observed in cities of the South, namely: i) changes in the organisation of the food industry in relation to the scale of transactions ii) the role of agriculture in the process of becoming a city-dweller and iii) the emergence of the multi-functionality of agriculture based on a new city-agriculture relationship. Observations are based on the doctoral dissertations of Ba (2007) and To (2008).
Connectivity in the Multi-Layered City: Towards the Sustainable City
Authors: Brown Bob 
Published: January 2021

A new urban paradigm, the global city, emerged in the late 20th Century finding acceptance in discussions of urban development. Tied into a global network of exchange, it exists principally as a place of financial speculation and transaction. It is marked by a parallel economy of culture, which underpins a re-conceptualisation and spatial re-formation of the city. Despite its widespread currency, criticisms have challenged its economic sustainability. Further questions have contested its tendency to impose a singular, homogenized space prioritizing consumption while marginalising other concerns.
Post-independence Riga's recent experience provides a platform from which to critique the global city paradigm, which the city embraced as it sought to embed itself in the West not only politically but culturally and economically as well. In opposition to this model's intrinsic singular emphasis and exclusionary tendencies, this text will explore the concept of palimpsest; this proposition understands the city as a multiplicity of layers, within which convergences and divergences offer a site from which to generate synergies. This will be framed in reference to recent discourse on the sustainable city and development practice. Recent design-led inquiry situated in the context of Riga will then provide a lens on palimpsest as an alternative form of praxis.
Upgrading Energy Efficient Housing and Creating Jobs: It Works Both Ways
Authors: Meijer Frits , Visscher Henk 
Published: January 2021

The European Commission and EU member states have prioritised the renovation of the existing housing stock as a means of achieving their energy-efficiency targets. As buildings account for 40% of Europe’s energy consumption and much of this is used in the residential sector a major breakthrough could be realized here. Despite the fact that energy saving targets have been prioritized in EU and national policy programme’s, progress is slow. The actual rate and extent of renovations are by fare not enough to achieve the targets. Although the necessity of energy savings is acknowledged by institutional investors in housing, housing associations, individual homeowners and occupants, it appears to be difficult to get sufficient support for energy efficiency renovations. The current economic situation is an additional barrier preventing large scale investments in energy renovating the housing stock.
This article connects the realisation of energy efficiency goals with the creation of jobs in the EU. The shift from new-build to renovation will have considerable effects on employment in especially the construction industry and the qualifications required by the workforce. Studies show that for every €1 million investment in the existing building stock in the form of energy renovation work, 12 to 17 new jobs could be created. Potentially this could lead to may new jobs. However, there are many uncertainties in these calculations. Are these direct or indirect jobs, what sectors would benefit, are these jobs created within the EU and what would be the net effect on the labour market? Nonetheless these uncertainties, the positive employment effects will prevail. A new and ambitious investment programme in the housing sector could not only improve the energy performance of the sector but create 100.000’s of valuable jobs at a time when these are seriously needed.
Cultivation of a Problem Field
Authors: Bertram Peter 
Published: January 2021

A problem is typically defined prior to an architectural process and the result is seen as a solution. The process as a whole is conceived as problem solving. However, the artistic element of the process is inseparable from constructing the problem. From the artistic point of view the solution is merely a derivative.
Conventional understanding of artistic creation is sometimes coloured by the misconception that invention first and foremost takes place in the mind of the artist parallel or prior to the actual process. However, as far as the artistic element in an architectural process is concerned the problem cannot be abstracted from the specificity of the material, the drawings, models etc., which constitutes the project under development. The problem is an immanent relational field and invention is triggered by the difference between maker and architectural media.
The aim of the paper is to portray the artistic practice as a learning process different from communication of knowledge. It proposes a kind of leaning not about improvement of skills and competences but rather concerned with the dynamics of a material field. It emphasises the role of technique and presents architectural media as the prime material field investigated by the process.
The discussion uses examples of assignments and student projects developed under my supervision to demonstrate how a problem field is framed by the ordering of techniques.
Design Workshops as a Tool for Informal Architectural Education
Authors: Turgut Hülya , Cantürk Emel 
Published: January 2021

Although the design studio has formally been the locus for design education, informal education approach has gained more and more acceptance in the world. Informal education, which is the education outside the confines of curricula, includes the acquisition of knowledge and skills through experience, reading, social contact, etc. Workshops cover the essential weight of this informal education. Although the role of the design workshops in architectural design education has been very limited through overall design education’s past, many schools of architecture have taken steps to consider workshops as the part of informal learning and education.
“Culture and Space in the Build environment” (CSBE) Network of IAPS have been organizing “culture and design workshop series” for graduate and post graduate students in Turkey since 2001. In these workshops, a design teaching approach based on the conceptual framework of culture and space interactions is applied. The conceptual framework developed for the architectural design education, takes three fundamental starting points for workshops as the part of informal design education: as a tool for informal design education (method), as a tool for learning & understanding culture-environment relations (content), and as a tool for awareness of different environments/contexts (scale/place). The foundation of the conceptual framework is based on the general approach that discusses the “architectural design process” with regards to environmental context and content.
Within this context the aim of the paper is to discuss and evaluate the importance and the contribution of workshops as tool for informal architectural design education. These discussions will be held on the case of IAPS-CBSE Network’s last workshop “Istanbul as a Palimpsest City and Imperfection”. In the paper, the process, the method, the content and the results of workshop studies will be discussed and evaluated.
‘Small House Spatiality: A Comparative Space Syntax Application’
Authors: Arslan Ayça , Uraz Türkan Ulusu 
Published: January 2021

It has recently come to light that there is an increasing demand for a new type of small house design, which vary in area from 20 square metres to 100 square metres and even more. Being remarkably different from traditional types of spatial organizations, the new house types present an open plan concept with a highly flexible and adaptable spatial arrangement that exhibit diverse functional spaces within one open, integrated space.
In light of this, the main aim of this study is to reveal the new dynamics of spatial organization found in today's small house types and identify the significant changes in the contemporary design approaches to small house layouts which have evolved from a need for minimized space usage and a requirement for diverse living spatiality.
Subsequently, thirty houses have been chosen to be analysed for the purpose of this study to reveal the differences between integrated and segregated spatial organizations in regard to flexibility, adaptability, transformability and permeability within the spaces. In addition to this, the new spatial relations will be overviewed considering spatial depth, interpenetration and density to define more implicit organizations which are able to expand constantly and accommodate different functional spaces in one open space with the help of spatial identifiers.
The main focus of this research study concentrates on the above mentioned dynamic forms of spatiality that change from being weak to strong, implicit to explicit and indistinct to clearly defined spaces. These forms are measured, analysed and basically compare by means of a space syntax application on the values of the space and convex maps of the thirty selected houses.
In summary, the analysis and measurement of the spatial characteristics of contemporary small houses in this sphere include both theoretical and empirical components. Firstly, the study discusses the basic definitions of spatial relations and organizations. Secondly, the space syntax method was used to test and compare new spatial design approaches by means of the Mean Depth, Mean Integration, Basic Difference Factor and Space Link Ratio values mainly to clarify how the spatiality changes according to the size although the plan type stays the same as 1+1.
Adaptation of Sustainable Community to the Site's Natural Condition
Authors: Friedman Avi 
Published: January 2021

A common practice in some of North Americans' residential development is to alter the site's natural conditions prior to and during construction. Rock formations are removed or changed, new terrain grading created, and landscape features uprooted. An approach whereby the design will be made to fit the site's characteristics is often avoided.
Fitting a master plan of a new community to existing geo-environmental conditions was a principal objective in the planning of a 350-dwelling development on a 41-hectare site near Quebec City, in the province of Quebec, Canada. For the densely forested site, the author developed design guidelines that considered the roads' routes, parking areas, foundation, and footprint of each building. A pillar of this approach was to model the design after the terrain's condition by adopting flexible planning strategies.
The project, now in advanced stages of construction, have earned many accolades from conservationists and demonstrated that once documentation of the site's natural conditions has taken place, the fitting of design to the site becomes easier to implement.
This paper outlines the design challenges, show patterns that were developed specifically for the project and elaborate on the building process and its outcome.
Post-Conflict Syria: From Destruction to Reconstruction – Who's Involved and to Which Extent
Authors: Ibold Nura 
Published: January 2021

The wave of popular unrest in the Arab world reached Syria in March 2011, and what started as peaceful demonstrations with simple demands of justice and freedom turned into a brutal armed conflict and a full-scale civil war. Over seven years of conflict resulted in the deaths of over half a million Syrians, the forced displacement of millions more, and a huge loss of the country's social and physical structures. What began as another Arab Spring movement against a dictatorial regime has turned into a proxy war that has attracted the interests of the world and regional powers. The paper discusses Syria's political history and investigates the motives for the Syrian uprising and argues that it is related to socio-economic deprivations rather than sectarianism. The work underlines the interests of the countries involved in the Syrian conflict focusing on Russia, USA, Iran, and Turkey, as well as their contribution to the future reconstruction of the country.
Over the past few years, the Syrian regime and its allies targeted many cities and destroyed opposition-held neighborhoods. The work considers if this destruction was part of an overall strategy adopted by the al-Assad regime to terrorize those who opposed it and change Syria demographically, examining the new laws issued by the government to transfer public properties into the hands of its loyal businessmen factions, as in the case of the reconstruction project in the city of Homs.
Seven years of war exhausted Syria's financial stocks, and the country (and in turn the regime) is suffering the consequences of military spending. But like any other war, destruction is also a great opportunity to generate money through reconstruction and growth. It is a “win-win situation”; the regime will use the fund designated for reviving the country to its own benefit, gaining future profits. Already invested in the conflict, involved countries will be part of the reconstruction process to secure their presence and control in Syria.
United Nations agencies like UNDP (United Nations Development Programme) and UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) are working closely with the Syrian regime and its governmental representatives. This research examines their involvement and how their ‘humanitarian mission' is being exploited to prop up the al-Assad regime.
Architectural and Urban Conservation in the United Arab Emirates
Authors: Hadjri Karim , Boussaa Djamel 
Published: January 2021

Over the last two decades the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have been actively restoring their modest urban heritage. However, conservation actions are not streamlined within the country and there is no legislation to protect this heritage. A number of European experts have been invited to carry out studies, but the extent of this involvement has not been clear.
To illustrate this, conservation interventions in specific urban and architectural heritage sites, namely Al Bastakia in Dubai and Al Merraija in Sharjah, were examined.
First, this paper discusses conservation philosophy, meanings and practices. This is to assist understanding of the broader conservation issues affecting urban and architectural heritage in the UAE. Then, it presents historical accounts of architectural and urban heritage practices in Dubai and Sharjah. Finally, conservation approaches implemented over the last two decades within the two historic sites are compared and evaluated.
The Urban Merge “Future Urban Place”
Authors: Mandour M Alaa 
Published: January 2021

Within the last decade the media's full potential has been its use as a tool for conception and production of new architecture. What is this new architecture? Is it is really new or it is just a term to describe a transitory fashion development similar to the short lived post-modern flirtations of the 80th? A quick view at some of the buildings being constructed today does certainly suggest that there is a totally different approach to the production and the resultant form of architecture.
Traditional methods of architecture conception are being replaced by digital media; a revolt, that many argue, has far-reaching inference in how the architectural entity is presented, recognized and practiced. More prominently, it proposes new formal possibilities absurd a decade ago. Architects working within this digital realm utilize CAD/Cam systems, CNC milling systems and software programs such as Maya, Form Z, and CATIA. Terms such as beauty, scale and proportion, used to describe the formal character of the pre-digital vernacular are being replaced by adjectives such as smooth, supple, and morphed, derived from the digital practice. The built result of such experiments are obvious the world over, whether it is Gehry's Philadelphia Music Hall, or Itto's new opera in Thailand, among others. The work of these architects was, a decade ago, confined to the virtual space of the computer, only seen in architectural magazines, viewed as a radical approach to architecture. However, the digital revolution has allowed for this vision to be transformed into reality. The use of digital tools both as a presentation tool and form generating device is unquestioned, a given, and will in the future consider any other traditional systems.
Spaces have gone from being a physical to virtual of a gigantic digital network of networks, which shapes our collective future. The way and pace at which we connect, communicate, memorize, imagine and control the flows of valuable information have changed forever. The paper also will introduce a new concept of virtual urban spaces and interaction between it and the physical urban environments.
Implementation Strategies for Solar Communities
Authors: Johnson Cassidy , Dignard-Bailey Lisa 
Published: January 2021

Work on the design and implementation for solar homes has been expanded to the community scale in several international projects. If low-carbon emission housing is to make an impact on citywide consumption of energy, we must move towards community-scale implementation of solar technologies, both in new housing developments and in existing ones. However, the uptake of solar communities requires new methods for implementation to promote innovation in the building industry, new policies and programmes on energy consumption and energy subsidies, as well as community-scale design guidelines for solar or other renewable technologies.
This research surveys the implementation process of selected solar community projects in Netherlands, United States and Canada. It looks at new policies and programmes that are promoting community-scale solar projects from the perspective of innovation in the building industry. It examines the various actors that are necessary for solar communities within an urban planning framework and identifies five main actor groups.
Changes of Quality in Javanese Houses
Authors: Idham Noor Cholis , Numan Ibrahim , Mohd Munther 
Published: January 2021

One of the most important issues arising from the 2006 Java earthquake is that many of the Javanese houses were easily collapsed or badly damaged due to the quake. The failure of the vernacular houses was also believed to be a principle factor in causing the casualties. As a replacement, the government built reconstruction houses which differ in form, size and structure to the earlier houses. Intensive campaigns were conducted to encourage and support the construction of compacted dwellings with brick walls and concrete frame systems. In view of the fact that the collapsed houses were comprised of many of the various types of Javanese vernacular structures in the area, including the recent well known reinforced concrete frame type, uncertainty in deciding which house is really fulfill the need of the people has emerged. Even though the new houses are thought to be more stable in respect of earthquake safety, the other values in housing should be examined and reassured.
The comparative study presented in this paper, is based on a housing quality assessment method, which employs using an adaptation of Maslow's theory. Here, an interpretation related to the housing aspects in respect of the specific grading method is proposed. Following the earthquake, all Javanese house types were examined from the old traditional housing to the newly built houses. Aspects of evaluating the quality are considered according to local requirements and needs in respect of how the houses had been built according to the climate, needs, customs, safety, security, utility and comfort. This was done in order to compare the developments and changes in quality of the various types of housing. The result of the assessment applied to the houses shows that the Javanese housing quality is constantly changing over time for particular reasons. Unfortunately, according to this study, the overall quality of Javanese houses is currently, for some reason, in a downward trend.
Learning From the Vernacular: Sustainable Planning and Design
Authors: Eyüce Ahmet 
Published: January 2021

Ecologically fit built form and settlement is an outcome of harmonious modes of interaction between the man-made and the natural environment. It is also the prerequisite of a sustainable planning and design process. In building terms, an ecologically fit building involves the existence of appropriate schemes of enclosures and exposures of indoor spaces which is achieved through fundamental building features like relations with the ground, properties of building mass, treatment of the building envelop and roof performance.
While the debate on the conflicting aspects of the two extremes, namely the international style and regionalism, continues to occupy architectural media, a new paradigm of place dependent ecological architecture has to be formulated. In this connection it is not surprising to notice that vernacular built form based on building traditions are ecologically fit and may well constitute a sound source of information. This study aims at deciphering relevant clues to be utilized as design guidelines through the analysis of fundamental building features of vernacular built environments.