WorldWideScience

Sample records for urban development designed

  1. Developing a Parametric Urban Design Tool

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Steinø, Nicolai; Obeling, Esben

    2014-01-01

    Parametric urban design is a potentially powerful tool for collaborative urban design processes. Rather than making one- off designs which need to be redesigned from the ground up in case of changes, parametric design tools make it possible keep the design open while at the same time allowing...... for a level of detailing which is high enough to facilitate an understan- ding of the generic qualities of proposed designs. Starting from a brief overview of parametric design, this paper presents initial findings from the development of a parametric urban design tool with regard to developing a structural...... logic which is flexible and expandable. It then moves on to outline and discuss further development work. Finally, it offers a brief reflection on the potentials and shortcomings of the software – CityEngine – which is used for developing the parametric urban design tool....

  2. Urban Environment Development based on Universal Design Principles

    Science.gov (United States)

    Harsritanto, Bangun Ir

    2018-02-01

    Universal Design is a design which facilitated full range of human diversity. By applying Universal design principles, urban environment can be more functional and more user-friendly for everyone. This study examined five urban streets of South Korea as a country experienced on developing various urban street designs based on universal design. This study aimed to examine and compare the South Korea cases using seven principles of universal design. The research methods of this study are literature study, case study, and site observation. The results of this study are: South Korea cases are good practices, urgency of implementing the direction into local regulations; and change of urban development paradigm.

  3. Performative Urban Design

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Performative Urban Design seeks to identify emerging trends in urban design as they are reflected in the city's architecture and spatial design. A “cultural grafting” of the inner city is taking place; architecture and art are playing a crucial, catalytic role in urban development. On the one hand...... these issues through three perspectives: •Sense Architecture; •Place-Making; and •Urban Catalysts. The articles in this volume identify relevant theoretical positions within architecture, art, and urban strategies while demonstrating relevant concepts and methodological approaches drawn from practical......, this development has been rooted in massive investments in “corporate architecture.” On the other, cities themselves have invested heavily in new cultural centers and performative urban spaces that can fulfil the growing desire for entertainment and culture. The anthology Performative Urban Design addresses...

  4. Urban landscape architecture design under the view of sustainable development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, WeiLin

    2017-08-01

    The concept of sustainable development in modern city landscape design advocates landscape architecture, which is the main development direction in the field of landscape design. They are also effective measures to promote the sustainable development of city garden. Based on this, combined with the connotation of sustainable development and sustainable design, this paper analyzes and discusses the design of urban landscape under the concept of sustainable development.

  5. Making better places urban design now

    CERN Document Server

    Hayward, Richard

    2013-01-01

    Making Better Places: Urban Design Now discusses how to make better places: how monotonous or rich urban development can be, how appropriate to traffic requirements urban improvements are, or how sustainable an urban design approach can be to existing and future urban dispersal. The book reviews the gap existing between the various environmental disciplines leading to the emergence of urban design; as well as the gap between the rhetoric and practical achievements of urban design. The practice of urban design entails the premise that environments are to be created and transformed to provide the most opportunities for the largest number of people. By using an urban tissue plan, the urban developmental planner can produce and evaluate site development appraisal and design proposals. The book also provides an abstract perspective that considers built forms as a set of signs to provide a mechanism which shows the modification of urban space. The text also addresses the issue of urban change in established centers...

  6. Design as a way to develop a relevant urban environment ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Design as a way to develop a relevant urban environment. ... Futuristic ideas of young designers can become the first stage in solving these challenging tasks. ... the problems of a modern city: from space organization to leisure organization.

  7. CItyMaker. Designing Grammars for Urban Design

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    José Beirão

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Due to its complexity, the evolution of cities is something that is difficult to predict and planning new developments for cities is therefore a difficult task. This complexity can be identified on two levels: on a micro level, it emerges from the multiple relations between the many components and actors in cities, whereas on a macro level it stems from the geographical, social and economic relations between cities. However, many of these relations can be measured. The design of plans for cities can only be improved if designers are able to address measurements of some of the relationships between the components of cities during the design process. These measurements are called urban indicators. By calculating such measurements, designers can grasp the meaning of the changes being proposed, not just as simple alternative layouts, but also in terms of the changes in indicators adding a qualitative perception.This thesis presents a method and a set of tools to generate alternative solutions for an urban context. The method proposes the use of a combined set of design patterns encoding typical design moves used by urban designers. The combination of patterns generates different layouts which can be adjusted by manipulating several parameters in relation to updated urban indicators. The patterns were developed from observation of typical urban design procedures, first encoded as discursive grammars and later translated into parametric design patterns. The CItyMaker method and tools allows the designer to compose a design solution from a set of programmatic premises and fine-tune it by pulling parameters whilst checking the changes in urban indicators. These tools improve the designer’s awareness of the consequences of their design moves.

  8. CItyMaker. Designing Grammars for Urban Design

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    José Beirão

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available Due to its complexity, the evolution of cities is something that is difficult to predict and planning new developments for cities is therefore a difficult task. This complexity can be identified on two levels: on a micro level, it emerges from the multiple relations between the many components and actors in cities, whereas on a macro level it stems from the geographical, social and economic relations between cities. However, many of these relations can be measured. The design of plans for cities can only be improved if designers are able to address measurements of some of the relationships between the components of cities during the design process. These measurements are called urban indicators. By calculating such measurements, designers can grasp the meaning of the changes being proposed, not just as simple alternative layouts, but also in terms of the changes in indicators adding a qualitative perception. This thesis presents a method and a set of tools to generate alternative solutions for an urban context. The method proposes the use of a combined set of design patterns encoding typical design moves used by urban designers. The combination of patterns generates different layouts which can be adjusted by manipulating several parameters in relation to updated urban indicators. The patterns were developed from observation of typical urban design procedures, first encoded as discursive grammars and later translated into parametric design patterns. The CItyMaker method and tools allows the designer to compose a design solution from a set of programmatic premises and fine-tune it by pulling parameters whilst checking the changes in urban indicators. These tools improve the designer’s awareness of the consequences of their design moves.

  9. Performative Urban Design

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Samson, Kristine

    2011-01-01

    visitors and participants to engage and interact with the city. Inspired by Lefebvre statement that "the most beautiful cities were those where festivals were not planned in advance” (Lefebvre 1987:36), I will discuss how urban designers can design engaging spaces, where the potentials of the city can...... unfold. Is it, for instance, the formal aesthetics of the design or rather the socio-cultural codes of the existing urban space that engage people? The paper engages in three urban performance designs: 1) The 10th Avenue Plaza at the Highline in New York 2) The temporary installations at Boble Plads......Urban design has come to mean many things. From the architectural masterplans to the informal urban design in temporary spaces and event designs. The paper will focus on urban designs engaging urban designs. Engaging urban design can broadly be understood as temporary design installations inviting...

  10. Informal Urban Development in Cairo

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Steinø, Nicolai; Petersen, Mads Dines

    2017-01-01

    The city of Cairo, Egypt, currently experiences rapid urban growth. Large parts of the city expand without formal urban planning. This results in large-scale informal and unplanned development. In addition, the resulting urban fabric and individual buildings feature severe deficiencies when...... it comes to the basic quality of urban space, ventilation and daylight. While retrofitting already built-up areas would be a huge challenge, some minor improvements might be possible in future development even within the current mode of production of these spaces. In recent years, parametric design tools...... have opened up new possibilities for modelling in urban design. By way of a parametric design approach, different urban design parameters can be modified and new urban space scenarios can be rendered three dimensionally in almost real time. In short, this is parametric urban design. It opens up...

  11. Using Parametrics to Facilitate Collaborative Urban Design

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Steinø, Nicolai; Benbih, Karima; Obeling, Esben

    2013-01-01

    in the context of the urban South which is characterized by high urban growth rates, weak planning systems and modest means. The current state of planning and urban development in Morocco is introduced as a context for discussing collaborative urban design and parametric urban design, and some tentative...

  12. Designing Urban Bikescapes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Marling, Gitte

    2014-01-01

    This article presents analyses of the ‘Nørrebro Bike Route’ as an ‘urban bikescape’ consisting of a mixture of lanes and coupled urban places and small parks. It is a place to sit, to play and to relax, but at the same time it also a place for mobility. It is a social-technical assemblage (Urry 2...... (scale, rhythm, content) & aesthetics developed? (Thies- Evensen 1992, Venturi 1972, Rasmussen 2003, Thrift 2004, Merleau-Ponty 2009, Pallismaa 2005, Pink 2009)? Finally the article addresses the travelling ideas of ‘new urban bikescapes’ and Nordic urban space design....

  13. Interactive urban design using integrated planning requirements control

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Vries, de B.; Tabak, V.; Achten, H.H.

    2005-01-01

    Urban planning and urban design are separated disciplines. As a consequence, there is hardly any feedback from the urban design process to the urban planning process. To improve interaction between these two, an interactive urban design (IUD) tool has been developed. The tool is implemented in a

  14. Urban Interaction Design

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Brynskov, Martin; Bermúdez, Juan Carlos Carvajal; Fernández, Manu

    This book is an effort to explore the newly emerging field of urban interaction design that addresses these issues. In the first part of the book, 'Foundations', we look into its origins. Where do its practitioners come from? How are they working together? What methodologies do they bring...... to the table? What are the key concepts they are addressing in their work? In the second part of the book named 'Trends', we go into current developments in the networked city and how urban interaction design as a field addresses these. Taken together, these sections will not give the definite definition...

  15. Aesthetic Performativity in Urban Design and Art

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Samson, Kristine

    2015-01-01

    expressions relating to artistic practices, processes of urban development and temporary use. Temporary urban spaces, place-making through the arts, and urban spaces with cultural projects as catalysts for change are but a few of the labels designating those design practices. To put it simply, the field......, and how they engage the social life in the city. I am particularly interested in how these designs oscillate between what we formerly recognized as categories such as the art installation, urban design, cultural events and architecture....

  16. Regeneration Through Hidden Historical Landscape of Lecco. Urban Course Design Process

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Angela Colucci

    2017-12-01

    The first part of paper presents the general learning process characterizing Urban Design course and the methodological process for the Urban Master Plan development in the studio modules. The second part presents the LeccoLAB didactical path developed in the Lecco Campus focusing on the urban design issues and presenting selected results and design proposals developed by students focusing on the Lecco Historical Urban Heritage issues. During the Academic Year 2016/2017 students’ work teams (27 applied the concepts, methods and techniques presented in Urban Design course to the Lecco waterfront urban systems developing proposal for Urban Master Plan aiming the regeneration of urban complex systems through principles of Nature Based Solutions and  Urban Resilience.

  17. INFORMED DESIGN DECISION-MAKING: FROM DIGITAL ANALYSIS TO URBAN DESIGN

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Camilla Pezzica

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available This study describes a new approach to explore the design of public open spaces based on a multidimensional analysis useful to inform decision-making and foster the development of evidence-based architectural solutions. It presents an overview of the most relevant design variables and their constraints, providing, in this way, valuable information for the elaboration of a more sustainable urban design, considerate of the local socio-cultural values. This research aims at providing holistic guidance for the development of better design proposals in contemporary urban environments. More specifically, it seeks to synchronously characterize urban spaces at a multi-scale and multidimensional level, both quantitatively and qualitatively, by collecting contributions from Space Syntax Theory, Public Life Studies, Building Science and Environmental/Comfort Analysis in public open spaces. Many advanced digital tools are used for data management purposes and to generate and test iteratively different design proposals. The proposed methodology is based on a range of tests and analyses performed in the process of developing a new experimental project for Largo da Graça, an urban square located in Lisbon’s historic centre, which allowed the testing of different design solutions. This experiment generated a digital workflow for the design of the urban square, in which are registered all the steps undertaken to solve the many design problems identified by considering the efficiency targets (centrality, connectivity, enclosure, thermal comfort, security, social equity and interaction. The process comprises a sequence of comparative design reviews and records the choices made when dealing with latent information underlying changing conditions in the use of public space and the programmatic malleability of the Portuguese plaza. The description of the adopted design strategy and the examples extracted from the workflow are used to illustrate the practical

  18. Implementing a Generative Urban Design Model : Grammar-based design patterns for urban design

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Beirao, J.N.; Mendes, G.; Duarte, J.; Stouffs, R.M.F.

    2010-01-01

    This paper shows the first results of a prototype implementation of a generative urban design tool. This implementation will form part of a design support tool for a GIS based platform defined to formulate, generate and evaluate urban designs. These three goals, formulation, generation and

  19. Designing the Urban Microclimate. A framework for a design-decision support tool for the dissemination of knowledge on the urban microclimate to the urban design process

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marjolein Pijpers-van Esch

    2015-06-01

    starting with a small selection of constraints, iteratively working to a design solution by incorporating an increasing number of constraints. The selection of constraints is subjective, depending on the design frame of the individual designer. In order to make design decisions, the urban designer requires diverse information. To establish how urban designers collect information and which formats and information levels they prefer, field research among Dutch urban designers was carried out. This consisted of a series of exploratory interviews and an online questionnaire. The results indicate that dissemination of expert knowledge to urban design should be focused on the orientation and sketch phases of the design process and should provide different layers of detail, using mainly visual information accompanied by explanatory text. The results furthermore show a remarkable discrepancy between the assigned significance of the urban microclimate for urban design and the frequency of inquiry on this topic; almost all interviewees and respondents consider the subject to be important, but a majority of them seldom collect information on it. This signifies a gap in the knowledge transfer process. It is important to bridge this gap, because the urban microclimate has a significant impact on the physical well-being of people. All components of the urban microclimate – solar radiation, daylight, wind, air quality and sound – affect the physical well-being of people, whether separately or in conjunction. Some of these effects are immediate, such as heat stress and noise annoyance; others develop over a longer period of overexposure or underexposure, such as pulmonary and respiratory diseases. Some cause discomfort, for example sleep disturbance; others can be life- threatening, such as heat stroke or skin and lung cancer. It is therefore vital that the urban microclimate is given considerable attention in the urban design process. The urban microclimate is to a large extent

  20. Knowledge-based Design : Developing Urban & Regional Design into a Science

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Klaasen, I.T.

    2003-01-01

    An implemented design of an urban area imposes long-term conditions on societal processes, such as the opportunities people have to organize their lives in temporospatial respects in a healthy and safe living environment, and the way social, cultural and economic institutions and organisations can

  1. Sustainable Urban Development: Spatial Analyses as Novel Tools for Planning a Universally Designed City

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Joanna Borowczyk

    2018-05-01

    Full Text Available The aim of the research was to analyze the “design for all” concept as a key strategy for creating social sustainability. The paper attempts to answer the question: how can universal design contribute to the rational development of the city space? The author has taken part in participatory experiments. The research took into account various criteria, including the level of the city space’s adaptation to the needs and capabilities of persons with different disabilities. Analyses included qualitative studies concerning the possibilities of developing the social capital as well as creating and preserving a cohesive social structure. The analytic process allowed determining the means of raising the quality of urban planning. Finding effective and reliable analytical tools enabling the development of healthy cities which are compatible with the principles of sustainability could become both a great chance and a great challenge for urban planners. Transition from the microplanning to the macroplanning scale and following the principles of universal design at the stage of the formation of urban concepts using spatiotemporal modelling methods will lead to the creation of harmonious accessible spaces adjusted to the needs of present and future users, which will generate sustainable development and lead to the healing of a city.

  2. Impact of a Fragmented Regulatory Environment on Sustainable Urban Development Design Management

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kerry Anne London

    2009-12-01

    Full Text Available The building project development approval process is increasingly complex and fraught with conflict due to the rise of the sustainable urban development movement and inclusive decision making. Coupled with this, government decision-making decentralization has resulted in a fragmented and over-regulated compliance system. Problems arising from the process include wasted resources, excessive time delays, increased holding and litigation costs, inadequate planning coordination, high levels of advocacy costs and a divisive politicized approval process. In Australia, despite attempts by government and industry associations, numerous problems are still unresolved. Design managers increasingly assume a liaison role during the approval phase. There is a long tradition of planning theory literature which provides context for understanding the knowledge-power-participation relationship for this paper. This study investigated the policy, process and practice conflicts during the approval stage in achieving sustainable urban developments. Three regional local government areas within one state jurisdiction and observations from detailed structured focus group interviews involving 23 stakeholders, proposers and assessors were analysed to explore this conflictual environment. As a result of regulatory fragmentation and excessive consultation, various persuasion tactics have been developed by all stakeholders of which `reciprocity' and `authority' were identified as the most common. Two challenges for design managers were thus identified: first, the emergence of the role of a by default central informal arbitrator across conflicting planning instruments; and, second, as a navigator through a set of persuasion tactics. An inclusive knowledge-based design management framework for sustainable urban development is proposed considering Habermas' communicative planning theory, Foucaltian governance and discursive powers thesis and Cialdini's persuasion theory, as

  3. The Sustainable Expression of Ecological Concept in the Urban Landscape Environment Design

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dong, Junyan; Zhou, Tiejun; Xin, Lisen; Tan, Yuetong; Wang, Zhigang

    2018-02-01

    Urbanization is an inevitable trend of development of human society, also the inevitable outcome of economic development and scientific and technological progress, while urbanization process in promoting the development of human civilization, also no doubt, urban landscape has been a corresponding impact. Urban environment has suffered unprecedented damage, the urban population density, traffic congestion, shortage of resources, environmental pollution, ecological degradation, has become the focus of human society. In order to create an environment of ecological and harmonious, beautiful, sustainable development in the urban landscape, This paper discusses the concept of ecological design combined with the urban landscape design and sustainable development of urban landscape design.

  4. Regeneration Through Hidden Historical Landscape of Lecco. Urban Course Design Process

    OpenAIRE

    Colucci, Angela; Kolmogorova, Anna; Kraja, Benida; Ziyaee, Maryam

    2017-01-01

    The article focus on the role of Historical Urban Heritage in Urban Design through the presentation of the integrated learning  path developed for Urban Design and Urban Design Studio classes of Lecco Campus of Politecnico of Milan (school of Architecture Urban Planning Construction Engineering, master degree in Building and Architectural Engineering - BAE and Architectural-Engineering– EDA). The first part of paper presents the general learning process characterizing Urban Design course a...

  5. Parametrics in Urban Design

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Steinø, Nicolai; Obeling, Esben

    2013-01-01

    The design of urban space has always been contested. Whether imposed by autocratic rulers, emerged as a result of market forces, or implemented as a result of democratic planning processes, urban space design shapes the lives of urban dwellers. Yet rarely does the average urban dweller have any r...... implementation by means of CityEngine is given and discussed with respect to it pros and cons. And finally, the potential implications of this approach are touched as an outline for further research....

  6. Urban design and the tracking of secondary school students in the urban landscape

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Harder, Henrik; Bro, Peter; Knudsen, Anne-Marie Sanvig

    2012-01-01

    Recent developments in the global positioning system (GPS) and the global system for mobile communications have enabled an increasingly simple and cost-effective tracking of human activity in urban areas through the use of mobile telephony for the collection of vast amounts of location-based data....... From an urban design perspective, location-based datasets concerning collective or individual spatial behaviour in urban areas are highly interesting. By combining the data with existing information on urban elements such as the location of plazas, shops, etc., infinitely detailed mappings...... of the interplay between users’ individual behaviours and urban elements can be gathered, but this requires accessible ways of representation. Further questions should address other, value-based choices concerning urban design. In the following we demonstrate a number of ways in which the collected data enable...

  7. : Urban design, urban project, urban art, urban composition ... a question of vocabulary?

    OpenAIRE

    Pinson , Daniel

    2014-01-01

    Actes à paraître; International audience; The term "urbanism" of Pierre Clerget (1910) put the mess in the practice and the formations in France. Urban planning is thus, on the academic level, a coexistence of disciplinary approaches, which does not help to a multidisciplinary urban training. Thinking about "urban design", after beautifull city, urban composition, or alongside the urban project and other territorial approaches can help to see more clearly in town planning.; Le terme « urbanis...

  8. Cellular Automata as a learning process in Architecture and Urban design

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jensen, Mads Brath; Foged, Isak Worre

    2014-01-01

    . An architectural methodological response to this situation is presented through the development of a conceptual computational design system that allows these dynamics to unfold and to be observed for architectural design decision taking. Reflecting on the development and implementation of a cellular automata based...... design approach on a master level urban design studio this paper will discuss the strategies for dealing with complexity at an urban scale as well as the pedagogical considerations behind applying computational tools and methods to a urban design education....

  9. An urban informatics approach to smart city learning in architecture and urban design education

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mirko Guaralda

    2013-08-01

    Full Text Available This study aims to redefine spaces of learning to places of learning through the direct engagement of local communities as a way to examine and learn from real world issues in the city. This paper exemplifies Smart City Learning, where the key goal is to promote the generation and exchange of urban design ideas for the future development of South Bank, in Brisbane, Australia, informing the creation of new design policies responding to the needs of local citizens. Specific to this project was the implementation of urban informatics techniques and approaches to promote innovative engagement strategies. Architecture and Urban Design students were encouraged to review and appropriate real-time, ubiquitous technology, social media, and mobile devices that were used by urban residents to augment and mediate the physical and digital layers of urban infrastructures. Our study’s experience found that urban informatics provide an innovative opportunity to enrich students’ place of learning within the city.

  10. Knowledge-based Design: Developing Urban & Regional Design into a Science

    OpenAIRE

    Klaasen, I.T.

    2003-01-01

    An implemented design of an urban area imposes long-term conditions on societal processes, such as the opportunities people have to organize their lives in temporospatial respects in a healthy and safe living environment, and the way social, cultural and economic institutions and organisations can function. In view of the fact that both people and institutions experience recurrent problems - ranging from getting lost in new housing estates to the awkward accessibility of workplaces - it is st...

  11. Urbanization, Design & Liveability

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Reeh, Henrik; Gehl, Jan

    2014-01-01

    In this video documentary, produced for the Danish Ministry of Education and the ESOF2014 conference in Copenhagen by Alpha Film, Associate Professor and chairman of Urban Culture Lab, Henrik Reeh, explores urbanization, design, and liveability together with internationally renowned Danish...

  12. Tool for assessing eco-efficiency in urban planning and design

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lahti, P., Email: pekka.lahti@vtt.fi

    2012-06-15

    The goal of this project was to develop a fast, comprehensive and user-friendly eco-efficiency estimation method for urban development. A preliminary study concluded that urban planners, designers and architects lack a practical and comprehensive tool for the overall assessment of community-level ecological performance. The report on the tool itself concluded findings concerning the needs of urban planners and designers in the City of Helsinki, which were transferred to the structure and contents of the assessment tool. The project continues the development efforts during the next couple of years, integrating 14 partners. (orig.)

  13. DIY Urban Design

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Fabian, Louise; Samson, Kristine

    2014-01-01

    of new experimentations with participatory process in urban design and the limits of staged participation. Through case-studies of the relocation of beer drinkers in Enghave Square in Copenhagen, the participatory and cultural urban planning initiatives in Køge municipality and examples of anonymous...

  14. Design of Urban Public Spaces

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hjort, Mikkel; Martin, W Mike; Stewart, Tom

    2018-01-01

    knowledge, and that expert knowledge was chosen randomly. These findings point to a systematic lack of evidence-based practice when designing sport and recreational facilities. This article has implications for landscape architects and urban planners; a new method must be developed to embed...

  15. Urban wetlands: restoration or designed rehabilitation?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Beth Ravit

    2017-05-01

    Full Text Available The continuing loss of urban wetlands due to an expanding human population and urban development pressures makes restoration or creation of urban wetlands a high priority. However, urban wetland restorations are particularly challenging due to altered hydrologic patterns, a high proportion of impervious surface and stormwater runoff, degraded urban soils, historic contamination, and competitive pressure from non-native species. Urban wetland projects must also consider human-desired socio-economic benefits. We argue that using current wetland restoration approaches and existing regulatory “success” criteria, such as meeting restoration targets for vegetation structure based on reference sites in non-urban locations, will result in “failed” urban restorations. Using three wetland Case Studies in highly urbanized locations, we describe geophysical tools, stormwater management methods, and design approaches useful in addressing urban challenges and in supporting “successful” urban rehabilitation outcomes. We suggest that in human-dominated landscapes, the current paradigm of “restoration” to a previous state must shift to a paradigm of “rehabilitation”, which prioritizes wetland functions and values rather than vegetation structure in order to provide increased ecological benefits and much needed urban open space amenities.

  16. Parametric Design Strategies for Collaborative Urban Design

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Steinø, Nicolai; Yıldırım, Miray Baş; Özkar, Mine

    2013-01-01

    to the collaboration between professionals, participation by different non-professional stakeholders, such as residents, local authorities, non-governmental organizations and investors, is another important component of collaborative urban design processes. The involvement of community in decision making process...... implications of planning and design decisions, unless they are presented with relatively detailed architectural models, whether physical or virtual. This however, typically presents steep demands in terms of time and resources. As a foundation for our work with parametric urban design lies the hypothesis...... to solve different scripting challenges. The paper is organized into an introduction, three main sections and closing section with conclusions and perspectives. The first section of the paper gives a theoretical discussion of the notion of collaborative design and the challenges of collaborative urban...

  17. Measuring the Complexity of Urban Form and Design

    OpenAIRE

    Boeing, Geoff

    2017-01-01

    Complex systems have become a popular lens for conceptualizing cities, and complexity has substantial implications for urban performance and resilience. This paper develops a typology of methods and measures for assessing the complexity of the built form at the scale of urban design. It extends quantitative methods from urban planning, network science, ecosystems studies, fractal geometry, and information theory to the physical urban form and the analysis of qualitative human experience. Metr...

  18. Designing, developing, and facilitating smart cities urban design to IoT solutions

    CERN Document Server

    Tragos, Elias; Pöhls, Henrich; Kapovits, Adam; Bassi, Alessandro

    2017-01-01

    This book discusses how smart cities strive to deploy and interconnect infrastructures and services to guarantee that authorities and citizens have access to reliable and global customized services. The book addresses the wide range of topics present in the design, development and running of smart cities, ranging from big data management, Internet of Things, and sustainable urban planning. The authors cover - from concept to practice – both the technical aspects of smart cities enabled primarily by the Internet of Things and the socio-economic motivations and impacts of smart city development. The reader will find smart city deployment motivations, technological enablers and solutions, as well as state of the art cases of smart city implementations and services. · Provides a single compendium of the technological, political, and social aspects of smart cities; · Discusses how the successful deployment of smart Cities requires a unified infrastructure to support the diverse set of applications that can be ...

  19. Urban Design - Architectural Workshop Nova Gorica

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Anja Planišček

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available The workshop ran through the 2008-09 academic year. The main themes were a thorough design of Magistrala, the main city street, and research of the spatial and programmatic development alongside it. The research was based on the original urban plan of Nova Gorica designed by architect Edvard Ravnikar in 1949.The workshop was divided into two phases. In the first phase, students researched the possibilities of an overall design for Magistrala (traffic arrangement, relations between built and vacant space, green spaces, public and private domain etc.. In the second phase, they proposed urban architectural interventions in the open spaces along Magistrala (university campus in the northern part of the city, student housing, residential areas, main square, law court, hotel etc..

  20. Design challenges facing urban development in Dar es Salaam City ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The paper shows that in order for the resources to be deployed sustainable ... of environmentally friendly building materials, designs must take into account local ... housing construction in low-income informal settlements which in most urban ...

  1. THE NEW URBAN DESIGN – A SOCIAL THEORY OF ARCHITECTURE ?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alexander R. Cuthbert

    2014-07-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Over the last ten years and 1000 pages of text, I outlined a unified field theory which I refer to as The New Urban Design. Possessing the same structure, the three books can be read in series or in parallel, and may best be described as a matrix of possibilities (Cuthbert 2003, 2006, 2011. In this paper I revisit some of the ideas in these texts that need to be more fully developed. Important among them are the undeniable effects of this new field for architecture and urban planning, and an expanded brief on the use of Marxian modes of production to support social analysis in these disciplines. From this perspective we can at least develop some truth as to the historical progress of urban form. In redefining urban design as an independent field, architecture and urban planning subsequently become different regions of thought from what they had previously entertained, namely during the period when they colonised urban design and shared the spoils between them. Extending this argument even further, it is clear that neither discipline, nor the resulting mainstream urban design (i.e. one produced by architects and planners - have had resort to a social theory of their own existence. All so called theories of architecture and urban planning, have failed with good reason. Architecture has relied almost exclusively on aesthetics and technology for its self awareness. Despite the fact that social theory began to penetrate planning theory in the 1970’s, this did not change the idea that planning can have no internally generated theory other than the trivial, since it is an epiphenomenon of the state. It is not an independent factor in urbanisation, and therefore can have no consciousness of its own that is any more than ideological in the Marxist use of the term. In conclusion, the paper suggests that if the weltanshuung of the New Urban Design is persuasive, this has wide ranging implications for education, practice and the development

  2. Urban Design and Spatial Equity

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Silva, Victor

    2012-01-01

    During the last century, the motorized vehicles have been preponderant in the streets. However, the emergence of the debate about sustainability and its relation to the urban environment has influenced urban designers to rethink the role of the streets and their spatiality. Pedestrians and cyclists...... are gaining space not only for move to a specific destination, but also space in which to play and stay. Taking in consideration the formal structure of our cities, streets are critical to urban transformation and strategic to restructure the urban flows and the quality of urban life. This chapter aims...... transformation of a street in the core of Odense – Vestergade Vest. Firstly, this chapter presents the notion of shared use streets – including a brief historical context and a debate about its design characteristics and its role to enhance street life. Secondly, it is presented a creative and low budget design...

  3. Towards urban mobility designs

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lanng, Ditte Bendix; Harder, Henrik; Jensen, Ole B.

    2012-01-01

    for the wayfarers who use the site. The data for our work concerns a transit site in the 1970s urban district of Aalborg Øst, Denmark. - We set out by introducing our approach to the site. - Second, we examine the functional layout of the transit site in Aalborg Øst and outline the design challenge which we......Functionalist traffic design aims at a rational organisation of movement from A to B in a segregated and uniform physical environment. Such urban areas have been criticized for being exclusively functional and lacking sensuous and social qualities. Recent research on mobilities challenges the more...... insights on functional urban planning, on embodied practices and experiences of wayfaring, and on concrete small scale design concerns. We emphasise an integrated design agenda for those ordinary transit sites which is concerned with functional issues as well as the quality of life on the ground...

  4. Urban forests for sustainable urban development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sundara, Denny M.; Hartono, Djoko M.; Suganda, Emirhadi; Haeruman, S. Herman J.

    2017-11-01

    This paper explores the development of the urban forest in East Jakarta. By 2030 Jakarta area has a target of 30% green area covering 19,845 hectares, including urban forest covering an area of 4,631 hectares. In 2015, the city forest is only 646 hectares, while the city requires 3,985 hectares of new land Urban forest growth from year to year showed a marked decrease with increasing land area awoke to commercial functions, environmental conditions encourage the development of the city to become unsustainable. This research aims to support sustainable urban development and ecological balance through the revitalization of green areas and urban development. Analytical methods for urban forest area is calculated based on the amount of CO2 that comes from people, vehicles, and industrial. Urban spatial analysis based on satellite image data, using a GIS program is an analysis tool to determine the distribution and growth patterns of green areas. This paper uses a dynamic system model to simulate the conditions of the region against intervention to be performed on potential areas for development of urban forests. The result is a model urban forest area is integrated with a social and economic function to encourage the development of sustainable cities.

  5. Computational Design of Urban Layouts

    KAUST Repository

    Wonka, Peter

    2015-10-07

    A fundamental challenge in computational design is to compute layouts by arranging a set of shapes. In this talk I will present recent urban modeling projects with applications in computer graphics, urban planning, and architecture. The talk will look at different scales of urban modeling (streets, floorplans, parcels). A common challenge in all these modeling problems are functional and aesthetic constraints that should be respected. The talk also highlights interesting links to geometry processing problems, such as field design and quad meshing.

  6. The realities of Lagos urban development vision on livelihoods of the urban poor

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Oluwafemi Ayodeji Olajide

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available Similar to many other cities in sub-Saharan African countries, the struggle between urban development policies and the livelihoods of the urban poor is one of the urban development challenges facing Lagos. This paper examines the realities of the Lagos urban development policies and intiatives on the livelihoods of the urban poor. The state government embarked on series of what it calls sustainable urban transformation policies towards making Lagos ‘an African model megacity’ and a global economic and financial hub that is safe, secure, functional and productive, with a view to achieving poverty alleviation and sustainable development. This paper, through the lens of theoretical and analytical underpinnings of Sustainable Livelihoods Framework, however, argues that the actions of the state government contradict the whole essence of sustainable urban development and poverty alleviation, but reflect an agenda deliberately targeted to further impoverish the poor. While the Sustainable Livelihood was used as the theoretical and analytical framework, this paper essentially focuses on the Policies, Institutions and Processes component of the framework. This provides a unique entry point for understanding the implications of the Lagos urban development aspirations on the livelihoods of the urban poor. The research uses mixed methods research design with a broad range of data-collection methods, including household surveys, interviews, direct observation and photography, documentary review and policy document analysis. The study reveals that there is a disconnection between urban development policies and realities of the poor. The implementation of urban development projects and policies works against the urban poor and resulted in more hardship, through reduction in livelihood opportunities or complete loss of livelihoods. This study, therefore, suggests that one important element in reducing poverty in Lagos’ informal settlements is a policy

  7. Urban design against the background of biosphere and social processes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ivanova Zinaida

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available In this article, the co-authors tackle the problem of the social sense and mission of the projects developed by urban planners and architects. The co-authors address the key issue of the present-day architectonics, that is, the ability and willingness of urban designers to give consideration to the environment, or the local landscape, to assure the harmonious co-existence of the biosphere and the needs of the society in Smart city. The co-authors compare the spatial organization principles of eastern and western cultures; they also track the patterns of their implementation in the present-day architectonics. The co-authors provide the findings of the public opinion pollabout the urban environment layout. Students of the Moscow State University of Civil Engineering (Russia acted as the respondents. The co-authors employed the findings of the document analysis and the opinion poll to develop recommendations for architects and urban designers in respect of social and ecological needs of urban residents.

  8. Sustainable urban systems: Co-design and framing for transformation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Webb, Robert; Bai, Xuemei; Smith, Mark Stafford; Costanza, Robert; Griggs, David; Moglia, Magnus; Neuman, Michael; Newman, Peter; Newton, Peter; Norman, Barbara; Ryan, Chris; Schandl, Heinz; Steffen, Will; Tapper, Nigel; Thomson, Giles

    2018-02-01

    Rapid urbanisation generates risks and opportunities for sustainable development. Urban policy and decision makers are challenged by the complexity of cities as social-ecological-technical systems. Consequently there is an increasing need for collaborative knowledge development that supports a whole-of-system view, and transformational change at multiple scales. Such holistic urban approaches are rare in practice. A co-design process involving researchers, practitioners and other stakeholders, has progressed such an approach in the Australian context, aiming to also contribute to international knowledge development and sharing. This process has generated three outputs: (1) a shared framework to support more systematic knowledge development and use, (2) identification of barriers that create a gap between stated urban goals and actual practice, and (3) identification of strategic focal areas to address this gap. Developing integrated strategies at broader urban scales is seen as the most pressing need. The knowledge framework adopts a systems perspective that incorporates the many urban trade-offs and synergies revealed by a systems view. Broader implications are drawn for policy and decision makers, for researchers and for a shared forward agenda.

  9. Teaching method: ‘Integrative urban design game’ for soft urban regeneration

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mrđenović Tatjana

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Urban regeneration is challenged by contradictory process of globalization. This double-sided process can enrich local communities or leave them at margins of global society. Regarding globalization, most authorities claim that urban planning and design are in paradigm crisis. The crisis is an announcement for paradigm shift that is in contemporary theoretical and conceptual frameworks. They give hope for the ‘light at the end of the tunnel’. Their common groundings are: ‘soft and hard infrastructure’; ‘agencies and structures’; ‘power to’; ‘new rationality’, ‘common sense’; ‘communicative action’; and ‘integrative development’. The purpose of the research is to discuss possibilities of teaching method ‘Integrative urban design game’ for soft urban regeneration, elaborating it with respect to the crisis in specific context of building bridges among academia and local communities regarding various teaching approaches. The method was innovated at the Faculty of Architecture in Belgrade and tested in Bač community. The hypothesis is that the method provides soft infrastructure for urban regeneration in local communities. The research will result in a form of principles the game should be grounded on, using participative mimicry model of present and future place for overcoming paradigm crisis. Methodological approach is based on theoretical comparison, case study, and questionnaires among stakeholders. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. TR 36035: Spatial, environmental, energy and social aspects of developing settlements and climate change - mutual impacts

  10. A New Framework to Evaluate Urban Design Using Urban Microclimatic Modeling in Future Climatic Conditions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dasaraden Mauree

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available Building more energy-efficient and sustainable urban areas that will both mitigate the effects of climate change and anticipate living conditions in future climate scenarios requires the development of new tools and methods that can help urban planners, architects and communities achieve this goal. In the current study, we designed a workflow that links different methodologies developed separately, to derive the energy consumption of a university school campus for the future. Three different scenarios for typical future years (2039, 2069, 2099 were run, as well as a renovation scenario (Minergie-P. We analyzed the impact of climate change on the heating and cooling demand of buildings and determined the relevance of taking into account the local climate in this particular context. The results from the simulations confirmed that in the future, there will be a constant decrease in the heating demand, while the cooling demand will substantially increase. Significantly, it was further demonstrated that when the local urban climate was taken into account, there was an even higher rise in the cooling demand, but also that a set of proposed Minergie-P renovations were not sufficient to achieve resilient buildings. We discuss the implication of this work for the simulation of building energy consumption at the neighborhood scale and the impact of future local climate on energy system design. We finally give a few perspectives regarding improved urban design and possible pathways for future urban areas.

  11. Negotiation and Design for the Self-Organizing City. Gaming as a method for Urban Design

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ekim Tan

    2014-08-01

    Full Text Available An understanding of cities as open systems whose agents act on them simultaneously from below and above, influencing urban processes by their interaction with them and with each other, is replacing the simplistic debate on urban participation which asks whether cities should be organized bottom-up or top-down. This conceptualization of cities as complex systems calls for new collaborative city-making methods: a combination of collaborative planning (which already embraces various agencies and derives decision-making from negotiations between them and collaborative design (existing methods rely on rule-based iterative processes which control spatial outcomes. While current collaborative planning methods are open and interactive, they fail to simulate realistic power negotiations in the evolution of the physical environments they plan; collaborative design methods fall short in modelling the decision-making mechanisms of the physical environments they control. This research is dedicated to building an open negotiation and design method for cities as self-organizing systems that bridges this gap. Gaming as a tool for knowledge creation and negotiation serves as an interface between the more abstract decision-making and material city-making. Rarely involved in the creation of our environment, it has the unexplored potential of combining the socio-spatial dimensions of self-organizing urban processes. Diverse agents, the collaborations and conflicts within and between interest groups, and the parameters provided by topological data can all be combined in an operational form in gaming: potentially a great unifier of multiple stakeholder negotiations and individual design aspirations through which to generate popularly informed policies or design. The simple language and rules of games will allow jargon-free communication between stakeholders, experts and non-experts alike. The interactive and iterative nature of city gaming encourages the development

  12. Design of Urban Public Spaces: Intent vs. Reality

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hjort, Mikkel; Martin, W Mike; Stewart, Tom

    2018-01-01

    knowledge, and that expert knowledge was chosen randomly. These findings point to a systematic lack of evidence-based practice when designing sport and recreational facilities. This article has implications for landscape architects and urban planners; a new method must be developed to embed......This study investigated how two public spaces for sport and recreation were utilized by different user groups, and how this aligned with the initial design objectives for these spaces. Two newly built urban spaces situated in Copenhagen, Denmark, provided the context for this investigation...... interdisciplinary knowledge in the planning process of future sport and recreation projects. This must be done in a systematic way to make the design process transparent....

  13. Developing green infrastructure design guidelines for urban climate adaptation

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Klemm, Wiebke; Lenzholzer, Sanda; Brink, van den Adri

    2017-01-01

    In the context of global warming and increasing urban climate problems, urban green spaces and elements have been recognized as a strategy for urban climate adaptation. Yet, despite increasing scientific evidence of the positive impacts that urban green infrastructure (UGI) is having on the urban

  14. Design of Urban Public Spaces: Intent vs. Reality

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mikkel Hjort

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available This study investigated how two public spaces for sport and recreation were utilized by different user groups, and how this aligned with the initial design objectives for these spaces. Two newly built urban spaces situated in Copenhagen, Denmark, provided the context for this investigation. The System for Observing Play and Recreation in Communities (SOPARC was used to examine the physical activity of users in these two urban spaces. The architects responsible for designing each space were interviewed to ascertain the intended target group of each space and to unravel the reasons behind the design decisions. The SOPARC observations revealed that males were more vigorously active than females when using the recreation facilities, and the observed users did not align with the intended target groups. The interviews suggested that design decisions were based on minimal interdisciplinary knowledge, and that expert knowledge was chosen randomly. These findings point to a systematic lack of evidence-based practice when designing sport and recreational facilities. This article has implications for landscape architects and urban planners; a new method must be developed to embed interdisciplinary knowledge in the planning process of future sport and recreation projects. This must be done in a systematic way to make the design process transparent.

  15. Quantitative and creative design tools for urban design in cold and windy climates

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Koss, Holger; Jensen, Lotte Bjerregaard; Nielsen, Thomas Alexander Sick

    2014-01-01

    between the design processes and the academic knowledge available is a focus area. The effects of climate change and a general higher demand for quantitative assessment of urban planning proposals in hard climatic locations have created a demand for research based design advice. The paper will present......In cold and windy climates, the quality of the urban spaces is severely challenged. A design process with a very high level of information regarding wind, sun, daylight and water from the earliest of the design process will help create the most optimized design. For the last couple of years...... in academic ‘silos’ where little attention has been made in regards to architectural design processes. Simulation tools were developed that can render a larger amount of information available in a short time and thus can keep pace with an ongoing design process in an architectural studio. Bridging the gap...

  16. Urban design for mobilities

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jensen, Ole B.

    2017-01-01

    . In this paper, we shall explore the potential for a better understanding of contemporary urban challenges through the cross-disciplinary approach of ‘Mobilities design’. The paper investigates how this notion is based on an understanding of materialities and social action that is framed under the heading...... of ‘material pragmatism’. The paper critically discusses transport versus mobilities and uses the combination of urban design and mobilities not just to argue for a pragmatic approach to urban transformation, but also to illustrate how such a different frame of understanding is better suitable for the ‘kind...

  17. Designing Urban Media Façades

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Dalsgaard, Peter; Halskov, Kim

    2010-01-01

    Media façades comprise a category of urban computing concerned with the integration of displays into the built environment, including buildings and street furniture. This paper identifies and discusses eight challenges faced when designing urban media façades. The challenges concern a broad range...... of issues: interfaces, physical integration, robustness, content, stakeholders, situation, social relations, and emerging use. The challenges reflect the fact that the urban setting as a domain for interaction design is characterized by a number of circumstances and socio-cultural practices that differ from...

  18. Modelling the impact of Water Sensitive Urban Design technologies on the urban water cycle

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Locatelli, Luca

    Alternative stormwater management approaches for urban developments, also called Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD), are increasingly being adopted with the aims of providing flood control, flow management, water quality improvements and opportunities to harvest stormwater for non-potable uses....... To model the interaction of infiltration based WSUDs with groundwater. 4. To assess a new combination of different WSUD techniques for improved stormwater management. 5. To model the impact of a widespread implementation of multiple soakaway systems at the catchment scale. 6. Test the models by simulating...... the hydrological performance of single devices relevant for urban drainage applications. Moreover, the coupling of soakaway and detention storages is also modeled to analyze the benefits of combining different local stormwater management systems. These models are then integrated into urban drainage network models...

  19. Urban landscape infrastructures: Designing operative landscape structures for the built environment

    OpenAIRE

    Nijhuis, S.; Jauslin, D.T.

    2015-01-01

    This paper explores infrastructure as a type of landscape and landscape as a type of infrastructure. The hybridisation of the two concepts, landscape and infrastructure, seeks to redefine infrastructure beyond its strictly utilitarian definition, while allowing design disciplines to gain operative force in territorial transformation processes. This paper aims to put forward urban landscape infrastructures as a design concept, considering them as armatures for urban development and for facilit...

  20. Sustainable urban development in Brisbane City--the Holy Grail?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rahman, K; Weber, T

    2003-01-01

    Impacts from urban stormwater runoff on receiving environments have been well documented, particularly through specific regional scientific studies. Using various local government planning and management elements, urban developments in Brisbane City are now able to address stormwater management in an increasingly holistic context. One key initiative includes facilitating Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) components within an Integrated Water Management Strategy that looks at policy formation, planning strategies, design option, community marketing and acceptance, maintenance programs and finally evaluation of various WSUD approaches. These can include the use of Natural Channel Designs, grassed swales, bio-filtration systems, porous pavements and roofwater tanks in several economic combinations. By linking with the Cooperative Research Centre for Catchment Hydrology, Brisbane City Council has influenced the design of WSUD planning tools and benefited the city with academic inputs into extensive evaluation programs. As well, it has also contributed to the Cooperative Research Centre's research outcomes. These evaluation programs are increasingly providing better understanding of various stormwater quality best management practices throughout Australia. As part of the overall implementation process, active involvement by a range of stakeholders has been crucial. These stakeholders have included internal planning, development assessment and design staff, external consultants, developers, and other local and state government agencies. The latter two groups are assisting in the important task of "regionalisation" of Brisbane City Council's policies and guidelines. Implementation of WSUD initiatives and stormwater re-use strategies under Council's new "Integrated Water Management" agenda are showing some excellent results, suggesting that sustainable urban development is no longer like the search for the Holy Grail.

  1. Implementing ITI for urban development locally

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Garyfallia Katsavounidou

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available In the current Programming Period (2014-2020 the European Commission has introduced a new strategic instrument, the Integrated Territorial Investment (ITI, which shifts the decisions on allocation of funds to the local level and, most importantly, enables drawing of funds from several priority axes and from several European Structural and Investment Funds. Greece is one of EU member countries that has committed on using ITIs as a tool for urban development. In August 2016, in the Region of Central Macedonia, urban authorities with a population of over 10.000 inhabitants were invited by the Managing Authority of the Regional Operational Programme to submit a Strategy for Sustainable Urban Development (SUD, through the mandatory implementation of the ITI tool. The paper focuses on one of these municipalities, the city of Veria, where the ITI approach has been implemented for the design of an ITI of urban scale (ITI-SUD. The integrated approach prescribed by regional authorities forced Municipalities to adopt government approaches uncommon until now: to involve multiple stakeholders in the entire process, from strategy development to project selection and implementation. The paper describes the benefits and challenges of the new approach as applied in the local context, showing the vertical and horizontal connections of urban development strategies. Most importantly, in the context of ‘procedural learning’ happening in Europe in the field of territorial cohesion, it offers an insight on how European cohesion policy strategies and tools are tested at the local level.

  2. Parametric Thinking in Urban Design

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Steinø, Nicolai

    2010-01-01

    The paper states that most applications of parametric mod- elling to architecture and urban design fall into one of two strands of either form for form’s sake, or the negotiation of environmental con- cerns, while approaches which allow scenarios to be easily tested and modified without the appli...... of the paper. The pros and cons of this simple approach is discussed, and the paper con- cludes, that while it does not represent a suitable solution in all cases, it fills a gap among the existing approaches to parametric urban de- sign.......The paper states that most applications of parametric mod- elling to architecture and urban design fall into one of two strands of either form for form’s sake, or the negotiation of environmental con- cerns, while approaches which allow scenarios to be easily tested and modified without...

  3. Using GPS-tracking technology for urban design interventions

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Van der Spek, S.C.; Van Langelaar, C.M.

    2011-01-01

    The aim of this paper is to express the application of tracking technologies in Urban Design and Planning. Tracking technologies can be used to monitor different user groups in different occasions. Since 2005, TU Delft has explored and developed two types of research using GPS to collect spatio

  4. Management of Urban Development Processes in the Netherlands : Governance, Design, Feasibility

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Franzen, A.J.; Hobma, Hobma; de Jonge, H.; Wigmans, G.

    2011-01-01

    Urban interventions are vital to the city. These may involve renewal of inner city areas, transformation of port and industrial areas, industrial renewal, development of new residential areas, the rehabilitation of the historic centre of a town or the development of leisure areas in a city, just to

  5. Negotiating and Designing Public Space. Experiences with a new M.Sc. in Urban Design Program in Hong Kong

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hendrik Tieben

    2013-05-01

    Full Text Available This contribution reflects on first experiences made with a newly launched Master of Science in Urban Design program at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. As an important part of this program, students have to develop their design proposal in response to feedback of different stakeholders and community members. Thus the program responds to the growing aspiration of Hong Kong’s citizens to shape the urban development of their city and a lack of a meaningful participation process in the region. With its high density, protected country parks, efficient public transport and large scale housing program, generally, Hong Kong offers important lessons for contemporary urbanism. However, since the end of the British colonial rule and in face of increasing property prices, pollution and the disappearance of local heritage, intensive debates started about the regions future. Another central point of the recent discussion in Hong Kong – and key theme of the new urban design program - is the demand for the rights and qualities of public space. The paper presents the set-up of the design studio, which was closely linked to a course on “urban processes”. During the semester, students had to organize community forums and street exhibitions in a specific district, invite stakeholders and residents and discuss with them their ideas. Their projects, then, had to respond on the various feedbacks and integrate them in their design and policy proposals. The text reflects on the student projects and the lessons learned in the process. It addresses general questions such as the challenges in communicating with a diverse community (e.g. language barriers and culturally different ideas of public space. It addresses the question of the intended and unintended effects of a participatory design studio in the community, and possible follow-ups. And it reflects on the general role of design and designers in shaping community spaces.

  6. TOWARDS A VIRTUAL MUSEUM OF PUBLIC ART AND URBAN DESIGN

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Antoni Remesar

    2008-10-01

    Full Text Available This article comes from the communication that the authors presented at the International Seminar on “Public Art and Urban Design” held in Almada (Portugal in 2006 and later in Barcelona, 2007. Through a series of questions, the authors raise the issues of production, management and dissemination of public art in the context of Urban Design. These questions arise from the analysis carried out on a series of manuals of “good practice” disseminated by several municipalities and public agencies devoted to the Public Art. Finally, the authors outline the open possibilities for a Virtual Museum of Public Art and Urban Design, based on the existence of Public Art Information Systems that have cities like Barcelona and Saragossa and that are being developed in Lisbon and Almada

  7. Urban drainage design and climate change adaptation decision making

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Qianqian Zhou

    2012-10-15

    The emphasis of this PhD thesis is flood protection in the context of pluvial flooding by investigating new principles and approaches for assessment of urban drainage adaptation measures under climate change impacts. The thesis describes a new framework for design and analysis of urban drainage that accurately assesses hazards and vulnerabilities of urban areas and quantifies the present and future risks based on projections of climate change and city development. Furthermore, this framework can be utilized to identify cost-effective measures that can reduce the overall flood risk to an acceptable level considering both costs and benefits of adaptation. The framework is mainly based on a utilitarian approach that studies urban drainage adaptation solutions from a socio-economic point of view. The methodologies involve the state-of-the-art flood inundation modelling, risk assessment tools, socio-economic analysis tools, city planning, and uncertainty analysis. The thesis has explored several limitations of the current design practice of urban drainage. To further supplement and develop the common practice, a systemic and integrated framework is proposed by incorporating three research areas: (i) risk-based economic approaches for assessment of climate adaptation design, (ii) uncertainty analysis of climate adaptation assessment and (iii) reframing the assessment approaches by incorporating additional benefits and costs of adaptation alternatives. To strategically provide a functional performance of urban drainage systems, a risk-based economic approach is developed to take into account the impacts of all probable floods in terms of their probabilities and consequences (e.g. extents of floods, costing of damage). It is found that this approach contributes to a better understanding of the contributions of different return periods/flood events to the overall risk under both current and future climatic conditions and therefore can be used as guidance for further

  8. Designing Sustainable Urban Social Housing in the United Arab Emirates

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Khaled Galal Ahmed

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available The United Arab Emirates is experiencing a challenging turn towards sustainable social housing. Conventional neighborhood planning and design principles are being replaced by those leading to more sustainable urban forms. To trace this challenging move, the research has investigated the degree of consideration of sustainable urban design principles in two social housing neighborhoods in Al Ain City in Abu Dhabi Emirate, UAE. The first represents a conventional urban form based on the neighborhood theory; the other represents the new sustainable design. The ultimate aim is to define the obstacles hindering the full achievement of a sustainable urban form in this housing type. To undertake research investigations, a matrix of the design principles of sustainable urban forms has been initiated in order to facilitate the assessment of the urban forms of the two selected urban communities. Some qualitatively measurable design elements have been defined for each of these principles. The results of the analysis of the shift from ‘conventional’ to ‘sustainable’ case studies have revealed some aspects that would prevent the attainment of fully sustainable urban forms in newly designed social housing neighborhoods. Finally, the research concludes by recommending some fundamental actions to help meet these challenges in future design.

  9. Structuring a generative model for urban design : Linking GIS to shape grammars

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Beirao, J.; Duarte, J.; Stouffs, R.

    2008-01-01

    Urban Design processes need to adopt flexible and adaptive procedures to respond to the evolving demands of the contemporary city. To support such dynamic processes, a specific design methodology and a supporting tool are needed. This design methodology considers the development of a design system

  10. Urban Climate Design: Improving thermal comfort in Dutch neighbourhoods

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Laura Kleerekoper

    2017-11-01

    instruments. The design study discussed in the third part of this thesis provides examples of climate adaptive applications and suggestions for design strategies. Using urban typologies makes it possible to integrate the microclimate in the design without needing urban microclimate expertise. By analysing specific neighbourhood typologies applying a variety of microclimate indicators three simple distinctive parameters emerge:  • balance between pavement and natural surfaces; • building height; • built form. Design solutions were applied to reveal spatial implications for most of the neighbourhoods in the analysis and serve as examples and a source of inspiration. Promising and neighbourhood-specific measures were selected per neighbourhood type to support the design process. To demonstrate how microclimates can be managed with design choices, a design case was developed in more detail for three cities. Prioritizing measures at the design stage depends on many external and intrinsic factors. The three designs in this thesis follow the same path: analysis > maximisation > optimisation > integration. When maximization focuses on thermal comfort only design measures concerning this aspect are applied. Prioritization can be applied in a three-step strategy of: warming prevention, passive cooling and active cooling. The design process is an iterative process in which promising combinations may be found in the optimization and this may require additional analysis. This thesis hopes to build bridges between knowledge and science and the practice of the design of public space. That goal is approached with a product that unfolds from the three parts of the study:  • Factsheets to simply check and evaluate mechanisms and affordances of measures; • Guidelines for the further development of knowledge of and design with urban microclimates; • A categorized set of measures to be able to select the right measure for the right neighbourhood typology. The study is part of a

  11. A climate responsive urban design tool: a platform to improve energy efficiency in a dry hot climate

    Science.gov (United States)

    El Dallal, Norhan; Visser, Florentine

    2017-09-01

    In the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, new urban developments should address the climatic conditions to improve outdoor comfort and to reduce the energy consumption of buildings. This article describes a design tool that supports climate responsive design for a dry hot climate. The approach takes the climate as an initiator for the conceptual urban form with a more energy-efficient urban morphology. The methodology relates the different passive strategies suitable for major climate conditions in MENA region (dry-hot) to design parameters that create the urban form. This parametric design approach is the basis for a tool that generates conceptual climate responsive urban forms so as to assist the urban designer early in the design process. Various conceptual scenarios, generated by a computational model, are the results of the proposed platform. A practical application of the approach is conducted on a New Urban Community in Aswan (Egypt), showing the economic feasibility of the resulting urban form and morphology, and the proposed tool.

  12. Crime: impacts of urban design and environment

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Paula Santana

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available The criminal research has confirmed that there are clear patterns of crime, with concentrations in specific places at specific times. That is to say, incidence of crime are not distributed randomly; rather, there are certain areas in cities that are relatively small, but where crimes occur much more frequently than elsewhere (the so-called “hotspots”, making them highly vulnerable and predictable. Urban design and environment may play a part in the decision of whether or not to commit a crime; for example, the lack of natural vigilance, poor lighting and other variables mean that a small area may easily be transformed into a potential crime hotspot. The relationship between specific aspects of urban design and the formation of “hotspots” is present in the theory of “Crime Prevention through Environmental Design” (CPTED. This paper examines the relationship between the “hotspots” and the characteristics of the environment, in accordance with CPTED Index, in one city from the Lisbon Metropolitan Area (Amadora. The results highlight the need to reassess specific elements of urban design. This fact has drawn attention to the study of localities and urban design.

  13. How can urban mobilities design imaginaries articulate ‘matters of concern’?

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lanng, Ditte Bendix; Wind, Simon; Nielsen, Hannah Dræby

    Some urban design proposals are primarily imaginaries. They may present solutions to set urban problems, but their main agency is to experiment with reimagining the urban. This is urban design as ‘critical’ and ‘speculative’ design meant to probe our assumptions (Dunne and Raby 2013). The paper...

  14. Design of outdoor urban spaces for thermal comfort

    Science.gov (United States)

    Harriet J. Plumley

    1977-01-01

    Microclimates in outdoor urban spaces may be modified by controlling the wind and radiant environments in these spaces. Design guidelines were developed to specify how radiant environments may be selected or modified to provide conditions for thermal comfort. Fanger's human-thermal-comfort model was used to determine comfortable levels of radiant-heat exchange for...

  15. From Town Planning to Urban Design Work-The Dimensions to be Considered

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Özcan Altaban

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available The main purpose of this paper is to describe approaches of analysis for the urban fact, which are referred as being a preliminary guide-line for students working on Turkish cities already faced with large scale transformation programmes. The urban morphology was selected as a multi- dimensional method of analysis for urban structures. Urban morphology covers functional and economic approaches and can also include perceptual, historic, and other aspects. Urban Morphology attempts to make an objective analysis of the city considering: Firstly, the city as a physical concrete fact; secondly, the city as an organism in evaluation and the subject of transformation and change according to changes in society; thirdly, the city as a focus of interaction between social forces and the built environment that contains them. The concept of urban morphology can be applied to the whole city and even can be the basis for a theory of urban design. We can essentially consider it as a method of analysis which is basic to find out principles or rules for design. We can also consider of an analogy with language. “A language is a range of components and relationships forming a structure”. The analogy consists of understanding the physical form of the city as structure formed by series of components. The language is shaped by signs (or dimensions like semantic, syntactic and pragmatic that are taken from real life, from situations that have meaning and can constitute an image for citizens who belong to a given society. These signs when referring to the understanding of the city can be seen as analogous to building types which express the values of society in each period of development. Two types of analysis are proposed. The first one is components that form the city and the second is their relationship and structure. Properties of the city as the expression of values. The relations between these components will form tissues. Tissue implies also a logical

  16. Tour guides developing urban ecotourism destinations

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Meged, Jane Widtfeldt; Lasa-Gonzalez, Anne Cecilie

    is “controlled by other stakeholder and largely beyond the influence of tour guides” (ibid). In fact Weiler and Black (2015) argue that pathways and extend have never been investigated on how interpretative guiding improves the economic viability and competitiveness of business, and social and cultural benefits...... to local communities and destinations. In this paper, we want to propose a research agenda where guides have a central role in cooperation with public and private key stakeholder in development of a scalable participatory model for sustainable urban ecotourism. Wang & Wang (2013) define urban ecotourism...... as an “activity system to satisfy needs of the locals and visitors for using local natural scenery, culture and folk customs, and also to maintain ecological balance of urban environment and establish environment-friendly concepts” (2013:1). Drawing on Iterative Participatory Design, where “the concept is defined...

  17. The Urban Decision Room : A multi actor design engineering simulation system

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Van Loon, P.P.J.; Barendse, P.; Duerink, S.

    2012-01-01

    This paper deals with the definition and construction of a decision based multi actor urban design model which enables the integration of the allocation of a variety of urban land uses with the distribution of different urban functions: the Urban Decision Room. Urban design (and planning) is, among

  18. Ecological Aspect of Dam Design for Flood Regulation and Sustainable Urban Development

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Badenko Vladimir

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Many floodplains are excluded from urban development because the floods cause considerable damage to people’s lives and properties. This requires the development of new approaches to flood management and mitigation for support sustainable urban development. In present study as the measures for mitigation of flash floods, the regulation of river flow by the system of detention reservoirs for flood diversion with dams, which do not need any operation management, are analyzed concerning of Far East region of Russia. The main objective of this paper is to develop a method for analysis how the dam site selection meets the environmental criterion. The method to justify a selection of self-regulated flood dam parameters, primarily a height of a dam and its location on a water stream, providing minimization of impact on the environment have been developed. The result for Selemdzha river basin in Far East monsoon region of Russian Federation is analyzed. The result shows the robustness of the method.

  19. Using Human Motion Intensity as Input for Urban Design

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Poulsen, Esben Skouboe; Andersen, Hans Jørgen; Gade, Rikke

    2012-01-01

    of a town square, human occupancy and motion intensities are used to generate situated or topologies presenting new adaptive methods for urban design. These methods incorporate local or as design drivers for canopy, pavement and furniture layout. The urban design solution may be congured due to various...

  20. Biomimetic Urban Design: Ecosystem Service Provision of Water and Energy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maibritt Pedersen Zari

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available This paper presents an ecosystem biomimicry methodology for urban design called ecosystem service analysis. Ecosystem services analysis can provide quantifiable goals for urban ecological regeneration that are determined by site specific ecology and climate of an urban area. This is important given the large negative environmental impact that most cities currently have on ecosystems. If cities can provide some of their own ecosystem services, pressure may be decreased on the surrounding ecosystems. This is crucial because healthier ecosystems enable humans to better adapt to the impacts that climate change is currently having on urban built environments and will continue to have in the future. A case study analyzing two ecosystem services (provision of energy and provision of water for an existing urban environment (Wellington, New Zealand is presented to demonstrate how the ecosystem services analysis concept can be applied to an existing urban context. The provision of energy in Wellington was found to be an example of an ecosystem service where humans could surpass the performance of pre-development ecosystem conditions. When analyzing the provision of water it was found that although total rainfall in the urban area is almost 200% higher than the water used in the city, if rainwater harvested from existing rooftops were to meet just the demands of domestic users, water use would need to be reduced by 20%. The paper concludes that although achieving ecological performance goals derived from ecosystem services analysis in urban areas is likely to be difficult, determining site and climate specific goals enable urban design professionals to know what a specific city should be aiming for if it is to move towards better sustainability outcomes.

  1. Integrated management of water resources in urban water system: Water Sensitive Urban Development as a strategic approach

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Juan Joaquín Suárez López

    2014-08-01

    Full Text Available The urban environment has to be concerned with the integrated water resources management, which necessarily includes the concept of basin unity and governance.  The traditional urban water cycle framework, which includes water supply, sewerage and wastewater treatment services, is being replaced by a holistic and systemic concept, where water is associated with urbanism and sustainability policies. This global point of view cannot be ignored as new regulations demand systemic and environmental approaches to the administrations, for instance, in the management of urban drainage and sewerage systems. The practical expression of this whole cluster interactions is beginning to take shape in several countries, with the definition of Low Impact Development and Water Sensitivity Urban Design concepts. Intends to integrate this new strategic approach under the name: “Water Sensitive Urban Development” (WSUD. With WSUD approach, the current urban water systems (originally conceived under the traditional concept of urban water cycle can be transformed, conceptual and physically, for an integrated management of the urban water system in new models of sustainable urban development. A WSUD implementing new approach to the management of pollution associated with stormwater in the urban water system is also presented, including advances in environmental regulations and incorporation of several techniques in Spain.

  2. Urban sustainable development from public participation in urban management

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    L. Karimifard

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available Urban management in any context has a different economic, social and political structure, which is in harmony with the existing models of organization. In spite of these differences, in order to reach a sustainable urban development, several different conferences should be referred to. In the “Brundtland Commission 1987” about urban sustainable development these definitions have been given: “preservation and promotion of the quality level of city life. This consists of ecology, culture, politics, economies, and social participation. However, this development should in no case weigh on and create any problems for the future generations”. In all the definitions of urban management and urban sustainable development and in any political context citizens’ participation in decision making and insistence on social justice are mentioned. The aim of this article is a descriptive, analytic, and comparative study of different models of popular participation in different developed countries. Each of these countries has different social and political structure. However they all have the same aim which is the citizens’ empowerment. To reach the ideal urban management model it is necessary to have a clear image of the place and participation of citizens in order to create a socially, economically and politically sustainable developed society.

  3. Driving factors of urban land growth in Guangzhou and its implications for sustainable development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cui, Xuezhu; Li, Shaoying; Wang, Xuetong; Xue, Xiaolong

    2018-04-01

    Since 2000, China's urban land has expanded at a dramatic speed because of the country's rapid urbanization. The country has been experiencing unbalanced development between rural and urban areas, causing serious challenges such as agricultural security and land resources waste. Effectively evaluating the driving factors of urban land growth is essential for improving efficient land use management and sustainable urban development. This study established a principal component regression model based on eight indicators to identify their influences on urban land growth in Guangzhou. The results provided a grouping analysis of the driving factors, and found that economic growth, urban population, and transportation development are the driving forces of urban land growth of Guangzhou, while the tertiary industry has an opposite effect. The findings led to further suggestions and recommendations for urban sustainable development. Hence, local governments should design relevant policies for achieving the rational development of urban land use and strategic planning on urban sustainable development.

  4. Cool City Design: Integrating Real-Time Urban Canyon Assessment into the Design Process for Chinese and Australian Cities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marcus White

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available Many cities are undergoing rapid urbanisation and intensification with the unintended consequence of creating dense urban fabric with deep ‘urban canyons’. Urban densification can trap longwave radiation impacting on local atmospheric conditions, contributing to the phenomena known as the Urban Heat Island (UHI. As global temperatures are predicted to increase, there is a critical need to better understand urban form and heat retention in cities and integrate analysis tools into the design decision making process to design cooler cities. This paper describes the application and validation of a novel three-dimensional urban canyon modelling approach calculating Sky View Factor (SVF, one important indicator used in the prediction of UHI. Our modified daylighting system based approach within a design modelling environment allows iterative design decision making informed by SVF on an urban design scale. This approach is tested on urban fabric samples from cities in both Australia and China. The new approach extends the applicability in the design process of existing methods by providing ‘real-time’ SVF feedback for complex three-dimensional urban scenarios. The modelling approach enables city designers to mix intuitive compositional design modelling with dynamic canyon feedback. The approach allows a greater understanding of existing and proposed urban forms and identifying potential canyon problem areas, improved decision making and design advocacy, and can potentially have an impact on cities’ temperature.

  5. Citizen participation, indispensable factor in the generation of urban design projects that respond to the needs of users in Mexico

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Flavio Franco Muñoz

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available The relationship between urban design projects with users, it is evident that the importance of public participation in the development of the realization and implementation of these projects; being one of the aspects that aroused the interest in developing the research project "Citizen Participation and rehabilitation of public spaces in the downtown area of Aguascalientes. The cases of Madero and Venustiano Carranza Zaragoza streets" in the which it aims to propose a model for the process of developing an urban design project that incorporates citizen participation effectively, based on the analysis of cases of Madero and Venustiano Carranza Zaragoza streets and analysis theoretical framework of the research project; This research is being done within the Doctorate of Science of the Anthropic Areas, which is being conducted at the Autonomous University of Aguascalientes. The aim expose in this paper is the importance of public participation in a key stage in the process of realization and implementation of a project of urban design, urban planning stage, to substantiate the development stage of the project design city; this proposal derived from the analysis of the knowledge acquired through the research project being conducted within the PhD. The set in our research project to develop the stages in the process of realization and implementation of an urban design project, made up, urban planning, studies to substantiate the project, zoning scheme, the draft, the project executive, project implementation and monitoring, control and evaluation of urban design project realized; allowed to establish the stages where citizen participation is essential, and these stages, identifying the aspects that will be enriched with the knowledge gained from this participation. Considering the participation of citizens from the realization of urban development programs, whether in cities, partial, sectoral or development schemes localities, allow to be

  6. Urban legends of thermal moderator design

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Muhrer, G.

    2012-01-01

    Neutron scattering has been an important tool for many areas of science for more than 50 years. Even though the theory of neutron scattering was developed in large part in the 1950s and 1960s, it is still to this day a challenge to design neutron sources. This is largely due to the fact that in order to achieve the necessary fluxes, it is necessary to construct either a fission reactor or a spallation source. These facilities are so complex that designers frequently rely on the experiences gained from previously designed facilities. Over the years these rules were often passed on more in form of an art than as science. The goal of this paper is to re-evaluate these rules and to establish if they are still valid today or if they have become urban legends.

  7. Urban development in China

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Brakman, Steven; Garretsen, J.H.; van Marrewijk, J.G.M.

    2016-01-01

    Urbanization is important for economic development. As the largest country in the world in terms of population, China has experienced a remarkable history of urbanization; one 1000 years ago it housed the largest cities in world, it went through a counter-urbanization revolution during the Mao

  8. Post Millennium Urban Space Design in Denmark

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kiib, Hans

    Hans Kiib Post Millennium Urban Space Design in Denmark - a survey on 100 Danish projects from 2002 – 2010. This article is based on an evaluation of 100 Danish open space projects form 2000 – 2010. The projects was initially proposals from Danish municipalities for the Campaign on Better Open...... Spaces (Bedre Byrums Kampagne) run by Realdania stating in 2002. These projects are all proposed just after 2002. Based on the quality of the projects including the goals for the proposal, the quality of the proposed design, and finally to what extent the projects contributed to new concepts...... and perspectives in open space design, 24 proposals were selected for further development. These projects were developed in the period from 2003 – 2007 with support from consultants. The evaluation has been carried out in 2011. It categorizes the initial 100 projects in relation to location, goals, concepts, scale...

  9. Evaluating procedural modelling for 3D models of informal settlements in urban design activities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Victoria Rautenbach

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available Three-dimensional (3D modelling and visualisation is one of the fastest growing application fields in geographic information science. 3D city models are being researched extensively for a variety of purposes and in various domains, including urban design, disaster management, education and computer gaming. These models typically depict urban business districts (downtown or suburban residential areas. Despite informal settlements being a prevailing feature of many cities in developing countries, 3D models of informal settlements are virtually non-existent. 3D models of informal settlements could be useful in various ways, e.g. to gather information about the current environment in the informal settlements, to design upgrades, to communicate these and to educate inhabitants about environmental challenges. In this article, we described the development of a 3D model of the Slovo Park informal settlement in the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality, South Africa. Instead of using time-consuming traditional manual methods, we followed the procedural modelling technique. Visualisation characteristics of 3D models of informal settlements were described and the importance of each characteristic in urban design activities for informal settlement upgrades was assessed. Next, the visualisation characteristics of the Slovo Park model were evaluated. The results of the evaluation showed that the 3D model produced by the procedural modelling technique is suitable for urban design activities in informal settlements. The visualisation characteristics and their assessment are also useful as guidelines for developing 3D models of informal settlements. In future, we plan to empirically test the use of such 3D models in urban design projects in informal settlements.

  10. Toward time-based design: Creating an applied time evaluation checklist for urban design research

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Amir Shakibamanesh

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available The perception of a 3D space, in which movement takes place, is subjectively based on experience. The pedestrians’ perception of subjective duration is one of the related issues that receive little attention in urban design literature. Pedestrians often misperceive the required time to pass a certain distance. A wide range of factors affects one׳s perception of time in urban environments. These factors include individual factors (e.g., gender, age, and psychological state, social and cultural contexts, purpose and motivation for being in the space, and knowledge of the given area. This study aims to create an applied checklist that can be used by urban designers in analyzing the effects of individual experience on subjective duration. This checklist will enable urban designers to perform a phenomenological assessment of time perception and compare this perception in different urban spaces, thereby improving pedestrians’ experiences of time through a purposeful design. A combination of exploratory and descriptive analytical research is used as methodology due to the complexity of time perception.

  11. Development of Representative Rainfall Periods for Green Infrastructure Design: Connecting the Dots Between Climate, Urban Hydrology and Resilience

    Science.gov (United States)

    Albright, C. M.; Traver, R.; Wadzuk, B.

    2017-12-01

    Analysis of local-to-regional climate data is critical in understanding how changing patterns in rainfall and other atmospheric conditions can affect urban hydrology. Urbanization has caused hydrologic and ecologic modifications to our land surfaces, and altered the dynamics of urban water cycle in complex ways. Green infrastructure (GI) systems, in their simplest form, reduce runoff and flooding, prevent combined sewer overflows and improve quality of receiving waters. However, when viewed through a more holistic lens, GI systems sit at the nexus of hydrology, climate and energy, yet are rarely designed to account for the impacts of these intersections. We must assess urban hydrologic systems beyond their response to a single event or design storm, incorporating multiple temporal scales and all hydrologic processes. This is of utmost importance to design and characterization of urban GI systems because the resilience of these systems will be dictated by their ability to adapt to future behavior of extreme weather patterns and climate. In this study, we characterize long-term hydrologic conditions in Philadelphia to identify periods of record that are most representative of regional climate characteristics, including a representative rainfall year and longer representative periods. Utility of these datasets will be demonstrated by showing that GI systems are able to sustain effective performance for most expected annual precipitation events. Connections between atmospheric (precipitation and temperature) patterns, GI systems and potential removal mechanisms in the urban hydrologic cycle will be presented for Philadelphia and cities with similar climate characteristics. Establishing such connections is critically needed to not only validate what is already known about urban GI, but more importantly, to advance theory and practice by linking the hydrologic benefits of urban GI to broader concepts such as risk, mitigation of extreme events and sustainable communities.

  12. The study of urban metabolism and its applications to urban planning and design

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kennedy, C.; Pincetl, S.; Bunje, P.

    2011-01-01

    Following formative work in the 1970s, disappearance in the 1980s, and reemergence in the 1990s, a chronological review shows that the past decade has witnessed increasing interest in the study of urban metabolism. The review finds that there are two related, non-conflicting, schools of urban metabolism: one following Odum describes metabolism in terms of energy equivalents; while the second more broadly expresses a city's flows of water, materials and nutrients in terms of mass fluxes. Four example applications of urban metabolism studies are discussed: urban sustainability indicators; inputs to urban greenhouse gas emissions calculation; mathematical models of urban metabolism for policy analysis; and as a basis for sustainable urban design. Future directions include fuller integration of social, health and economic indicators into the urban metabolism framework, while tackling the great sustainability challenge of reconstructing cities. - This paper presents a chronological review of urban metabolism studies and highlights four areas of application.

  13. CURRENT TRENDS IN DEVELOPING URBAN TOURISM

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Selin Yıldız

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available The synergy of architecture and other disciplines in studies of developing tourism is  significant in terms of continuity of past and future. Now architects and urban designers are working in collaboration with social sciences disciplines in the field of urban tourism. Some examples of cultural, artistic and social activities can be listed as: re-transformation of port districts, opening of new museums, new additions to the fabric of the historic city, theme parks, coastal regulations, re-use of historic structures, innovative approaches to accommodation services, production of the metropolitan centers, architectural competitions organized by central and local governments, prestige landscapes, innovative, technological and ecological approaches in architecture, festivals, design and fashion weeks, guided tours, city walks, local meetings, lectures, courses in art education, concerts, sport events, fairs , the cultural capitals. The paper analyses these works companion to tourism in detail and in a holistic sese, questions these studies in urban,  economic, cultural and social movement axes. This inquiry aims to discuss current  projects being carried out in Istanbul which is an important city in the world, also to offer a wide range of tips for conducting a collaborative, multi-dimensional perspective studies carried out in the field of tourism.

  14. Strategies for managing the effects of urban development on streams

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cappiella, Karen; Stack, William P.; Fraley-McNeal, Lisa; Lane, Cecilia; McMahon, Gerard

    2012-01-01

    Urban development remains an important agent of environmental change in the United States. The U.S. population grew by 17 percent from 1982 to 1997, while urbanized land area grew by 47 percent, suggesting that urban land consumption far outpaced population growth (Fulton and others, 2001; Sierra Club, 2003; American Farmland Trust, 2009). Eighty percent of Americans now live in metropolitan areas. Each American effectively occupies about 20 percent more developed land (for housing, schools, shopping, roads, and other related services) than 20 years ago (Markham and Steinzor, 2006). Passel and Cohn (2008) predict a dramatic 48 percent increase in the population of the United States from 2005 to 2050. The advantages and challenges of living in these developed areas—convenience, congestion, employment, pollution—are part of the day-to-day realities of most Americans. Nowhere are the environmental changes associated with urban development more evident than in urban streams. The U.S. Geological Survey's National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program investigation of the effects of urban development on stream ecosystems (EUSE) during 1999–2004 provides the most spatially comprehensive analysis of stream impacts of urban development that has been completed in the United States. A nationally consistent study design was used in nine metropolitan areas of the United States—Portland, Oregon; Salt Lake City, Utah; Birmingham, Alabama; Atlanta, Georgia; Raleigh, North Carolina; Boston, Massachusetts; Denver, Colorado; Dallas, Texas; and Milwaukee, Wisconsin. A summary report published as part of the EUSE study describes several of these impacts on urban streams (Coles and others, 2012).

  15. Corporation-led urban development

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Potters, B.; Heurkens, E.W.T.M.

    2015-01-01

    Since a couple of years a remarkable phenomenon is witnessed in the field of urban development which entails that large multinationals corporations, such as IKEA and Siemens, start to engage in urban development projects. As their motivation to do so is unclear, it is difficult to estimate whether

  16. Optimizing Urban Material Flows and Waste Streams in Urban Development through Principles of Zero Waste and Sustainable Consumption

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Steffen Lehmann

    2011-01-01

    designers, industrial designers, and so on. How must urban development and construction change and evolve to automatically embed sustainability in the way we design, build, operate, maintain and renew/recycle cities? One of the findings of this paper is that embedding zero-waste requires strong industry leadership, new policies and effective education curricula, as well as raising awareness (through research and education and refocusing research agendas to bring about attitudinal change and the reduction of wasteful consumption.

  17. Exploring The Art of Urban Design as Sensorial Experience

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Smith, Shelley

    2015-01-01

    to their size, speed and flux. Relating to aesthetics as perception, the art of urban design in contemporary urbanity then seems to lie in accessing the ability to experience in a setting that makes it difficult to do so. This paper will explore the potential for aesthetic (sensorial) experience as the art......Contemporary urbanity is characterised by factors such as a large scale, hypermobility and momentary temporality. In terms of the physical spaces that these factors generate and the presence of users in them, this translates to spaces that challenge the ability to perceive and participate due...... of urban design, and look for that potential in the constituent elements and subsequent spaces of contemporary urbanity from the perspective of both the user and the practitioner....

  18. Designing green and blue infrastructure to support healthy urban living

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Gehrels, H.; Meulen, van der Suzanne; Schasfoort, F.; Bosch, Peter; Brolsma, R.; Dinther, van D.; Geerling, G.J.; Goossens, M.; Jacobs, C.M.J.; jong, de Merijn; Kok, Sien; Massop, H.T.L.

    2016-01-01

    This report focuses on developing concepts and design principles for blue and green infrastructure that not only support climate resilience but also contribute to a healthy and liveable urban environment. We will first assess the effectiveness of blue and green infrastructure on the basis of

  19. The Development of a Web-Based Urban Soundscape Evaluation System

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sudarsono, A. S.; Sarwono, J.

    2018-05-01

    Acoustic quality is one of the important aspects of urban design. It is usually evaluated based on how loud the urban environment is. However, this approach does not consider people’s perception of the urban acoustic environment. Therefore, a different method has been developed based on the perception of the acoustic environment using the concept of soundscape. Soundscape is defined as the acoustic environment perceived by people who are part of the environment. This approach considers the relationship between the sound source, the environment, and the people. The analysis of soundscape considers many aspects such as cultural aspects, people’s expectations, people’s experience of space, and social aspects. Soundscape affects many aspects of human life such as culture, health, and the quality of life. Urban soundscape management and planning must be integrated with the other aspect of urban design, both in the design and the improvement stages. The soundscape concept seeks to make the acoustic environment as pleasant as possible in a space with or without uncomfortable sound sources. Soundscape planning includes the design of physical features to achieve a positive perceptual outcome. It is vital to gather data regarding the relationship between humans and the components of a soundscape, e.g., sound sources, features of the physical environment, the functions of a space, and the expectation of the sound source. The data can be measured and gathered using several soundscape evaluation methods. Soundscape evaluation is usually conducted using in-situ surveys and laboratory experiments using a multi-speaker system. Although these methods have been validated and are widely used in soundscape analysis, there are some limitations in the application. The in-situ survey needs to be done at one time with many people at the same time because it is hard to replicate the acoustic environment. Conversely, the laboratory experiment does not have a problem with the

  20. A Novel Approach in Quantifying the Effect of Urban Design Features on Local-Scale Air Pollution in Central Urban Areas.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Miskell, Georgia; Salmond, Jennifer; Longley, Ian; Dirks, Kim N

    2015-08-04

    Differences in urban design features may affect emission and dispersion patterns of air pollution at local-scales within cities. However, the complexity of urban forms, interdependence of variables, and temporal and spatial variability of processes make it difficult to quantify determinants of local-scale air pollution. This paper uses a combination of dense measurements and a novel approach to land-use regression (LUR) modeling to identify key controls on concentrations of ambient nitrogen dioxide (NO2) at a local-scale within a central business district (CBD). Sixty-two locations were measured over 44 days in Auckland, New Zealand at high density (study area 0.15 km(2)). A local-scale LUR model was developed, with seven variables identified as determinants based on standard model criteria. A novel method for improving standard LUR design was developed using two independent data sets (at local and "city" scales) to generate improved accuracy in predictions and greater confidence in results. This revised multiscale LUR model identified three urban design variables (intersection, proximity to a bus stop, and street width) as having the more significant determination on local-scale air quality, and had improved adaptability between data sets.

  1. Urban sustainable development from public participation in urban management

    OpenAIRE

    L. Karimifard

    2016-01-01

    Urban management in any context has a different economic, social and political structure, which is in harmony with the existing models of organization. In spite of these differences, in order to reach a sustainable urban development, several different conferences should be referred to. In the “Brundtland Commission 1987” about urban sustainable development these definitions have been given: “preservation and promotion of the quality level of city life. This consists of ecology, culture, polit...

  2. Modelling the impact of implementing Water Sensitive Urban Design on at a catchment scale

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Locatelli, Luca; Gabriel, S.; Bockhorn, Britta

    Stormwater management using Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) is expected to be part of future drainage systems. This project aimed to develop a set of hydraulic models of the Harrestrup Å catchment (close to Copenhagen) in order to demonstrate the importance of modeling WSUDs at different scales......, ranging from models of an individual soakaway up to models of a large urban catchment. The models were developed in Mike Urban with a new integrated soakaway model. A small-scale individual soakaway model was used to determine appropriate initial conditions for soakway models. This model was applied...

  3. Valuing flexibilities in the design of urban water management systems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Deng, Yinghan; Cardin, Michel-Alexandre; Babovic, Vladan; Santhanakrishnan, Deepak; Schmitter, Petra; Meshgi, Ali

    2013-12-15

    Climate change and rapid urbanization requires decision-makers to develop a long-term forward assessment on sustainable urban water management projects. This is further complicated by the difficulties of assessing sustainable designs and various design scenarios from an economic standpoint. A conventional valuation approach for urban water management projects, like Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) analysis, fails to incorporate uncertainties, such as amount of rainfall, unit cost of water, and other uncertainties associated with future changes in technological domains. Such approach also fails to include the value of flexibility, which enables managers to adapt and reconfigure systems over time as uncertainty unfolds. This work describes an integrated framework to value investments in urban water management systems under uncertainty. It also extends the conventional DCF analysis through explicit considerations of flexibility in systems design and management. The approach incorporates flexibility as intelligent decision-making mechanisms that enable systems to avoid future downside risks and increase opportunities for upside gains over a range of possible futures. A water catchment area in Singapore was chosen to assess the value of a flexible extension of standard drainage canals and a flexible deployment of a novel water catchment technology based on green roofs and porous pavements. Results show that integrating uncertainty and flexibility explicitly into the decision-making process can reduce initial capital expenditure, improve value for investment, and enable decision-makers to learn more about system requirements during the lifetime of the project. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. Creating and validating GIS measures of urban design for health research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Purciel, Marnie; Neckerman, Kathryn M; Lovasi, Gina S; Quinn, James W; Weiss, Christopher; Bader, Michael D M; Ewing, Reid; Rundle, Andrew

    2009-12-01

    Studies relating urban design to health have been impeded by the unfeasibility of conducting field observations across large areas and the lack of validated objective measures of urban design. This study describes measures for five dimensions of urban design - imageability, enclosure, human scale, transparency, and complexity - created using public geographic information systems (GIS) data from the US Census and city and state government. GIS measures were validated for a sample of 588 New York City block faces using a well-documented field observation protocol. Correlations between GIS and observed measures ranged from 0.28 to 0.89. Results show valid urban design measures can be constructed from digital sources.

  5. Sprawl and sustainable urban development in Europe

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maksin-Mićić Marija

    2008-01-01

    Full Text Available Over 50 years urban development in Europe has been affected by extensive urban sprawl. Environmental, economic and social impacts of long lasting sprawl are threatening urban identity, urban culture and cultural identity of European territory. Last two decades the main concept in European planning and governance system has been the sustainable development, namely sustainable urban development and its implementation. We ought to be realistic about the possibilities to counter sprawl. Realistic seams to steer sprawling tendencies in more suitable and sustainable manner, so called smart urban sprawl. This paper analyses the planning concepts and gives the brief review of current policies for steering the urban sprawl in EU, which are considered to be of importance in achieving more sustainable urban development and efficient urban management in Serbia.

  6. Strategies for Sustainable Urban Development and Urban-Rural Linkages

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nilsson, Kjell; Nielsen, Thomas Alexander Sick; Aalbers, Carmen

    2014-01-01

    , identified how land use conflicts and the pressure towards peri- urban areas can be strategically managed in different development and regulatory contexts. To summarise, the following strategies were identified as important steps towards more sustainable urban-rural futures: (i) better coordination...... of transport, land use and open space planning; (ii) urban containment and densification – development a green compact city; (iii) preservation of blue and green infrastructure; and (iv) preservation of agricultural land and the promotion of local production. The need also remains to strengthen governance...... at the regional level while at the pan-European level there is clearly a need for more policy attention to be given to urban-rural linkages....

  7. Past, present, and future design of urban drainage systems with focus on Danish experiences

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Arnbjerg-Nielsen, Karsten

    2011-01-01

    over time? Based on an analysis of the underlying key drivers of changes that are expected to affect urban drainage systems the current problems and their predicted development over time are presented. One key issue is management of risk and uncertainties and therefore a framework for design......Climate change will influence the water cycle substantially, and extreme precipitation will become more frequent in many regions in the years to come. How should this fact be incorporated into design of urban drainage systems, if at all? And how important is climate change compared to other changes...... and analysis of urban structures in light of present and future uncertainties is presented....

  8. Dynamic plan modelling and visualization : converting an urban development plan into a transition scenario

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Vries, de B.; Jessurun, A.J.; Sadowski - Rasters, G.; Tidafy, T; Dorta, T

    2009-01-01

    Application of 3D models in urban planning practice is still limited to visualization of existing or newly designed situations. Municipalities are looking for possibilities to communicate the transition process of the urban development area with the citizens. A prototype system was developed to

  9. Development of urban solar infrastructure to support low-carbon mobility

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mendoza, Joan-Manuel F.; Sanyé-Mengual, Esther; Angrill, Sara; García-Lozano, Raúl; Feijoo, Gumersindo; Josa, Alejandro

    2015-01-01

    The provision of an adequate network of urban infrastructures is essential to create clean and energy-efficient urban mobility systems. However, the urban infrastructure to support sustainable mobility can produce a substantial environmental burden if no life cycle environmental criteria are applied in its design and management. This paper demonstrates the potential to support energy-efficient and CO 2 -free pedestrian and electric bike (e-bike) mobility through the ecological design (eco-design) of urban elements. An eco-design approach is applied to reconceptualize a conventional pergola toward an eco-product (solar pergola). The solar pergola generates surplus photovoltaic electricity that provides a multifunctional character. According to the end-use of this energy, different scenarios are analyzed for robust decision-making. The deployment of solar pergolas can contribute to save from 2,080 kg to over 47,185 kg of CO 2 eq. and from 350,390 MJ to over 692,760 MJ eq. in 10 years, depending on the geographic emplacement (solar radiation and electricity grid system). These savings are equivalent to charging 2–9 e-bikes per day using clean energy. Instead of maximizing infrastructure deployment to shift to environmentally friendly modes of mobility, the implementation of multifunctional urban elements represents a key area of action in the context of smart city development. -- Highlights: •Infrastructure eco-design is key to mitigate environmental impacts of urban mobility. •Solar pergolas can support pedestrian and e-bike mobility with no environmental cost. •Over 47 tons of CO 2 and 692 GJ can be avoided in 10 years per implemented pergola. •Each pergola can support daily charging of 2–9 e-bikes by supplying clean energy. •Multifunctional infrastructure is key to support sustainable multimodal mobility

  10. Developing Design Storm Hydrographs for Small Tropical ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Hydrographs are vital tools in the design and construction of water-control structures in urban and rural systems. The purpose of this study was to explore the development of design storm hydrographs for the small tropical catchment with limited data. In this study, Clark's Unit Hydrograph method was used to develop ...

  11. Effect of urban design on microclimate and thermal comfort outdoors in warm-humid Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yahia, Moohammed Wasim; Johansson, Erik; Thorsson, Sofia; Lindberg, Fredrik; Rasmussen, Maria Isabel

    2018-03-01

    Due to the complexity of built environment, urban design patterns considerably affect the microclimate and outdoor thermal comfort in a given urban morphology. Variables such as building heights and orientations, spaces between buildings, plot coverage alter solar access, wind speed and direction at street level. To improve microclimate and comfort conditions urban design elements including vegetation and shading devices can be used. In warm-humid Dar es Salaam, the climate consideration in urban design has received little attention although the urban planning authorities try to develop the quality of planning and design. The main aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between urban design, urban microclimate, and outdoor comfort in four built-up areas with different morphologies including low-, medium-, and high-rise buildings. The study mainly concentrates on the warm season but a comparison with the thermal comfort conditions in the cool season is made for one of the areas. Air temperature, wind speed, mean radiant temperature (MRT), and the physiologically equivalent temperature (PET) are simulated using ENVI-met to highlight the strengths and weaknesses of the existing urban design. An analysis of the distribution of MRT in the areas showed that the area with low-rise buildings had the highest frequency of high MRTs and the lowest frequency of low MRTs. The study illustrates that areas with low-rise buildings lead to more stressful urban spaces than areas with high-rise buildings. It is also shown that the use of dense trees helps to enhance the thermal comfort conditions, i.e., reduce heat stress. However, vegetation might negatively affect the wind ventilation. Nevertheless, a sensitivity analysis shows that the provision of shade is a more efficient way to reduce PET than increases in wind speed, given the prevailing sun and wind conditions in Dar es Salaam. To mitigate heat stress in Dar es Salaam, a set of recommendations and guidelines on

  12. A synchronous distributed cloud-based virtual reality meeting system for architectural and urban design

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lei Sun

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available In the spatial design fields such as architectural design and urban design, a consensus-building process among a variety of stakeholders like project executors, architects, residents, users, and general citizens is required. New technological developments such as cloud computing and Virtual Design Studios (VDS enable the creation of virtual meeting systems. This paper proposes an approach towards a synchronous distributed design meeting system. In this paper, in addition to sharing a 3D virtual space for a synchronous distributed type design meeting, we developed a prototype system that enables participants to sketch or make annotations and have discussions as well as add viewpoints to them. We applied these functions to evaluate an architectural design and urban landscape examination. In conclusion, the proposed method was evaluated as being effective and feasible. Yet, it shows a few shortcomings including the fact that simultaneous operation is limited to one client, and more arbitrary shapes should be supported in future versions of the application.

  13. Urban transformation for the development and enhancement of the consolidated city

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alessandro Claudi de Saint Mihiel

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available The demand to adapt the urban amenities to increasingly complex settlement needs, articulated and oriented to the energy efficiency of buildings, led to the need to undertake operational strategies to meet the existing challenges, developing projects for the transformation of the urban, historical or marginal environment. Some recent experiences of urban regeneration, increasingly declined towards an idea of compact and dense city, are meeting new energy settings, mobility, social inclusion, sustainable development. The role of technology choices appears crucial to the quality of interventions in areas of compromised material and immaterial integrity, that can become a research object for new eco-oriented design approaches.

  14. Tectonic perspectives for urban ambiance? Towards a tectonic approach to urban design

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Christiansen, Elias Melvin; Laursen, Lea Louise Holst; Hvejsel, Marie Frier

    2017-01-01

    question of ambiance that seemingly signifies our sense of liveability is often suppressed. This requires us, as architects and urban designers, to refine our descriptions of ambiance as an integral part of the technical construction principles applied in the built environment, hereby considering......Urban challenges derived from climate prospects and densification call for a renewed engagement with the question of the liveability of the built environment. Within this context, the economic and technical concept of our cities is an increasingly dominant aspect, whereas the fragile but vital...... ambiances across scale, in relation to the concept of the built environment, when applying an “urban tectonic” perspective....

  15. Modern urban design and townscape; Kindai no toshi sekkei to `keikan no hakken`

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Higuchi, T [Niigata University, Niigata (Japan). Faculty of Engineering

    1995-01-01

    Through characteristics and examples of urban model, the present paper explains how the urban plan and design are conceived. It also does the recent trend of scenic arrangement in Japan. The progressionists base the urban model on the rationalism. They condition the urban space to be hygienic, functional, regulatory, geometric and orderly, which means the negation of cultural scenery with stores and houses on streets. Such a model is applied to the urban development in Japan. The culturists aim at an urban model characterized by the small-scale, intensive, organic and asymmetric urban space. Its scenery is cultural, local and organic. Its examples are given by British garden cities. Aiming at an urban model descended from the culturism, the townscape school plans the urban arrangement based on the individual experience and not the enlightening position. They commit a fault by disregarding the problem for the urban entirety and losing its philosophy. In Japan, the scenery is being built up through the preservation of historic townscape, scenic arrangement of stores and houses on streets, and planning of the park. 11 refs., 4 figs.

  16. The Metacity: A Conceptual Framework for Integrating Ecology and Urban Design

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    S. T. A. Pickett

    2011-10-01

    Full Text Available We introduce the term metacity as a conceptual framework that can be shared by ecologists and designers and applied across the wide variety of urban habitats found around the world. While the term metacity was introduced by UN-HABITAT to designate hyper cities of over twenty million people, for us it is not limited to large urban agglomerations, but rather refers to the proliferation of new forms of urbanization, each with distinct ecological and social attributes. These various urban configurations when combined with new digital sensing, communication and social networking technologies constitute a virtual meta-infrastructure, present in all cities today. This new metacity has the potential to integrate new activist forms of ecological and urban design research and practice in making the transition from sanitary to sustainable city models globally. The city of Baltimore, Maryland will be used both as a site to illustrate these recent urban trends, and also as an example of the integration of ecology and urban design pursued by the two authors over the past seven years [1,2]. Metacity theory is drawn from both an architectural analysis of contemporary forms of urbanism, new forms of digital monitoring and communication technologies, as well as metapopulation and metacommunity theories in ecology. We seek to provide tools and lessons from our experiences for realizing an integrated metacity approach to achieving social sustainability and ecological resilience on an increasingly urbanized planet.

  17. Evaluating Urban Forms for Comparison Studies in the Massing Design Stage

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kian Wee Chen

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available We introduce five performance indicators to facilitate the comparison of urban massing design in the early design stages. The five simple indicators are based on existing studies and cover three main performance areas that are sensitive to urban form changes: solar, ventilation, and connectivity potentials. The first three indicators—the non-solar heated façade to floor area index, daylight façade to floor area index, and photovoltaics envelope to floor area index—measure the solar potential. The frontal area index measures the ventilation potential and the route-directness index measures the connectivity potential. The indicators are simple to use, as they only require urban geometry data for their calculation. We demonstrate the indicators in two case studies; variations in the values of these indicators show that they are sensitive to urban form changes and can be used in comparative studies to identify better performing urban forms among massing designs. We implement the indicators as an open-source Python library, Pyliburo, that designers and researchers can readily access and integrate into their existing design workflows.

  18. Design and evaluation of (urban) camouflage

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hogervorst, M.A.; Toet, A.; Jacobs, P.

    2010-01-01

    An international group consisting of several NATO nations participated in a trial in which urban camouflage was developed and compared. First, photographs were taken in and around a small town (arid climate). Next, the different groups derived urban camouflage patterns from these photographs. We

  19. Vegetation and other development options for mitigating urban air pollution impacts

    Science.gov (United States)

    Richard Baldauf; David J. Nowak

    2014-01-01

    While air pollution control devices and programs are the primary method of reducing emissions, urban air pollution can be further mitigated through planning and design strategies, including vegetation preservation and planting, building design and development, installing roadside and near-source structures, and modifying surrounding terrain features.

  20. The integrated indicator of sustainable urban development based on standardization

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Leonova Tatiana

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available The paper justifies the necessity for the system of planned indicators for sustainable urban development design in accordance with the requirements of international standards and the Russian standard GOST R ISO 37120-2015, and the estimation of their actual achievement based on complex qualimetric models. An analysis of opinions on this issue and an overview of Russian normative documents for assessing the effectiveness of the municipalities, including urban development are presented. General methodological principles and sequence for the construction of qualimetric models, as well as formulas for the calculation of complex indicators, taking into account the specific weights obtained on the basis of expert assessment, are presented, the need for careful selection of experts and determination of the consistency of expert opinions is indicated. The advantages and disadvantages of this approach are shown. Conclusions are drawn on the use of qualimetric models for sustainable urban development.

  1. Toward a research and action agenda on urban planning/design and health equity in cities in low and middle-income countries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smit, Warren; Hancock, Trevor; Kumaresen, Jacob; Santos-Burgoa, Carlos; Sánchez-Kobashi Meneses, Raúl; Friel, Sharon

    2011-10-01

    The importance of reestablishing the link between urban planning and public health has been recognized in recent decades; this paper focuses on the relationship between urban planning/design and health equity, especially in cities in low and middle-income countries (LMICs). The physical urban environment can be shaped through various planning and design processes including urban planning, urban design, landscape architecture, infrastructure design, architecture, and transport planning. The resultant urban environment has important impacts on the health of the people who live and work there. Urban planning and design processes can also affect health equity through shaping the extent to which the physical urban environments of different parts of cities facilitate the availability of adequate housing and basic infrastructure, equitable access to the other benefits of urban life, a safe living environment, a healthy natural environment, food security and healthy nutrition, and an urban environment conducive to outdoor physical activity. A new research and action agenda for the urban environment and health equity in LMICs should consist of four main components. We need to better understand intra-urban health inequities in LMICs; we need to better understand how changes in the built environment in LMICs affect health equity; we need to explore ways of successfully planning, designing, and implementing improved health/health equity; and we need to develop evidence-based recommendations for healthy urban planning/design in LMICs.

  2. Explaining the Criteria of Designing Urban Furniture and Landscape, with a Cultural-social Design Approach

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marzieh Allahdadi

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available Attention to the deep relationship between human personality and the place in which he lives causes the place to play a crucial role in cultural transformations and prevalence of human life style and formation of values, connections and human activities. Cities are not just a place of transit, but they are also environments that must have mutual communications with the inhabitants in order to realize the meaning of citizen, as there is a distinction between the status of citizenship and urbanization. Urban furniture is one of the elements of urban space that its quantity, beauty and durability play a major role in achieving a healthy and favorable city and satisfies the needs of citizens in terms of performance and beauty. Accordingly, the present study, using descriptive-analytical method and with data collection tools including library and documentary studies, examines the concept of product ecology and answers to the questions whether urban furniture can start or support social interaction or positively affect the roles of citizens? In this paper, the relationship between social-cultural design in urban furniture and the disturbances regarding uneven distribution of elements are identified, and finally the criteria of designing urban furniture and landscape are expressed with a social-design approach.

  3. A critical review of environmental assessment tools for sustainable urban design

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ameen, Raed Fawzi Mohammed; Mourshed, Monjur; Li, Haijiang

    2015-01-01

    Cities are responsible for the depletion of natural resources and agricultural lands, and 70% of global CO 2 emissions. There are significant risks to cities from the impacts of climate change in addition to existing vulnerabilities, primarily because of rapid urbanization. Urban design and development are generally considered as the instrument to shape the future of the city and they determine the pattern of a city's resource usage and resilience to change, from climate or otherwise. Cities are inherently dynamic and require the participation and engagement of their diverse stakeholders for the effective management of change, which enables wider stakeholder involvement and buy-in at various stages of the development process. Sustainability assessment of urban design and development is increasingly being seen as indispensable for informed decision-making. A sustainability assessment tool also acts as a driver for the uptake of sustainable pathways by recognizing excellence through their rating system and by creating a market demand for sustainable products and processes. This research reviews six widely used sustainability assessment tools for urban design and development: BREEAM Communities, LEED-ND, CASBEE-UD, SBTool PT –UP, Pearl Community Rating System (PCRS) and GSAS/QSAS, to identify, compare and contrast the aim, structure, assessment methodology, scoring, weighting and suitability for application in different geographical contexts. Strengths and weaknesses of each tool are critically discussed. The study highlights the disparity in local and international contexts for global sustainability assessment tools. Despite their similarities in aim on environmental aspects, differences exist in the relative importance and share of mandatory vs optional indicators in both environmental and social dimensions. PCRS and GSAS/QSAS are new incarnations, but have widely varying shares of mandatory indicators, at 45.4% and 11.36% respectively, compared to 30% in

  4. A critical review of environmental assessment tools for sustainable urban design

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ameen, Raed Fawzi Mohammed, E-mail: MohammedAmeenRF@cardiff.ac.uk [BRE Centre of Sustainable Construction, School of Engineering, The Parade, Cardiff University, Cardiff CF24 3AA (United Kingdom); Department of Civil Engineering, College of Engineering, University of Karbala (Iraq); Mourshed, Monjur, E-mail: MourshedM@cardiff.ac.uk [BRE Centre of Sustainable Construction, School of Engineering, The Parade, Cardiff University, Cardiff CF24 3AA (United Kingdom); Li, Haijiang, E-mail: LiH@cardiff.ac.uk [BRE Centre of Sustainable Construction, School of Engineering, The Parade, Cardiff University, Cardiff CF24 3AA (United Kingdom)

    2015-11-15

    Cities are responsible for the depletion of natural resources and agricultural lands, and 70% of global CO{sub 2} emissions. There are significant risks to cities from the impacts of climate change in addition to existing vulnerabilities, primarily because of rapid urbanization. Urban design and development are generally considered as the instrument to shape the future of the city and they determine the pattern of a city's resource usage and resilience to change, from climate or otherwise. Cities are inherently dynamic and require the participation and engagement of their diverse stakeholders for the effective management of change, which enables wider stakeholder involvement and buy-in at various stages of the development process. Sustainability assessment of urban design and development is increasingly being seen as indispensable for informed decision-making. A sustainability assessment tool also acts as a driver for the uptake of sustainable pathways by recognizing excellence through their rating system and by creating a market demand for sustainable products and processes. This research reviews six widely used sustainability assessment tools for urban design and development: BREEAM Communities, LEED-ND, CASBEE-UD, SBTool{sup PT}–UP, Pearl Community Rating System (PCRS) and GSAS/QSAS, to identify, compare and contrast the aim, structure, assessment methodology, scoring, weighting and suitability for application in different geographical contexts. Strengths and weaknesses of each tool are critically discussed. The study highlights the disparity in local and international contexts for global sustainability assessment tools. Despite their similarities in aim on environmental aspects, differences exist in the relative importance and share of mandatory vs optional indicators in both environmental and social dimensions. PCRS and GSAS/QSAS are new incarnations, but have widely varying shares of mandatory indicators, at 45.4% and 11.36% respectively, compared to

  5. Sustainable urban development and geophysics

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Lanbo; Chan, L. S.

    2007-09-01

    The new millennium has seen a fresh wave of world economic development especially in the Asian-Pacific region. This has contributed to further rapid urban expansion, creating shortages of energy and resources, degradation of the environment, and changes to climatic patterns. Large-scale, new urbanization is mostly seen in developing countries but urban sprawl is also a major social problem for developed nations. Urbanization has been accelerating at a tremendous rate. According to data collected by the United Nations [1], 50 years ago less than 30% of the world population lived in cities. Now, more than 50% are living in urban settings which occupy only about 1% of the Earth's surface. During the period from 1950 to 1995, the number of cities with a population higher than one million increased from 83 to 325. By 2025 it is estimated that more than 60% of 8.3 billion people (the projected world population [1]) will be city dwellers. Urbanization and urban sprawl can affect our living quality both positively and negatively. In recent years geophysics has found significant and new applications in highly urbanized settings. Such applications are conducive to the understanding of the changes and impacts on the physical environment and play a role in developing sustainable urban infrastructure systems. We would like to refer to this field of study as 'urban geophysics'. Urban geophysics is not simply the application of geophysical exploration in the cities. Urbanization has brought about major changes to the geophysical fields of cities, including those associated with electricity, magnetism, electromagnetism and heat. An example is the increased use of electromagnetic waves in wireless communication, transportation, office automation, and computer equipment. How such an increased intensity of electromagnetic radiation affects the behaviour of charged particles in the atmosphere, the equilibrium of ecological systems, or human health, are new research frontiers to be

  6. The role of urban space design characteristics in influencing social ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    This paper is based on a study carried out in Old Town Mombasa, a Swahili city in Kenya, situated along the East African Coast. Its focus is on social life of the town's street system as a correlate of urban space design characteristics. Urban design elements within the streets have been disregarded resulting in spaces that do ...

  7. Phytoremediative urban design: Transforming a derelict and polluted harbour area into a green and productive neighbourhood

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wilschut, M.; Theuws, P.A.W.; Duchhart, I.

    2013-01-01

    Many urban areas are polluted by industrial activities and waste disposal in landfills. Since conventional soil remediation techniques are costly and unsustainable, phytoremediation might offer an alternative. In this article, we explore how phytoremediation can be integrated into the transformation of urban post-industrial areas, while improving public space. Buiksloterham, a polluted and deprived industrial area in Amsterdam, serves as case study. Buiksloterham is polluted with heavy metals, with Zinc (Zn) concentrations being the highest. A regression-model for Alpine Pennycress (Thlaspi caerulescens) is used to estimate the time needed to remediate the site. This reveals a conflict in time between remediation and urban development. A research by design experiment shows how to overcome this conflict by dealing with polluted soil innovatively while emphasizing spatial and aesthetic qualities of the phytoremediation plant species. The resulting landscape framework integrates phytoremediation with biomass production and gives new ecological, economic and social value to Buiksloterham. -- Highlights: ► Design can provide a link between the field of science and the field of practice. ► Design translates scientific knowledge into a specific aesthetic spatial composition. ► A landscape framework makes phytoremediation feasible in an urban context. ► Estimated time for phytoremediation conflicts with urban developments. ► Phytoremediation combined with biomass production is a feasible temporal land-use. -- A research by design method can translate scientific knowledge on phytoremediation into an aesthetic spatial composition for a specific site, thereby linking science and practice

  8. Urban Land Allocation Model of Territorial Expansion by Urban Planners and Housing Developers

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Carolina Cantergiani

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Agent-based models have recently been proposed as potential tools to support urban planning due to their capacity to simulate complex behaviors. The complexity of the urban development process arises from strong interactions between various components driven by different agents. AMEBA (agent-based model for the evolution of urban areas is a prototype of an exploratory, spatial, agent-based model that considers the main agents involved in the urban development process (urban planners, developers, and the population. The prototype consists of three submodels (one for each agent that have been developed independently and present the same structure. However, the first two are based on a land use allocation technique, and the last one, as well as their integration, on an agent-based model approach. This paper describes the conceptualization and performance of the submodels that represent urban planners and developers, who are the agents responsible for officially launching expansion and defining the spatial allocation of urban land. The prototype was tested in the Corredor del Henares (an urban–industrial area in the Region of Madrid, Spain, but is sufficiently flexible to be adapted to other study areas and generate different future urban growth contexts. The results demonstrate that this combination of agents can be used to explore various policy-relevant research questions, including urban system interactions in adverse political and socioeconomic scenarios.

  9. The Use of Design Models of Wind-Electric Set with a Horizontal Axis of Rotation of the Wind Wheel for Dynamic Calculations at Urban Development

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Konstantinov Igor

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available The issues of modern urban development raise a significant question about an environmental cleanliness of progressing cities. Energy sources which are running on fuel cause tremendous harm to the atmosphere. Therefore, special attention is paid to the rational use of natural renewable resources such as wind and solar energy. Wind-electric sets, or wind turbines, are able to work autonomously, which is also important for the development of modern “smart” cities. Currently, the most commonly used design of wind turbines is the system which has the form of a tower of circular cross section (also called pipe, which carries at the upper end a nacelle with wind wheel. When such a system is being designed in urban conditions the wind pulsation and seismic calculations are added to the standard calculations. These added calculations are dynamic loads. It is known that in the process of solution of dynamic tasks design models of various levels of approximation can be used. It occurs due to stages of the design and other factors. The question of errors, which are associated with the use of a dissected, or partitioned, design scheme, raises.

  10. Smart urban design to reduce transportation impact in city centers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fezzai, Soufiane; Mazouz, Said; Ahriz, Atef

    2018-05-01

    Air pollution is one of the most serious problems facing human being; urban wastes are in first range of energy consumption and emission of greenhouse gasses. Transportation or car traffic is one of the most consumer sectors of fuel, and most pollutant. Reducing energy consumption in transportation and the emission of pollutant gasses becomes an important objective for urban designers; many solutions may be proposed to help solving this problem in future designs, but it depend on other factors in existing urban space especially in city centers characterized with high occupation density. In this paper we investigate traffic rate in the city center of the case study, looking for the causes of the high traffic using gate count method and estimating fuel consumption. We try to propose some design solutions to reduce distances so fuel consumption and emission of pollutant gasses. We use space syntax techniques to evaluate urban configuration and verify the proposed solutions.

  11. Compact Cities Are Complex, Intense and Diverse but: Can We Design Such Emergent Urban Properties?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hye Kyung Lim

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available Compact cities are promoted by global and local policies in response to environmental, economic and social challenges. It is argued that increased density and diversity of urban functions and demographics are expected to deliver positive outcomes. ‘Emerged’ urban area which have developed incrementally seem to exhibit such dense and diverse characteristics, acquired through adaptation by multiple actors over time and space. Today, ‘design-based’ planning approaches aim to create the same characteristics here and now. An example of such is the City of Gothenburg, Sweden, which strives to involve multiple actors to ‘design’ urban density and mixed use, but with unsatisfactory outcomes. There is reason to investigate in what way current planning approaches need modification to better translate policy goals into reality. This paper studied which type of planning approach appears to best deliver the desired urban characteristics. Two cities are studied, Gothenburg and Tokyo. Today, these cities operate under different main planning paradigms. Tokyo applies a rule-based approach and Gothenburg a design-based approach. Five urban areas were studied in each city, representing outcomes of three strategic planning approaches that have been applied historically in both cities: 1 emergent compact urban form; 2 designed dispersed urban form; and 3 designed compact urban form. Planning outcomes in the form of density, building scales and diversity were analysed to understand if such properties of density and diversity are best achieved by a specific planning approach. The results show that different planning approaches deliver very different outcomes when it comes to these qualities. To better support ambitions for compact cities in Gothenburg, the prevailing mix of ‘planning by design’ and ‘planning by developmental control’ needs to be complemented by a third planning strategy of ‘planning by coding’ or ‘rule-based planning

  12. SYSTEMATIC PRINCIPLES AND METHODS OF SYMBOLIC APPROACHES IN URBAN DESIGN

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    BULAKH I. V

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available Formulation of the problem. The low level of expression and personalization of mass architecture of the second half of the twentieth century connected with the spread of industrial technology and even to a greater extent with mechanistic traditionally functional relation to the average person as, abstract consumer architecture. The condition out of the critical situation is focusing on matters aesthetic, artistic understanding and harmonious image creation environment. The problem of increasing architectural and artistic level of architectural and urban planning solutions to overcome the monotony of planning and development, creating aesthetically expressive urban environment does not lose relevance over the past decades. Understanding and acceptance of enigma and dynamic development of cities encourage architects to find new design techniques that are able to provide in the future a reasonable possibility of forming artistic and aesthetic image of the modern city. Purpose. Define and systematize the principles of symbolization architectural and planning images; propose methods symbolism in the architectural planning of image of the urban environment. Conclusion based on analysis of the enhanced concept symbolizing the image of Architecture and Planning, the place, role and symbolization trends at all levels of the urban environment - planning, three-dimensional and improvement of urban areas; first identified the main stages and levels of symbolization (analohyzatsyya, schematization and alehoryzatsiya, their features and characteristics, formulated the basic principles of symbolization architectural and planning of image, namely the principles of communication between figurative analogies, transformation of subsequent circuits, switching allegorical groupings and metamorfizm ultimate goal – symbol birth .

  13. Using interactive model simulations in co-design : An experiment in urban design

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Steen, M.G.D.; Arendsen, J.; Cremers, A.H.M.; Vries, A. de; Jong, J.M.G. de; Koning, N.M. de

    2013-01-01

    This paper presents an experiment in which people performed a co-design task in urban design, using a multi-user touch table application with or without interactive model simulations. We hypothesised that using the interactive model simulations would improve communication and co-operation between

  14. Urban Innovation through Co-Design Scenarios

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lissandrello, Enza; Morelli, Nicola; Schillaci, Domenico

    2018-01-01

    -2020), that addresses the issue of behavioral change towards (more) sustainable mobility lifestyle in EU cities. The paper frames the MUV method through the combination of theories on collaborative urban planning and participatory design with a background rooted on governance of public participation, as the interplay...

  15. Urban Knowledge Arena

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Karel Schmeidler

    2008-01-01

    Full Text Available COST Action C20 – Urban Knowledge Arena is research programme supported by European Co-operation in the Field of Scientific and Technical Research. It is co-ordinated by COST Office and European Science Foundation. The main objective of this Action is to explore and develop a European Arena for cross boundary, integrated knowledge and Know-how on complex urban problems, which is termed Urban Knowledge Arena. The COST Domain Transport and Urban Development aims at fostering international research networking activities of scientist and experts dealing with transport systems and infrastructures, spatial planning, urban land use and development, urban design, architecture and design and civil engineering issues. The focus is on multi and interdisciplinary approaches and the aim is to cover both basic and applied research activities and their changeovers that are relevant to policy and decision making processes. A significant concern is devoted to activities exploring new research needs and developments.

  16. Adaptive urban development : a symbiosis between cities on land and water in the 21st century

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Dr. ing. Rutger de Graaf

    2012-01-01

    Adaptive urban development is the design, construction and continuing evolution of urban areas to anticipate and react to changes in the environment and society. These changes include both processes within the city itself and external developments. It is expected that until 2100 a total of 5 billion

  17. How does imperviousness develop and affect runoff generation in an urbanizing watershed?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gerald Krebs

    2013-08-01

    Full Text Available Imperviousness associated with urbanization remains one of the biggest challenges in sustainable urban design. The replacement of forests, marshlands, buffers, and wetlands with impervious surfaces, strongly influences hydrological processes in urbanizing areas. This study analyzed the contribution of four constructed surfaces types – roofs, yards, roads, and an international airport – to surface runoff within a 21 km2 watershed, and presents the development over five decades (1977−2030. The land-cover model, used to assess watershed imperviousness in 2030, utilized coefficients between impervious areas generating surface runoff and the floor area, developed during the study. The conducted imperviousness analysis allowed the evaluation of land-use development impacts on the stream network, and the identification of hydrologically active areas for urban planning and stormwater management. Research revealed the importance of yard imperviousness related to suburban residential housing for stormwater runoff generation, and the impacts of transport-related imperviousness on stormwater runoff.

  18. Evaluation of urban river landscape design rationality based on AHP

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Qiao Lifang

    2008-12-01

    Full Text Available An evaluation model for the rationality of the landscape design of urban rivers was established with the analytic hierarchy process (AHP method so as to provide a foundation for updating the landscape design of urban rivers. The evaluation system was divided into four layers, including the target layer, the comprehensive layer, the element layer, and the index layer. Each layer was made of different indices. The evaluation standards for each index were also given in this paper. This evaluation model was proved tenable through its application to the landscape design rationality evaluation of the Weihe River in Xinxiang City of Henan Province. The results show that the water quality, space, activity, facility, community, width of vegetation, sense of beauty and water content are among the most influential factors and should be considered the main basis for evaluating the rationality of the landscape design of urban rivers.

  19. Small scale green infrastructure design to meet different urban hydrological criteria.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jia, Z; Tang, S; Luo, W; Li, S; Zhou, M

    2016-04-15

    As small scale green infrastructures, rain gardens have been widely advocated for urban stormwater management in the contemporary low impact development (LID) era. This paper presents a simple method that consists of hydrological models and the matching plots of nomographs to provide an informative and practical tool for rain garden sizing and hydrological evaluation. The proposed method considers design storms, infiltration rates and the runoff contribution area ratio of the rain garden, allowing users to size a rain garden for a specific site with hydrological reference and predict overflow of the rain garden under different storms. The nomographs provide a visual presentation on the sensitivity of different design parameters. Subsequent application of the proposed method to a case study conducted in a sub-humid region in China showed that, the method accurately predicted the design storms for the existing rain garden, the predicted overflows under large storm events were within 13-50% of the measured volumes. The results suggest that the nomographs approach is a practical tool for quick selection or assessment of design options that incorporate key hydrological parameters of rain gardens or other infiltration type green infrastructure. The graphic approach as displayed by the nomographs allow urban planners to demonstrate the hydrological effect of small scale green infrastructure and gain more support for promoting low impact development. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. Introduction: population migration and urbanization in developing countries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kojima, R

    1996-12-01

    This introductory article discusses the correlation between migration and rapid urbanization and growth in the largest cities of the developing world. The topics include the characteristics of urbanization, government policies toward population migration, the change in absolute size of the rural population, and the problems of maintaining megacities. Other articles in this special issue are devoted to urbanization patterns in China, South Africa, Iran, Korea and Taiwan as newly industrialized economies (NIEs), informal sectors in the Philippines and Thailand, and low-income settlements in Bogota, Colombia, and India. It is argued that increased urbanization is produced by natural population growth, the expansion of the urban administrative area, and the in-migration from rural areas. A comparison of urbanization rates of countries by per capita gross national product (GNP) reveals that countries with per capita GNP of under US$2000 have urbanization rates of 10-60%. Rates are under 30% in Africa, the Middle East, South Asia, China, and Indonesia. Rapid urbanization appears to follow the economic growth curve. The rate of urbanization in Latin America is high enough to be comparable to urbanization in Europe and the US. Taiwan and Korea have high rates of urbanization that surpass the rate of industrialization. Thailand and Malaysia have low rates of urbanization compared to the size of their per capita GNP. Urbanization rates under 20% occur in countries without economic development. Rates between 20% and 50% occur in countries with or without industrialization. East Asian urbanization is progressing along with industrialization. Africa and the Middle East have urbanization without industrialization. In 1990 there were 20 developing countries and 5 developed countries with populations over 5 million. In 10 of 87 developing countries rural population declined in absolute size. The author identifies and discusses four patterns of urban growth.

  1. Urban Quality Development & Management

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lehmann, Martin; Fryd, Ole

    2008-01-01

    Purpose: The purpose of this article is to describe and discuss the development and the structure of a new international master on the subject of Urban Quality Development & Management, and explore the potential of the process and the outcome in serving as models adoptable by faculty at other......: Urban quality development and management is dependent on human resource development, institutionalised networks and confident exchange of knowledge, and must identify and incorporate multiple environmental, social, economic and cultural aspects. The authors find that at the core of innovative societies......, an interlinkage exists between practice (business, civil society, governance) and theory (research, education). The case illustrates how a new curriculum takes time to develop and implement and how it relies on confidence and trust between partners, in this case cities and universities, before being able to plant...

  2. Urban lifestyle and urban biodiversity

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Petersen, L. K.; Lyytimäki, J.; Normander, B.

    2007-01-01

    This report is concerned with the relations between lifestyles of urban populations on one hand and protection of biodiversity in urban areas on the other. Urban areas are of importance for the general protection of biodiversity. In the surroundings of cities and within urban sprawls there can...... biodiversity, recreational, educational and other needs. However, uncovered and unsealed space is constantly under pressure for building and infrastructure development in the urban landscape, and the design and usages of urban green structure is a matter of differing interests and expectations. Integrating...... the green needs of urban lifestyle in the planning process does not come by itself. Nor does finding the synergies between urban lifestyle and urban biodiversity. Careful planning including stakeholder involvement is required. In this process various mapping techniques and use of indicators can be most...

  3. Prosperity of Thought Versus Retreat of Application: A Comprehensive Approach in Urban Design Teaching

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Abeer Mohamed Elshater

    2014-11-01

    Full Text Available This study focuses on a relevant question, practically in urban design studios; when will specialists discuss their educational visions around urban design in teaching plans? Currently, although Egyptian architecture and urban environments follow those of postwar European cities, numerous architectural schools teach the new urban design paradigm while ignoring the declining of cities. To reverse this trend, the author proposes that architectural educational institutions in Egypt need to alter their learning programs. Therefore, this study aims to create a new urban design module depends on outcomes based-learning consistent with the present Egyptian city scene on the basis of intended learning-outcomes.

  4. WHEN GROWTH IS NO LONGER THE NORM: TEACHING URBAN DESIGN IN A TIME OF TRANSFORMATION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sujata Shetty

    2010-07-01

    Full Text Available Over the past few years, there has been increasing interest in cities that are rapidly losing population, so-called shrinking cities. This is becoming a global phenomenon, with shrinking cities found on every continent. The decline has been attributed variously to changing demographics, suburbanization, postsocialist transformation and deindustrialization. We are just beginning to develop approaches to dealing with shrinkage and its consequences – vacancy, abandonment, and limited public and private resources. However, there is currently little faith in the ability of design-related disciplines to deal with shrinking cities. Some authors argue that disciplines such as architecture, urban design and urban planning have always planned for growth and have reached their limits when dealing with shrinking cities (Oswalt, 2006. Still others suggest that restructuring should be seen as an opportunity (Vey, 2007. This paper challenges the first view and responds to the second by suggesting that design education can and must respond to these new realities. It critically examines a collaborative urban design studio that was part of an attempt to transform a part of a shrinking city in the American ‘rustbelt.’ The city, once a flourishing manufacturing center, is now facing steep economic decline along with the decline of the auto industry. It is also home to a university that is beginning efforts to revitalize neighborhoods adjacent to the campus. The studio, which brought together architecture and urban planning students from two different universities to work on a section of the city including the campus area, suggests possibilities for preparing students to work in an environment where economic growth is no longer the norm. The following lessons emerged: 1 In a shrinking city, urban designers may need to focus less on designing the solids and more on meeting the challenges of the voids. 2 In spite of urban design’s historical bias towards

  5. Urban pram strolling: a mobilities design perspective

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jensen, Martin Trandberg

    2017-01-01

    This paper explores a neglected mode of mobility through an ethnographic study of pram strollers in Copenhagen. I illustrate the analytic advantages of mobilities design thinking to explore how pram strolling is shaped by material designs and experienced through affective atmospheres, embodied...... the affordances of surfaces. In this process, I relate pram strolling to questions of urban accessibility issues, and more generally, reflect on the future applications and potentials of mobilities design thinking....

  6. Application of Environmental Change Efficiency to the Sustainability of Urban Development at the Neighborhood Level

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hsing-Fu Kuo

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available This study describes a new assessment model framework, termed the driving forces-pressure-state-impact-policy and pattern (DPSIP model, for environmental change efficiency in urban land development, based on urban sustainable development and the theory of economic efficiency evaluation. A spatial and measurable efficiency value is defined for environmental changes in urban land development, which provides a comprehensive evaluation index for the efficiency of urban development and its environmental impact. This type of urban interior sustainability is considered new within the context of global environmental changes. We identify nine important indicators to evaluate the relative efficiency of 233 neighborhoods in Tainan, Taiwan. The results indicate that the average environmental change efficiency is 89.44%, which shows clear spatial differentiation. The key indicators affecting the efficiency score are area, population density, location, mixed land uses, the floor area ratio, and the impervious ratio. In the future, urban design can reduce environmental impacts and enhance efficiency values.

  7. Third-world development: urbanizing for the future.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mcilwaine, C

    1997-01-01

    This article reviews some issues reflected in the 1996 UN Habitat II agenda and recent research on urbanization. The themes of the 1996 Habitat conference were urban development, urban poverty, and governance, civil society, and social capital. It is expected that over 50% of total world population will live in cities in the year 2000. Cities are viewed both as engines of economic growth and centers of severe economic, environmental, and social problems. There is some disagreement about whether cities are rational economic structures or what the World Bank's urban agenda is and its relationship with macroeconomic policy. Discussions of global urban issues are criticized for their neglect of issues of equity and poverty, cultural diversity, and identity and representation. Habitat II also stressed urban sustainability. There is growing recognition that urban management involves more than the "Brown Agenda" of environmental and physical aspects of urban growth. Recent studies identify how politics and power affect people's access to basic urban services. Urban economic activity can also contribute to environmental problems. Urban growth affects the provision of health services. Although there is not a consensus on the role of cities in expanding economic and social development and the best management practices, there is sufficient evidence to indicate that urban processes are varied throughout the developing world. The links between urban and rural areas differentiate cities and expose the need to understand the role of intermediate urban areas surrounding and between larger cities. Poverty has become increasingly urbanized, but the extent of poverty is unknown. Habitat II was an unprecedented effort to engage nongovernment groups, local government staff, trade unions, and the private sector and to emphasize community participation. Networks of trust and reciprocity are key to solving poverty, inequality, and disempowerment problems.

  8. Innovative economic structures – support for development of urban systems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Florin Marian Buhociu

    2013-12-01

    Full Text Available Training and development of urban systems (US is a main direction of territorial and regional development which requires multiple studies, including those of economic background. They should aim to highlight, on the one hand, the economic potential of geographical areas making up the urban system and secondly to assess development trends you need to focus their own resources and those that are to be attracted to getting a economic trend upward in that area. It is therefore very important a zonal configuration of the urban system by following the joint capitalization of existing human and material resources, including by building synergy effect to be achieved following the joint evolution of settlements in the US. Along with the development of US is required, from the economical point of view, to implement new forms of economic structures to directly potentate the development of the area through constant cooperation, innovation and transfer of know-how. Romania currently has seven major urban centers that were selected and were assigned the role of growth poles. There were also 13 designated urban growth poles, including Galati and Braila. Urban agglomeration formed by the two municipalities, located at a distance from each other of about 25 km, is the second largest in the country after Bucharest. There is currently underway specialized documentation to achieve an optimal configuration for US Galati-Braila. From the economic point of view in the respective area can be implemented new development structures of cluster (Porter, M.E.,2000 type aimed at achieving the competitiveness poles and which will constitute the true engine of economic development. These two new structures of economic development are characterized by the fact that they allow and provide the necessary conditions to attract the systems and modern technologies to build local innovation systems that can be integrated into similar systems at regional and even national level. It is

  9. Teaching Parametric Urban Design in a Blended Learning Format

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Steinø, Nicolai

    2015-01-01

    On the basis of a theoretical discussion of the concept of blended learning, this paper presents the pre- paration, execution and evaluation of a 5 ECTS blended learning course on parametric urban design for a group of some 50 BSc students of architecture and design at Aalborg university...... and curriculum develop- ment, and di culties to nd time for research. Despite the general consensus that developing online/blended learning courses requires both technical support, complex software installations, and substantial preparation time, it is shown that free web ser- vices and low-tech adaptations...... of traditional teaching assets are su cient to get started with blended learning with only little extra e ort. While the pilot blended learning course which provided the insights for this paper has room for impro- vement, it represents a decent rst shot at developing blended learning courses for higher education...

  10. A new vertical axis wind turbine design for urban areas

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frunzulica, Florin; Cismilianu, Alexandru; Boros, Alexandru; Dumitrache, Alexandru; Suatean, Bogdan

    2016-06-01

    In this paper we aim at developing the model of a Vertical Axis Wind Turbine (VAWT) with the short-term goal of physically realising this turbine to operate at a maximmum power of 5 kW. The turbine is designed for household users in the urban or rural areas and remote or isolated residential areas (hardly accsessible). The proposed model has a biplane configuration on each arm of the VAWT (3 × 2 = 6 blades), allowing for increased performance of the turbine at TSR between 2 and 2.5 (urban area operation) compared to the classic vertical axis turbines. Results that validate the proposed configuration as well as passive control methods to increase the performance of the classic VAWTs are presented.

  11. Revolution of Chinese architectural design at the new-type urbanization stage

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jianguo Wang

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available Witnessing more than three decades of sustained and rapid economic growth, China has become a nation that enjoys the fastest rate of urbanization; the largest quantities of civil construction; the most obvious urban development to be “newer”, “bigger” and “higher”; and the most prosperous architectural design market worldwide. In terms of the construction industry, housing construction totals 31.3 billion square meters, occupying more than 70% of the floor area of the existing stock houses. It is safe to say that the construction industry significantly boosts GDP growth, expands the number of jobs, and improves the living conditions of the masses. Related to this is the need to end the architectural guidelines of the planned economy era economizing on food and clothing and instead step into a new historic stage allowing bold pursuit of architectural aesthetics and individuality. A group of architects who have social ideals, adhere faithfully to professional standards and pledge to pursue architectural innovation are active in China. Instead of simply converting the overwhelming opportunities brought to carry economic benefits, they dare to embrace the challenges imposed on enhancing architectural connotation and create a batch of high-level work that lives up to expectations of the era, marking the achievement of reform and rapid urbanization in China. Yet, as time goes on, the promotion of national development concepts, ideas of social consumption and the masses’ cultural level establishes new requirements for the architectural design industry, architects and architectural design works. An appeal is thus made against Chinese architects for a summary, reflection and proactive anticipation to respond to the new requirements of the era.

  12. Playing by the rules? Analysing incremental urban developments

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Karnenbeek, van Lilian; Janssen-Jansen, Leonie

    2018-01-01

    Current urban developments are often considered outdated and static, and the argument follows that they should become more adaptive. In this paper, we argue that existing urban development are already adaptive and incremental. Given this flexibility in urban development, understanding changes in the

  13. Homeowner's Architectural Responses to Crime in Dar Es Salaan : Its impacts and implications to urban architecture, urban design and urban management

    OpenAIRE

    Bulamile, Ludigija Boniface

    2009-01-01

    HTML clipboardThis study is about Homeowner’s architectural responses to crime in Dar es Salaam Tanzania: its impacts and implications to urban architecture, urban design and urban management. The study explores and examines the processes through which homeowners respond to crimes of burglary, home robbery and fear of it using architectural or physical elements. The processes are explored and examined using case study methodology in three cases in Dar es Salaam. The cases are residentia...

  14. Urban permeable pavement system design based on “sponge city” concept

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yu, M. M.; Zhu, J. W.; Gao, W. F.; Xu, D. P.; Zhao, M.

    2017-08-01

    Based on the “sponge city” concept, to implement the goal of building a city within the city to solve the sponge waterlogging, rational utilization of water resources, reduce water pollution this paper, combined with the city planning level in China, establishes the design system of city road flooding from the macro, medium and micro level, explore the design method of city water permeable pavement system, and has a practical significance the lower flood risk water ecological problems. On the macro level, we established an urban pavement sponge system under the regional ecological pattern by “spot permeable open space - low impact developing rain water road system - catchment area and catchment wetland”. On a medium level, this paper proposed the permeable suitability of pavement and the planning control indicators when combined with urban functional districts to conduct permeable pavement roads plans and controls. On micro level, the paper studied sponge technology design of permeable pavement from road structure, surface material, and other aspects aimed at the pavement permeability requirements.

  15. A comparative study of contextual urban design approaches in the UK and DK

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Højriis, Jonas; Herrmann, Ivan Tengbjerg; Nielsen, Per Sieverts

    2014-01-01

    During the last century urban planning has changed dramatically due in part to vehicular development, a modernist design culture, rapid urbanisation and new computer technologies. This planning strategy has influenced that new-implemented areas looks incredible from a helicopter, but the human...

  16. Developing a Framework for Qualitative Evaluation of Urban Interventions in Iranian Historical Cores

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Azadeh Arjomand Kermani

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available Iranian historic city cores are important parts of modern cities because of their valuable monuments and morphology but are also significant because of their population density, location and the major governmental functions they house. Since 1920, modernisation policies and urban development trends in Iran have justified spatial transformation and redevelopment and the demolition and destruction of traditional urban fabrics as a way to provide contemporary requirements and hygiene improvements for the residents. As the UNESCO recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape argues, historic urban cores can only sustain their role in the daily life of the city by getting prepared for and participating in this transformation process. Disagreement over the value of historic urban cores on the one hand and inevitable modification of urban areas in a developing country like Iran on the other, creates a problematic condition for the preservation of the historic environment. The Valletta Principles for the Safeguarding and Management of Historic Cities, Towns and Urban Areas states that historic towns and urban areas require an integrated approach including their “protection, conservation, enhancement and management as well as their coherent development and their harmonious adaptation to contemporary life”. In order to support the process of reaching a balance between these spatial targets in Iran, this research discusses the relation between urban transformation projects and their heritage context. In doing so it connects international literature on urban quality and traditional Iranian urban forms to contemporary Iranian urban design practice. To achieve this integration between urban heritage and spatial development, a framework of quality attributes has been developed to evaluate urban interventions in a heritage context. The three main pillars of this framework have been extracted from and inspired by international literature and guidelines

  17. Evaluation of Urban Spaces from the Perspective of Universal Design Principles: The Case of Konya/Turkey

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    H. Filiz Alkan Meshur

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available During the process of accessing services provided within urban interior and outer spaces the elderly and disabled individuals encounter with a myriad of problems due to the limitations posed by structured environments. This limitation hinders elderly and disabled individuals from mobility without assistance, which in turn negatively affects their full participation to urban and social life. Rearrangement of urban spaces to meet the needs of elderly and disabled individuals would correspondingly bolster life quality of the entire range of users. Within the scope of present research, as mandated by universal design principles to stick to plans and designs approaches inclusive for all users, it is aimed to conduct evaluations on the use of urban outer spaces situated within Konya city center. In the hypothetical and theoretical part of this paper, the perception of disability throughout historical process has been examined from a sociological perspective. In addition, concept of universal design, its principles and gravity have also been elaborated. In the part dealing with the case study, outer spaces within Konya city center have been analyzed with respect to universal design principles and a range of suggestions have been developed.

  18. Urban metabolism: Measuring the city's contribution to sustainable development

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Conke, Leonardo S.; Ferreira, Tainá L.

    2015-01-01

    Urban metabolism refers to the assessment of the amount of resources produced and consumed by urban ecosystems. It has become an important tool to understand how the development of one city causes impacts to the local and regional environment and to support a more sustainable urban design and planning. Therefore, the purpose of this paper was to measure the changes in material and energy use occurred in the city of Curitiba (Brazil) between the years of 2000 and 2010. Results reveal better living conditions and socioeconomic improvements derived from higher resource throughput but without complete disregard to environmental issues. Food intake, water consumption and air emissions remained at similar levels; energy use, construction materials and recycled waste were increased. The paper helps illustrate why it seems more adequate to assess the contribution a city makes to sustainable development than to evaluate if one single city is sustainable or not. - Highlights: • We assessed the urban metabolism of Curitiba (Brazil) in 2000 and 2010. • Living conditions improved due to higher material and energy use. • Socioeconomic expansion demands special attention to environmental changes. • One city cannot be sustainable by itself, as it depends on external resources. • Urban metabolism helps measuring a city's contribution to sustainable development. - The urban metabolism of Curitiba (Brazil) reveals improvement in living conditions due to increased material and energy use, but without disregard to the environment

  19. Urban Stormwater Management Model and Tools for Designing Stormwater Management of Green Infrastructure Practices

    Science.gov (United States)

    Haris, H.; Chow, M. F.; Usman, F.; Sidek, L. M.; Roseli, Z. A.; Norlida, M. D.

    2016-03-01

    Urbanization is growing rapidly in Malaysia. Rapid urbanization has known to have several negative impacts towards hydrological cycle due to decreasing of pervious area and deterioration of water quality in stormwater runoff. One of the negative impacts of urbanization is the congestion of the stormwater drainage system and this situation leading to flash flood problem and water quality degradation. There are many urban stormwater management softwares available in the market such as Storm Water Drainage System design and analysis program (DRAINS), Urban Drainage and Sewer Model (MOUSE), InfoWorks River Simulation (InfoWork RS), Hydrological Simulation Program-Fortran (HSPF), Distributed Routing Rainfall-Runoff Model (DR3M), Storm Water Management Model (SWMM), XP Storm Water Management Model (XPSWMM), MIKE-SWMM, Quality-Quantity Simulators (QQS), Storage, Treatment, Overflow, Runoff Model (STORM), and Hydrologic Engineering Centre-Hydrologic Modelling System (HEC-HMS). In this paper, we are going to discuss briefly about several softwares and their functionality, accessibility, characteristics and components in the quantity analysis of the hydrological design software and compare it with MSMA Design Aid and Database. Green Infrastructure (GI) is one of the main topics that has widely been discussed all over the world. Every development in the urban area is related to GI. GI can be defined as green area build in the develop area such as forest, park, wetland or floodway. The role of GI is to improve life standard such as water filtration or flood control. Among the twenty models that have been compared to MSMA SME, ten models were selected to conduct a comprehensive review for this study. These are known to be widely accepted by water resource researchers. These ten tools are further classified into three major categories as models that address the stormwater management ability of GI in terms of quantity and quality, models that have the capability of conducting the

  20. People’s Preferences of Urban Design Qualities for Walking on a Commercial Street

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ernawati, J.; Surjono; Sudarmo, B. S.

    2018-03-01

    This research aims to explore people’s preferences of urban design qualities for walking on a commercial street, with Kawi Street located in a commercial neighborhood in the town of Malang Indonesia as the case study. Based on a literature review, this study used eight urban design qualities, i.e., enclosure, legibility, human scale, transparency, complexity, coherence, linkage, and imageability. This study applied a survey research method using a self-administered paper-pencil questionnaire applying two measurement techniques: Likert scale was used to explore people’s evaluations of urban design qualities of the street, while multiple-rating scales were used to measure people’s preference for walking on the street. One hundred and ten people randomly selected as respondents. Regression analysis was employed to explore the influence of urban design qualities on people preference for walking. Results indicated four urban design qualities that affect people’s choice for walking on a commercial street, i.e., transparency, coherence, linkage, and imageability. Implications of the findings will be discussed in the paper.

  1. Abu Dhabi’s New Urban Islands and Shorefront Development

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    El Amrousi Mohamed

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Abu Dhabi is in the process of urbanizing a group of Islands that surround its northern and eastern coastlines. Al-Lulu, Al-Saadiyat, Al- Maryah, Al-Reem and Yas Islands are all new urban enclaves that were desert islands and marshlands yet, have been developed over the past decade to urban islands that include epic and entertainment centres such as the Abu Dhabi Louvre, Guggenheim Museum, Ferrari World, NYU Abu Dhabi, the Paris Sorbonne Abu Dhabi in addition to iconic and exclusive waterfront residential units. These new islands re-brand the image of the main archipelago of Abu Dhabi that for decades retained a grid street pattern and pragmatic concrete blocks created in the late 1970s. The new urban islands transform Abu Dhabi’s image into a multinational modern Arab city seeking to become part of the global city network. Abu Dhabi’s new urban islands also act as breakwaters that protect the main archipelago’s coastline from erosion resulting from tidal change, because they are designed to include concrete and stone breakwater barriers. This paper represents a cross-disciplinary research between Civil Engineering and Architecture Departments in an attempt to explore the emerging infrastructure and urban expansion of Abu Dhabi from a multi-disciplinary perspective. We also highlight through simulating the effect of breakwaters on wave heights two scenarios for Al-Lulu Island the importance of these new barrier Islands on the urban expansion of Abu Dhabi.

  2. Park system concept for environmental sustainabilityin urban spatial development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Uniaty, Q.

    2018-01-01

    Urban Park System is an integrated concept between nature system and urban life. The problems caused by urban population activity resulted in the need to increase the balance between two systems. Establishment of urban park system is a response to the need for resilience of urban space structures. As an ideal requirement it needs to be built integration between the ecological, social, economic, aesthetic aspects of urban landscape architecture. The methodology was developed based on an approach to issues affecting the conditions due to urban issues and its relation to the development efforts of urban park system; Observation of Jakarta problem was obtained based on published studies and data, literature, characteristic and potential analyzes, local physical, from limited field observations. Both are simple methods aimed to describe the nature of a condition as well as form characteristics of problems in controlling the development of region, to examine the causes and symptoms. This method try to assess an object study compared between the conditions before and after. The benefits of urban park system development will not only improve the urban environment, but the value of urban pride, identity and control urban growth in line with efforts to improve the balance between conservation and development. Integrated urban park system will enhance the multifunctional role, connectivity, habitability, durability, identity and investment.

  3. Heuristic urban transportation network design method, a multilayer coevolution approach

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ding, Rui; Ujang, Norsidah; Hamid, Hussain bin; Manan, Mohd Shahrudin Abd; Li, Rong; Wu, Jianjun

    2017-08-01

    The design of urban transportation networks plays a key role in the urban planning process, and the coevolution of urban networks has recently garnered significant attention in literature. However, most of these recent articles are based on networks that are essentially planar. In this research, we propose a heuristic multilayer urban network coevolution model with lower layer network and upper layer network that are associated with growth and stimulate one another. We first use the relative neighbourhood graph and the Gabriel graph to simulate the structure of rail and road networks, respectively. With simulation we find that when a specific number of nodes are added, the total travel cost ratio between an expanded network and the initial lower layer network has the lowest value. The cooperation strength Λ and the changeable parameter average operation speed ratio Θ show that transit users' route choices change dramatically through the coevolution process and that their decisions, in turn, affect the multilayer network structure. We also note that the simulated relation between the Gini coefficient of the betweenness centrality, Θ and Λ have an optimal point for network design. This research could inspire the analysis of urban network topology features and the assessment of urban growth trends.

  4. Urban branding as an effective sustainability tool in urban development

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Reeman Mohammed Rehan

    2014-08-01

    Urban branding is a new approach toward urban development of sustainable cities. City branding, a novel aspect of urban communication, improves marketing of the city image in various ways by converting the visual image of the city into a brand image. Unique characteristics of the city are featured and a sustainable urban image is created. This paper will focus on city branding as a powerful image-building strategy. In this realm, the branding of Stuttgart, Germany, serves as a successful model of a branding strategy. Next, branding of the city of Port Said, Egypt, will be explored. The principal aim of this paper is to describe how cities become branded; how branding succeeds; and how a viable city image is created. This paper reviews the methods used to brand cities, and concludes by emphasizing the importance of urban branding in terms of sustainability.

  5. Construction of Urban Design Support System using Cloud Computing Type Virtual Reality and Case Study

    OpenAIRE

    Zhenhan, Lei; Shunta, Shimizu; Natuska, Ota; Yuji, Ito; Yuesong, Zhang

    2017-01-01

    This paper contributes a design support system based on cloud-computing type virtual reality (cloud-based VR) for urban planning and urban design. A platform for Cloud-based VR technology, i.e. a VR-Cloud server, is used to open a VR dataset to public collaboration over the Internet. The digital attributes representing the design scheme of design concepts includes the land use zone, building regulations, urban design style, and other design details of architectural design, landscape, and traf...

  6. The European Dimension of the Global Urban Development Program

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bubenko Pavlo T.

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available The article is aimed at studying the process of evolutionary formation of the EU Cities Development Program and analyzing the strategic instrumentarium for the urban development within the currently established EU urban policy at the present stage. The key features of the process of formation of the EU urban policy have been analyzed, the main stages of evolutionary formation of the integrated EU Cities Development Program have been defined and described. In the context of ensuring an integrated approach to the sustainable urban development and complementary positioning of urban development in the EU’s territorial development and cohesion strategies, the European Union’s normative and legal framework on urban development was researched. As a result of the conducted research, the strategic instrumentarium of implementation of the EU Cities Development Program has been systematized.

  7. Urban Space Explorer: A Visual Analytics System for Urban Planning.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Karduni, Alireza; Cho, Isaac; Wessel, Ginette; Ribarsky, William; Sauda, Eric; Dou, Wenwen

    2017-01-01

    Understanding people's behavior is fundamental to many planning professions (including transportation, community development, economic development, and urban design) that rely on data about frequently traveled routes, places, and social and cultural practices. Based on the results of a practitioner survey, the authors designed Urban Space Explorer, a visual analytics system that utilizes mobile social media to enable interactive exploration of public-space-related activity along spatial, temporal, and semantic dimensions.

  8. Sustainable urban development of metropolitan Johannesburg: The lessons learned from international practice

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mosha A.C.

    2004-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper consists of an overview of programmes supporting sustainable planning and management in the City of Johannesburg one of the most important social and economic hubs of the transitional Republic of South Africa. Following from this is an analysis of the experience identified as most appropriate for Johannesburg City and its metropolitan region (Gauteng. This case study is used to highlight efforts and lessons learned from the international project "Designing, Implementing and Measuring Sustainable Urban Development" (DIMSUD which have intended to contribute to new solutions for sustainable urban development through a collaborative multi-disciplinary, and participatory approach combining research, urban design, and capacity building. DIMSUD (http://sustainability.ethz.ch is carried out jointly by the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT, Chalmers University of Technology (Sweden, University of Botswana, University of the Witwatersrand (South Africa and the Catholic University of Santiago de Chile. Another partner was the United Nations University (UNU at Tokyo. The project has enabled a global overview of core problems, providing a synthesis of realizable strategies and offering both a scientific forum and an "urban field laboratory" for joint learning. The strategies developed will not only help improve the conditions in the case study cities (Gaborone Johannesburg, Santiago de Chile, but will also provide working examples so that other cities can learn from and adapt and adopt appropriate "best practices".

  9. Designing green and blue infrastructure to support healthy urban living

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Gehrels, H.; Meulen, S. vsn der; Schasfoort, F.; Bosch, P.R.; Brolsma, R.; Dinter, D. van; Geerling, G.J.; Goossen, M.; Jacobs, C.; Jong, M. de; Kok, S.; Massop, H.; Oste, L.; Perez-Soba, M.; Rovers, V.; Smit, A.; Verweij, P.; Vries, B. de; Weijers, E.

    2016-01-01

    There is a growing awareness in cities throughout the world that green and blue infrastructure can offer a wide range of ecosystem services to support a healthy urban environment. For example, landscape architects explore possibilities in their design of the urban landscape to use the potential of

  10. Modelling Urban Experiences

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jantzen, Christian; Vetner, Mikael

    2008-01-01

    How can urban designers develop an emotionally satisfying environment not only for today's users but also for coming generations? Which devices can they use to elicit interesting and relevant urban experiences? This paper attempts to answer these questions by analyzing the design of Zuidas, a new...

  11. Rethinking Design and Urban Planning for the Cities of the Future

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Thomas L. Saaty

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available Growth of urban areas and abandonment of rural areas are phenomena that increase quickly. The main consequences of urbanization are pollution, consumption of resources and energy, waste dumps, and junk yards. These aspects require a better planning and design of European urban metropolitan areas, considering benefits, opportunities, costs and risks (B.O.C.R., derivable by urban transformations and available resources. The paper consists of five parts. The first part contains some reflections on consequences of urban sprawl. In the second part, some possible kinds of cities are discussed (sustainable city, smart city, and compact city. The third part briefly describes a multicriteria decision-making approach known as the ‘analytic hierarchy process’ to deal with complex decisions. In the fourth part, alternative city models are analyzed (compact city, elevated city, green house city, and water city. Finally, in the fifth part, the criteria selected for the planning and design of the alternative city models are used for the prioritization of some European cities.

  12. Traditional Islamic cities unveiled: the quest for urban design regularity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jorge Correia

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available Traditional Islamic cities have generally gathered orientalized gazes and perspectives, picking up from misconceptions and stereotypes that during the second half af the 19th century andwere perpectuated by colonialism. More recent scholarship has shed light on the urban organizationand composition of such tissues; most of them confined to old quarters or historical centres ofthriving contemporary cities within the Arab-Muslim world. In fact, one of the most striking featureshas been the unveiling of layered urban assemblages where exterior agents have somehowlaunched or interrupted an apparent islamicized continuum. Primarly, this paper wishes to search forexternal political factors that have designed regularly geometrized patterns in medium-sized Arabtowns. For that, two case studies from different geographies - Maghreb and the Near East - will bemorphologically analysed through updated urban surveys. Whereas Nablus (Palestine ows the urbanmatrix of its old town to its Roman past, in Azemmour’s medina (Morocco it is still possible to trackthe thin European early-modern colonial stratum. However, both cases show how regularity patternschallenge Western concepts of geometrical design to embrace levels of rationality related to tradionalIslamic urban forms, societal configurations and built environment. Urban morphology becomes afundamental tool for articulating the history with me processes of sedimentation and evolution in orderto read current urban prints and dynamics. Thus, the paper will also interpret alternative logics ofrational urban display in Azemmour and Nablus, linked to ways of living within the Islamic sphere.

  13. Local Institutional Development and Organizational Change for Advancing Sustainable Urban Water Futures

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brown, Rebekah R.

    2008-02-01

    This paper presents the local institutional and organizational development insights from a five-year ongoing interdisciplinary research project focused on advancing the implementation of sustainable urban water management. While it is broadly acknowledged that the inertia associated with administrative systems is possibly the most significant obstacle to advancing sustainable urban water management, contemporary research still largely prioritizes investigations at the technological level. This research is explicitly concerned with critically informing the design of methodologies for mobilizing and overcoming the administrative inertia of traditional urban water management practice. The results of fourteen in-depth case studies of local government organizations across Metropolitan Sydney primarily reveal that (i) the political institutionalization of environmental concern and (ii) the commitment to local leadership and organizational learning are key corporate attributes for enabling sustainable management. A typology of five organizational development phases has been proposed as both a heuristic and capacity benchmarking tool for urban water strategists, policy makers, and decision makers that are focused on improving the level of local implementation of sustainable urban water management activity. While this investigation has focused on local government, these findings do provide guideposts for assessing the development needs of future capacity building programs across a range of different institutional contexts.

  14. Strategies for Sustainable Urban Development and Urban-Rural Linkages

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nilsson, Kjell; Nielsen, Thomas Alexander Sick; Aalbers, Carmen

    2014-01-01

    of transport, land use and open space planning; (ii) urban containment and densification – development a green compact city; (iii) preservation of blue and green infrastructure; and (iv) preservation of agricultural land and the promotion of local production. The need also remains to strengthen governance......An important driving force behind urban expansion is the growth of the urban population. But for Europe, this is not a sufficient explanation. The major trend is that European cities have become much less compact. Since the mid-1950s European cities have expanded on average by 78%, whereas...... the population has grown by only 33%. In the PLUREL project - an integrated project within the EU’s 6th Research Framework Programme - more than 100 researchers from 15 countries analysed the impacts of urban land consumption at a pan-European level and, through six European and one Chinese case studies...

  15. Design of the crashworthy structure of an urban aircraft

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shang Bairong

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available With the development of general aviation, the urban aircraft is around the corner. The urban aircraft with composite is considered as an ultralight vehicle and the crashworthiness is of vital importance for such an ultralight aircraft. Composites are being widely and increasingly used in the aerospace industry because of their advantages that include the high specific strength and stiffness over traditional metallic materials. Besides, composites have the potential for absorbing the energy in a crash event. The crashworthiness of the cockpit section is analyzed in this paper and some modifications in the subfloor have been made to improve the survivability of the pilot. Advances in commercial softwares have enabled engineers to simulate crash events. The three-dimensional structure model is established by use of CATIA software and the crash process is simulated by MSC/DYTRAN. By comparing the crashworthiness of composite structures, reliable basis is provided for the design of a safe and sound structure.

  16. Developing Resilient Urban Waterfronts : Integrating Adaptation into Urban Development and Management

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    van Veelen, P.C.; Deppisch, Sonja

    2017-01-01

    There is a growing attention for integrating climate change adaptation into policies, strategies and decision-making processes (e.g. mainstreaming). This paper explores to what extent climate adaptation can be integrated into processes of urban development and change, based on case study research in

  17. Qualifying Urban Landscapes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Clemmensen, Thomas Juel; Nielsen, Tom; Daugaard, Morten

    2010-01-01

    The article presents an attempt to develop alternatives to the dominant planning and design principles used in building and rebuilding the contemporary urban landscape. The basic idea is that the ‘forces of modernisation’ driving current development might result in a broader and more interesting...... for contemporary urban landscape design practice....... to the task of constructing and improving things. With this goal, a set of objectives based in important insights from recent urban theory are formulated constituting the normative spine of the analysis of a number of found situations as basis for formulating eight generic concepts of qualification...

  18. New Urban Vertical Axis Wind Turbine Design

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alexandru-Mihai CISMILIANU

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available This paper develops a different approach for enhancing the performance of Vertical Axis Wind Turbines for the use in the urban or rural environment and remote isolated residential areas. Recently the vertical axis wind turbines (VAWT have become more attractive due to the major advantages of this type of turbines in comparison to the horizontal axis wind turbines. We aim to enhance the overall performance of the VAWT by adding a second set of blades (3 x 2=6 blades following the rules of biplane airplanes. The model has been made to operate at a maximum power in the range of the TSR between 2 to 2.5. The performances of the VAWT were investigated numerically and experimentally and justify the new proposed design.

  19. Urban design for post-earthquake reconstruction: A case study of Wenchuan County, China

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Liu, L.X.; Lin, Y.L.; Wang, S.F.

    2014-01-01

    Urban design for post-earthquake reconstruction emphasizes strategies, safety, memorials and institutional arrangements. It is closely related to earthquake recovery plans. This article reviews general studies on urban design for post-earthquake reconstruction, before focussing on the case of

  20. Assessment tools for urban catchments: developing biological indicators based on benthic macroinvertebrates

    Science.gov (United States)

    Purcell, A.H.; Bressler, D.W.; Paul, M.J.; Barbour, M.T.; Rankin, E.T.; Carter, J.L.; Resh, V.H.

    2009-01-01

    Biological indicators, particularly benthic macroinvertebrates, are widely used and effective measures of the impact of urbanization on stream ecosystems. A multimetric biological index of urbanization was developed using a large benthic macroinvertebrate dataset (n = 1,835) from the Baltimore, Maryland, metropolitan area and then validated with datasets from Cleveland, Ohio (n = 79); San Jose, California (n = 85); and a different subset of the Baltimore data (n = 85). The biological metrics used to develop the multimetric index were selected using several criteria and were required to represent ecological attributes of macroinvertebrate assemblages including taxonomic composition and richness (number of taxa in the insect orders of Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, and Trichoptera), functional feeding group (number of taxa designated as filterers), and habit (percent of individuals which cling to the substrate). Quantile regression was used to select metrics and characterize the relationship between the final biological index and an urban gradient (composed of population density, road density, and urban land use). Although more complex biological indices exist, this simplified multimetric index showed a consistent relationship between biological indicators and urban conditions (as measured by quantile regression) in three climatic regions of the United States and can serve as an assessment tool for environmental managers to prioritize urban stream sites for restoration and protection.

  1. A Review of Water Reclamation Research in China Urban Landscape Design and Planning Practice

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gan, Wei; Zeng, Tianran

    2018-04-01

    With the continuously growing demand for better living environment, more and more attention and efforts have been paid to the improvement of urban landscape. However, the expansion of green area and water features are at the cost of high consumption of water resources, which has become prominent problems in cities that suffer from water shortage. At the same time, with the water shortage and water environment deterioration problems that shared globally, water conservation has become an inevitable choice to achieve sustainable social development. Urban landscape is not simply a consuming body of water resources, but also are of water-saving potential and able to perform the function of water storage. Thus, recycling the limited water resources becomes a challenge for every landscape designer. This paper is intended to overview the existing effort of reclaimed water recycle research in China landscape designing fields, and raise recommendations for future research and development.

  2. Energy Transition in the Nebular City: Connecting Transition Thinking, Metabolism Studies, and Urban Design

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Griet Juwet

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available Transforming urban infrastructures is an essential part of creating more sustainable urban regions. But rethinking these complex systems requires a better understanding of their spatial dimensions and their relation with urban morphology and spatial structure. This paper addresses that gap by examining different conceptualizations of technical infrastructure and space in science, technology and society studies (STS, transition thinking, urban metabolism studies, and urban political ecology, and draws connections with the spatial perspective of urban planning and design. It illustrates and tests these concepts through the case of energy transition in the Flemish region of Belgium. Transport and supply networks have played a crucial role in facilitating, structuring, and reproducing the region’s characteristic dispersed and energy-intensive urban landscape. Bringing different disciplinary perspectives together, the research broadens the conceptualization of the spatial dimension in transition thinking, and identifies useful concepts and design parameters for urban design to engage with the technical and socio-political complexity of transforming urban infrastructure. It reveals the energy transition as an inherently spatial project, and explores the spatially and socio-politically transformative potential of the transition towards a new energy system.

  3. Urban Planning and Management Information Systems Analysis and Design Based on GIS

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xin, Wang

    Based on the analysis of existing relevant systems on the basis of inadequate, after a detailed investigation and research, urban planning and management information system will be designed for three-tier structure system, under the LAN using C/S mode architecture. Related functions for the system designed in accordance with the requirements of the architecture design of the functional relationships between the modules. Analysis of the relevant interface and design, data storage solutions proposed. The design for small and medium urban planning information system provides a viable building program.

  4. Geospatial Based Information System Development in Public Administration for Sustainable Development and Planning in Urban Environment

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kouziokas, Georgios N.

    2016-09-01

    It is generally agreed that the governmental authorities should actively encourage the development of an efficient framework of information and communication technology initiatives so as to advance and promote sustainable development and planning strategies. This paper presents a prototype Information System for public administration which was designed to facilitate public management and decision making for sustainable development and planning. The system was developed by using several programming languages and programming tools and also a Database Management System (DBMS) for storing and managing urban data of many kinds. Furthermore, geographic information systems were incorporated into the system in order to make possible to the authorities to deal with issues of spatial nature such as spatial planning. The developed system provides a technology based management of geospatial information, environmental and crime data of urban environment aiming at improving public decision making and also at contributing to a more efficient sustainable development and planning.

  5. Urbanization, Economic Development and Environmental Change

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shushu Li

    2014-08-01

    Full Text Available This paper applies the pressure-state-response (PSR model to establish environmental quality indices for 30 administrative regions in China from 2003 to 2011 and employs panel data analysis to study the relationships among the urbanization rate, economic development and environmental change. The results reveal a remarkable inverted-U-shaped relationship between the urbanization rate and changes in regional environmental quality; the “turning point” generally appears near an urbanization rate of 60%. In addition, the degree and mode of economic development have significant, but anisotropic effects on the regional environment. Generally, at a higher degree of economic development, the environment will tend to improve, but an extensive economic growth program that simply aims to increase GDP has a clear negative impact on the environment. Overall, the results of this paper not only further confirm the “environmental Kuznets curve hypothesis”, but also expand it in a manner. The analysis in this paper implies that the inverted-U-shaped evolving relationship between environmental quality and economic growth (urbanization is universally applicable.

  6. Architecture and Urban Studies to offer overseas design course

    OpenAIRE

    Chadwick, Heather Riley

    2006-01-01

    Virginia Tech's College of Architecture and Urban Studies invites professional architects and designers to participate in the 11th annual International Architecture and Design Continuing Education Course in Italy to be held in May. The deadline to register for this course is Saturday, April 15.

  7. The quest for synergy when developing the urban fringe

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hansen, Jesper Rohr; Engberg, Lars A.

    How can planning policies related to urban fringe development and disadvantaged neighbourhoods create synergy? This question is approached and answered by various research fields and explored on various urban-planning levels, displaying case-studies related to urban regeneration, post......-industrial and suburban development and urban fringe literature. The present paper adds to these discussions by analysing two case-studies in Denmark in which local government pursue traditional urban-growth strategies in urban-fringe development - a post-industrial harbour and a large suburb, located just outside...... analyses this synergy by first describing the legislative, interventionist and financial context for urban-growth strategies deployed in the cases. On this background, the paper explores synergy potential related to policy as well as private-sector actors (local businesses, social housing organizations...

  8. BRIDGING OUTDOOR AND INDOOR ENVIRONMENTAL SIMULATION FOR ASSESSING AND AIDING SUSTAINABLE URBAN NEIGHBOURHOOD DESIGN

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chengzhi Peng

    2012-11-01

    Full Text Available Urban dwellers in cities located in hot-arid or hothumid regions have greater needs to live in between outdoor and indoor environments. The sustainability of urban building design in these regions cannot be fully assessed by indoor environmental simulation not taking into account the microclimatic factors of the surrounding urban neighbourhood. We find that the current suites of outdoor and indoor simulation software do not connect with each other to give us a holistic understanding of both outdoor and indoor simulation results. This paper reports on our current development of a methodological framework for bridging the current gap between outdoor and indoor environmental simulation. Our objective is that assessment of sustainability at an urban neighbourhood level can be carried out more holistically, and hence achieving more valid environmental simulations from an urban  dwelling point of view. The outdoor-indoor coupling methodology is currently modelled on a digital work flow among three key software platforms: (1 ENVImet for urban neighbourhood outdoor simulation, (2 Ecotect for building indoor simulation, (3 uCampus for combined outdoor-indoor 3D visualisation modelling of an entire urban neighbourhood including its individual buildings. A case study of a new neighbourhood development proposed for New Cairo is presented to demonstrate how indoor environmental simulation can be grounded on outdoor environmental simulation of the urban neighbourhood. Graphical outputs from this outdoorindoor coupling approach to neighbourhood simulation can be further brought together onto a Web-based 3D virtual reality modelling platform to enable wider accessibility.

  9. Urban development in Freiburg, Germany – sustainable and neoliberal?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mössner, Samuel

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available In recent years, sustainable urban development has emerged as a relevant but contested field in urban studies. A broad and diverse literature has discussed sustainable development from various perspectives. Some authors have researched urban sustainability from a technocratic perspective, looking for technical and managerial solutions. Others have shed light on the political dimension of urban sustainable development in our times of urban neoliberalization. This branch of literature focuses on the problematic relationship between market-oriented growth on the one hand and aspects of equality and justice on the other hand, which come along with the idea of sustainability. This article argues that the professionalization and new forms of urban management, as well as a shift towards urban governance and citizens’ participation have intensified consensual practices of urban regulation. Sustainable politics that have occurred in many cities around the world place emphasis on justice, tolerance and participation as the principal drivers for urban development. Empirical evidence shows, however, that these goals are subjugated to economic growth. Drawing on empirical work carried out in Freiburg, Germany – a city long hailed as a forerunner of urban sustainable development – this article promotes the opinion that the idea of ‘sustainable development’ in its current form is nothing more than an oxymoron, aimed and invented as a fuzzy concept in order to disguise the fundamentalist believe in growth that lies beyond such development.

  10. Urbanization and its Political Challenges in Developing Countries

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kemal ÖZDEN

    2012-11-01

    Full Text Available Developing countries in the twenty-first century is experiencing rapid urbanization with a high concentration of people in the urban areas while the population of people in the rural areas is decreasing due to the rise in rural-urban push which has adverse consequences on the economic and political development of developing countries, in particular African cities. Therefore, this study seeks to analyze the trends and nature of urbanization in Africa from the pre-colonial era to the contemporary period of globalization in order to ascertain the implications of rapid urbanization on the processes of democratic transitions, on the vagaries of food sufficiency and crisis as well as its multiplier effects on the escalating rate of poverty and insurgency in the cities. These problems stem from the lack of good governance, high rate of corruption and the misappropriation of state resources through diverse economic liberalizing reforms and development strategies. Thus, this study affirms that urbanization is a process that requires objective management and institutional role differentiations and performance to create the organizational synergy, moderation and frugality necessary for the equitable distribution of the common wealth for the greatest good of all peoples not only in the urban areas but also in the rural areas which invariably will bring about political and economic development in African cities, and reduce the high incidences of poverty, insurgency and food crisis.

  11. Participatory Design in an Urban Context

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gøtze, John

    of the conditions necessary for estab-lishing urban social networks, and different methodologies for doing so are examined. As part of this, a study is done on electronic democracy, i.e., different forms of information and communi-cation technologies (IT/ICT, Internet) that are actually and potentially applicable...... to innovative urban community development. The project combines theories of communication, dialogue and innovation with theories of systems, information, media and decision making. The project involves a comparative study of selected projects in the capital regions of Den-mark (Copenhagen) and Japan (Tokyo...

  12. Using Urban-Carrying Capacity as a Benchmark for Sustainable Urban Development: An Empirical Study of Beijing

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yigang Wei

    2015-03-01

    Full Text Available Sustainable urban development has been receiving growing concerns from both city managers and urban residents across the world. As a yardstick of sustainability, urban carrying capacity (UCC is an important conceptual underpinning that guides local governments in promoting sustainable urban development. However, existing studies still lack consensus not only on the theoretical aspects, but also on the methodological issues for UCC monitoring and evaluation. A knowledge gap exists, which this paper fills. This study aims to develop a practical UCC assessment framework to guide urban development towards achieving sustainability. The quantitative-based assessment framework provides a set of measurable indicators and benchmarks for city managers to conduct routine monitoring on progress toward urban sustainability, and helps identify deficient areas, which urgently need resource allocation to improve UCC. Focusing on a case study of Beijing, this study demonstrates that the framework is useful in promoting urban sustainability. This framework provides rich implications for other city prototypes in China as the nation marches into the next phase of development.

  13. Capacity Development for Sustainable Urban Transportation in Developing Countries

    OpenAIRE

    Senbil, Metin; Fujiwara, Akimasa; Zhang, Junyi

    2008-01-01

    To make urban transport sustainable, effective and efficient, first and foremost, there is a need for capacity development-capacity is defined as the ability to deal with problems in efficient and effective ways-in developing countries. Apart from many important capacity related problems such as lack of adequate infrastructure, older vehicle population, etc., policy makers in developing countries have to consider changing individual behavior to realize sustainable urban transportation policie...

  14. The world’s urban forests history, composition, design, function and management

    CERN Document Server

    McBride, Joe R

    2017-01-01

    The purpose of this book is to examine urban forests in cities around the world. It will ask questions about the history, composition, structure, and management of trees in urban areas. Data for this book was collected in 33 cities across broad geographical areas known as biomes. Constraints and opportunities imposed on urban forest composition, design, and management by the ecological characteristics of these biomes will be examined. The book will also address the cultural and historical factors that influenced the characteristics of urban forests around the world.

  15. Accounting for uncertainty in evaluating water quality impacts of urban development plan

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhou Jiquan; Liu Yi; Chen Jining

    2010-01-01

    The implementation of urban development plans causes land use change, which can have significant environmental impacts. In light of this, environmental concerns should be considered sufficiently at an early stage of the planning process. However, uncertainties existing in urban development plans hamper the application of strategic environmental assessment, which is applied to evaluate the environmental impacts of policies, plans and programs. This study develops an integrated assessment method based on accounting uncertainty of environmental impacts. And the proposed method consists of four main steps: (1) designing scenarios of economic scale and industrial structure, (2) sampling for possible land use layouts, (3) evaluating each sample's environmental impact, and (4) identifying environmentally sensitive industries. In doing so, uncertainties of environmental impacts can be accounted. Then environmental risk, overall environmental pressure and potential extreme environmental impact of urban development plans can be analyzed, and environmentally sensitive factors can be identified, especially under considerations of uncertainties. It can help decision-makers enhance environmental consideration and take measures in the early stage of decision-making.

  16. Optimal Spatial Design of Capacity and Quantity of Rainwater Harvesting Systems for Urban Flood Mitigation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chien-Lin Huang

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available This study adopts rainwater harvesting systems (RWHS into a stormwater runoff management model (SWMM for the spatial design of capacities and quantities of rain barrel for urban flood mitigation. A simulation-optimization model is proposed for effectively identifying the optimal design. First of all, we particularly classified the characteristic zonal subregions for spatial design by using fuzzy C-means clustering with the investigated data of urban roof, land use and drainage system. In the simulation method, a series of regular spatial arrangements specification are designed by using statistical quartiles analysis for rooftop area and rainfall frequency analysis; accordingly, the corresponding reduced flooding circumstances can be simulated by SWMM. Moreover, the most effective solution for the simulation method is identified from the calculated net benefit, which is equivalent to the subtraction of the facility cost from the decreased inundation loss. It serves as the initially identified solution for the optimization model. In the optimization method, backpropagation neural network (BPNN are first applied for developing a water level simulation model of urban drainage systems to substitute for SWMM to conform to newly considered interdisciplinary multi-objective optimization model, and a tabu search-based algorithm is used with the embedded BPNN-based SWMM to optimize the planning solution. The developed method is applied to the Zhong-He District, Taiwan. Results demonstrate that the application of tabu search and the BPNN-based simulation model into the optimization model can effectively, accurately and fast search optimal design considering economic net benefit. Furthermore, the optimized spatial rain barrel design could reduce 72% of inundation losses according to the simulated flood events.

  17. The backbone of a City Information Model (CIM) : Implementing a spatial data model for urban design

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Gil, J.A.; Almeida, J.; Duarte, J.P.

    2011-01-01

    We have been witnessing an increased interest in a more holistic approach to urban design practice and education. In this paper we present a spatial data model for urban design that proposes the combination of urban environment feature classes with design process feature classes. This data model is

  18. Diabetes City: How Urban Game Design Strategies Can Help Diabetics

    Science.gov (United States)

    Knöll, Martin

    Computer Games are about to leave their “electronic shells” and enter the city. So-called Serious Pervasive Games (SPGs) [1] allow for hybrid - simultaneously physical and virtual - experiences, applying technologies of ubiquitous computing, communication and “intelligent” interfaces. They begin to focus on non-entertaining purposes. The following article a) presents game design strategies as a missing link between pervasive computing, Ambient Intelligence and user’s everyday life. Therefore it spurs a discussion how Pervasive Healthcare focusing on the therapy and prevention of chronic diseases can benefit from urban game design strategies. b) Moreover the article presents the development and work in progress of “DiabetesCity“ - an educational game prototype for young diabetics.

  19. Urban Principle of Water Sensitive Design in Kampung Kamboja at Pontianak City

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hasriyanti, N.; Ryanti, E.

    2017-07-01

    This study will define the design principles of settlement area banks of the Kapuas Pontianak to approach the concept of water sensitive urban design (WSUD) in densely populated residential areas. Using a case study of a region densely located on the banks of the river with engineering literature to formulate the aspects taken into consideration and the components are arranged in the design, analysis descriptive paradigm rationalistic to identify the characteristics of residential areas riverbank with consideration of elements WSUD and formulate design principles residential area that is sensitive to water. This research is important to do because of problems related to the water management system in the settlement bank of the river in the city of Pontianak do not maximize. So that the primacy of this study contains several objectives to be achieved is to identify the characteristics of the settlement area riverbanks under consideration aspects areas design that is sensitive to water and principle areas design that will formulate the structure of the existing problems related to the needs of the community infrastructure facilities infrastructure neighborhoods and formulate and create guidelines for appropriate technology for integrated water management systems in the residential area of the riverbank and engineering design for the settlements are sensitive to water (WSUD). The final aim of the study is expected to achieve water management systems in residential areas by utilizing the abundant rainwater availability by using LID (Low Impact Development) through the concept of urban design that sensitive water

  20. Urban bioclimatology in developing countries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jauregui, E

    1993-11-15

    A brief review of the literature on urban human bioclimatology in the tropics is undertaken. Attempts to chart human bioclimatic conditions on the regional/local scale have been made in several developing countries. The effective temperature scheme (with all its limitations) is the one that has been most frequently applied. The possibilities of application of bioclimatic models based on human heat balance for the tropical urban environment are discussed.

  1. Urbanism Studio 2014

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    This catalogue showcases the master Urbanism Studio results 2014, which have been developed utilising research on station cities completed by Centre for Strategic Urban Research. Together with the Ministry of Housing, Urban and Rural Affairs (MHURA), UC wished to explore development potentials fo...... to waterflow, from market to stream, from hedge to school garden and from trees to icons. 56 students first developed a list of key strategic proposals from the citizens groups vision papers, followed by specific design answers....

  2. Using Container Structures in Architecture and Urban Design

    Science.gov (United States)

    Grębowski, Karol; Kałdunek, Daniel

    2017-10-01

    The paper presents the use of shipping containers in architecture and urban design. Even today, houses and apartments are still too expensive. Since 1923 architects have been improving the living conditions of citizens by building very simple, repeatable forms. With prefabrication technology it became possible to build quicker, causing house prices to decrease. Apartments in block of flats became affordable to more and more people. Modernism had great impact on the quality of living spaces, despite the detrimental effect of large panel technology on social life. It gave people their own bathrooms, and gifted them with simple solutions we now consider indispensable. The ambition to build cheaply but effectively is still here. The future of housing lies in prefabricated apartment modules. A well optimized creation process is the key, but taking into consideration the mistakes made by past generations should be the second most important factor. Studies show that large panel buildings were too monumental and solid for a housing structure, and offered no public spaces between them. Lack of urban design transformed a great idea into blocks that are considered to be ugly and unfriendly. Diversity is something that large panel structures were missing. While most block of flats were being constructed out of the same module (Model 770), differentiated architecture was difficult to achieve. Nowadays, increasing numbers of shipping containers are being used for housing purposes. These constructions show that it is possible to create astonishing housing with modules. Shipping containers were not designed to be a building material, but in contrast to large panel modules, there are many more possibilities of their transformation. In this paper the authors propose a set of rules that, if followed, would result in cheaper apartments, while keeping in consideration both tremendous architecture and friendly urban design. What is more, the proposed solution is designed to adapt to

  3. Evaluation of urban sprawl and urban landscape pattern in a rapidly developing region.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lv, Zhi-Qiang; Dai, Fu-Qiang; Sun, Cheng

    2012-10-01

    Urban sprawl is a worldwide phenomenon happening particularly in rapidly developing regions. A study on the spatiotemporal characteristics of urban sprawl and urban pattern is useful for the sustainable management of land management and urban land planning. The present research explores the spatiotemporal dynamics of urban sprawl in the context of a rapid urbanization process in a booming economic region of southern China from 1979 to 2005. Three urban sprawl types are distinguished by analyzing overlaid urban area maps of two adjacent study years which originated from the interpretation of remote sensed images and vector land use maps. Landscape metrics are used to analyze the spatiotemporal pattern of urban sprawl for each study period. Study results show that urban areas have expanded dramatically, and the spatiotemporal landscape pattern configured by the three sprawl types changed obviously. The different sprawl type patterns in five study periods have transformed significantly, with their proportions altered both in terms of quantity and of location. The present research proves that urban sprawl quantification and pattern analysis can provide a clear perspective of the urbanization process during a long time period. Particularly, the present study on urban sprawl and sprawl patterns can be used by land use and urban planners.

  4. Comparison of PV system design software packages for urban applications

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gharakhani Siraki, Arbi; Pillay, Pragasen

    2010-09-15

    A large number of software packages are available for solar resource evaluation and PV system design. However, few of them are suitable for urban applications. In this paper a comparison has been made between two specifically designed solar tools known as the Ecotect 2010 and the PVsyst 5.05. Conclusions have been made for proper use of these packages based on their specifications and privileges. Moreover, the calculations have been repeated with HOMER software package (which is a generic tool) for the same location. The results suggest that a generic solar software tool should not be used for an urban application.

  5. Design, Modeling And Control Of Steering And Braking For An Urban Electric Vehicle

    OpenAIRE

    Maciua, Dragos

    1996-01-01

    This report describes research which involved the design modification, modeling and control of automatic steering and braking systems for an urban electric vehicle. The vehicle is equipped with four-wheel independent drive, four-wheel independent braking and four-wheel steering. Control algorithms were developed for steering and braking. Simulation results show the feasibility of the algorithms.

  6. Urban Big Data and the Development of City Intelligence

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yunhe Pan

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available This study provides a definition for urban big data while exploring its features and applications of China's city intelligence. The differences between city intelligence in China and the “smart city” concept in other countries are compared to highlight and contrast the unique definition and model for China's city intelligence in this paper. Furthermore, this paper examines the role of urban big data in city intelligence by showing that it not only serves as the cornerstone of this trend as it also plays a core role in the diffusion of city intelligence technology and serves as an inexhaustible resource for the sustained development of city intelligence. This study also points out the challenges of shaping and developing of China's urban big data. Considering the supporting and core role that urban big data plays in city intelligence, the study then expounds on the key points of urban big data, including infrastructure support, urban governance, public services, and economic and industrial development. Finally, this study points out that the utility of city intelligence as an ideal policy tool for advancing the goals of China's urban development. In conclusion, it is imperative that China make full use of its unique advantages—including using the nation's current state of development and resources, geographical advantages, and good human relations—in subjective and objective conditions to promote the development of city intelligence through the proper application of urban big data.

  7. Climate resilient urban development : why responsible land governance is important

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Mitchell, D.; Enemark, S.; van der Molen, P.

    2015-01-01

    In less-developed countries, the major global pressures of rapid urbanization and climate change are resulting in increased vulnerability for urban dwellers. Much of the climate impact is concentrated in urban and coastal areas, as urban development spreads into areas that are hazard-prone. Often

  8. Urban development and employment in Abidjan.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Joshi, H; Lubell, H; Mouly, J

    1975-04-01

    The city of Abidjan in the Ivory Coast has grown physically, economically, and demographically at rates exceeding all reasonable expectation. Yet, as in many other development nations, the employment generated by Abidjan's rapid economic expansion has failed to keep pace with the increase in working population it has attracted. Consequently, economic success has been accompanied by a variety of social strains. Some of these have been discussed in earlier issues of the "International Labour Review" by Louis Roussel. This discussion expands on Roussel's earlier treatment by focusing more specifically on several facets of the urban employment problem created by the rapid growth of Abidjan. Attention is directed to labor supply and employment, factors affecting migration, foreign Africans in the Ivory Coast labor force; the urban informal sector; urban infrastructure and development; social problems of population pressure; employment policy options (current government policies and other policy options); and general issues and policy alternatives (motivations for rural urban migration, smaller urban centers as alternative growth poles, and distributing the gains from development). Several essential features of the employment problem stem from the rural urban distribution of the workforce. The rural labor force, including temporary seasonal workers from the savannah countries to the north, remains more or less in balance with increasing rural employment opportunities, since the migration of Ivory Coast nationals to the cities is balanced by the inflow of foreign workers. In contrast, the influx of migrants into urban areas has led to a more rapid increase in the urban labor force than in urban employment, with a consequent rise in unemployment. In 1970 the Abidjan rate of open unemployment was probably around 20%. At this time, most people's idea of a desirable job is one in the formal sector of the urban economy. If there is to be any hope of an eventual balance between

  9. The Teotihuacan Anomaly: The Historical Trajectory of Urban Design in Ancient Central Mexico

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Smith Michael E.

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available The ancient Mexican city of Teotihuacan had the most aberrant design of any city in ancient Mesoamerica. I examine similarities and differences between the design of Teotihuacan and other Mesoamerican cities. During the Preclassic period, a set of common Mesoamerican planning principles emerged. The designers of Teotihuacan rejected most of these principles in favor of a new and radical set of planning concepts. After the fall of Teotihuacan, subsequent urban planners ignored the Teotihuacan principles and returned to ancient Mesoamerican planning ideas. Elements of the Teotihuacan plan did not resurface until the Mexica of Tenochtitlan revived them for a specific goal. The historical sequence of central Mexican city layouts highlights the anomalous character of Teotihuacan’s principles of urban design within the canons of ancient Mesoamerican urbanism.

  10. Urban base flow with low impact development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bhaskar, Aditi; Hogan, Dianna M.; Archfield, Stacey A.

    2016-01-01

    A novel form of urbanization, low impact development (LID), aims to engineer systems that replicate natural hydrologic functioning, in part by infiltrating stormwater close to the impervious surfaces that generate it. We sought to statistically evaluate changes in a base flow regime because of urbanization with LID, specifically changes in base flow magnitude, seasonality, and rate of change. We used a case study watershed in Clarksburg, Maryland, in which streamflow was monitored during whole-watershed urbanization from forest and agricultural to suburban residential development using LID. The 1.11-km2 watershed contains 73 infiltration-focused stormwater facilities, including bioretention facilities, dry wells, and dry swales. We examined annual and monthly flow during and after urbanization (2004–2014) and compared alterations to nearby forested and urban control watersheds. We show that total streamflow and base flow increased in the LID watershed during urbanization as compared with control watersheds. The LID watershed had more gradual storm recessions after urbanization and attenuated seasonality in base flow. These flow regime changes may be because of a reduction in evapotranspiration because of the overall decrease in vegetative cover with urbanization and the increase in point sources of recharge. Precipitation that may once have infiltrated soil, been stored in soil moisture to be eventually transpired in a forested landscape, may now be recharged and become base flow. The transfer of evapotranspiration to base flow is an unintended consequence to the water balance of LID.

  11. Criteria for evaluation and guidelines for land use planning in terms of sustainable urban development

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Irena Ostojić

    2014-10-01

    Full Text Available Sustainable spatial development is a generally accepted objective and principle in spatial planning. It is implemented mainly by regulations in the sectors for management of natural resources, but not comprehensively in implementing regulations for urban space management. One of the most important instruments of spatial planning at local level is land use, for which there is no comprehensive framework of implementing measures for achieving sustainable spatial objectives in urban areas. In accordance with the review and critical analysis of literature, there are four measures presented in the paper: protection of natural resources and reduction of environmental-climate risks, compact urban structure, mixed-use and accessibility of urban functions. The review and analysis have shown that the listed measures enable sustainable development of urban areas, but only if they are planned and implemented in accordance with supporting physical, social and economic elements of urban space. In the conclusion, indicators which can assess the level of sustainability in land use design are presented and guidelines for restructuring land use in existing settlement areas are described.

  12. Electricity (in)accessibility to the urban poor in developing countries

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Singh, Rozita; Wang, Xiao; Mendoza, Juan Carlos

    2015-01-01

    More than half of the world’s population now lives in urban areas. The difficulties involved in providing new urban residents with a wide variety of services reveals a new face of poverty, one in which urban communities cannot access or afford basic modern energy services for their development...... and empowerment. As an enabler of development processes, access to electricity in urban and peri-urban contexts plays a key role in providing possibilities and solutions to the urban poor. Energy poverty is no longer a rural-only phenomenon, and a concerted effort is needed to find solutions. Taking...... this into account, the Global Network on Energy for Sustainable Development (GNESD) initiated the Urban Peri-Urban Energy Access (UPEA) project in 2006. The objective was to understand the barriers to energy access in the context of the urban poor in seven countries. Barriers from both the supply and demand sides...

  13. Housing and Urban Development trends in Czech Republic

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Karel Schmeidler

    2008-01-01

    Full Text Available This article describes housing trends in Czech Republic, which are determined by social, economic, technical and cultural changes of last two decades In Central Europe. Those trends have positive and also negative sides: positive can be seen the quantitative and qualitative growth of housing space, variety of architectural solutions for individualised customer. Negative aspect is urban sprawl, which together with individual automobile occupancy destroys nature, space and land values. Future development is inevitable, proper design of housing needs sensitive multidisciplinal attitude and understanding of the needs of man and nature.

  14. Water sensitive urban design retrofits in Copenhagen - 40% to the sewer, 60% to the city

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Fryd, O.; Backhaus, Antje; Birch, Heidi

    2013-01-01

    Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) is emerging in Denmark. This interdisciplinary desk study investigated the options for WSUD retrofitting in a 15 km(2) combined sewer catchment area in Copenhagen. The study was developed in collaboration with the City of Copenhagen and its water utility......, neighbourhoods located near low-lying streams and public parks are disconnected from the sewer system and the sloping terrain is utilised to convey runoff. Fourth, the promotion of coherent blue and green wedges in the city is linked with WSUD retrofits and urban climate-proofing. Fifth, WSUD is implemented...

  15. CLIMATE, CITIES AND SUSTAINABILITY IN THE ARABIAN REGION: COMPACTNESS AS A NEW PARADIGM IN URBAN DESIGN AND PLANNING

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mustapha Ben Hamouche

    2008-07-01

    Full Text Available Over centuries, the climate in Arabia has become a major factor that shaped daylife of the local societies and thus, the form of their cities. Old cities were charactrized by their compactness which stemmed from the need for protection from the harsh environment. Urban fabric has been dominated by the building masses, the limited number of enclosed public and outdoor spaces, and the inward-looking architecture. Besides its environmental utility, compactness also provided a physical support to the local community and reflected its strong social structure and complex network of kinships. Nowadays, Gulf cities that are mostly shaped by the modern movement and American life style are in complete negation with their past. An unprecedented sprawl effect is taking place all over the Gulf countries due to the heavy reliance on private transportation, high building technology, powerful air-conditioning systems and private housing. Reconsidering compactness in the present urban planning and design practices, would not only insure a cultural continuity with the rooted urban history of the region, but also meets the recommendations of the recent findings in research on sustainable urban development. Modeling compactness from the study of the old cities into urban indicators and design guidelines would provide an alternative design and planning process to architects, planners and decisionmakers. Far from being exhaustive, the study consists of analyzing some old cities that are located in the hot regions, according to the available documents, and extracting urban indicators that help measuring and applying compactness in planning and design.

  16. Monitoring trends of urban development and environmental impact of Beijing, 1999-2006

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liu Gengyuan; Yang, Zhifeng; Chen Bin; Ulgiati, Sergio

    2011-01-01

    The high rates of environmental change and accelerated species loss in the urban development process should be quantified to rebalance the social and environmental dimensions of sustainability. In this study, an emergy-based environmental impact assessment model is designed according to the framework of the Eco-Indicator 99 for monitoring the negative effects on human well-being and ecosystem integrity in the urban development system of Beijing from 1999 to 2006. The environmental impact assessment model is based on the sustainability promotion perspective, and emphasizes the determinants of human health and ecosystem integrity in the urban development process. It is vital that the links among human health, ecosystem integrity and urban sustainability are therefore considered especially from the perspective of a supply-side environmental cost evaluation (including ecological service supply, ecological and economic losses and investment for treatment). Results suggest that: (1) out of all the pollutants, ecological services were mainly used to dilute sulfur dioxide and NH 3 -N; (2) nitrogen dioxide and greenhouse gases released by the urban system contribute heavily to both ecological and economic losses evaluated in emergy terms; and (3) emissions impact, mainly from airborne pollutants, with small contribution from waterborne emissions, generally increases from 1999 to 2006, undermining the sustainability of Beijing. The emergy synthesis proves to be very appropriate to account for large-scale and indirect costs generated by pollution as side effects of economic activity. Such knowledge is a necessary pre-requisite to perform a reliable cost-benefit evaluation of urban sustainability strategies, and provide guidance for policy decision making to maximize benefits and minimize negative impacts. - Research highlights: → We design an emergy-based environmental impact assessment model. → It takes dilution effects into account to monitor the negative effects to

  17. Hybrid Evolutionary Metaheuristics for Concurrent Multi-Objective Design of Urban Road and Public Transit Networks

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Miandoabchi, Elnaz; Farahani, Reza Zanjirani; Dullaert, Wout; Szeto, W. Y.

    This paper addresses a bi-modal multi-objective discrete urban road network design problem with automobile and bus flow interaction. The problem considers the concurrent urban road and bus network design in which the authorities play a major role in designing bus network topology. The road network

  18. Identifying urban infrastructure multi-hazard risk in developing country contexts

    Science.gov (United States)

    Taylor, Faith; Malamud, Bruce; Millington, James

    2017-04-01

    This work presents a method to coarsely zone urban areas into different infrastructure typologies, from which physical vulnerability to a range of natural hazards and multi-hazard interactions can be estimated, particularly for developing country contexts where access to data can be a challenge. This work builds upon techniques developed for urban micrometeorology for classifying 12 urban typologies (Stewart and Oke, 2011) using Landsat 8 30 m × 30 m remote sensing imagery (Betchel et al., 2015). For each of these 12 urban typologies, we develop general rules about the presence, type and level of service of 10 broad categories of infrastructure (including buildings, roads, electricity and water), which we refer to as 'urban textures'. We have developed and applied this technique to five urban areas varying in size and structure across Africa: Nairobi (Kenya); Karonga (Malawi); Mzuzu (Malawi); Ibadan (Nigeria) and Cape Town (South Africa). For each urban area, a training dataset of 10 samples of each of the 12 urban texture classes is digitised using Google Earth imagery. A random forest classification is performed using SAGA GIS, resulting in a map of different urban typologies for each city. Based on >1200 georeferenced field photographs and expert interviews for Karonga (Malawi) and Nairobi (Kenya), generally applicable rules about the presence, type and level of service of 12 infrastructure types (the 'urban texture') are developed for each urban typology. For each urban texture, we are broadly reviewing how each infrastructure might be physically impacted by 21 different natural hazards and hazard interactions. This can aid local stakeholders such as emergency responders and urban planners to systematically identify how the infrastructure in different parts of an urban area might be affected differently during a natural disaster event.

  19. Urban Design Dimension Of Informality At The Perimeter Of Brawijaya University And UIN Maliki Malang

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tyaghita Cesarin Binar

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Informality is one of the commonly emerged issues in urban design which rarely explored, especially informality within university’s perimeter. Brawijaya as one of the biggest and oldest University in Malang over time has boosted the development of several of its perimeter, provided several hotspots for students and youth. These rapid hotspots growth is related to the growth of informal practices. For cities that developed by its universities, it is necessary to understand both of the formal and informal practices within its perimeter. Through this study I would like to know the characteristic of informality within university perimeter, which formed by Brawijaya, UIN Maliki, and ITN; and to frame it within Carmona’s Urban Design Dimension. Mapping is utilized as a primary method to analyze both formal and informality within site. The formal aspect consists of formal activities, function and site user. While informality mapper consists of street vendors and street art. The research found that while urban informality within Brawijaya and UIN Maliki are related to the character and morphology, its formal structure has; its relation is reciprocal. The morphological, visual and functional dimension of university perimeter is driven by the social, perceptual and temporal dimension formed by its user and showed through informality.

  20. Characteristics of peri-urbanization of a secondary city: a challenge in recent urban development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rahayu, P.; Mardiansjah, F. H.

    2018-03-01

    Urbanization process creates a tremendous spatial phenomenon since the last century. Especially for the country of the South, the phenomenon is still relevant to the situation today and the processes will still going until the foreseeable future. The metropolitan-based of urbanization process involves the development of peri-urban areas, which could be defined as transitional zones between city and rural areas characterized by integrated mixed-structures of agricultural and non-agricultural activities. This article reveals the characteristics of periurbanization process of an emerging secondary city in Java, which uses Surakarta, the second largest city in Central Java Province based on the population size, as the case. During the last ten years, there have been significant changes in peri-urban areas regarding urban population, land use, and urban activities that strengthening the contribution of the urban component into peri-urban system.

  1. Review of the physiology of human thermal comfort while exercising in urban landscapes and implications for bioclimatic design

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vanos, Jennifer K.; Warland, Jon S.; Gillespie, Terry J.; Kenny, Natasha A.

    2010-07-01

    This review comprehensively examines scientific literature pertaining to human physiology during exercise, including mechanisms of heat formation and dissipation, heat stress on the body, the importance of skin temperature monitoring, the effects of clothing, and microclimatic measurements. This provides a critical foundation for microclimatologists and biometeorologists in the understanding of experiments involving human physiology. The importance of the psychological aspects of how an individual perceives an outdoor environment are also reviewed, emphasizing many factors that can indirectly affect thermal comfort (TC). Past and current efforts to develop accurate human comfort models are described, as well as how these models can be used to develop resilient and comfortable outdoor spaces for physical activity. Lack of suitable spaces plays a large role in the deterioration of human health due to physical inactivity, leading to higher rates of illness, heart disease, obesity and heat-related casualties. This trend will continue if urban designers do not make use of current knowledge of bioclimatic urban design, which must be synthesized with physiology, psychology and microclimatology. Increased research is required for furthering our knowledge on the outdoor human energy balance concept and bioclimatic design for health and well-being in urban areas.

  2. INVESTIGATING THE USE OF 3D GEOVISUALIZATIONS FOR URBAN DESIGN IN INFORMAL SETTLEMENT UPGRADING IN SOUTH AFRICA

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    V. Rautenbach

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Informal settlements are a common occurrence in South Africa, and to improve in-situ circumstances of communities living in informal settlements, upgrades and urban design processes are necessary. Spatial data and maps are essential throughout these processes to understand the current environment, plan new developments, and communicate the planned developments. All stakeholders need to understand maps to actively participate in the process. However, previous research demonstrated that map literacy was relatively low for many planning professionals in South Africa, which might hinder effective planning. Because 3D visualizations resemble the real environment more than traditional maps, many researchers posited that they would be easier to interpret. Thus, our goal is to investigate the effectiveness of 3D geovisualizations for urban design in informal settlement upgrading in South Africa. We consider all involved processes: 3D modelling, visualization design, and cognitive processes during map reading. We found that procedural modelling is a feasible alternative to time-consuming manual modelling, and can produce high quality models. When investigating the visualization design, the visual characteristics of 3D models and relevance of a subset of visual variables for urban design activities of informal settlement upgrades were qualitatively assessed. The results of three qualitative user experiments contributed to understanding the impact of various levels of complexity in 3D city models and map literacy of future geoinformatics and planning professionals when using 2D maps and 3D models. The research results can assist planners in designing suitable 3D models that can be used throughout all phases of the process.

  3. Investigating the Use of 3d Geovisualizations for Urban Design in Informal Settlement Upgrading in South Africa

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rautenbach, V.; Coetzee, S.; Çöltekin, A.

    2016-06-01

    Informal settlements are a common occurrence in South Africa, and to improve in-situ circumstances of communities living in informal settlements, upgrades and urban design processes are necessary. Spatial data and maps are essential throughout these processes to understand the current environment, plan new developments, and communicate the planned developments. All stakeholders need to understand maps to actively participate in the process. However, previous research demonstrated that map literacy was relatively low for many planning professionals in South Africa, which might hinder effective planning. Because 3D visualizations resemble the real environment more than traditional maps, many researchers posited that they would be easier to interpret. Thus, our goal is to investigate the effectiveness of 3D geovisualizations for urban design in informal settlement upgrading in South Africa. We consider all involved processes: 3D modelling, visualization design, and cognitive processes during map reading. We found that procedural modelling is a feasible alternative to time-consuming manual modelling, and can produce high quality models. When investigating the visualization design, the visual characteristics of 3D models and relevance of a subset of visual variables for urban design activities of informal settlement upgrades were qualitatively assessed. The results of three qualitative user experiments contributed to understanding the impact of various levels of complexity in 3D city models and map literacy of future geoinformatics and planning professionals when using 2D maps and 3D models. The research results can assist planners in designing suitable 3D models that can be used throughout all phases of the process.

  4. Urban development results in stressors that degrade stream ecosystems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bell, Amanda H.; Coles, James F.; McMahon, Gerard; Woodside, Michael D.

    2012-01-01

    In 2003, eighty-three percent of Americans lived in metropolitan areas, and considerable population increases are predicted within the next 50 years. Nowhere are the environmental changes associated with urban development more evident than in urban streams. Contaminants, habitat destruction, and increasing streamflow flashiness resulting from urban development have been associated with the disruption of biological communities, particularly the loss of sensitive aquatic biota. Every stream is connected downstream to other water bodies, and inputs of contaminants and (or) sediments to streams can cause degradation downstream with adverse effects on biological communities and on economically valuable resources, such as fisheries and tourism. Understanding how algal, invertebrate, and fish communities respond to physical and chemical stressors associated with urban development can provide important clues on how multiple stressors may be managed to protect stream health as a watershed becomes increasingly urbanized. This fact sheet highlights selected findings of a comprehensive assessment by the National Water-Quality Assessment Program of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) of the effects of urban development on stream ecosystems in nine metropolitan study areas.

  5. The Investigation on Using Unity3D Game Engine in Urban Design Study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Aswin Indraprastha

    2009-05-01

    Full Text Available Developing a virtual 3D environment by using game engine is a strategy to incorporate various multimedia data into one platform. The characteristic of game engine that is preinstalled with interactive and navigation tools allows users to explore and engage with the game objects. However, most CAD and GIS applications are not equipped with 3D tools and navigation systems intended to the user experience. In particular, 3D game engines provide standard 3D navigation tools as well as any programmable view to create engaging navigation thorough the virtual environment. By using a game engine, it is possible to create other interaction such as object manipulation, non playing character (NPC interaction with player and/or environment. We conducted analysis on previous game engines and experiment on urban design project with Unity3D game engine for visualization and interactivity. At the end, we present the advantages and limitations using game technology as visual representation tool for architecture and urban design studies.

  6. The Development and Assesment of Adaptation Pathways for Urban Pluvial Flooding

    Science.gov (United States)

    Babovic, F.; Mijic, A.; Madani, K.

    2017-12-01

    Around the globe, urban areas are growing in both size and importance. However, due to the prevalence of impermeable surfaces within the urban fabric of cities these areas have a high risk of pluvial flooding. Due to the convergence of population growth and climate change the risk of pluvial flooding is growing. When designing solutions and adaptations to pluvial flood risk urban planners and engineers encounter a great deal of uncertainty due to model uncertainty, uncertainty within the data utilised, and uncertainty related to future climate and land use conditions. The interaction of these uncertainties leads to conditions of deep uncertainty. However, infrastructure systems must be designed and built in the face of this deep uncertainty. An Adaptation Tipping Points (ATP) methodology was used to develop a strategy to adapt an urban drainage system in the North East of London under conditions of deep uncertainty. The ATP approach was used to assess the current drainage system and potential drainage system adaptations. These adaptations were assessed against potential changes in rainfall depth and peakedness-defined as the ratio of mean to peak rainfall. These solutions encompassed both traditional and blue-green solutions that the Local Authority are known to be considering. This resulted in a set of Adaptation Pathways. However, theses pathways do not convey any information regarding the relative merits and demerits of the potential adaptation options presented. To address this a cost-benefit metric was developed that would reflect the solutions' costs and benefits under uncertainty. The resulting metric combines elements of the Benefits of SuDS Tool (BeST) with real options analysis in order to reflect the potential value of ecosystem services delivered by blue-green solutions under uncertainty. Lastly, it is discussed how a local body can utilise the adaptation pathways; their relative costs and benefits; and a system of local data collection to help guide

  7. Spatial diversity of urban village development in Shenzhen

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hao, P.|info:eu-repo/dai/nl/341235814; Geertman, S.C.M.|info:eu-repo/dai/nl/072392924; Hooimeijer, P.|info:eu-repo/dai/nl/073398578; Sliuzas, R.

    2011-01-01

    Dynamic urbanization in China during the reform period has led to the emergence and proliferation of so-called urban villages in many cities. The development of urban villages, based on a self-help approach of indigenous villagers, has been satisfying great demand for migrant housing and space for

  8. Revisiting Urban Dynamics through Social Urban Data

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Achilleas Psyllidis

    2016-11-01

     The contribution of this doctoral thesis is the design and development of a framework of novel methods and tools that enables the fusion of heterogeneous multidimensional data for cities. The framework could foster planners, researchers, and policy makers to capitalize on the new possibilities given by emerging social urban data. Having a deep understanding of the spatiotemporal dynamics of cities and, especially of the activity and movement behavior of people, is expected to play a crucial role in addressing the challenges of rapid urbanization. Overall, the framework proposed by this research has potential to open avenues of quantitative explorations of urban dynamics, contributing to the development of a new science of cities.

  9. Ensuring Sustainable Development through Urban Planning in Pakistan

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mohammad Qasim

    2013-04-01

    Full Text Available Urban planning includes land use management and environmental change. It makes arrangement for community facilities and services. Since, sustainable development has been included as a vital end product of all planning goals it also provides for balanced use of land, housing and transportation and better quality of life. Present urban planning in Pakistan is not ensuring sustainable development in Pakistan. This is tested through the case study of master planning in Rawalpindi and its implementation through housing schemes in Rawalpindi, Pakistan. Large portions of provisions of master plans are not implemented. This paper explains how the urban planning will be made enabled to ensure sustainable development in Pakistan. Six numbers of housing schemes and two squatter settlements have been surveyed through questionnaires, secondary data, the opinions of the experts from related fields and site observations. Amenities and social services at far distance, very less green area, Less quantity and bad quality of water, absence of comprehensive solid waste management and sewage disposal system and nontreatment of solid waste, effluent and sewage, prevalent unhygienic conditions and air and water pollution are the existing factors effecting the sustainability. There is a need to revisit the urban planning and a comprehensive Urban and Environment Planning Law at national level and at provincial level is recommended to enable the urban planning to ensure the sustainable development in Pakistan

  10. Ensuring sustainable development through urban planing in pakistan

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Qasim, M.; Zaidi, S.S.U.

    2013-01-01

    Urban planning includes land use management and environmental change. It makes arrangement for community facilities and services. Since, sustainable development has been included as a vital end product of all planning goals it also provides for balanced use of land, housing and transportation and better quality of life. Present urban planning in Pakistan is not ensuring sustainable development in Pakistan. This is tested through the case study of master planning in Rawalpindi and its implementation through housing schemes in Rawalpindi, Pakistan. Large portions of provisions of master plans are not implemented. This paper explains how the urban planning will be made enabled to ensure sustainable development in Pakistan. Six numbers of housing schemes and two squatter settlements have been surveyed through questionnaires, secondary data, the opinions of the experts from related fields and site observations. Amenities and social services at far distance, very less green area, Less quantity and bad quality of water, absence of comprehensive solid waste management and sewage disposal system and non- treatment of solid waste, effluent and sewage, prevalent unhygienic conditions and air and water pollution are the existing factors effecting the sustainability. There is a need to revisit the urban planning and a comprehensive Urban and Environment Planning Law at national level and at provincial level is recommended to enable the urban planning to ensure the sustainable development in Pakistan. (author)

  11. Development of European urban tourist systems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jerković Senta

    2009-01-01

    Full Text Available Relationship between urban development and tourism is a significant process in Europe today. Development of tourism has caused many organizational changes in urban environment. In the middle of the 20th century cultural and historical heritage in the cities was impetus of development of tourism in European cities. Nowadays, in many European cities tourism is recognized as a mean of further economic development. Strategy of polycentricity, outlined in European spatial development perspective is supporting that process, too. Many tourist centres and metropolitan tourist areas have been developed. In the period from 1996. to 2007. number of visitors in European cultural capitals was growing continuously by rate of 25,6%. In the same period, the number of international tourist arrivals increased by rate of only 7%.

  12. Defining a Structural Model for the Revitalization of the Lost Urban Spaces (City Entrances in Contemporary Urban Design Case Study: Entrance of Sanandaj

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Seyed Mohammadreza Khatibi

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available Not long ago, city gates and entryways had high spatial value and were among the landmarks for marking city boundaries. Today with cities having been expanded and developed, such aspect of the entrance concept is lost and entryways are turned to passages for transportation. In fact, the rich spatial value of such entrances has decreased as they are solely spaces for passing through out or into the city. The dissonant expansion of entryways causes irregularities in thresholds of urban structure. This is due to imprudent intrusion into city landscape entailed by ill-considered planning activities. The main problem is the lack of comprehensive visual or mental definitions in the field. In other words, the challenge includes improper sequencing, zoning, and lack of lucid scenario and interfere procedure. Through defining a scenario, this study aims to set a spatial hierarchy for urban entryways. It then uses a comparative study to examine the scenario for an existing case study. This study provides a new definition for designing and planning for the fields concerned with city entryways. This implies methods by which authorities can interfere in the process of urban design.

  13. Assessment of sustainable urban transport development based on entropy and unascertained measure.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Yancang; Yang, Jing; Shi, Huawang; Li, Yijie

    2017-01-01

    To find a more effective method for the assessment of sustainable urban transport development, the comprehensive assessment model of sustainable urban transport development was established based on the unascertained measure. On the basis of considering the factors influencing urban transport development, the comprehensive assessment indexes were selected, including urban economical development, transport demand, environment quality and energy consumption, and the assessment system of sustainable urban transport development was proposed. In view of different influencing factors of urban transport development, the index weight was calculated through the entropy weight coefficient method. Qualitative and quantitative analyses were conducted according to the actual condition. Then, the grade was obtained by using the credible degree recognition criterion from which the urban transport development level can be determined. Finally, a comprehensive assessment method for urban transport development was introduced. The application practice showed that the method can be used reasonably and effectively for the comprehensive assessment of urban transport development.

  14. Space-time information analysis for resource-conscious urban planning and design: A stakeholder based identification of urban metabolism data gaps

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Voskamp, I.M.; Spiller, M.; Stremke, S.; Bregt, A.K.; Vreugdenhil, L.C.; Rijnaarts, H.H.M.

    2018-01-01

    The research presented here examined at which spatial and temporal resolution urban metabolism should be analysed to generate results that are useful for implementation of urban planning and design interventions aiming at optimization of resource flows. Moreover, it was researched whether a lack of

  15. Gwangju Urban Strategies

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    2016-01-01

    The book is a reflective representation of students work in Studio Context Spring 2016 at Aarhus School of Architecture conserning the city of Gwangju, Republic of Korea. The design works are considered to be genetic urban acupuncture, which is intended to develop over time.......The book is a reflective representation of students work in Studio Context Spring 2016 at Aarhus School of Architecture conserning the city of Gwangju, Republic of Korea. The design works are considered to be genetic urban acupuncture, which is intended to develop over time....

  16. Harbourscape Aalborg - Design Based Methods in Waterfront Development

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kiib, Hans

    2012-01-01

    How can city planners and developers gain knowledge and develop new sustainable concepts for water front developments? The waterfront is far too often threatened by new privatisation, lack of public access and bad architecture. And in a time where low growth rates and crises in the building...... industry is leaving great parts of the harbour as urban voids planners are in search of new tools for bridging the time gap until new projects can be a reality. This chapter presents the development of waterfront regeneration concepts that resulted from design based workshops, Harbourscape Aalborg in 2005...... and Performative Architecture Workshop in 2008, and evaluates the method and the thinking behind this. The design workshops provide different design-based development methods which can be tested with the purpose of developing new concepts for the relationship between the city and its harbour, and in addition...

  17. Urban development control based on transportation carrying capacity

    Science.gov (United States)

    Miharja, M.; Sjafruddin, A. H.

    2017-06-01

    Severe transportation problems in Indonesian urban areas are stimulated by one fundamental factor, namely lack of awareness on transportation carrying capacity in these areas development control. Urban land use development towards more physical coverage is typically not related with the capability of transportation system to accommodate additional trips volume. Lack of clear connection between development permit with its implication on the transportation side has led to a phenomenon of exceeding transport demand over supply capacity. This paper discusses the concept of urban land use development control which will be related with transport carrying capacity. The discussion would cover both supply and demand sides of transportation. From supply side, the analysis regarding the capacity of transport system would take both existing as well as potential road network capacity could be developed. From demand side, the analysis would be through the control of a maximum floor area and public transport provision. Allowed maximum floor area for development would be at the level of generating traffic at reasonable volume. Ultimately, the objective of this paper is to introduce model to incorporate transport carrying capacity in Indonesian urban land use development control.

  18. Designing Playful Interactive Installations for Urban Environments - The SwingScape Experience

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Grønbæk, Kaj; Kortbek, Karen Johanne; Christensen, Claus Møller

    2012-01-01

    . The design issues include: creating playful and collective interaction, making a familiar swing interaction simulate the experience of a music mixing board, providing gentle integration of multimedia (light and sound) in the atmosphere of an urban space, and finally making installations robust and safe...... at an urban playground. The objectives of SwingScape are to encourage physical activity as well as creating a playful and social experience in an urban space. The interaction techniques include movement sensors built into swings, LED lights, and an ambient loudspeaker system covering approx. 180 square meters...

  19. Approach of Urban Design Elements in Preservation Area Kampung Bandar Senapelan Towards Pekanbaru Metropolitan City

    Science.gov (United States)

    Riza, Yose; Cheris, Rika; Repi

    2017-12-01

    The development of Pekanbaru City is very rapid, consequently is constantly experiencing changes in buildings, areas or cultural objects that need to be preserved to be disrupted, replaced by economic-oriented development - commercial. The contradiction between the construction of the metropolis will be the beginning of the problem for urban areas. Kampong Bandar Senapelan is an early town of Pekanbaru town located on the banks of the Siak River. The settlement has a typology of Malay and vernacular Malay architecture. The existence of these villages experienced concern as a contradiction of the city's development toward the metropolis which resulted in degradation of the historical value of urban development in this region. This study was conducted to make an important assessment of preserving Kampung Bandar Senapelan as the oldest area and its great influence on the development of metropolis. Preservation of historical and cultural heritage with conservation and preservation measures is one of the urban design elements to be considered for all city stakeholders to safeguard the civilization of a generation. Considerations that will become a benchmark is the history, conservation and urban development towards the metropolis. The importance of awareness of the conservation of the city through conservation and preservation in this area can lead to new characters and values to the building and its environment and will create an atmosphere different from the rapid development (modern style). In addition, this preservation will be evident in a harmonious life with a high tolerance between multi-ethnicity that co-existed in the past.

  20. Sustainable urban environmental quality

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tošković Dobrivoje

    2004-01-01

    Full Text Available MEANING as the essential element of urban quality. The role of the three main factors for the urban quality achievement: PLANNING, DEVELOPMENT and PEOPLE. Next to that, it is important to assume the identity of the local CONTEXT as the essential base for designing and shaping of form development. The problems of the quality achievements in the situation of the permanent changes. In such an environment - the RENEWAL of the towns become the basic strategic orientation requiring - evaluation of the development policy instruments. On the road of changes there are PROBLEMS of a strategic nature which should be, firstly, defined and, then, solved before entering in the process of structuring and arrangement. One of these problems is NEW versus OLD. Transition to a new policy of urbanism relying, first of all, on the private investors and international funds of the local authorities - call for a NEW STRATEGY in urbanism, in the context of the sustainability of environment. The sustainability of quality and the categories of the influencing factors. The sustainability of quality as a twofold process of urban design. The quality of environment as an aesthetic phenomenon. The urban situation and environmental quality: feasibility of changes and effects; the environmental capacity as an indicator and quality determinant. The urban quality and international experience. The evaluation of our urban situation. INSTEAD OF CONCLUSION: A general review on the visions and urban quality policy and planning. Toward an evaluation of urban environmental quality: negative and positive indicators; sustainable communities environmental ruling and urban quality planning.

  1. Pubertal development timing in urban Chinese boys.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ma, H-M; Chen, S-K; Chen, R-M; Zhu, C; Xiong, F; Li, T; Wang, W; Liu, G-L; Luo, X-P; Liu, L; Du, M-L

    2011-10-01

    We describe current pubertal development in healthy urban Chinese boys. A cross-sectional study of the pubertal development of 18,807 urban Chinese boys aged from 3.50 to 18.49years was conducted between 2003 and 2005. Testicular volume was evaluated with a Prader orchidometer. Pubic hair development was assessed according to the Tanner method. Data on spermarche were collected using the status quo method. Probit analysis was used to calculate the median age and 95% CI at different stages of testicular development, pubic hair development and spermarche. By age 9, 12.99% of the boys had a testicular volume of 4mL or greater. The median age of onset of puberty defined as the age at attainment of testicular volume of 4mL or greater was 10.55 (95% CI 10.27-10.79) years. The median age for onset of pubic hair development (PH(2) ) and spermarche was 12.78 (95%CI 12.67-12.89) years and 14.05 (95%CI 13.80-14.32) years, respectively. Pubertal onset in urban Chinese boys is earlier than currently used clinical norms but their pubic hair development occurs relatively late in comparison with the reported data from numerous other countries. There is also evidence of a secular trend towards an earlier age of spermarche since 1979 in Chinese urban boys. © 2011 The Authors. International Journal of Andrology © 2011 European Academy of Andrology.

  2. Leading for Urban School Reform and Community Development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Green, Terrance L.

    2015-01-01

    Purpose: Improving urban schools of color and the communities where they are located requires leadership that spans school and community boundaries. The purpose of this study is to understand how principal and community leader actions support urban school reform along with community development at two community schools in the urban Midwest and…

  3. Role of environmental rights in the urban design of public places

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A.R. Sadeghi

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available In the current period, followed by the industrial revolution, the damaging effects of the one-dimensional attitude towards the environment caused by human have had countless hazards. To cope with these risks, the respect and protection of environmental values has attracted today's urban human attention once again and the issues about the human right to a decent, safe and healthy environment which is called briefly" environmental rights ", have widely been discussed. In fact, this research is formed on the basis of the principle that the right to a healthy environment, must be respected in the design of public spaces and the legal aspects of this principle must be considered in dealing with these spaces, so one of the necessary contexts to the conversion of today’s public spaces to valuable urban places would be provided. Therefore, in this study the human right to a healthy, safe and decent environment and the related concepts has been reviewed and the role of the environment in the process of transforming urban spaces to urban places has been discussed. This study also emphasizes on the role of the noise pollution of the urban public spaces as one of the threatening factors of the right to the environment, in the inefficiency and disorder in the process of the conversion of these spaces to public places and while reviewing the laws to reduce such pollution in urban public spaces, it stresses the necessity of considering these rules in designing the urban public spaces. This study uses descriptive and analytic research methodology and investigation techniques of literature review by using library studies.

  4. Spatiotemporal Patterns of Urbanization in a Developed Region of Eastern Coastal China

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jiadan Li

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available This study presents a practical methodology to monitor the spatiotemporal characteristics of urban expansion in response to rapid urbanization at the provincial scale by integrating remote sensing, urban built-up area boundaries, spatial metrics and spatial regression. Sixty-seven cities were investigated to examine the differences of urbanization intensity, urbanization patterns and urban land use efficiency in conjunction with the identification of socio-economic indicators and planning strategies. Planning proposals to allocate the urbanization intensity among different-sized cities by considering sustainable urban development were also explored. The results showed that the urban area of Zhejiang Province expanded from 31,380 ha in 1980 to 415,184 ha in 2010, indicating that the area of the urban region expanded to more than 13-times the initial urban area. The urban built-up area boundaries became more complex and irregular in shape as the urban area expanded throughout the entire study period. Rapid urban population growth and economic development were identified as significant in stimulating the urban expansion process. However, different-sized cities exhibited marked differences in urban development. Small cities experienced the rapidest urbanization before 2000. Large cities, which are estimated to have the highest urban land use efficiency, had the most dramatic sprawl in urban area at the beginning of the 21st century. Promoting the development of large cities to mega-cities is recommended in Zhejiang Province to ensure sustainable urban development with consideration of land resource preservation.

  5. The Challenge of Urban and Regional Development in the Future

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tedjo Suminto

    2004-01-01

    Full Text Available The task of development is part of the overall national task carried out along governance. This task has been entrusted to the government as a gradual long-term task, planning, and sustainable. Implied in it, the intention to achieve a better state. Contained within the dimension of time setting goals, achieving goals, and overall utilization of benefits for citizens throughout the country. Enshrined also be aware that there will be found a variety of difficulties, limitations, and problems that must be solved. The problems of urban development in Indonesia can be viewed from two approaches, namely macro and micro approaches. A macro approach urban problems are reviewed in the context of the region (national scale. While the approach is seen as a micro city neighborhoods. This problem is closely related to the natural growth of the city population and population migration. Based on research on urban and regional development, it can be concluded: 1 the problem of urbanization of rural and small towns to large cities should be addressed; 2 urban spatial arrangements should be improved to do with increasingly limited land for development and urban development; 3 the provision of facilities and infrastructure of the city, city management, and financing of urban development, integration between government, society, and the private sector should be increased; 4 study of urban models that can accommodate all the problems of the city should be developed continuously.

  6. Urban agriculture and poverty alleviation in developing countries ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Urban agriculture has served for a long time as a vital asset in the livelihood strategies of urban households in developing countries. It has been considered since then as a relevant input in responding to the embryonic economic situation of developing countries resulting to the structural adjustment programs and increasing ...

  7. Fifty Years of Water Sensitive Urban Design, Salisbury, South Australia

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    John C.Radcliffe; Declan Page; Bruce Naumann; Peter Dillon

    2017-01-01

    Australia has developed extensive policies and guidelines for the management of its water.The City of Salisbury,located within metropolitan Adelaide,South Australia,developed rapidly through urbanisation from the 1970s.Water sensitive urban design principles were adopted to maximise the use of the increased run-off generated by urbanisation and ameliorate flood risk.Managed aquifer recharge was introduced for storing remediated low-salinity stormwater by aquifer storage and recovery (ASR) in a brackish aquifer for subsequent irrigation.This paper outlines how a municipal government has progressively adopted principles of Water Sensitive Urban Design during its development within a framework of evolving national water policies.Salisbury's success with stormwater harvesting led to the formation of a pioneering water business that includes linking projects from nine sites to provide a non-potable supply of 5 × 106 m3 ·year-1.These installations hosted a number of applied research projects addressing well configuration,water quality,reliability and economics and facilitated the evaluation of its system as a potential potable water source.The evaluation showed that while untreated stormwater contained contaminants,subsurface storage and end-use controls were sufficient to make recovered water safe for public open space irrigation,and with chlorination,acceptable for third pipe supplies.Drinking water quality could be achieved by adding microfiltration,disinfection with UV and chlorination.The costs that would need to be expended to achieve drinking water safety standards were found to be considerably less than the cost of establishing dual pipe distribution systems.The full cost of supply was determined to be AUD$1.57 m-3 for non-potable water for public open space irrigation,much cheaper than mains water,AUD $3.45 m-3 at that time.Producing and storing potable water was found to cost AUD$1.96 to $2.24 m-3.

  8. Regulations in establishing and developing urban entities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ljubić Slavoljub C.

    2009-01-01

    Full Text Available The main topic of this work is to represent relatively new method of analyzing, planning and developing various projects in different architectural fields. The concept 'pattern' symbolizes a new view on objects and items that are already exist around us or those that will be created in the future. By explaining this concept, this work focus on describing 'pattern' as a new system or 'pattern language' that identifies foundation and development of unplanned cities. Every town or urban entity symbolizes 'pattern', but it is made from various 'patterns' as well. There are certain rules i.e. patterns that particular urban entities follow in order to establish themselves and 'pattern language' has been developed on that basis. The main purpose of this work is to emphasize this phenomenon and reveal the significance that 'patterns' have in urbanism development. Their understanding is of great importance so they can be implemented not only in theoretical but also in practical examination and analysis.

  9. Urban landscape as palimpsest

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Daniel-Gabriel Vâlceanu

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available The current urban morphology and the identity building of the city construction can be designed as a palimpsest; the spatial development stages of urban systems represent the result of their evolution over time. The characteristics of urban palimpsest depend mainly on the emergent factors that influenced the territorial dynamics and the configuration of urban bodies. Urban life and its quality are directly influenced by spatial and temporal factors of the city evolution. For this reason the study aims to achieve a research to explain the concept of urban palimpsest and the current morphology of urban tissue because they are products of landscape transformations along the history. The current knowledge on urban palimpsest characteristics is very important and useful to plan the current and future evolution of urban systems. The case study presents a vast view on the history of spatial development and urban system as well as a dynamics of the landscape interconditioned by the elements of such development in the context of reference historical eras

  10. VIRTUES, SINS AND THE “GOOD LIFE” – 10 ETHICAL APPROACHES TO URBAN DESIGN

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pedro Brandão

    2008-10-01

    Ethical approaches to Urban Design are being brought to light, in a range including good wishes, statements and proposed rules, before a true ethical reflection illuminates professional practices. In this lecture I’ll try to enlarge the scope of the matter; and to demonstrate how Urban Design has a relevance of altruism and joy.

  11. The Rapid Urban Growth Triad: A New Conceptual Framework for Examining the Urban Transition in Developing Countries

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kyle Farrell

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available Although the urban transition is a universal event that unfolds in all countries, the determinants, patterns, and outcomes do not necessarily follow a uniform process. With the urban transition being basically completed in developed countries around the turn of the 21st century, the growth of cities today is almost entirely confined to developing countries. Still, much of our conceptual understanding of this process is derived from earlier accounts, with definitions rooted in a historical context. This has resulted in common misconceptions such as a tendency to view the growth of cities primarily as an outcome of rural to urban migration, neglecting the growing contributions of urban natural population increase and reclassification of rural areas. A tendency to treat the components of urban growth in isolation has created a rift within the urban studies discourse, preventing any real theorization of their combined impacts and the interplay among them. Applying a systems thinking approach, this paper introduces a multidisciplinary framework for conceptualizing rapid urban growth in developing countries. The framework offers explanatory power to previously neglected components of urban growth and serves as a diagnostic for examining the urban transition—ultimately revealing new policy levers for managing it in a sustainable way.

  12. Coping with drought: the experience of water sensitive urban design ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    This study investigated the extent of Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) activities in the George Municipality in the Western Cape Province, South Africa, and its impact on water consumption. The WSUD approach aims to influence design and planning from the moment rainwater is captured in dams, to when it is treated, ...

  13. Population in urban development and the practical problems of urban planning policy in Africa

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Joseph Uyanga

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available The paper analyses the pattern of recent growth in African towns, examines the population component in this growth process and discusses the attendant urban planning problems. The contention in the study is that there are problems of definition. policy enunciation, and organisational co-ordination in the conceptualization. planning. orchestration and implementation of urban development and service systems. The magnitude of African urban developmental problems, and its multi-faceted nature demands that the latest in scientific knowledge and technological innovations should be integrated and incorporated into the urban planning and implementation processes.

  14. Optimal Spatial Design of Capacity and Quantity of Rainwater Catchment Systems for Urban Flood Mitigation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huang, C.; Hsu, N.

    2013-12-01

    This study imports Low-Impact Development (LID) technology of rainwater catchment systems into a Storm-Water runoff Management Model (SWMM) to design the spatial capacity and quantity of rain barrel for urban flood mitigation. This study proposes a simulation-optimization model for effectively searching the optimal design. In simulation method, we design a series of regular spatial distributions of capacity and quantity of rainwater catchment facilities, and thus the reduced flooding circumstances using a variety of design forms could be simulated by SWMM. Moreover, we further calculate the net benefit that is equal to subtract facility cost from decreasing inundation loss and the best solution of simulation method would be the initial searching solution of the optimization model. In optimizing method, first we apply the outcome of simulation method and Back-Propagation Neural Network (BPNN) for developing a water level simulation model of urban drainage system in order to replace SWMM which the operating is based on a graphical user interface and is hard to combine with optimization model and method. After that we embed the BPNN-based simulation model into the developed optimization model which the objective function is minimizing the negative net benefit. Finally, we establish a tabu search-based algorithm to optimize the planning solution. This study applies the developed method in Zhonghe Dist., Taiwan. Results showed that application of tabu search and BPNN-based simulation model into the optimization model not only can find better solutions than simulation method in 12.75%, but also can resolve the limitations of previous studies. Furthermore, the optimized spatial rain barrel design can reduce 72% of inundation loss according to historical flood events.

  15. A Mapping of Tools for Informing Water Sensitive Urban Design Planning Decisions—Questions, Aspects and Context Sensitivity

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lerer, Sara Maria; Arnbjerg-Nielsen, Karsten; Mikkelsen, Peter Steen

    2015-01-01

    Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) poses new challenges for decision makers compared with traditional stormwater management, e.g., because WSUD offers a larger selection of measures and because many measures are multifunctional. These challenges have motivated the development of many decision...

  16. The Urban Environment and Childhood Asthma (URECA birth cohort study: design, methods, and study population

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sandel Megan T

    2009-05-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background The incidence and morbidity of wheezing illnesses and childhood asthma is especially high in poor urban areas. This paper describes the study design, methods, and population of the Urban Environment and Childhood Asthma (URECA study, which was established to investigate the immunologic causes of asthma among inner-city children. Methods and Results URECA is an observational prospective study that enrolled pregnant women in central urban areas of Baltimore, Boston, New York City, and St. Louis and is following their offspring from birth through age 7 years. The birth cohort consists of 560 inner-city children who have at least one parent with an allergic disease or asthma, and all families live in areas in which at least 20% of the population has incomes below the poverty line. In addition, 49 inner-city children with no parental history of allergies or asthma were enrolled. The primary hypothesis is that specific urban exposures in early life promote a unique pattern of immune development (impaired antiviral and increased Th2 responses that increases the risk of recurrent wheezing and allergic sensitization in early childhood, and of asthma by age 7 years. To track immune development, cytokine responses of blood mononuclear cells stimulated ex vivo are measured at birth and then annually. Environmental assessments include allergen and endotoxin levels in house dust, pre- and postnatal maternal stress, and indoor air nicotine and nitrogen dioxide. Nasal mucous samples are collected from the children during respiratory illnesses and analyzed for respiratory viruses. The complex interactions between environmental exposures and immune development will be assessed with respect to recurrent wheeze at age 3 years and asthma at age 7 years. Conclusion The overall goal of the URECA study is to develop a better understanding of how specific urban exposures affect immune development to promote wheezing illnesses and asthma.

  17. Exploring the Design Space of Immersive Urban Analytics

    OpenAIRE

    Chen, Zhutian; Wang, Yifang; Sun, Tianchen; Gao, Xiang; Chen, Wei; Pan, Zhigeng; Qu, Huamin; Wu, Yingcai

    2017-01-01

    Recent years have witnessed the rapid development and wide adoption of immersive head-mounted devices, such as HTC VIVE, Oculus Rift, and Microsoft HoloLens. These immersive devices have the potential to significantly extend the methodology of urban visual analytics by providing critical 3D context information and creating a sense of presence. In this paper, we propose an theoretical model to characterize the visualizations in immersive urban analytics. Further more, based on our comprehensiv...

  18. The interaction between land subsidence and urban development in China

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Y. Yang

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available The Yangtze River Delta and North China Plain are experiencing serious land subsidence development and are also the areas that have undergone the fastest urbanization. Rapid urban development inevitably requires more water resources. However, China is a country with small per capita water resources, nonuniform distribution of water resources, and over-exploitation of groundwater – all of which are critical factors contributing to the potential for a land subsidence disaster. In addition, land subsidence has brought about elevation loss, damaged buildings, decreased safety of rail transit projects, lowered land value, and other huge economic losses and potential safety hazards in China. In this paper, Beijing, a typical northern Chinese city deficient in water, is taken as an example to explore (a the problems of urban development, utilization of water resources, and land subsidence development; (b the harm and influence of land subsidence hazards on urban construction; and (c the relationship between urban development and land subsidence. Based on the results, the author has predicted the trend of urban development and land subsidence in Beijing and puts forward her viewpoints and suggestions.

  19. Measuring the influence of the greening design of the building environment on the urban real estate market in Taiwan

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Chang, Kuei-Feng [Department of Real Estate Management, National Pingtung Institute of Commerce (China); Chou, Po-Cheng [Department of Interior Design, Shu-Te University, Kaohsiung County (China)

    2010-10-15

    To address the worsening problems of global warming and the urban heat island effect, ecological cities and building environment greening are being promoted in population-dense urban areas domestically and abroad. For example, the Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism announced the CASBEE-HI (Heat Island) assessment system in 2008 as a response to worsening urban warming and urban heat island effects. The Ministry implemented ''Building Space Greening Plans'' in Tokyo, Osaka, and other cities, enforcing by law the effective reduction of urban temperatures and improving urban living environments and alleviating the threat of urban ecological disasters. Therefore, this study integrates Taiwan domestic and foreign building space greening design, derived greening benefits, implementation promotion methods, and greening design policies as measurement constructs to examine the mutual influence between different constructs and to analyze the degree of influence on the urban real estate market. From the result, demonstrating that building space environment greening design does bring about positive benefits. In addition, the greening benefit was shown to have a positive impact on the urban real estate market. At the same time, greening promotion implementation method and urban policy standard both had a positive impact on the urban real estate market, demonstrating that government promotion of building environment greening design through urban design policy means is acceptable to the public. (author)

  20. Measuring the Development Patterns of Urban Villages in Shenzhen

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hao, P.; Geertman, S.C.M.; Hooimeijer, P.; Sliuzas, R.

    2011-01-01

    Urban villages are widespread in many Chinese cities, providing affordable and accessible housing for rural migrants. These urban villages are developed by the indigenous village population base on a self-help approach and in an unauthorized style. Consequently, urban villages are characterized by

  1. Urban Ideas From Around the World

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    Sun Liansheng

    2010-01-01

    @@ The Urban Best Practices Area (UBPA) of the World Expo in Shanghai aims to introduce various ongoing practices designed to improve the quality of urban life as global urbanization increases,and provide a platform for all the cities of the world to share and exchange experiences in urban management and development.

  2. A key and a hero : An essay on the current state of urban design

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Calabrese, L.M.

    2011-01-01

    This issue of Atlantis highlights the ‘old question’ of urban form and the role of Urban Design within it. This is not without reason. In the past decades remarkably negative opinions were voiced on the urban condition and particularly on public space. In the 1990s Michael Sorkin’s well known

  3. Planning Urban Development from an Outsider’s Perspective: Siem Reap, the Backdrop of Changing Urban Representations

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Adele Esposito

    2014-11-01

    Full Text Available This article explores the internationalization of urban planning in Siem Reap, the town situated as the gateway to the Archaeological Park of Angkor. After Angkor was listed as a World Heritage Site in 1992, international donors and consultants have been involved in the management of Siem Reap Province, where the archaeological park is located. Not only have they been engaged in the conservation and the enhancement of the  archaeological heritage, but they have also planned the future development of nearby Siem Reap. Foreign consultants, coming from Europe and East Asia, have tried to determine what the best suitable models and tools for the urban development of Siem Reap should be, while tourism development and foreign investments were constantly growing. No planning proposal implemented has been completely successful but, several teams of international consultants have carried out new plans that acknowledged the evolution of the urban context. In this article, I question the representation of urban space formulated by these plans and the way they were constructed by consultants coming from different cultural backgrounds and having specific objectives. The article describes how Siem Reap’s built heritage and recent urban phenomena are perceived and analyzes how internationally shared notions and principles (e.g., the discourse of “sustainable development” influence the imagination of future urban development. Faced with the failure of this series of plans, Siem Reap appears to be the backdrop to where evolving urban imagination takes place.

  4. The impact of urban open space and 'lift-up' building design on building intake fraction and daily pollutant exposure in idealized urban models.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sha, Chenyuan; Wang, Xuemei; Lin, Yuanyuan; Fan, Yifan; Chen, Xi; Hang, Jian

    2018-08-15

    Sustainable urban design is an effective way to improve urban ventilation and reduce vehicular pollutant exposure to urban residents. This paper investigated the impacts of urban open space and 'lift-up' building design on vehicular CO (carbon monoxide) exposure in typical three-dimensional (3D) urban canopy layer (UCL) models under neutral atmospheric conditions. The building intake fraction (IF) represents the fraction of total vehicular pollutant emissions inhaled by residents when they stay at home. The building daily CO exposure (E t ) means the extent of human beings' contact with CO within one day indoor at home. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations integrating with these two concepts were performed to solve turbulent flow and assess vehicular CO exposure to urban residents. CFD technique with the standard k-ε model was successfully validated by wind tunnel data. The initial numerical UCL model consists of 5-row and 5-column (5×5) cubic buildings (building height H=street width W=30m) with four approaching wind directions (θ=0°, 15°, 30°, 45°). In Group I, one of the 25 building models is removed to attain urban open space settings. In Group II, the first floor (Lift-up1), or second floor (Lift-up2), or third floor (Lift-up3) of all buildings is elevated respectively to create wind pathways through buildings. Compared to the initial case, urban open space can slightly or significantly reduce pollutant exposure for urban residents. As θ=30° and 45°, open space settings are more effective to reduce pollutant exposure than θ=0° and 15°.The pollutant dilution near or surrounding open space and in its adjacent downstream regions is usually enhanced. Lift-up1 and Lift-up2 experience much greater pollutant exposure reduction in all wind directions than Lift-up3 and open space. Although further investigations are still required to provide practical guidelines, this study is one of the first attempts for reducing urban pollutant exposure by

  5. Staged Optimization Design for Updating Urban Drainage Systems in a City of China

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kui Xu

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Flooding has been reported more often than in the past in most cities of China in recent years. In response, China’s State Council has urged the 36 largest cities to update the preparedness to handle the 50-year rainfall, which would be a massive project with large investments. We propose a staged optimization design for updating urban drainage that is not only a flexible option against environmental changes, but also an effective way to reduce the cost of the project. The staged cost optimization model involving the hydraulic model was developed in Fuzhou City, China. This model was established to minimize the total present costs, including intervention costs and flooding costs, with full consideration of the constraints of specific local conditions. The results show that considerable financial savings could be achieved by a staged design rather than the implement-once scheme. The model’s sensitivities to four data parameters were analyzed, including rainfall increase rate, flood unit cost, storage unit cost, and discount rate. The results confirm the applicability and robustness of the model for updating drainage systems to meet the requirements. The findings of this study may have important implications on urban flood management in the cities of developing countries with limited construction investments.

  6. The Relationship of Financial Development, Urbanization and Urban-Rural Income Gap: An Empirical Research Based on Provincial Panel Data in China

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shaowei Chen

    2014-04-01

    Full Text Available Financial development and the urbanization are important influence factors of the urban-rural income gap, and financial development can be measured by three main indexes which are financial scale, financial activities and financial efficiency. The financial development scale of China has obviously widened the urban-rural income gap. But rural financial activities have obvious effect on increasing farmers’ income, and the improvement of financial efficiency is helpful for narrowing the urban-rural income gap. The Kuznets effect between economic development and the urban-rural income gap has regional diversity. Besides that, the improvement of urbanization is also helpful for shorting the urban-rural income gap.

  7. Evaluating the Hydrologic Performance of Low Impact Development Scenarios in a Micro Urban Catchment

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Chunlin; Liu, Miao; Hu, Yuanman; Han, Rongqing; Shi, Tuo; Qu, Xiuqi; Wu, Yilin

    2018-01-01

    As urbanization progresses, increasingly impervious surfaces have changed the hydrological processes in cities and resulted in a major challenge for urban stormwater control. This study uses the urban stormwater model to evaluate the performance and costs of low impact development (LID) scenarios in a micro urban catchment. Rainfall-runoff data of three rainfall events were used for model calibration and validation. The pre-developed (PreDev) scenario, post-developed (PostDev) scenario, and three LID scenarios were used to evaluate the hydrologic performance of LID measures. Using reduction in annual runoff as the goal, the best solutions for each LID scenario were selected using cost-effectiveness curves. The simulation results indicated that the three designed LID scenarios could effectively reduce annual runoff volumes and pollutant loads compared with the PostDev scenario. The most effective scenario (MaxPerf) reduced annual runoff by 53.4%, followed by the sponge city (SpoPerf, 51.5%) and economy scenarios (EcoPerf, 43.1%). The runoff control efficiency of the MaxPerf and SpoPerf scenarios increased by 23.9% and 19.5%, respectively, when compared with the EcoPerf scenario; however, the costs increased by 104% and 83.6%. The reduction rates of four pollutants (TSS, TN, TP, and COD) under the MaxPerf scenario were 59.8–61.1%, followed by SpoPerf (53.9–58.3%) and EcoPerf (42.3–45.4%), and the costs of the three scenarios were 3.74, 3.47 and 1.83 million yuan, respectively. These results can provide guidance to urban stormwater managers in future urban planning to improve urban water security. PMID:29401747

  8. Land use planning for sustainable development of peri-urban zones

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Živanović-Miljković Jelena

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Taking into consideration that growth of urban population has impacts on land use and that managing urban population change is one of the most important contemporary challenges, this paper deals with the sustainable development of peri-urban zones which represent important an environment where employment opportunities are developed and resources exploited (particularly agricultural resources and environment where important recreational and leisure activities could be pursued. Within the review of current concepts and planning practices, the concepts of multifunctional agriculture and multifunctional landscapes in peri-urban zones are pointed out, as well as EU Developing Periurban Projects. The paper particularly focuses on the current situation in Serbia, where there is no specific legal basis for the planning of peri-urban areas, although there are positive examples of strategies, regulations and planning documents which treat agriculture and greenery in peri-urban zones in a sustainable manner.

  9. A city is not a building- architectural concepts for public square design in Dutch urban climate contexts

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Lenzholzer, S.

    2008-01-01

    This article elaborates on an architectural approach to urban design ¿ to the idea of `city as a building¿ in relation to user¿s perceptions and urban microclimate based on Dutch examples. A brief analysis of urban square design approaches in The Netherlands since WW II reveals a prominent tendency

  10. Bicycle traffic in urban areas

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Anđelković Zorica

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Cycling is a term describing the use of bicycles, but also any mean of transport driven solely by human power. Development of bicycle traffic in urban areas involves construction of cycling infrastructure, adapting streets and other traffic infrastructure to a form suitable for cycling and other means of transport (individual motorized traffic, public transport, walking, ensuring the adequate budget and systematic planning and development of sustainable transport in cities. The paper presents basic settings and conditions as input elements to plan bicycle traffic in urban areas, as well as program- design conditions which lead the activities of planners and designers of urban roads in connection with cyclists.

  11. Sustainable urban development and the multi-level transition perspective

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Næss, Petter; Vogel, Nina

    2012-01-01

    This article discusses some challenges and possible adaptations of transition theory as a framework for analyzing the prospects for environmentally more sustainable development of urban land use and transport infrastructure. Rather than depending first and foremost on niche innovations......, a transition toward sustainable urban development is a matter of changing the composition of existing multisegmented land use and transportation regimes. Those well-experienced forms of built environment and transport infrastructure that are in line with sustainability objectives should be strengthened while...... those that are not should be actively constrained and reduced. Urban development in a Danish provincial city is used as a case to illustrate some of the points made in the theoretical part of the article. Due to the wide gap between present conditions and those required to realize a sustainable urban...

  12. Toward a Research and Action Agenda on Urban Planning/Design and Health Equity in Cities in Low and Middle-Income Countries

    OpenAIRE

    Smit, Warren; Hancock, Trevor; Kumaresen, Jacob; Santos-Burgoa, Carlos; Sánchez-Kobashi Meneses, Raúl; Friel, Sharon

    2011-01-01

    The importance of reestablishing the link between urban planning and public health has been recognized in recent decades; this paper focuses on the relationship between urban planning/design and health equity, especially in cities in low and middle-income countries (LMICs). The physical urban environment can be shaped through various planning and design processes including urban planning, urban design, landscape architecture, infrastructure design, architecture, and transport planning. The re...

  13. Urban forest biomass estimates: is it important to use allometric relationships developed specifically for urban trees? 

    Science.gov (United States)

    M.R. McHale; I.C. Burke; M.A. Lefsky; P.J. Peper; E.G. McPherson

    2009-01-01

    Many studies have analyzed the benefits, costs, and carbon storage capacity associated with urban trees. These studies have been limited by a lack of research on urban tree biomass, such that estimates of carbon storage in urban systems have relied upon allometric relationships developed in traditional forests. As urbanization increases globally, it is becoming...

  14. Urban Big Data and Sustainable Development Goals: Challenges and Opportunities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ali Kharrazi

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available Cities are perhaps one of the most challenging and yet enabling arenas for sustainable development goals. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs emphasize the need to monitor each goal through objective targets and indicators based on common denominators in the ability of countries to collect and maintain relevant standardized data. While this approach is aimed at harmonizing the SDGs at the national level, it presents unique challenges and opportunities for the development of innovative urban-level metrics through big data innovations. In this article, we make the case for advancing more innovative targets and indicators relevant to the SDGs through the emergence of urban big data. We believe that urban policy-makers are faced with unique opportunities to develop, experiment, and advance big data practices relevant to sustainable development. This can be achieved by situating the application of big data innovations through developing mayoral institutions for the governance of urban big data, advancing the culture and common skill sets for applying urban big data, and investing in specialized research and education programs.

  15. Urban agriculture in the developing world: a review

    OpenAIRE

    Orsini , Francesco; Kahane , Remi; Nono-Womdim , Remi; Gianquinto , Giorgio

    2013-01-01

    International audience; The year 2007 marked a critical event in the world history. For the first time, more than half of the world population now lives in cities. In many developing countries, the urbanization process goes along with increasing urban poverty and polluted environment, growing food insecurity and malnutrition, especially for children, pregnant and lactating women; and increasing unemployment. Urban agriculture represents an opportunity for improving food supply, health conditi...

  16. Design of an urban driverless ground vehicle

    OpenAIRE

    Benenson , Rodrigo; Parent , Michel ,

    2008-01-01

    International audience; This paper presents the design and implementation of a driverless car for populated urban environments. We propose a system that explicitly map the static obstacles, detects and track the moving obstacle, consider the unobserved areas, provide a motion plan with safety guarantees and executes it. All of it was implemented and integrated into a single computer maneuvering on real time an electric vehicle into an unvisited area with moving obstacles. The overview of the ...

  17. Designing a spatial decision-support system to improve urban resilience to floods

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heinzlef, Charlotte; Ganz, François; Becue, Vincent; Serre, Damien

    2017-04-01

    increase of these observatories (Dolique, 2013), observatories which are focused on different fields as, risk observation (PACA regional risks observatory), environmental observation (Environmental virtual observatory), ecological observation (National ecological observatory), etc. Usually, an observatory focuses either on a scale (generally national or regional) or on a fact (risks, environment, energy, economy, etc) Our objective is to develop an observatory tested on the territory of Avignon, to design a tool for analyzing resilience according to indicators which would measure technical resilience (urban and suburban networks), urban resilience (buildings and critical infrastructures) and social resilience (knowledge of risk, memory of the disaster, perception of vulnerability). Our tool would be designed with the help of our socio-economic partner which is the city of Avignon, and would provide a clearer picture of the resilience for managers and inhabitants. It would be participatory and social insofar as, following the assessment of the existing resilience thanks to the indicators, it would be make the territory more resilient thanks to expert advices and participatory workshops for the inhabitants and managers.

  18. Using GIS for Developing Sustainable Urban Growth Case Kyrenia Region

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kara, C.; Akçit, N.

    2018-03-01

    It is critical to develop urban layers for analysis sustainable urban development possibilities within planning process. Kyrenia Region has many physical, environmental or economic issues that may danger the growth possibilities in sustainable manner. From this point, this study uses different spatial layers such as slope, distance to roads, distance to central zone, vegetation, soil productivity, environmental protection zones, distance to open/green space, distance to education for supporting sustainable urban growth policies and define suitable areas for urban development within this perspective. The study tries to convert sustainable urban growth policies such as; compact growth, environmental protection, equal accessibility to basic services; into spatial layers and establish proper framework for multi criteria evaluation in Kyrenia Region within using geographical information systems. It shows suitability values for Kyrenia region and constraints zones at final section. It clearly presents the suitable areas for the sustainable urbanization and also unsuitable or risky areas for reducing the possible disasters and may happen in the future.

  19. Designing integrated energy and spatial development for sustainable urban areas in the Northern Netherlands

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Zheng, Ling

    2006-01-01

    This study aims to reduce CO2 emission in an efficient way in urban areas by reducing conventional energy use and implementing renewable energy. The research urban area is Zuidlanden, located in the south of Leeuwarden in the north of the Netherlands. The

  20. Rural And Urban Youth Participation In Community Development In ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The focused on participation in community development activities, constraints to and benefits derived from participation. It compared rural and urban youth participation in community development activities in Ido local government area of Oyo State. Proportionate random sampling was used to select 2 rural, 1 urban ...

  1. Affective Urbanism

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Samson, Kristine

    Urban design and architecture are increasingly used as material and affective strategies for setting the scene, for manipulation and the production of urban life: The orchestration of atmospheres, the framing and staging of urban actions, the programming for contemplation, involvement, play......, experience and consumption are all strategic design tools applied by planners and architects. Whereas urban design in former modernist planning served merely functional or political means, urban design has increasingly become an aesthetical mediator of ideologies embedded in the urban field of life forces....... Under these circumstances affective aesthetics operate strategically within the urban field of interests, capital flows and desires of the social. This ‘affective urbanism’ (Anderson & Holden 2008) is linked to a society influenced by new kinds of information flows, where culture is mediated and enacted...

  2. CONTEMPORARY URBAN DEVELOPMENT IN CALABAR ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The result showed that the existing urban development spread could be reduced by more than 150% if the current trend of ... density at the core, people tend to seek for building lands at the .... of Wuhan, China, Yun (2011), showed that the.

  3. The influence of urban development and social mobility on socioeconomic level: The application of GIS on urban ecosystems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Suhaili Mansor, Nur; Zulhaidi Mohd Shafri, Helmi; Mansor, Shattri; Paradhan, Biswajeet

    2014-06-01

    Specifically, the integration between social sciences and natural science are fundamental in our understanding of the economic, social and technological transformations that have drastically changed the society. This study will be based on the municipality of Sungai Petani, Kedah as it has been most influenced by urbanization and urban development. Urban development in Sungai Petani is closely associated with a tremendous increase in demand for land, which is highly related to population growth, human movement and their social mobility. The qualitative case study taken will rely on the visual interpretation technique that would allow the researcher to develop a map of urban changes detection. The potential application of GIS information to estimate socioeconomic indicators and the modelling of socio-economic activities that are explored in this study is hoped to increase further our understanding of the impacts of development and urbanization on social life.

  4. The influence of urban development and social mobility on socioeconomic level: The application of GIS on urban ecosystems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mansor, Nur Suhaili; Shafri, Helmi Zulhaidi Mohd; Mansor, Shattri; Paradhan, Biswajeet

    2014-01-01

    Specifically, the integration between social sciences and natural science are fundamental in our understanding of the economic, social and technological transformations that have drastically changed the society. This study will be based on the municipality of Sungai Petani, Kedah as it has been most influenced by urbanization and urban development. Urban development in Sungai Petani is closely associated with a tremendous increase in demand for land, which is highly related to population growth, human movement and their social mobility. The qualitative case study taken will rely on the visual interpretation technique that would allow the researcher to develop a map of urban changes detection. The potential application of GIS information to estimate socioeconomic indicators and the modelling of socio-economic activities that are explored in this study is hoped to increase further our understanding of the impacts of development and urbanization on social life

  5. Urbanization, economic development and health: evidence from China's labor-force dynamic survey.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Hongsheng; Liu, Ye; Li, Zhigang; Xue, Desheng

    2017-11-29

    The frequent outbreak of environmental threats in China has resulted in increased criticism regarding the health effects of China's urbanization. Urbanization is a double-edged sword with regard to health in China. Although great efforts have been made to investigate the mechanisms through which urbanization influences health, the effect of both economic development and urbanization on health in China is still unclear, and how urbanization-health (or development-health) relationships vary among different income groups remain poorly understood. To bridge these gaps, the present study investigates the impact of both urbanization and economic development on individuals' self-rated health and its underlying mechanisms in China. We use data from the national scale of the 2014 China Labor-force Dynamics Survey to analyze the impact of China's urbanization and economic development on health. A total of 14,791 individuals were sampled from 401 neighborhoods within 124 prefecture-level cities. Multilevel ordered logistic models were applied. Model results showed an inverted U-shaped relationship between individuals' self-rated health and urbanization rates (with a turning point of urbanization rate at 42.0%) and a positive linear relationship between their self-rated health and economic development. Model results also suggested that the urbanization-health relationship was inverted U-shaped for high- and middle-income people (with a turning point of urbanization rate at 0.0% and 49.2%, respectively), and the development-health relationship was inverted U-shaped for high- and low-income people (with turning points of GDP per capita at 93,462 yuan and 71,333 yuan, respectively) and linear for middle-income people. The impact of urbanization and economic development on health in China is complicated. Careful assessments are needed to understand the health impact of China's rapid urbanization. Social and environmental problems arising from rapid urbanization and economic growth

  6. Space Applications in Support of Future Urban Development in Armenia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alhaddad, Bahaaeddin; Reppucci, Antonio; Moreno, Laura

    2016-08-01

    The fast growing of some cities has produced important changes in the urban sectors not always following sustainability criteria. As results, most urban growth falls outside formal planning controls and many cities suffer poor urban services management, traffic, and congestion, loss of green areas, poor air quality, and noise. The main advantages of satellite-based EO products are to support the decision-making process, and the development and operation of smart services. Satellite-based urban morphology analysis can help to identify the transformation of the urban development and evolution. The pilot presented here is a demonstration in the framework of the collaboration between ESA and ADB, called EOTAP "Earth Observation for a Transforming Asia Pacific". Aim of the pilot is to exploit satellite Earth observation data for sustainable growth and help preparing a series of city development and investment plans.

  7. A theoretical framework on CSR and urban development

    OpenAIRE

    Tsavdaridou, Maria; Metaxas, Theodore

    2015-01-01

    The role of enterprises in society is without doubt controversial nowadays due to the economic crisis. Although enterprises offer infrastructures, jobs, innovative solutions to local communities their primary goal is profit in order to be competitive and sustainable. This article examines the implementation of urban development projects under the CSR strategy and provides case studies of European enterprises that offered successful urban development projects in their local communities. There...

  8. Urban pattern: Layout design by hierarchical domain splitting

    KAUST Repository

    Yang, Yongliang; Wang, Jun; Vouga, Etienne; Wonka, Peter

    2013-01-01

    We present a framework for generating street networks and parcel layouts. Our goal is the generation of high-quality layouts that can be used for urban planning and virtual environments. We propose a solution based on hierarchical domain splitting using two splitting types: streamline-based splitting, which splits a region along one or multiple streamlines of a cross field, and template-based splitting, which warps pre-designed templates to a region and uses the interior geometry of the template as the splitting lines. We combine these two splitting approaches into a hierarchical framework, providing automatic and interactive tools to explore the design space.

  9. Urban pattern: Layout design by hierarchical domain splitting

    KAUST Repository

    Yang, Yongliang

    2013-11-06

    We present a framework for generating street networks and parcel layouts. Our goal is the generation of high-quality layouts that can be used for urban planning and virtual environments. We propose a solution based on hierarchical domain splitting using two splitting types: streamline-based splitting, which splits a region along one or multiple streamlines of a cross field, and template-based splitting, which warps pre-designed templates to a region and uses the interior geometry of the template as the splitting lines. We combine these two splitting approaches into a hierarchical framework, providing automatic and interactive tools to explore the design space.

  10. Actors and processes behind urban fringe development: Mechanism to guide urban land management. Study on Dhaka, Bangladesh

    OpenAIRE

    Masum, Fahria

    2009-01-01

    This thesis has attempted to analyze and resolve urban fringe problems in Dhaka by incorporating different roles and interests of actors in land development processes. The research has revealed that these different actors have different interests, norms and ideologies which are playing an active role in guiding or regulating urban land development process. This situation is deploying existing rules and regulations in form of politics and affecting urban fringe management negatively. The resea...

  11. Converging social classes through humanized urban edges

    Science.gov (United States)

    Abuan, M. V.; Galingan, Z. D.

    2017-10-01

    Urban open spaces are created to be used by people. It is a place of convergence and social activity. However, these places have transformed into places of divergence. When spaces become dehumanized, it separates social classes. As a result, underused spaces contribute to urban decay. Particularly an urban edge, the JP Rizal Makati Waterfront Area is the center of this paper. The JP Rizal Makati Waterfront Area is a waterfront development situated along the banks of one of Metro Manila’s major water thoroughfare --- Pasig River. The park and its physical form, urban design and landscape tend to deteriorate over time --- creating a further division of social convergence. Social hostility, crime, negligent maintenance and poor urban design are contributing factors to this sprawling decay in what used to be spaces of bringing people together. Amidst attempts to beautify and renew this portion of Makati City’s edge, the urban area still remains misspent.This paper attempts to re-humanize the waterfront development. It uses the responsive environment design principles to be able to achieve this goal.

  12. Urbanization and economic development: a bias toward large cities?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moomaw, R L; Shatter, A M

    1996-01-01

    "We find that a nation's urban population percentage increases with GDP per capita; industrialization; export orientation; and possibly, foreign assistance. It decreases with the importance of agriculture. Industrialization and agricultural importance have the same implications for the concentration of urban population in cities with 100,000+ population as for the urban percentage. Greater export orientation reduces such concentration. Finally, GDP per capita, population, and export orientation reduce primacy. Political factors, such as whether a country's largest city is also its capital, affect primacy. Our results do not seem to imply that developing-country urbanization today differs fundamentally from urbanization in the past." excerpt

  13. AN EVALUATION TO IDENTIFY THE BARRIERS TO THE FEASIBILITY OF URBAN DEVELOPMENT PLANS: FIVE DECADES OF EXPERIENCE IN URBAN PLANNING IN IRAN

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mohammad Javad Maghsoodi Tilaki

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available The rapid urbanization in many developing countries has indicat ed several challenges in different aspects. This is due t o inefficient urban planning ap proaches towards managing the development process. Similar to many other developing count ries, Iran has experienced rapid urbanization in recent decades. Although over the last few decades, urban planning processes have been applied to develop Iranian c ities, urban planning has failed to tackle the challenges facing the cities. This paper s eeks to identify the barriers that have prevented Iranian c ities from achieving the goals of urban planning. The purpose of this paper is to provide a comprehensive review of the curre nt literature on the concept of urban planning and to assess the urban development plan proc ess in Iranian cities. The required data were collected through a review of international theoretical studies, Iranian experimental research and governmental reports. The findings of this study reveal five major barriers to the feasibility of the urban planning process , including the urban plans context, structure of urban pla nning, related law and regulatio ns, public participation, and financial resources.

  14. [Urban ecosystem services: A review].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mao, Qi-zheng; Huang, Gan-lin; Wu, Jian-guo

    2015-04-01

    Maintaining and improving ecosystem services in urban areas and human well-being are essential for sustainable development and therefore constitute an important topic in urban ecology. Here we reviewed studies on ecosystem services in urban areas. Based on the concept and classification of urban ecosystem services, we summarized characteristics of urban ecosystem services, including the human domination, high demand of ecosystem services in urban areas, spatial heterogeneity and temporal dynamics of ecosystem services supply and demand in urban areas, multi-services of urban green infrastructures, the socio-economic dimension of ecosystem services supply and ecosystem disservices in urban areas. Among different urban ecosystem services, the regulating service and cultural service are particularly indispensable to benefit human health. We pointed out that tradeoffs among different types of ecosystem services mostly occur between supportive service and cultural service, as well as regulating service and cultural service. In particular, we emphasized the relationship between landscape design (i.e. green infrastructure) and ecosystem services supply. Finally, we discussed current gaps to link urban ecosystem services studies to landscape design and management and pointed out several directions for future research in urban ecosystem services.

  15. Driving Force Filtering and Driving Mechanism Analysis of Urban Agricultural Development in Weifang County, China

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    SUI Fei-fei

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available As an agricultural nation, the agricultural landscape is the basic appearance and existence in China, but the common existence often be neglected and contempted. As a new type of design and ideology, the development of urban agricultural landscape will greatly affect the texture and structure of the urban space. According to the urban agricultural production data and the socio-economic data of Weifang County, a set of evaluation index system that could analyze quantitatively the driving force of urban agricultural production changes and the internal drive mechanism was built. The original driving force indicators of economy, society, resources and environment from the time-series were chosen, and then 15 driving forces from the original driving forces by correlation analysis and principal component analysis were selected. The degree of influence was analyzed and the driving forces model by means of partial least squares(PLS was built. The results demonstrated that the factors greatly influenced the increase of urban agricultural output value in Weifang County were per capita net income of rural residents, agricultural machinery total power, effective irrigation area, centralized treatment rate of urban sewage, with the driving exponents 0.2509, 0.1019, 0.1655, 0.1332, respectively. The negative influence factor was the use amount of agricultural plastic film and the driving exponent was-0.2146. The research provides a reference for the development of urban agriculture, as well as a reference for the related study.

  16. Urbanization and the Geography of Development

    OpenAIRE

    Henderson, J. Vernon

    2013-01-01

    This paper focuses on several interrelated key questions on the geography of development. Although we herald cities with their industrial bases as 'engines of growth,' does industrialization in fact drive urbanization?1 What economic activities do cities of different sizes undertake? Does this change as countries develop? If so, what are the policy implications? Do development policies hav...

  17. Urban river design and aesthetics: A river restoration case study from the UK

    OpenAIRE

    Prior, Jonathan

    2016-01-01

    This paper analyses the restoration of an urbanized section of the River Skerne where it flows through a suburb of Darlington, England; a project which was one of the first comprehensive urban river restorations undertaken in the UK. It is shown how aesthetic values were central to the identification of the River Skerne as a site for restoration, the production of restoration objectives, and a design vision of urban river renewal via restoration. Secondly, the means by which these aesthetic v...

  18. Urban drainage design and climate change adaptation decision making

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Zhou, Qianqian

    response impacts in the context of hydrological extremes are considered while the added intangible values (e.g. recreational amenities due to a nice blue-green neighbourhood) of adaptation options are often ignored or underestimated. In order to facilitate the development and implementation of water...... the benefits of provision of positive environmental values and the preservation of water resources. It is found that neglecting intangible values in climate adaptation assessment can easily bias the decision making; the reframed approach hence provide an important tool for assessment of additional benefits...... and costs of such innovative solutions. The thesis points towards an integrated framework for urban drainage adaptation design considering climate change effects and adaptation benefits and costs. The case studies show how the proposed framework can be utilized to manage the anticipated climate change risks...

  19. ICUD-0471 Weather radar rainfall for design of urban storm water systems

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Thorndahl, Søren Liedtke; Wright, D. B.; Nielsen, Jesper Ellerbæk

    2017-01-01

    Long continuous series of high-resolution radar rainfall series provides valuable information on spatial and temporal variability of rainfall, which can be used in design of urban drainage systems. In design of especially large drainage systems with complex flow patterns (and potentially surface ...

  20. Urban Planning and Sustainable Development in The 21st Century, Conceptual and Management Issues

    Science.gov (United States)

    Azpeitia Santander, Arturo; Azkarate Garai-Olaun, Agustín

    2016-10-01

    their aim to establish a sustainable dialogue to clear the complex equation between historical city and development. With a view to try to answer these and other questions, this paper sets out need to design comprehensive urban policy and legislative frameworks coordinated, and sets out proposals regarding the development of acceptable change limitation methods and indicators, and the application of the concept of buffer zones to the conservation of urban heritage that can become the basis for urban management policies and models.

  1. The Woof and the Warp of Architecture: The Figure-Ground in Urban Design

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    B.D. Wortham-Galvin

    2014-08-01

    Full Text Available To borrow a metaphor used by Georg W.F. Hegel in the Philosophy of History to describe historical processes, architecture should be understood as a series of complex threads wherein one recognizes the physical forms as the warp, and the temporal, socio-political, natural, and aural contexts as the woof. Fabric is asserted as a concept broader than the immediate spatial and physical situation in which individual buildings are located; and, the threads of the fabric are all of those elements that aid in making the built environment both a designed and lived experience.In order to discuss this proposed understanding of fabric, this paper will look at how drawings informed the process and theory of urban design in the mid- to late-twentieth century. The discussion will focus on the origins of the Nolli plan and its 'rediscovery' by the Cornell School and their use of the figure-ground as a primary tool in the formulation of an urban design theory. The trajectory of the figure-ground can reinvigorate contemporary urban design praxis once more by reasserting drawing as more than mere illustration but as a means to conceptualize design methodologies that support a holistic notion of fabric.

  2. Climate-sensitive urban design through Envi-Met simulation: case study in Kemayoran, Jakarta

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kusumastuty, K. D.; Poerbo, H. W.; Koerniawan, M. D.

    2018-03-01

    Indonesia as a tropical country which the character of its climate are hot and humid, the outdoor activity applications are often disrupted due to discomfort in thermal conditions. Massive construction of skyscrapers in urban areas are caused by the increase of human population leads to reduced green and infiltration areas that impact to environmental imbalances and triggering microclimate changes with rising air temperatures on the surface. The area that significantly experiences the rise of temperature in the Central Business District (CBD), which has need an analysis to create thermal comfort conditions to improve the ease of outdoor activities by an approach. This study aims to design the Kemayoran CBD through Climate Sensitive Urban Design especially in hot and humid tropical climate area and analyze thermal comfort level and optimal air conditioning in the outdoor area. This research used a quantitative method by generating the design using Climate Sensitive Urban Design principle through Envi-met 4.1 simulation program to find out the value of PMV, air temperature, wind speed and relative humidity conditions. The design area considers the configuration of buildings such as the distance between buildings, the average height, the orientation of the building, and the width of the road.

  3. Decades of urban growth and development on the Asian megadeltas

    Science.gov (United States)

    Small, Christopher; Sousa, Daniel; Yetman, Gregory; Elvidge, Christopher; MacManus, Kytt

    2018-06-01

    The current and ongoing expansion of urban areas worldwide represents the largest mass migration in human history. It is well known that the world's coastal zones are associated with large and growing concentrations of population, urban development and economic activity. Among coastal environments, deltas have long been recognized for both benefits and hazards. This is particularly true on the Asian megadeltas, where the majority of the world's deltaic populations reside. Current trends in urban migration, combined with demographic momentum suggest that the already large populations on the Asian megadeltas will continue to grow. In this study, we combine recently released gridded population density (circa 2010) with a newly developed night light change product (1992 to 2012) and a digital elevation model to quantify the spatial distribution of population and development on the nine Asian megadeltas. Bivariate distributions of population as functions of elevation and coastal proximity quantify potential exposure of deltaic populations to flood and coastal hazards. Comparison of these distributions for the Asian megadeltas show very different patterns of habitation with peak population elevations ranging from 2 to 11 m above sea level over a wide range of coastal proximities. Over all nine megadeltas, over 174 million people reside below a peak population elevation of 7 m. Changes in the spatial extent of anthropogenic night light from 1992 to 2012 show widely varying extents and changes of lighted urban development. All of the deltas except the Indus show the greatest increases in night light brightness occurring at elevations <10 m. At global and continental scales, growth of settlements of all sizes takes the form of evolving spatial networks of development. Spatial networks of lighted urban development in Asia show power law scaling properties consistent with other continents, but much higher rates of growth. The three largest networks of development in China all

  4. Implications of Urban Development-Induced Resettlement on Poor ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    They are moved away from their areas of work, their social networks .... for Urban Development and Urban Good Governance (FDRE 2007) discusses the three pillars ... about their experiences of past practices of resettlement. ..... women and single-headed families, empowering such families to enable them to engage in ...

  5. Comparison of the impacts of urban development and climate change on exposing European cities to pluvial flooding

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    P. Skougaard Kaspersen

    2017-08-01

    resembles present-day design, while it is updated in the evolutionary approach to correspond to changes in imperviousness and precipitation intensities due to urban development and climate change respectively. For all four cities, we find an increase in flood exposure corresponding to an observed absolute growth in impervious surfaces of 7–12 % during the past 30 years of urban development. Similarly, we find that climate change increases exposure to pluvial flooding under both the RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5 scenarios. The relative importance of urban development and climate change on flood exposure varies considerably between the cities. For Odense, the impact of urban development is comparable to that of climate change under an RCP 8.5 scenario (2081–2100, while for Vienna and Strasbourg it is comparable to the impacts of an RCP 4.5 scenario. For Nice, climate change dominates urban development as the primary driver of changes in exposure to flooding. The variation between geographical locations is caused by differences in soil infiltration properties, historical trends in urban development and the projected regional impacts of climate change on extreme precipitation. Developing the capacity of the urban drainage system in relation to urban development is found to be an effective adaptation measure as it fully compensates for the increase in run-off caused by additional sealed surfaces. On the other hand, updating the drainage system according to changes in precipitation intensities caused by climate change only marginally reduces flooding for the most extreme events.

  6. Comparison of the impacts of urban development and climate change on exposing European cities to pluvial flooding

    Science.gov (United States)

    Skougaard Kaspersen, Per; Høegh Ravn, Nanna; Arnbjerg-Nielsen, Karsten; Madsen, Henrik; Drews, Martin

    2017-08-01

    -day design, while it is updated in the evolutionary approach to correspond to changes in imperviousness and precipitation intensities due to urban development and climate change respectively. For all four cities, we find an increase in flood exposure corresponding to an observed absolute growth in impervious surfaces of 7-12 % during the past 30 years of urban development. Similarly, we find that climate change increases exposure to pluvial flooding under both the RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5 scenarios. The relative importance of urban development and climate change on flood exposure varies considerably between the cities. For Odense, the impact of urban development is comparable to that of climate change under an RCP 8.5 scenario (2081-2100), while for Vienna and Strasbourg it is comparable to the impacts of an RCP 4.5 scenario. For Nice, climate change dominates urban development as the primary driver of changes in exposure to flooding. The variation between geographical locations is caused by differences in soil infiltration properties, historical trends in urban development and the projected regional impacts of climate change on extreme precipitation. Developing the capacity of the urban drainage system in relation to urban development is found to be an effective adaptation measure as it fully compensates for the increase in run-off caused by additional sealed surfaces. On the other hand, updating the drainage system according to changes in precipitation intensities caused by climate change only marginally reduces flooding for the most extreme events.

  7. Website applications in urbanism and architecture

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Furundžić Danilo S.

    2003-01-01

    Full Text Available In the context of rapid technology development, followed by Internet spreading worldwide, the amount of information related to urbanism and architecture has remarkably increased. This paper lists a website selection with the aim to present the state of Internet based information sources on urbanism and architecture. The idea is to help colleagues cope with numerous available on-line contents. The websites are, according to their contents, classified into following categories: associations and institutions, international documents, urban planning and design, information and communication technologies in urbanism, on-line available magazines and books, civic networks, architectural design, famous architects and best examples.

  8. Perspective loads of transformer substations at development of urban power supply systems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Svetlana Guseva

    2012-06-01

    Full Text Available In work the system approach to formation of the urban power supply system is given. The hierarchical structure of the construction, voltage levels and load densities is considered. The mathematical and geometrical modeling of service areas for transformer substations of diff erent voltage is fulfi lled. Determination of perspective loads of transformer substations is given. The method of graphic placement of transformer substations in the city territory for new substations at existing structure of networks is off ered. The calculation program Microsoft EXCEL and the graphic program AutoCad are used for realization of method. The method allows fi nding a rational decision for the development of urban power supply system on the beginning design stages in conditions of the information uncertainty.

  9. Urban green areas as the starting point for planning hydroelectric and urban developments: The case of the Sava River in the City of Ljubljana

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Aleš Mlakar

    2008-01-01

    Full Text Available The article deals with the landscape and urbanistic layout of the Sava River space and North part of the Bežigrad stretch of Ljubljana. Focus is on methodological and content starting points for the layout preparation and development of urban green areas of the wider Sava River space, which as a connecting link and simultaneously independent spatial and functional entity represents the starting point for planning hydro-energetic and urban arrangements. The necessity of recognising and resolving real spatial planning issues, formulation of clear goals and concepts, confrontation of different spatial systems and interests, as well as the sensibility of devising alternative development scenarios are emphasised. One of the most important starting points of the proposed layout is comprehensive design of public open spaces and green areas. The urbanistic solution relies on a programmatically strong, distinct and structured Dunajska Street, which should transform into the public space of a modern urban artery, with a clear ending that simultaneously gradually adapts to the morphology akin to the surroundings and Sava River space. Because of its natural characteristics, preserved cultural landscape and good accessibility, this area has great potential for development of leisure activities. The proposed solution stems from the fact that the chain of hydro-electric plants shouldn't be seen as buildings with negative environmental effects, but also as development opportunities – the actual execution of a recreation area along the Sava River and a method for rehabilitating the degraded spaces. Comprehensive solutions along the river have been proposed as parts of the hydro-electric developments, with special attention focusing on active design of various riverbank types.

  10. Self-organized criticality and urban development

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Michael Batty

    1999-01-01

    Full Text Available Urban society is undergoing as profound a spatial transformation as that associated with the emergence of the industrial city two centuries ago. To describe and measure this transition, we introduce a new theory based on the concept that large-scale, complex systems composed of many interacting elements, show a surprising degree of resilience to change, holding themselves at critical levels for long periods until conditions emerge which move the system, often abruptly, to a new threshold. This theory is called ‘self-organized criticality’; it is consistent with systems in which global patterns emerge from local action which is the hallmark of self-organization, and it is consistent with developments in system dynamics and their morphology which find expression in fractal geometry and weak chaos theory. We illustrate the theory using a unique space–time series of urban development for Buffalo, Western New York, which contains the locations of over one quarter of a million sites coded by their year of construction and dating back to 1773, some 60 years before the city began to develop. We measure the emergence and growth of the city using urban density functions from which measures of fractal dimension are used to construct growth paths of the way the city has grown to fill its region. These phase portraits suggest the existence of transitions between the frontier, the settled agricultural region, the centralized industrial city and the decentralized postindustrial city, and our analysis reveals that Buffalo has maintained itself at a critical threshold since the emergence of the automobile city some 70 years ago. Our implied speculation is: how long will this kind of urban form be maintained in the face of seemingly unstoppable technological change?

  11. A New Urban Agenda: Introduction to the Special Issue on “Sustainable Urban Development”

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Steffen Lehmann

    2015-07-01

    Full Text Available Since the start of the 21st century, humanity has been a predominantly urban species. This Special Issue is about the future of cities and how urbanization will develop when based on principles of sustainability. It explores the underlying dimensions of the transformation of existing cities and the design of low carbon green precincts and their urban systems. The view of the papers presented in this Special Issue is holistic and takes questions of social sustainability into account. This editorial highlights the contents and methodologies of 13 selected papers, while presenting diverse issues in strategies, concepts and policies for sustainable urban development.

  12. Improving Climate and Achievement in a Troubled Urban High School through the Talent Development Model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McPartland, James; Balfanz, Robert; Jordan, Will; Legters, Nettie

    1998-01-01

    A case study of a large nonselective urban high school in Baltimore (Maryland) describes the design and implementation of a comprehensive package of school reforms, the Talent Development Model with Career Academies. Qualitative and quantitative evidence is provided on significant improvements in school climate, student attendance, promotion…

  13. URBAN SPRAWL AND SUSTAINABLE CITY DEVELOPMENT IN NIGERIA

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rosemary Nnaemeka-Okeke

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available Urban environmental problems are of different dimensions and are mostly due to geologic, climatic and cultural factors. However, the cultural factors seems to be more pronounced in the Nigerian context because most of the identified urban environmental issues are so much associated with the way of life of the people, either as reactions to urbanization or their spatial heritage. Their effects are far reaching on efforts to attain sustainable development in the country. Since no section of the country’s urban environment is immune to environmental effects, there is urgent need to seek workable solutions by the application of planning, economic, legal, institutional and educational tools as have been suggested here.

  14. Mass balance-based regression modeling of PAHs accumulation in urban soils, role of urban development

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Peng, Chi; Wang, Meie; Chen, Weiping; Chang, Andrew C.

    2015-01-01

    We investigated the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) contents in 68 soils samples collected at housing developments that represent different length of development periods across Beijing. Based on the data, we derived a mass balanced mathematical model to simulate the dynamics of PAH accumulations in urban soils as affected by the urban developments. The key parameters were estimated by fitting the modified mass balance model to the data of PAH concentrations vs. building age of the sampling green area. The total PAH concentrations would increase from the baseline of 267 ng g −1 to 3631 ng g −1 during the period of 1978–2048. It showed that the dynamic changes in the rates of accumulations of light and heavy PAH species were related to the shifting of sources of fuels, combustion efficiencies, and amounts of energy consumed during the course of development. - Highlights: • Introduced a mass balance model for soil PAHs accumulation with urbanization. • Reconstructed the historical data of PAH accumulation in soil of Beijing, China. • The soil PAH concentrations would be doubled in the following 40 years. • The composition of PAH emissions were shifting to light PAH species. - Introduced a regression modeling approach to predict the changes of PAH concentrations in urban soil

  15. Research on assessment methods for urban public transport development in China.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zou, Linghong; Dai, Hongna; Yao, Enjian; Jiang, Tian; Guo, Hongwei

    2014-01-01

    In recent years, with the rapid increase in urban population, the urban travel demands in Chinese cities have been increasing dramatically. As a result, developing comprehensive urban transport systems becomes an inevitable choice to meet the growing urban travel demands. In urban transport systems, public transport plays the leading role to promote sustainable urban development. This paper aims to establish an assessment index system for the development level of urban public transport consisting of a target layer, a criterion layer, and an index layer. Review on existing literature shows that methods used in evaluating urban public transport structure are dominantly qualitative. To overcome this shortcoming, fuzzy mathematics method is used for describing qualitative issues quantitatively, and AHP (analytic hierarchy process) is used to quantify expert's subjective judgment. The assessment model is established based on the fuzzy AHP. The weight of each index is determined through the AHP and the degree of membership of each index through the fuzzy assessment method to obtain the fuzzy synthetic assessment matrix. Finally, a case study is conducted to verify the rationality and practicability of the assessment system and the proposed assessment method.

  16. Designing urban parks that ameliorate the effects of climate change

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Brown, R.D.; Vanos, J.; Kenny, N.; Lenzholzer, S.

    2015-01-01

    Many inhabitants of cities throughout the world suffer from health problems and discomfort that are caused by overheating of urban areas, and there is compelling evidence that these problems will be exacerbated by global climate change. Most cities are not designed to ameliorate these effects

  17. Development of urban runoff model FFC-QUAL for first-flush water-quality analysis in urban drainage basins.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hur, Sungchul; Nam, Kisung; Kim, Jungsoo; Kwak, Changjae

    2018-01-01

    An urban runoff model that is able to compute the runoff, the pollutant loadings, and the concentrations of water-quality constituents in urban drainages during the first flush was developed. This model, which is referred to as FFC-QUAL, was modified from the existing ILLUDAS model and added for use during the water-quality analysis process for dry and rainy periods. For the dry period, the specifications of the coefficients for the discharge and water quality were used. During rainfall, we used the Clark and time-area methods for the runoff analyses of pervious and impervious areas to consider the effects of the subbasin shape; moreover, four pollutant accumulation methods and the washoff equation for computing the water quality each time were used. According to the verification results, FFC-QUAL provides generally similar output as the measured data for the peak flow, total runoff volume, total loadings, peak concentration, and time of peak concentration for three rainfall events in the Gunja subbasin. In comparison with the ILLUDAS, SWMM, and MOUSE models, there is little difference between these models and the model developed in this study. The proposed model should be useful in urban watersheds because of its simplicity and its capacity to model common pollutants (e.g., biological oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand, Escherichia coli, suspended solids, and total nitrogen and phosphorous) in runoff. The proposed model can also be used in design studies to determine how changes in infrastructure will affect the runoff and pollution loads. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

  18. COORDINATES OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF TOURISM IN URBAN AREA

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Carmen-Maria IORDACHE

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Internationally, urban tourism began to develop gradually from the '80s, nowadays being a distinct form of tourism whose importance is increasing. Thus, there were concerns about specific facilities for different categories of visitors and their harmonization with the demands of caring for the smooth functioning of urban settlements. By adding tourism to the local economy inventory activities of an urban area, it can be considered a catalyst and a reviving factor for strengthening urban cities especially because it represents an important source of income and it is responsible for creating thousands of jobs. Given the need to adapt to the demands of tourists, this paper attempts to clarify some issues related to content, characteristics and influencing factors of urban tourism, but also the adoption of policies for exploitation through tourism of the specific elements of urban space and urban tourism prospects.

  19. URBAN COMMUNITY RESPONSES TO VISUAL APPROPRIATE THEMATIC DESIGN, SUPER HERO PARK BANDUNG

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dian Duhita

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Parks is one of city public area that serves as a communal place for city community. On another perspective, parks is an architectural design that is designed with an aesthetic element to attract. Bandung, since a few years was to make improvements in various sectors, especially in the public space. Through the slogan Creative City, Bandung City Government revived communities part of the citizens by providing place for a activities, creation and production. Thematic Parks became one of the alternative approaches responsive design as part of creative cities development. Object of research study object is Super Hero park. The purpose of research is to analyzing the response of communities to design a thematic park. The study was conducted with a qualitative approach through participation observation method. The scope of the research includes visual appropriate and city community response. The conclussion obtain that visual appropriate are in accordance with the theme. Urban Community was able to respond well the identity of Super Hero park with visual appropriate design.

  20. Ljubljana – phases of urban development

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Aleksander Jakoš

    2006-01-01

    Full Text Available At the end of the Second World War there were approximately 100.000 people living in the compact part of Ljubljana. A period of rapid population development ensued (urbanisation because of immigration from other parts of Slovenia and later from various regions of the former Yugoslav Republics. This period is marked by numerous new housing estates and early stagnation of the old city core. A period ob sub-urbanisation followed and city expansion along the main roads, interspersed with poor quality building and illegal development. Costly renewal of old buildings, diminished construction of housing estates and high prices of building land triggered the flight of city dwellers (de-urbanisation and caused non-urban development in neighbouring municipalities (secondary urbanisation. By rehabilitation of the old city centre and attempts at revitalisation Ljubljana is trying re-urbanise itself. The flight of the younger population, caused by limited offer of housing, still remains the main problem that furthermore causes increased volumes of daily commuting and congestion in the city centre caused by parked vehicles. The tally of increased population during the last decade to small neighbouring municipalities, caused by flight from Ljubljana, is 20.000, while the population of Ljubljana is decreasing. With its quarter of a million inhabitants, Ljubljana is the third smallest capital city of Europe (without the “pocket” states. The main issue in the neighbouring municipalities is expressively non-urban development, meaning that too much land is used and the utilities infrastructure threshold is not met. The present division of the Ljubljana metropolitan region truly calls for a Strategy of spatial development, at least on the level of the Ljubljana urban region.

  1. Urban public space materials. Maintenance and design?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Manuel Iglesias Campos

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available In this paper, certain aspects related to the conservation of materials commonly used in the design of public spaces are analysed and discussed from a starting point of maintenance definition. The main area of discussion is whether materials selection for pavements and urban furniture, and their placement in the designed space, take into account their maintenance needs. Here the definition of maintenance is the cleaning and repair done by municipal services that is always necessary after construction. From certain examples it can be concluded that, in several cases, the form, the organization and the distribution of the different elements within the public space can cause difficulties for its appropriate conservation, giving rise to alterations and consequently having a negative impact on the durability of this space.

  2. Rural-urban migration and socioeconomic development in Ghana: some discussions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Twumasi-ankrah, K

    1995-01-01

    This article presents a discussion of rural-urban migration as a source of social and behavioral change in Ghana. It explores the extent to which the urban social environment in Ghana generates conflicts for migrants with a different value orientation and the degree of influence of the urban social environment on migrants' behavior. The first part of the discussion focuses on the nature of Ghana's urbanization process, the motivation and characteristics of rural-urban migrants, and the nature of the social interaction between migrants and the social urban environment. Migrants contribute directly and indirectly to rural development in many ways. Some urban migrants achieve economic and material wealth and, through their attachment to voluntary tribal associations, assist local community development. Government can augment this process of migrant investment in rural life by identifying these actions as patriotic efforts and awarding citizenship medals or challenge grants. Governments need to review their citizenship laws carefully in light of the "brain drain" issues in the new world order and maximize the flow of resources, technical skills, and ideas from international migrants. A high-quality rural labor force can be enticed to live in rural areas by offering higher salaries and benefits, low income tax rates, better housing, and rural electrification and sanitation. Private firms should be offered incentives to locate in rural areas and increase employment opportunities for rural labor. Career advancement of development planners should be tied to program success or some form of public accountability for careful allocation of resources in rural areas. Fertility policies should be sensitive to urban subgroups. Urban and rural social differences are minor and do not impede urban assimilation, but unemployment and underemployment are problems for many.

  3. Sustainable Urban Transport in the Developing World: Beyond Megacities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dorina Pojani

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available Megacities have frequently received a disproportionate amount of attention over other sizes of cities in recent discourse on urban sustainability. In this article, the authors argue that a focus on smaller and medium-sized cities is crucial to achieving substantial progress towards more sustainable urban development, not only because they are home to at least a quarter of the world’s population but because they also offer great potential for sustainable transformations. In principle, their size allows for flexibility in terms of urban expansion, adoption of “green” travel modes, and environmental protection. At the same time, smaller and medium-sized cities often have fewer resources to implement new transport measures and can be more vulnerable to fluctuations in the world economy. This article critically reviews the potential role and impact of nine commonly considered options for sustainable urban transport in cities in developing countries: (1 road infrastructure; (2 rail-based public transport; (3 road-based public transport; (4 support for non-motorized travel modes; (5 technological solutions; (6 awareness-raising campaigns; (7 pricing mechanisms; (8 vehicle access restrictions; and (9 control of land-uses. Drawing on international research and examples of policies to reduce the environmental impacts of transport in urban areas, this article identifies some key lessons for sustainable urban transport in smaller and medium-sized cities in developing countries. These lessons are certainly not always identical to those for megacities in the global south.

  4. Enhanced Effects of Flood Disasters Due to Hillside Development in Urban Areas

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wei-Hsien Teng

    2013-02-01

    Full Text Available In recent years, the Taiwan government has established a number of flood control facilities such as dikes, pumping stations and drainage systems to effectively reduce downstream flooding. However, with continued development and urbanization of catchment areas, the original designs of most flood control facilities have become outdated. Hillside lands in the upper and middle reaches of river basins have undergone urban development through unsound engineering practices, paving the way for heavy downstream flooding. Therefore, proper river basin management should include both upstream and downstream sides. The main purpose of the paper is to simulate non-urban inundation areas with various degrees of development (0%, 10%, 20%, 40% and 60%, over two different return periods of 25 years and 200 years, for intensive rainfall events in the Shi-Chi District, Taiwan. Through hydrological analysis and numerical simulations of inundation, quantitative data on inundation potential have been established based on the land development conditions along the hillsides on the upper and middle reaches of the Keelung River Basin. The simulated results show that the increase in the extent of land development in the upper reaches causes an increase in the area and depth of inundation, resulting in an increased risk of flooding in downstream areas. If the land-use policy makers in the upper reaches of the river basin’s hillsides do not properly manage the land development, the risk of flooding in downstream areas will increase. In such an event, the policy makers should first review the situation to understand the problem with the consideration of this study. Thus, proper development and flood mitigation in hillsides can be established.

  5. Multi-Temporal Multi-Sensor Analysis of Urbanization and Environmental/Climate Impact in China for Sustainable Urban Development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ban, Yifang; Gong, Peng; Gamba, Paolo; Taubenbock, Hannes; Du, Peijun

    2016-08-01

    The overall objective of this research is to investigate multi-temporal, multi-scale, multi-sensor satellite data for analysis of urbanization and environmental/climate impact in China to support sustainable planning. Multi- temporal multi-scale SAR and optical data have been evaluated for urban information extraction using innovative methods and algorithms, including KTH- Pavia Urban Extractor, Pavia UEXT, and an "exclusion- inclusion" framework for urban extent extraction, and KTH-SEG, a novel object-based classification method for detailed urban land cover mapping. Various pixel- based and object-based change detection algorithms were also developed to extract urban changes. Several Chinese cities including Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou are selected as study areas. Spatio-temporal urbanization patterns and environmental impact at regional, metropolitan and city core were evaluated through ecosystem service, landscape metrics, spatial indices, and/or their combinations. The relationship between land surface temperature and land-cover classes was also analyzed.The urban extraction results showed that urban areas and small towns could be well extracted using multitemporal SAR data with the KTH-Pavia Urban Extractor and UEXT. The fusion of SAR data at multiple scales from multiple sensors was proven to improve urban extraction. For urban land cover mapping, the results show that the fusion of multitemporal SAR and optical data could produce detailed land cover maps with improved accuracy than that of SAR or optical data alone. Pixel-based and object-based change detection algorithms developed with the project were effective to extract urban changes. Comparing the urban land cover results from mulitemporal multisensor data, the environmental impact analysis indicates major losses for food supply, noise reduction, runoff mitigation, waste treatment and global climate regulation services through landscape structural changes in terms of decreases in service area, edge

  6. Child health inequities in developing countries: differences across urban and rural areas.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fotso, Jean-Christophe

    2006-07-11

    To document and compare the magnitude of inequities in child malnutrition across urban and rural areas, and to investigate the extent to which within-urban disparities in child malnutrition are accounted for by the characteristics of communities, households and individuals. The most recent data sets available from the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) of 15 countries in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) are used. The selection criteria were set to ensure that the number of countries, their geographical spread across Western/Central and Eastern/Southern Africa, and their socioeconomic diversities, constitute a good yardstick for the region and allow us to draw some generalizations. A household wealth index is constructed in each country and area (urban, rural), and the odds ratio between its uppermost and lowermost category, derived from multilevel logistic models, is used as a measure of socioeconomic inequalities. Control variables include mother's and father's education, community socioeconomic status (SES) designed to represent the broad socio-economic ecology of the neighborhoods in which families live, and relevant mother- and child-level covariates. Across countries in SSA, though socioeconomic inequalities in stunting do exist in both urban and rural areas, they are significantly larger in urban areas. Intra-urban differences in child malnutrition are larger than overall urban-rural differentials in child malnutrition, and there seem to be no visible relationships between within-urban inequities in child health on the one hand, and urban population growth, urban malnutrition, or overall rural-urban differentials in malnutrition, on the other. Finally, maternal and father's education, community SES and other measurable covariates at the mother and child levels only explain a slight part of the within-urban differences in child malnutrition. The urban advantage in health masks enormous disparities between the poor and the non-poor in urban areas of SSA. Specific

  7. Quantitative assessment of urban transport development – a spatial approach

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Czech Artur

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available Urban transport is considered the basis of properly functioning cities and their development. The main aim of the paper is to attempt the assessment of urban transport development in selected voivodeships (provinces as a crucial factor of macro logistics. The research also aimed to identify the underdeveloped areas of urban transport in Poland as the basis for the implementation of support policy. The source of information in the investigation process was data drawn from the Central Statistical Office in Poland for 2013–2016. In the scope of dealing with the research problem, chosen classical and order multivariate statistical measures were implemented into the research process. Next, the taxonomic measures for the years of interest served as the basis for the construction of the total (general synthetic measure applicable to the entire period. The main results and findings of the research indicate that the level of urban transport development is correlated with the whole transportation system which affects the socio-economic development of some regions of Poland. The research can lead to a better understanding of Polish urban transportation development in selected regions. Hence, the results can be helpful in the investment process and for shaping the right transportation policy to improve the use of financial resources.

  8. Can additional urban development have major impacts on streamflow of a peri-urban catchment? A case study from Portugal

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ferreira, Carla; Walsh, Rory; Nunes, João; Steenhuis, Tammo; de Lima, João; Coelho, Celeste; Ferreira, António

    2016-04-01

    It is well known that urban development brings about changes in hydrological response. Relatively little, however, is known about impacts on streamflow during urban development in the Mediterranean climate. This paper examines changes in streamflow resulting from the construction of an enterprise park, a major road and apartment blocks in a small partially urbanized peri-urban catchment (6.2 km2) in central Portugal. These developments led to an increase in urban area from 32% to 40% over a five-year period (hydrological years 2008/09-2012/13). In the initial two-year period minor land-use changes increased impervious surfaces from 12.8% to 13.2%. The subsequent three-year period led to a further 17.2% increase in impervious area. Streamflow was recorded by a V-notch weir at the catchment outlet. Rainfall was recorded at a weather station 0.5km north of the catchment, and by five tipping-bucket raingauges installed in January 2011 within the study catchment. Annual runoff and storm runoff coefficients ranged from 14% to 21% and 9% to 14%, respectively, recorded in 2011/12 and 2012/13. Although these differences in runoff were caused in part by variation in rainfall, the comparison between 2009/10 (pre-) and 2012/13 (post-additional urban development), with broadly similar rainfall (887mm vs 947mm, respectively) and evapotranspiration (740mm vs 746mm), showed a 43% increase in storm runoff (from 90mm to 129mm), resulting from additional overland flow generated largely by the 4.4% increase in impervious surfaces. The additional urban development also led to changes in hydrograph parameters. The increase in storm runoff was not progressive over the study period, but regression lines of storm runoff against rainstorm parameters exhibited higher vertical positions in 2012/13 than 2008/09. Increasing peak flows, however, were more progressive over the study period, with annual regression lines displaying higher vertical positions, but with a clear distance between pre

  9. Do Transit-Oriented Developments (TODs) and Established Urban Neighborhoods Have Similar Walking Levels in Hong Kong?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lu, Yi; Gou, Zhonghua; Xiao, Yang; Sarkar, Chinmoy; Zacharias, John

    2018-03-20

    A sharp drop in physical activity and skyrocketing obesity rate has accompanied rapid urbanization in China. The urban planning concept of transit-oriented development (TOD) has been widely advocated in China to promote physical activity, especially walking. Indeed, many design features thought to promote walking-e.g., mixed land use, densification, and well-connected street network-often characterize both TODs and established urban neighborhoods. Thus, it is often assumed that TODs have similar physical activity benefits as established urban neighborhoods. To verify this assumption, this study compared walking behaviors in established urban neighborhoods and transit-oriented new towns in Hong Kong. To address the limitation of self-selection bias, we conducted a study using Hong Kong citywide public housing scheme, which assigns residents to different housing estates by flat availability and family size rather than personal preference. The results show new town residents walked less for transportation purpose than urban residents. New town residents far from the transit station (800-1200 m) walked less for recreational purpose than TOD residents close to a rail transit station (transit stations.

  10. Effect of vegetation on urban climate and healthy urban colonies

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Raza, S.H.; Murthy, M.S.R.; Bhagya Lakshmi, O.; Shylaja, G. (Ecology and Environmental Biology Lab., Dept. of Botany, Osmania Univ., Hyderabad (India))

    1991-01-01

    The role of plants in developing a healthy atmosphere is very desirable in the context of deteriorating environment resulting from increased urbanization, industrialization and improper environmental management. This investigation has attempted to screen plants for their ability to improve the design and development of healthy environments around buildings and urban centres of Hyderabad. Ability index values were computed on the basis of canopy area, physiological characters of trees growing in polluted environments, pollution stress and population load. Azadirachta indica, Pithecolobium dulce and Cassia fistula are suggested for plantations around buildings and urban centres for minimizing pollution. Certain susceptible trees like Pongamia glabra and Polyalthia longifolia have been suggested in the diagnosis and investigation of air quality through biological means. (orig.).

  11. Urbanism and energy in developing regions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Meier, R.L.; Berman, S.; Dowell, D.

    1978-03-01

    The pace of urbanization must continue, because in most parts of the world the surplus population in the countryside has nowhere else to go. The world is about 40% urban now and apparently headed for the 80 to 90% share of the total population presently exhibited by the developed countries. Thus, the 1.6 billion urban dwellers in 1978 would become about 3 billion in 1995--if major catastrophes can be avoided. Feasibility assessments for Sao Paulo-Rio de Janeiro, Calcutta, Cairo-Alexandria, Mexico City, and Seoul are presented in the appendices. This analysis-from-a-distance is insufficient to judge how much extra installed electrical generating capacity is required before 1995, the added refining capability for liquid fuels, or the uses for new LNG and coal imports due to be arranged. It is evident that energy (and perhaps also water in most regions) planning is the major determinant of the manner in which these urban areas will adapt to the extraordinary pressures for new settlement. The current round of planning in such metropolitan areas has been addressed to solving traffic-congestion problems, and reorganizing land use in central districts, as the most-pressing issues. Since energy sources and distribution systems now affect the largest and most crucial investments in urban growth it is to be expected that future metropolitan planning may concentrate upon energy efficiency. Energy supplies must be planned to meet requirements set by locally dominant values regarding human services and the environment.

  12. Simulation-based design of a steerable acoustic warning device to increase (H)EV detectability while reducing urban noise pollution

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Van Genechten, B.; Berkhoff, Arthur P.

    2014-01-01

    This paper describes the simulation-based design methodology used in the eVADER project for the development of targeted acoustic warning devices for increased detectability of Hybrid and Electric Vehicles (HEVs) while, at the same time, reducing urban noise pollution compared to conventional

  13. Pupil initiatives in urban nature trail development: PMB MOSS and ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    A brief background to Greenbelt and urban nature trail development in Pietermaritzburg is provided. Negotiations and procedures initiated by standard 9 pupils in stimulating authorities and the public to recognise the need for urban trail development and metropolitan open space (MOSS) are outlined. long-term ...

  14. Rebuild by Design in Hoboken: A Design Competition as a Means for Achieving Flood Resilience of Urban Areas through the Implementation of Green Infrastructure

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Robert Šakić Trogrlić

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available The Rebuild by Design (RBD competition was launched after the devastating impact of Hurricane Sandy, and the winning designs have put a significant emphasis on green infrastructure (GI as a means of achieving flood resilience in urban areas. Previous research in the field of urban stormwater management indicates that wide-spread implementation of GI remains a challenge, largely due to a lack of understanding of the required governance approaches. Therefore, by using a case study of Hoboken, for which the winning design was developed, this paper explores whether RBD provides governance structures and processes needed for the uptake of GI. Semi-structured interviews and desk study provided the data for an analysis of the presence of factors for supporting the transformative governance needed to facilitate the uptake of innovative solutions. Results indicate that RBD brought a greater change in terms of governance processes when compared to governance structures. In Hoboken, RBD created a narrative for long-term change, put GI as a preferred solution for tackling multiple challenges, and strengthened the local political buy-in. However, pitfalls were observed, such as limited funding provision, lack of regulatory compliance, economic justification and large investments required from public and private parties. The absence of these factors can hinder the overall uptake of the GI solution. Even though the design competition presents a novel approach to the field of resilience development, further steps should be made in understanding how the RBD methodology can be adjusted to provide results of equal quality in different settings (e.g., less developed regions, different governance contexts.

  15. Developing micro-level urban ecosystem indicators for sustainability assessment

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dizdaroglu, Didem, E-mail: dizdaroglu@bilkent.edu.tr

    2015-09-15

    Sustainability assessment is increasingly being viewed as an important tool to aid in the shift towards sustainable urban ecosystems. An urban ecosystem is a dynamic system and requires regular monitoring and assessment through a set of relevant indicators. An indicator is a parameter which provides information about the state of the environment by producing a quantitative value. Indicator-based sustainability assessment needs to be considered on all spatial scales to provide efficient information of urban ecosystem sustainability. The detailed data is necessary to assess environmental change in urban ecosystems at local scale and easily transfer this information to the national and global scales. This paper proposes a set of key micro-level urban ecosystem indicators for monitoring the sustainability of residential developments. The proposed indicator framework measures the sustainability performance of urban ecosystem in 3 main categories including: natural environment, built environment, and socio-economic environment which are made up of 9 sub-categories, consisting of 23 indicators. This paper also describes theoretical foundations for the selection of each indicator with reference to the literature [Turkish] Highlights: • As the impacts of environmental problems have multi-scale characteristics, sustainability assessment needs to be considered on all scales. • The detailed data is necessary to assess local environmental change in urban ecosystems to provide insights into the national and global scales. • This paper proposes a set of key micro-level urban ecosystem indicators for monitoring the sustainability of residential developments. • This paper also describes theoretical foundations for the selection of each indicator with reference to the literature.

  16. Development of Sub-Daily Intensity Duration Frequency (IDF) Curves for Major Urban Areas in India

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ali, H.; Mishra, V.

    2014-12-01

    Extreme precipitation events disrupt urban transportation and cause enormous damage to infrastructure. Urban areas are fast responding catchments due to significant impervious surface. Stormwater designs based on daily rainfall data provide inadequate information. We, therefore, develop intensity-duration-frequency curves using sub-daily (1 hour to 12 hour) rainfall data for 57 major urban areas in India. While rain gage stations data from urban areas are most suitable, but stations are unevenly distributed and their data have gaps and inconsistencies. Therefore, we used hourly rainfall data from the Modern Era Retrospective-analysis for Research and Applications (MERRA), which provides a long term data (1979 onwards). Since reanalysis products have uncertainty associated with them we need to enhance their accuracy before their application. We compared daily rain gage station data obtained from Global Surface Summary of Day Data (GSOD) available for 65 stations for the period of 2000-2010 with gridded daily rainfall data provided by Indian Meteorological Department (IMD). 3-hourly data from NOAA/Climate Prediction Center morphing technique (CMORPH), Precipitation Estimation from Remotely Sensed Information using Artificial Neural Networks (PERSIANN), and the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) Multisatellite Precipitation Analysis (TMPA) were aggregated to daily for comparison with GSOD station data . TMPA is found to be best correlated with GSOD data. We used TMPA data to correct MERRA's hourly precipitation, which were applied to develop IDF curves. We compared results with IDF curves from empirical methods and found substantial disparities in the existing stormwater designs in India.

  17. Sustainable Urban Biophilia: The Case of Greenskins for Urban Density

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Grant Revell

    2014-08-01

    Full Text Available Green infrastructure ameliorates the urban heat island effect, contributes positively to liveability and enables sustainability in higher density urban environments. Greenskins (living architectures are a more specific form of green infrastructure, including green walls and green roofs, for dense urban areas. These offer a new approach for sustainable urban biophilia and some forms can be built using the ecological design principles of constructed wetlands. The paper compares findings from two urban centres in warm Mediterranean climates. In general from Adelaide, South Australia and more specifically from university collaborative projects on particular technical and social parameters necessary to sustain Greenskins in dense urban conditions in Fremantle, Western Australia. Results from trials of a prototype greywater Greenskin using vertical constructed wetland cells are reported. Through an experimental investigation of designing living green walls in urban Fremantle, this paper challenges the conventional “triple-bottom-line” approach to sustainable dense urban systems by addressing the greater aesthetic needs of sustainability and its thinking. Here landscape aesthetics looks to the collaborative fields of urban design, environmental engineering and landscape architecture to design new urban biophilic experiences and restorative landscapes for regenerative cultural pleasure, ecological responsibility, environmental stewardship and intellectual gain.

  18. Sustainability certification systems as guidelines for early-phase urban design processes

    OpenAIRE

    Jensen, Lotte Bjerregaard; Bjerre, Lærke; Mansfelt, Lise

    2016-01-01

    The German Sustainable Building Council (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Nachhaltiges Bauen or DGNB) has one of the most comprehensive sustainability certification systems for urban districts (UD). Their explicit aim is that the system should impact the very earliest design decisions. The Technical University of Denmark has tested the DGNB-UD system in two experimental design projects for similar locations to find out how it can be used in the early-phase design process. This paper describes these ...

  19. Towards sustainable urban communities

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Haapio, Appu

    2012-01-01

    Requirements for the assessment tools of buildings have increased, assessing of building components or separate buildings is not enough. Neighbourhoods, built environment, public transportations, and services, should be considered simultaneously. Number of population living in urban areas is high and increasing rapidly. Urbanisation is a major concern due to its detrimental effects on the environment. The aim of this study is to clarify the field of assessment tools for urban communities by analysing the current situation. The focus is on internationally well known assessment tools; BREEAM Communities, CASBEE for Urban Development and LEED for Neigborhood Development. The interest towards certification systems is increasing amongst the authorities, and especially amongst the global investors and property developers. Achieved certifications are expected to bring measureable publicity for the developers. The assessment of urban areas enables the comparison of municipalities and urban areas, and notably supports decision making processes. Authorities, city planners, and designers would benefit most from the use of the tools during the decision making process. - Highlights: ► The urban assessment tools have strong linkage to the region. ► The tools promote complementary building and retrofitting existing sites. ► Sharing knowledge and experiences is important in the development of the tools.

  20. The garden and the layered landscape: landscape urbanism through the lens of garden design

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    de Wit, S.I.; Dahl, Caroline; Diedrich, Lisa; Lindholm, Gunilla; Vicenzotti, Vera; Vogel, Nina

    2016-01-01

    In the era of globalization, also landscape architects and urban designers have learnt to think big–in large scales and far-reaching visions. Landscape is called upon as the model and the medium of urbanism, feeding into a grand narrative of saving the day when architecture as the ordering principle

  1. Performative Urban design

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kiib, Hans

    2010-01-01

    inner cities have been freed for new uses. This has created the basis for environmental improvements and a stronger, more diverse urban life. It is now possible to build new housing complexes and offices on the waterfront and in abandoned industrial areas; investments in cultural centers, cafes, and new...

  2. Challenges of urbanization and peri-urban development in Europe

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nielsen, Thomas Alexander Sick; Nilsson, Kjell Svenne Bernhard

    2010-01-01

    Urbanisation has arguably been the most significant process of land use change in Europe since Second World War. Over 70% of Europe's population now lives in urban areas, which in turn, have grown in area by almost 80% over the last fifty years (EEA 2006). Urban areas cover approximately five...... percent of the territory of the European Union (EU25), and are growing more than twice as fast as the European population. A general consequence of the urbanisation trend and increasing wealth and mobility is urban sprawl, as well as the emergence of peri-urban areas....

  3. MANAGING PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT IN PERI-URBAN AREAS OF KUMASI, GHANA: A CASE OF ABUAKWA

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Paul Amoateng

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available A remarkable trait of the 21 st century has been the high rate of urbanization which has characterized the growth and development of cities especially in developing countries. This situation has fuelled rapid physical development and expansion of peri-urban areas as urban dwellers relocate to cities’ peripheries. Focusing on Abuakwa a peri-urban area in Kumasi, the second largest city in Ghana, this paper assesses the nature and extent of physical development in peri-urban areas, and identifies the factors contributing to the rapid development of peri-urban areas. The paper further examines the effects of the increasing physical growth on the development of peri-urban Abuakwa. Using a case study approach, both primary and secondary sources of data were collected from decentralized government institutions of Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA and Atwima Nwabiagya District Assembly (ANDA, as well as indigenes and relocated urban dwellers in Abuakwa. The paper reveals that the outward drift has manifested itself in an increased scramble for land for residential and commercial purposes in the peri-urban area. The resultant effect has been the fast and spontaneous physical development in the urban periphery which has significantly altered the peri-urban morphology. The paper recommends the establishment of Customary Land Secretariat (CLS to co-ordinate allocation of land, and the application of settlement growth management approaches to ensure the creation of a functional city and liveable peri-urban areas.

  4. Promoting and developing a trail network across suburban, rural, and urban communities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schasberger, Michele G; Hussa, Carol S; Polgar, Michael F; McMonagle, Julie A; Burke, Sharon J; Gegaris, Andrew J

    2009-12-01

    The Wyoming Valley Wellness Trails Partnership received an Active Living by Design grant late in 2003 for a project centered on a growing trail network linking urban, suburban, and rural communities in northeast Pennsylvania, a former coal region, in order to increase physical activity among residents. The partnership conducted research, collected information, created promotional documents, worked with partners on events and programs, and participated in trail planning. Local trail organizations continued planning and construction toward developing a trail network. Other partners spearheaded policy change in schools and worksites and worked toward downtown revitalization. The partnership assisted these efforts by providing a forum in which organizations could meet. The partnership became a central resource for information about local parks, trails, and outdoor recreational activities. The partnership increased awareness and use of recreational facilities. Trail partners constructed 22 miles of walking and biking trails. The partnership took advantage of an allied effort that created organizational capacity for wellness in schools and worksites. Messages promoting social and entertainment benefits of physical activity were more successful than those promoting health benefits. The existence of multiple small, independent trail organizations can help advance trail development through concurrent development efforts. Urban, suburban, and rural residents' conceptions of walkability may differ. Trails provide options for recreational and transportation-related physical activity across urban, suburban, and rural landscapes that are supported by all constituents. Trail builders can be strong allies in bringing active living to suburban and rural places.

  5. Logos, Ethos, Pathos, and Ecos: Neighborhood Housing Design Research and Development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Abell, John H.

    2010-01-01

    This article presents an overview of a community-based teaching and learning project linking sustainability, working family housing, neighborhood social capital, and urban design research and development. The article foregrounds principles and protocols that can be used to measure community effectiveness and it highlights a basis for further…

  6. Urban Slums and Children's Health in Less-Developed Countries

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andrew K. Jorgenson

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available We utilize first-difference panel regression analysis to assess the direct effect of urban slumprevalence on national level measures of under-5 mortality rates over the period 1990 to 2005.Utilizing data on 80 less developed countries, the results illustrate increasing urban slumprevalence over the period is a robust predictor of increasing child mortality rates. This effectobtains net the statistically significant influence of gross domestic product per capita, fertilityrate, and educational enrollment. Cross-sectional analyses for 2005 that include additionalcontrols provide further evidence of the mortality / urban slum relationship. The results confirmurban slum prevalence growth is an important contextual dynamic whereby the socialproduction of child mortality is enacted in the less developed countries.

  7. Phytoremediative urban design: transforming a derelict and polluted harbour area into a green and productive neighbourhood.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wilschut, M; Theuws, P A W; Duchhart, I

    2013-12-01

    Many urban areas are polluted by industrial activities and waste disposal in landfills. Since conventional soil remediation techniques are costly and unsustainable, phytoremediation might offer an alternative. In this article, we explore how phytoremediation can be integrated into the transformation of urban post-industrial areas, while improving public space. Buiksloterham, a polluted and deprived industrial area in Amsterdam, serves as case study. Buiksloterham is polluted with heavy metals, with Zinc (Zn) concentrations being the highest. A regression-model for Alpine Pennycress (Thlaspi caerulescens) is used to estimate the time needed to remediate the site. This reveals a conflict in time between remediation and urban development. A research by design experiment shows how to overcome this conflict by dealing with polluted soil innovatively while emphasizing spatial and aesthetic qualities of the phytoremediation plant species. The resulting landscape framework integrates phytoremediation with biomass production and gives new ecological, economic and social value to Buiksloterham. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  8. Influences of Different Land Use Spatial Control Schemes on Farmland Conversion and Urban Development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhou, Min; Tan, Shukui; Zhang, Lu

    2015-01-01

    Land use planning is always officially implemented as an effective tool to control urban development and protect farmland. However, its impact on land use change remains untested in China. Using a case study of Hang-Jia-Hu region, the main objective of this paper was to investigate the influence of different land use spatial control schemes on farmland conversion and urban development. Comparisons of farmland conversion and urban development patterns between the urban planning area and the non-urban planning area were characterized by using remote sensing, geographical information systems, and landscape metrics. Results indicated that farmland conversion in the non-urban planning area was more intensive than that in the urban planning area, and that farmland patterns was more fragmented in the non-urban planning area. Built-up land patterns in the non-urban planning area showed a trend of aggregation, while those in the urban planning area had a dual trend of fragmentation and aggregation. Existing built-up areas had less influence on built-up land sprawl in the non-urban planning area than that in the urban planning area. Built-up land sprawl in the form of continuous development in the urban planning area led to farmland conversion; and in the non-urban planning area, built-up land sprawl in the form of leapfrogging development resulted in farmland areal declines and fragmentation. We argued that it is a basic requirement to integrate land use plans in urban and non-urban planning areas for land use planning and management. PMID:25915897

  9. Influences of different land use spatial control schemes on farmland conversion and urban development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhou, Min; Tan, Shukui; Zhang, Lu

    2015-01-01

    Land use planning is always officially implemented as an effective tool to control urban development and protect farmland. However, its impact on land use change remains untested in China. Using a case study of Hang-Jia-Hu region, the main objective of this paper was to investigate the influence of different land use spatial control schemes on farmland conversion and urban development. Comparisons of farmland conversion and urban development patterns between the urban planning area and the non-urban planning area were characterized by using remote sensing, geographical information systems, and landscape metrics. Results indicated that farmland conversion in the non-urban planning area was more intensive than that in the urban planning area, and that farmland patterns was more fragmented in the non-urban planning area. Built-up land patterns in the non-urban planning area showed a trend of aggregation, while those in the urban planning area had a dual trend of fragmentation and aggregation. Existing built-up areas had less influence on built-up land sprawl in the non-urban planning area than that in the urban planning area. Built-up land sprawl in the form of continuous development in the urban planning area led to farmland conversion; and in the non-urban planning area, built-up land sprawl in the form of leapfrogging development resulted in farmland areal declines and fragmentation. We argued that it is a basic requirement to integrate land use plans in urban and non-urban planning areas for land use planning and management.

  10. Energy and sustainable urban transport development in China: Challenges and solutions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhang, Xilang; Hu, Xiaojun

    2002-01-01

    This paper presents an overview of urban road transport development and challenges in energy consumption in China. It relates sustainable urban road transport development with energy consumption and environmental management. It analyzes the main challenges related to urban road transport development: energy security, low efficiency in energy utilization, and unsustainable environmental management. It also discusses necessary technological and policy initiatives to deal with these challenges: e.g., promoting the development and dissemination of cleaner vehicle technologies, substitution of LPG, CNG, LNG and bio fuels for gasoline and diesel, strengthening regulations on vehicle emissions, expediting public transport development, and the effective management of the soaring private cars. (author)

  11. Energy and sustainable urban transport development in China: Challenges and solutions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zhang, Xilang; Hu, Xiaojun

    2002-07-01

    This paper presents an overview of urban road transport development and challenges in energy consumption in China. It relates sustainable urban road transport development with energy consumption and environmental management. It analyzes the main challenges related to urban road transport development: energy security, low efficiency in energy utilization, and unsustainable environmental management. It also discusses necessary technological and policy initiatives to deal with these challenges: e.g., promoting the development and dissemination of cleaner vehicle technologies, substitution of LPG, CNG, LNG and bio fuels for gasoline and diesel, strengthening regulations on vehicle emissions, expediting public transport development, and the effective management of the soaring private cars. (author)

  12. Child health inequities in developing countries: differences across urban and rural areas

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fotso Jean-Christophe

    2006-07-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Objectives To document and compare the magnitude of inequities in child malnutrition across urban and rural areas, and to investigate the extent to which within-urban disparities in child malnutrition are accounted for by the characteristics of communities, households and individuals. Methods The most recent data sets available from the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS of 15 countries in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA are used. The selection criteria were set to ensure that the number of countries, their geographical spread across Western/Central and Eastern/Southern Africa, and their socioeconomic diversities, constitute a good yardstick for the region and allow us to draw some generalizations. A household wealth index is constructed in each country and area (urban, rural, and the odds ratio between its uppermost and lowermost category, derived from multilevel logistic models, is used as a measure of socioeconomic inequalities. Control variables include mother's and father's education, community socioeconomic status (SES designed to represent the broad socio-economic ecology of the neighborhoods in which families live, and relevant mother- and child-level covariates. Results Across countries in SSA, though socioeconomic inequalities in stunting do exist in both urban and rural areas, they are significantly larger in urban areas. Intra-urban differences in child malnutrition are larger than overall urban-rural differentials in child malnutrition, and there seem to be no visible relationships between within-urban inequities in child health on the one hand, and urban population growth, urban malnutrition, or overall rural-urban differentials in malnutrition, on the other. Finally, maternal and father's education, community SES and other measurable covariates at the mother and child levels only explain a slight part of the within-urban differences in child malnutrition. Conclusion The urban advantage in health masks enormous disparities

  13. Towards Urban Sustainability: Learning from the Design of a ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Owing to rapid urbanisation, cities are becoming a key locus for making sense of, and influencing, social and technological development. Urban sustainability is high on the research as well as on the development agenda. The complexity of modern cities often defies conventional governance mechanisms to promote ...

  14. Evaluation of alternative public transportation systems in Izmit urban transportation via axiomatic design method

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gülşen AKMAN

    2016-02-01

    Full Text Available In the world and in our country, most of urban transportation is performed by public transportation. Public transportation is a system which provides transportation easiness and opportunity to people, not to vehicles. Therefore, giving priority to public transportation system is necessary in organizing urban transportation. In this study, in order to reduce traffic intensity and to facilitate passenger transportation in Izmit urban transportation, It is tried to determine appropriate public transportation system. For this, firstly, alternatives which could be used for public transportation were determined. These alternatives are metro, metrobus, tram, light rail system and monorail. Afterwards, the variables affecting decision making about public transportation were determined. These variables are cost, transportation line features, vehicle characteristics, sensitivity to environment and customer satisfaction. Lastly, most appropriate public transportation system is proposed by using the axiomatic design method. As a result, light trail system and metrobus are determined as the most appropriate alternatives for Izmit public transportation system.Keywords: Urban transportation, Multi criteria decision making, Axiomatic design

  15. [Research progress and development trend of quantitative assessment techniques for urban thermal environment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sun, Tie Gang; Xiao, Rong Bo; Cai, Yun Nan; Wang, Yao Wu; Wu, Chang Guang

    2016-08-01

    Quantitative assessment of urban thermal environment has become a focus for urban climate and environmental science since the concept of urban heat island has been proposed. With the continual development of space information and computer simulation technology, substantial progresses have been made on quantitative assessment techniques and methods of urban thermal environment. The quantitative assessment techniques have been developed to dynamics simulation and forecast of thermal environment at various scales based on statistical analysis of thermal environment on urban-scale using the historical data of weather stations. This study reviewed the development progress of ground meteorological observation, thermal infrared remote sensing and numerical simulation. Moreover, the potential advantages and disadvantages, applicability and the development trends of these techniques were also summarized, aiming to add fundamental knowledge of understanding the urban thermal environment assessment and optimization.

  16. The Making of Sustainable Urban Development: A Synthesis Framework

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hui-Ting Tang

    2016-05-01

    Full Text Available In a time of rapid climate change and environmental degradation, planning and building an ecologically sustainable environment have become imperative. In particular, urban settlements, as a densely populated built environment, are the center of attention. This study aims to build a clear and concise synthesis of sustainable urban development not only to serve as an essential reference for decision and policy makers, but also encourage more strategically organized sustainability efforts. The extensive similarities between environmental planning and a policy-making/decision-making/problem-solving process will be carefully examined to confirm the fundamental need to build a synthesis. Major global urban sustainability rankings/standards will be presented, discussed, and integrated to produce a holistic synthesis with ten themes and three dimensions. The study will assemble disparate information across time, space, and disciplines to guide and to facilitate sustainable urban development in which both environmental concerns and human wellbeing are addressed.

  17. Study on the Delimitation of the Urban Development Boundary in a Special Economic Zone: A Case Study of the Central Urban Area of Doumen in Zhuhai, China

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Biao Zheng

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available Since it implemented open-door policies, China has become the fastest growing economy in the world, and its urbanization level has steadily improved. Taking a special economic zone as the object of study, this paper delineates the urban development boundary of the Central Urban Area of Doumen. Using multiple models and methods, the urban development rigid and elastic boundaries are delineated separately, with the rigid boundary serving as the premise and foundation for delineating the elastic boundary. The results are as follows. First, the scale of the urban development rigid boundary is 79.60 km². Moreover, the scales of the urban development elastic boundaries in 2020 and 2026 are 24.51 km² and 28.53 km², respectively. Second, by delimiting the urban development elastic boundary, the compactness of urban land will be improved. Third, the urban development boundary of this paper is reasonable in theory. This paper suggests that the urban development boundary can curb urban sprawl and guide rational urban development, which is conducive to optimizing an urban spatial layout.

  18. Implications of rainfall for agricultural and urban development of Eldoret, Kenya

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    E. Ofori- Sarpong

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available This paper examines the role of rainfall in the urban development of Kenya. The rainfall characteristics have been analysed and their influence on agricultural and urban development assessed. It is noted that since Eldoret is one of the rapidly expanding towns in Kenya located in highly potential agricultural region, variability of rainfall and drought can seriously affect urban development as farmers in the hinterland will abandon their farms and migrate to the town thus creating food shortage. Secondly, in times of drought, the water supply problems in the town will be exacerbated as it depends on surface water source. The tempo of rural-urban migration will be speeded up and this will create more socio-economic problems.

  19. Centralised, decentralised or hybrid sanitation systems? Economic evaluation under urban development uncertainty and phased expansion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roefs, Ivar; Meulman, Brendo; Vreeburg, Jan H G; Spiller, Marc

    2017-02-01

    Sanitation systems are built to be robust, that is, they are dimensioned to cope with population growth and other variability that occurs throughout their lifetime. It was recently shown that building sanitation systems in phases is more cost effective than one robust design. This phasing can take place by building small autonomous decentralised units that operate closer to the actual demand. Research has shown that variability and uncertainty in urban development does affect the cost effectiveness of this approach. Previous studies do not, however, consider the entire sanitation system from collection to treatment. The aim of this study is to assess the economic performance of three sanitation systems with different scales and systems characteristics under a variety of urban development pathways. Three systems are studied: (I) a centralised conventional activated sludge treatment, (II) a community on site source separation grey water and black water treatment and (III) a hybrid with grey water treatment at neighbourhood scale and black water treatment off site. A modelling approach is taken that combines a simulation of greenfield urban growth, a model of the wastewater collection and treatment infrastructure design properties and a model that translates design parameters into discounted asset lifetime costs. Monte Carlo simulations are used to evaluate the economic performance under uncertain development trends. Results show that the conventional system outperforms both of the other systems when total discounted lifetime costs are assessed, because it benefits from economies of scale. However, when population growth is lower than expected, the source-separated system is more cost effective, because of reduced idle capacity. The hybrid system is not competitive under any circumstance due to the costly double piping and treatment. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. Regional planning and urban infrastructure development in the ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Regional planning and urban infrastructure development in the Gongola region, ... PROMOTING ACCESS TO AFRICAN RESEARCH ... In North-eastern Nigeria, the Gongola region has been one of the least developed since independence.

  1. Sustainability certification systems as guidelines for early-phase urban design processes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jensen, Lotte Bjerregaard; Bjerre, Lærke; Mansfelt, Lise

    2016-01-01

    The German Sustainable Building Council (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Nachhaltiges Bauen or DGNB) has one of the most comprehensive sustainability certification systems for urban districts (UD). Their explicit aim is that the system should impact the very earliest design decisions. The Technical...

  2. Developing a Three Processes Framework to Analyze Hydrologic Performance of Urban Stormwater Management in a Watershed Scale

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lyu, H.; Ni, G.; Sun, T.

    2016-12-01

    Urban stormwater management contributes to recover water cycle to a nearly natural situation. It is a challenge for analyzing the hydrologic performance in a watershed scale, since the measures are various of sorts and scales and work in different processes. A three processes framework is developed to simplify the urban hydrologic process on the surface and evaluate the urban stormwater management. The three processes include source utilization, transfer regulation and terminal detention, by which the stormwater is controlled in order or discharged. Methods for analyzing performance are based on the water controlled proportions by each process, which are calculated using USEPA Stormwater Management Model. A case study form Beijing is used to illustrate how the performance varies under a set of designed events of different return periods. This framework provides a method to assess urban stormwater management as a whole system considering the interaction between measures, and to examine if there is any weak process of an urban watershed to be improved. The results help to make better solutions of urban water crisis.

  3. Urban-architectural workshop as an opportunity for theoretical reflection: Example of the international urban-architectural workshop Maribor-South

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Peter Šenk

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available The paper presents the international urban-architectural workshop Maribor-South (2010-11 as a model for “Maribor’s” urban-architectural workshops, which urban planners evaluate and use to direct urban development and theoretical discussion. The presented interdisciplinary project explored possibilities for designing the southern edge of the city in the area where the southern bypass construction is planned. In addition describing the example of the workshop, which develops the theoretical field through a “practical and project approach” with the defined project basis, i.e. the defined area of discussion and project issue, the paper also highlights the opportunity for a “theoretical approach”. The theoretical approach aims at providing a wider insight into the related theoretical field based on a generalised spatial issue. As one of the key priorities of contemporary urban planning and sustainable urban redevelopment, the planned direction of urban development in the areas of constructing transport infrastructure, which is evident in the first approach, moves into a wider referential field (no longer directly related to the project with the second approach by examining the issues of mobility, space, place, diversity of infrastructures of contemporary space, etc. While in the first approach developing design concepts strives for theoretical conceptualisation, the second approach facilitates focusing on finding links between the theoretical concept and manifestations in real space, though the approaches are always separated. Their operationality is possible only on the level of “combinatorial thinking” and remains beyond direct instrumentality.

  4. City Planning Evolution - Urban Development Directions in the Transition Period

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mircea Grigorovschi

    2010-03-01

    Full Text Available Urban evolution post 1989 has a series of specific characteristics mainly on a spatial-territorial plane. Determination of the main developing factors and urban evolution directions (dimensions, rhythm, expansion level, centrifugal and axial character, concentric, centripetal, functional evolution, tendencies and social implications, etc. represents a necessity and obligation for action from professionals in urban and landscaping fields. This necessity even arises from the perspective of the need for realizing strategies, planning, documentation and urban studies, which must intervene correctively in the evolution of areas with structural problems and to guide urban evolution towards the main goal namely the growth in residential quality of life in human settlements.

  5. LAYOUT AND DESIGN OF ELECTROMOBILE CHARGING STATIONS AS URBAN ELEMENTS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tomáš Chovan

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available The contribution is dedicated to the processing of the problems of the insufficient charging for the electric vehicles within the concrete urbanistic centre. It brings a different perspective on the mobility, which is shown in the form of electric energy as the alternative for the needs of urbanization of the cities. It analyses electromobility, new technologies in the field of electric vehicles and the charging stations as the elements of the urbanism. In terms of the solution, the contribution is focused on the Košice city and the location of the public charging stations. Košice do not have sufficient amount of the public charging stations and until the 2014 there was only one public charging station. The contribution is focused on the designing of the parking places with the charging station placed on the appropriate parking places. The resulting design is created in the CAD system, it brings the view of the layout of the charging station at the shopping centre in the open space and in the parking house.

  6. Deficiency of the Space Syntax method as an urban design tool in designing traditional urban space and the need for some supplementary methods

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hossein Bahrainy

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available Urban design problems have become so complex that no single designer is able to consider all aspects of a design area simultaneously. Lately the application of computerized and scientific methods have helped designers analyze complex problems. One of these new methods is Space Syntax. The purpose of this study is to first investigate the strengths and weaknesses of this method and then suggest some supplementary methods to cover its pitfalls. On the next phase Space Syntax and supplementary methods will be used to design a pedestrian pathway in the Imamzade Ghasem neighborhood as a traditional context. Space Syntax will identify the existing spatial structure and direct future changes toward its strengthening. The case study reveals that Space Syntax can be successfully used in analysis of traditional spaces, but in order to successfully design a neighborhood in such a complex context, it involves logistical shortcomings which could be eliminated through supplementary methods.

  7. Development of a strategy for decontamination of an urban area

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Roed, J.; Andersson, K.G.

    2000-01-01

    The Chernobyl accident in 1986 lead to high level contamination in urban areas in different parts of Europe and showed the importance of preparedness in the optimisation of any mitigatory interference. To meet this demand, a method for development of a decontamination strategy for urban areas has been developed based on measurements of radionuclide distribution in the urban environment after the Chernobyl accident, calculations of dose and experimentally obtained data on effectiveness and cost of practicable clean-up procedures. The approach highlights where decontamination would be of greatest benefit in terms of dose reduction and cost. (author)

  8. Reuse and Upcycling of Municipal Waste for ZEB Envelope Design in European Urban Areas

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Elisa Pennacchia

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Building energy efficiency and urban waste management are two focal issues for improving environmental status and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The main aim of this paper is to compare economic costs of new building envelope structures designed by authors reusing and upcycling municipal waste in order to decrease energy demand from the building sector and, at the same time, improve eco-friendly waste management at the local scale. The reuse of waste for building envelope structures is one of the main principles of the Earthship buildings model, based on the use of passive solar principles in autonomous earth-sheltered homes. This Earthship principle has been analyzed in order to optimize buildings’ energy performance and reuse municipal waste for new building envelope structures in urban areas. Indeed, the elaborated structures have been designed for urban contexts, with the aim of reuse waste coming from surrounding landfills. The methods include an analysis of thermal performance of urban waste for designing new building envelope structures realized by assembling waste and isolating materials not foreseen in Earthship buildings. The reused materials are: cardboard tubes, automobile tires, wood pallets, and plastic and glass bottles. Finally, comparing economic costs of these new building envelope structures, the obtained results highlight their economic feasibility compared to a traditional structure with similar thermal transmittance.

  9. Dynamic reserve design in the face of climate change and urbanization

    Science.gov (United States)

    Romañach, Stephanie; Johnson, Fred A.; Stith, Bradley M.; Bonneau, Mathieu

    2015-01-01

    Reserve design is a process that must address many ecological, social, and political factors to successfully identify parcels of land in need of protection to sustain wildlife populations and other natural resources. Making land acquisition choices for a large, terrestrial protected area is difficult because it occurs over a long timeframe and may involve consideration future conditions such as climate and urbanization changes. Decision makers need to consider factors including: order of parcel purchasing given budget constraints, future uncertainty, potential future landscape‐scale changes from urbanization and climate. In central Florida, two new refuges and the expansion of a third refuge are in various stages of USFWS planning. The Everglades Headwaters National Wildlife Refuge (EHNWR) has recently been established, is at the top of the Presidential Administration’s priority conservation areas, and is cited by the Secretary of DOI routinely in the context of conservation. The new refuges were strategically located for both for species adaptation from climate change impacts as well as currently being host to a number of important threatened and endangered species and habitats. We plan to combine a structured decision making framework, optimal solution theory, and output from ecological and sociological models (these modeling efforts were previously funded by DOI partners) that incorporate climate change to provide guidance for EHNWR reserve design. Utilizing a SDM approach and optimal solution theory, decision support tools will be developed that will incorporate stakeholder and agency objectives into targeting conservation lands both through fee simple purchase and other incentives such as easements based on ecological and socioeconomic modeling outputs driven by climate change.

  10. Development of an Urban Multilayer Radiation Scheme and Its Application to the Urban Surface Warming Potential

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aoyagi, Toshinori; Takahashi, Shunji

    2012-02-01

    To investigate how a three-dimensional structure such as an urban canyon can affect urban surface warming, we developed an urban multilayer radiation scheme. The complete consideration of multiple scattering of shortwave and longwave radiation using the radiosity method is an important feature of the present scheme. A brief description of this scheme is presented, followed by evaluations that compare its results with observations of the effective albedo and radiative temperature for urban blocks. Next, we calculate the urban surface warming potential (USWP), defined as the difference between the daily mean radiative temperature of urban surfaces (which are assumed to be black bodies), including their canyon effects and the daily mean temperature of a flat surface with the same material properties, under a radiative equilibrium state. Assuming standard material properties (albedo and emissivity of 0.4 and 0.9, respectively), we studied the sensitivity of the USWP to various aspect ratios of building heights to road widths. The results show that the temporally-averaged surface temperature of an urban area can be higher than that of a flat surface. In addition, we determined the overestimation of the effective temperature of urban surfaces induced by the overestimation of the radiation distribution to the walls when one uses a single-layer scheme for urban block arrays that have a low sky-view factor less than around 0.5.

  11. Urban Landscape Perspectives

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Frederick Steiner

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available Cities present significant opportunities for new landscape perspectives that can help inform conservation and development decisions. Early in the twenty-first century, the majority of the planet’s population became urban as more people lived in city-regions for the first time in our history. As the global population increases, so does this urbanization. The environmental challenges of population and urban growth are profound. Landscapes represent a synthesis of natural and cultural processes. Cities are certainly cultural phenomena. Historically, cities provided refuge from nature. The expanding field of urban ecology, coupled with landscape ecology, can enhance how the dual natural and cultural dimensions of landscapes in cities are understood. Furthermore, concepts such as ecosystem services and green infrastructure are proving useful for urban landscape planning and design. Examples from Dayton, Ohio; Brooklyn, New York; and Austin, Texas are presented.

  12. Finances and governance of urban local bodies: an approach of urban development perspective from a developing country (India

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Suman PAUL

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available With rapid urbanisation and the pressure on urban areas for service delivery, the role of urban local governments is undoubtedly becoming important and, here, their financial capacity can hold the key. At the same time, there are several issues in urban governance that need to be addressed yet. Delegation of decision making powers to urban local bodies (ULBs, which are traditionally considered as a part of the system of State government and acting on behalf of it, is one of them. The constitutional mechanisms like inter-governmental fiscal transfers were an attempt to reduce the gap of ULBs, but they were not effective in implementation at ground. It has become imperative now to understand the financial position of ULBs in order to move forward with the new means of fund flow. This paper presents a cross sectional analysis of the finance of 27 ULBs in North 24 Parganas District of West Bengal, India in terms of their financial base and its adequacy vis-à-vis norms, and their revenue and expenditure performance. Using certain ratios, the relative performance of municipalities on dependency measures was also assessed. The implications of finances of ULBs, in terms of raising resources, improving inter-governmental transfers and charting new mechanisms are also discussed. Lastly, an approach has been made to develop an index, i.e. Urban Governance Index (UGI to a better understanding of the per-capita expenditure scenario of ULBs.

  13. Do Transit-Oriented Developments (TODs) and Established Urban Neighborhoods Have Similar Walking Levels in Hong Kong?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xiao, Yang; Sarkar, Chinmoy; Zacharias, John

    2018-01-01

    A sharp drop in physical activity and skyrocketing obesity rate has accompanied rapid urbanization in China. The urban planning concept of transit-oriented development (TOD) has been widely advocated in China to promote physical activity, especially walking. Indeed, many design features thought to promote walking—e.g., mixed land use, densification, and well-connected street network—often characterize both TODs and established urban neighborhoods. Thus, it is often assumed that TODs have similar physical activity benefits as established urban neighborhoods. To verify this assumption, this study compared walking behaviors in established urban neighborhoods and transit-oriented new towns in Hong Kong. To address the limitation of self-selection bias, we conducted a study using Hong Kong citywide public housing scheme, which assigns residents to different housing estates by flat availability and family size rather than personal preference. The results show new town residents walked less for transportation purpose than urban residents. New town residents far from the transit station (800–1200 m) walked less for recreational purpose than TOD residents close to a rail transit station (urban residents. The observed disparity in walking behaviors challenges the common assumption that TOD and established urban neighborhoods have similar impact on walking behavior. The results suggest the necessity for more nuanced planning strategies, taking local-level factors into account to promote walking of TOD residents who live far from transit stations. PMID:29558379

  14. Review: Improving the Impact of Plant Science on Urban Planning and Design

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Peter C. Wootton-Beard

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available Urban planning is a vital process in determining the functionality of future cities. It is predicted that at least two thirds of the world’s citizens will reside in towns and cities by the middle of this century, up from one third in the middle of the previous century. Not only is it essential to provide space for work and dwelling, but also for their well-being. Well-being is inextricably linked with the surrounding environment, and natural landscapes have a potent positive effect. For this reason, the inclusion and management of urban green infrastructure has become a topic of increasing scientific interest. Elements of this infrastructure, including green roofs and façades are of growing importance to operators in each stage of the planning, design and construction process in urban areas. Currently, there is a strong recognition that “green is good”. Despite the positive recognition of urban greenery, and the concerted efforts to include more of it in cities, greater scientific attention is needed to better understand its role in the urban environment. For example, many solutions are cleverly engineered without giving sufficient consideration to the biology of the vegetation that is used. This review contends that whilst “green is good” is a positive mantra to promote the inclusion of urban greenery, there is a significant opportunity to increase the contribution of plant science to the process of urban planning through both green infrastructure, and biomimicry.

  15. Butterfly Community Conservation Through Ecological Landscape Design in Urban Areas

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Orsolya Borsai

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available Due urbanization and extension of agricultural areas most of the ecosystems are strongly affected. As a result, preservation of biodiversity becomes more and more important aiming to reestablish the lost habitats of different species (mammals, birds, amphibians, insects, etc.. Our research focuses on butterflies which constitute an extremely important group of ‘model’ organisms. We have identified 12 diurnal ‘flying beauties’ specific to Cluj area (threatened and unthreathened species and investigated their ecological requirements that have to be provided for in any landscapes. Furthermore, based on the data colleted we have illustrated the utility of our approach by applying it to a hypothetical urban landscape (private garden following the traditional environmental guidelines in our landscape design.

  16. Permafrost and urban Development in Norilsk Russia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shiklomanov, N. I.; Streletskiy, D. A.; Grebenets, V. I.

    2017-12-01

    The city of Norilsk was established in 1935 as a GULAG mining and metallurgy work camp to explore the rich deposits of non-ferrous metals. By the 1989, the population of Norilsk reached 179,757 people. Two additional cities were developed in proximity to Norilsk in the 1960s-1980s: Talnakh (1989 population 65,710); and Kaerkan (1989 population 29,824) making the Norilsk region a major Arctic metropolis. While such rapid growth is not unusual for developing industrial cities, the geographic location makes Norilsk rather unique among world urban centers. It was built in Central Siberia at 69°51' N latitude (above the Arctic Circle), in region characterized by harsh subarctic climate (mean annual temperature around -10 oC), over forest tundra/tundra transitional landscapes underlined by perennially frozen ground (permafrost). Throughout its existence, the Norilsk region was highly isolated: it is not connected to Russian road and railroad systems. The harsh environmental conditions provided significant and rather unique challenges to Norilsk development. Specifically, the presence of ice-rich permafrost imposed restrictions on application of standard urban planning and engineering practices. This presentation analyzes the history of permafrost construction in Norilsk. It shows how though initial trial and errors, a set of guiding principles and engineering methods of construction on permafrost were developed allowing a rapid urbanization of the area during the 1960-1980s. However, despite significant advances in permafrost engineering, the pronounced permafrost degradation has become evident in Norilsk by the mid 1980s and has accelerated rapidly since the mid 1990s resulting in widespread deformation of buildings. Climatic changes are frequently identified as a major cause of accelerated deterioration of infrastructure build on permafrost. However, we argue that other factors, including the complexity of interactions between deferent components of urban

  17. Omah displacement and utilization from rural to urban areas, as green design lifestyle

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fajarwati, Ade Ariyani Sari

    2017-11-01

    Building a house in urban area is very costly and also leaving a bunch amount of construction waste. Many efforts were made to reduce the load of this waste. However, the high demand of residences in metropolitan makes the waste problem needs to be solved together. Based on this problem, author chooses Omah, - a Javanese traditional house, which is built, based on the traditional system of life of Javanese people - displacement from rural to urban area as the alternative solution, as it uses selected materials from nature by considering the sustainability and preservation for future generation. The wooden building is built based on traditional construction system that follows Javanese principles and traditional calculation, based on philosophy and cosmology in the community. This paper will covers utilization of Omah in urban area as an implementation of green design, which refers to the concepts of reuse, reduce, recycle and responsibility. Through expert interviews and field surveys in urban and rural areas, author collected data needed for this paper. Although the functionality of the building is different from rural to urban requirements, the phenomenon of Omah displacement from Javanese habitat to urban living area is well accepted and becomes an interesting trend.

  18. Assessment of transport performance index for urban transport development strategies — Incorporating residents' preferences

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ambarwati, Lasmini, E-mail: L.Ambarwati@tudelft.nl [Department of Transport and Planning, TU Delft (Netherlands); Department of Civil Engineering, Brawijaya University (Indonesia); Verhaeghe, Robert, E-mail: R.Verhaeghe@tudelft.nl [Department of Transport and Planning, TU Delft (Netherlands); Arem, Bart van, E-mail: B.vanArem@tudelft.nl [Department of Transport and Planning, TU Delft (Netherlands); Pel, Adam J., E-mail: A.J.Pel@tudelft.nl [Department of Transport and Planning, TU Delft (Netherlands)

    2017-03-15

    The performance of urban transport depends on a variety of factors related to metropolitan structure; in particular, the patterns of commuting, roads and public transport (PT) systems. To evaluate urban transport planning efforts, there is a need for a metric expressing the aggregate performance of the city's transport systems which should relate to residents' preferences. The existing metrics have typically focused on a measure to express the proximity of job locations to residences. A Transport Performance Index (TPI) is proposed in which the total cost of transportation system (operational and environmental costs) is divided by willingness to pay (WTP) for transport plus the willingness to accept (WTA) the environmental effects on residents. Transport operational as well as the environmental costs are derived from a simulation of all transport systems, to particular designs of spatial development. Willingness to pay for transport and willingness to accept the environmental effects are derived from surveys among residents. Simulations were modelled of Surabaya's spatial structure and public transport expansion. The results indicate that the current TPI is high, which will double by 2030. With a hypothetical polycentric city structure and adjusted job housing balance, a lower index occurs because of the improvements in urban transport performance. A low index means that the residents obtain much benefit from the alternative proposed. This illustrates the importance of residents' preferences in urban spatial planning in order to achieve efficient urban transport. Applying the index suggests that city authorities should provide fair and equitable public transport systems for suburban residents in the effort to control the phenomenon of urban sprawl. This index is certainly a good tool and prospective benchmark for measuring sustainability in relation to urban development.

  19. Assessment of transport performance index for urban transport development strategies — Incorporating residents' preferences

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ambarwati, Lasmini; Verhaeghe, Robert; Arem, Bart van; Pel, Adam J.

    2017-01-01

    The performance of urban transport depends on a variety of factors related to metropolitan structure; in particular, the patterns of commuting, roads and public transport (PT) systems. To evaluate urban transport planning efforts, there is a need for a metric expressing the aggregate performance of the city's transport systems which should relate to residents' preferences. The existing metrics have typically focused on a measure to express the proximity of job locations to residences. A Transport Performance Index (TPI) is proposed in which the total cost of transportation system (operational and environmental costs) is divided by willingness to pay (WTP) for transport plus the willingness to accept (WTA) the environmental effects on residents. Transport operational as well as the environmental costs are derived from a simulation of all transport systems, to particular designs of spatial development. Willingness to pay for transport and willingness to accept the environmental effects are derived from surveys among residents. Simulations were modelled of Surabaya's spatial structure and public transport expansion. The results indicate that the current TPI is high, which will double by 2030. With a hypothetical polycentric city structure and adjusted job housing balance, a lower index occurs because of the improvements in urban transport performance. A low index means that the residents obtain much benefit from the alternative proposed. This illustrates the importance of residents' preferences in urban spatial planning in order to achieve efficient urban transport. Applying the index suggests that city authorities should provide fair and equitable public transport systems for suburban residents in the effort to control the phenomenon of urban sprawl. This index is certainly a good tool and prospective benchmark for measuring sustainability in relation to urban development.

  20. The Interaction Between Landscape Architecture and Urban Development. Do we Have a Common Goal?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vaiva Deveikienė

    2015-05-01

    Full Text Available The article analyses the problem of the relationship and interaction between urban design and landscape architecture. This refers to the period of the modern city from the late nineteenth century to the present day. There are presented and discussed urbanization processes and examples of solutions with emphasis on problems arising from the relationship between a city and nature as well as those related to urban landscape and sustainability of urban landscaping in the twentieth century.

  1. Urban ecology in a developing world: why advanced socioecological theory needs Africa.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McHale, Melissa R; Bunn, David N; Pickett, Steward Ta; Twine, Wayne

    2013-12-01

    Socioecological theory, developed through the study of urban environments, has recently led to a proliferation of research focusing on comparative analyses of cities. This research emphasis has been concentrated in the more developed countries of the Northern Hemisphere (often referred to as the "Global North"), yet urbanization is now occurring mostly in the developing world, with the fastest rates of growth in sub-Saharan Africa. Countries like South Africa are experiencing a variety of land-cover changes that may challenge current assumptions about the differences between urban and rural environments and about the connectivity of these dynamic socioecological systems. Furthermore, questions concerning ecosystem services, landscape preferences, and conservation - when analyzed through rural livelihood frameworks - may provide insights into the social and ecological resilience of human settlements. Increasing research on urban development processes occurring in Africa, and on patterns of kinship and migration in the less developed countries of the "Global South", will advance a more comprehensive worldview of how future urbanization will influence the progress of sustainable societies.

  2. Do urbanization and industrialization affect energy intensity in developing countries?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sadorsky, Perry

    2013-01-01

    Against a backdrop of concerns about climate change, peak oil, and energy security issues, reducing energy intensity is often advocated as a way to at least partially mitigate these impacts. This study uses recently developed heterogeneous panel regression techniques like mean group estimators and common correlated effects estimators to model the impact that income, urbanization and industrialization has on energy intensity for a panel of 76 developing countries. In the long-run, a 1% increase in income reduces energy intensity by − 0.45% to − 0.35%. Long-run industrialization elasticities are in the range 0.07 to 0.12. The impact of urbanization on energy intensity is mixed. In specifications where the estimated coefficient on urbanization is statistically significant, it is slightly larger than unity. The implications of these results for energy policy are discussed. - Highlights: ► The impact of urbanization and industrialization on energy intensity is modeled. ► Use recently developed heterogeneous panel regression techniques ► The model is tested on a panel of developing countries. ► Income has a negative impact on energy intensity. ► Industrialization has a positive impact on energy intensity

  3. Designed Urban Greens - A critical study of the experience of the High Line Park and Under the Crystal

    OpenAIRE

    Ebbensgaard, Casper Laing

    2013-01-01

    Recent examples of designed urban greens have changed the aesthetic language of green spaces within cities. Known as super natural, these designs do not look like na- ture. Rather, they integrate natural processes into design. By adopting a dual ontol- ogy encompassing phenomenology and vitalist philosophy, I argue it is possible to understand experience and immanence of these spaces. I present three arguments: Firstly, the experiences of designed urban greens are part of everyday meaning- ma...

  4. Designing urban spaces and buildings to improve sustainability and quality of life in a warmer world

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Smith, Claire; Levermore, Geoff

    2008-01-01

    It is in cities that the negative impacts of a warming climate will be felt most strongly. The summer time comfort and well-being of the urban population will become increasingly compromised under future scenarios for climate change and urbanisation. In contrast to rural areas, where night-time relief from high daytime temperatures occurs as heat is lost to the sky, the city environment stores and traps heat and offers little respite from high temperatures. This urban heat island effect is responsible for temperature differences of up to 7 deg. C between cities and the country in the UK. We already have experience of the potential hazards of these higher temperatures. The majority of heat-related fatalities during the summer of 2003 were in urban areas. This means that the cooling of the urban environment is a high priority for urban planners and designers. Proven ways of doing this include altering the urban microclimate by modifying its heat absorption and emission, for example through urban greening, the use of high-reflectivity materials, and by increasing openness to allow cooling winds. Buildings themselves can also deliver improved comfort and higher levels of sustainability by taking advantage of exemplary facade, glazing and ventilation designs. In addition, changed behaviour by building occupants can help keep urban areas cool. The technology to reduce the future vulnerability of city dwellers to thermal discomfort is already largely in existence. But there is a need for complementary policy and planning commitments to manage its implementation, especially in existing buildings and urban areas

  5. Developing micro-level urban ecosystem indicators for sustainability assessment

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dizdaroglu, Didem

    2015-01-01

    Sustainability assessment is increasingly being viewed as an important tool to aid in the shift towards sustainable urban ecosystems. An urban ecosystem is a dynamic system and requires regular monitoring and assessment through a set of relevant indicators. An indicator is a parameter which provides information about the state of the environment by producing a quantitative value. Indicator-based sustainability assessment needs to be considered on all spatial scales to provide efficient information of urban ecosystem sustainability. The detailed data is necessary to assess environmental change in urban ecosystems at local scale and easily transfer this information to the national and global scales. This paper proposes a set of key micro-level urban ecosystem indicators for monitoring the sustainability of residential developments. The proposed indicator framework measures the sustainability performance of urban ecosystem in 3 main categories including: natural environment, built environment, and socio-economic environment which are made up of 9 sub-categories, consisting of 23 indicators. This paper also describes theoretical foundations for the selection of each indicator with reference to the literature [tr

  6. URBAN TOURISM BETWEEN CONTENT AND ASPIRATION FOR URBAN DEVELOPMENT

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Roxana Valentina GÂRBEA

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available With excessive urbanization that the society knows today, the city became the place of origin and at the same time a destination for an increasingly number of tourists. Cities have a higher fitting territory, diversity and quality of tourism products coming to fill a reach touristic ground, especially anthropogenic. Urban tourism has seen a significant, but uneven increase, whit the big European cities detaching themselves through cultural richness and tourist valorization of urban space and may be role models for other cities. The article proposes the approach on the concept of urban tourism and how this form of tourism is in full process of affirmation, given that, in recent years many cities search to find a new identity for themselves, to gain international recognition through tourism.

  7. An environmental pressure index proposal for urban development planning based on the analytic network process

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gomez-Navarro, Tomas; Garcia-Melon, Monica; Acuna-Dutra, Silvia; Diaz-Martin, Diego

    2009-01-01

    This paper introduces a new approach to prioritize urban planning projects according to their environmental pressure in an efficient and reliable way. It is based on the combination of three procedures: (i) the use of environmental pressure indicators, (ii) the aggregation of the indicators in an Environmental Pressure Index by means of the Analytic Network Process method (ANP) and (iii) the interpretation of the information obtained from the experts during the decision-making process. The method has been applied to a proposal for urban development of La Carlota airport in Caracas (Venezuela). There are three options which are currently under evaluation. They include a Health Club, a Residential Area and a Theme Park. After a selection process the experts chose the following environmental pressure indicators as ANP criteria for the project life cycle: used land area, population density, energy consumption, water consumption and waste generation. By using goal-oriented questionnaires designed by the authors, the experts determined the importance of the criteria, the relationships among criteria, and the relationships between the criteria and the urban development alternatives. The resulting data showed that water consumption is the most important environmental pressure factor, and the Theme Park project is by far the urban development alternative which exerts the least environmental pressure on the area. The participating experts coincided in appreciating the technique proposed in this paper is useful and, for ranking ordering these alternatives, an improvement from traditional techniques such as environmental impact studies, life-cycle analysis, etc.

  8. The Effects of Domestic Energy Consumption on Urban Development Using System Dynamics

    Science.gov (United States)

    Saryazdi, M. D.; Homaei, N.; Arjmand, A.

    2018-05-01

    In developed countries, people have learned to follow efficient consumption patterns, while in developing countries, such as Iran, these patterns are not well executed. A large amount of energy is almost consumed in buildings and houses and though the consumption patterns varies in different societies, various energy policies are required to meet the consumption challenges. So far, several papers and more than ten case studies have worked on the relationship between domestic energy consumption and urban development, however these researches did not analyzed the impact of energy consumption on urban development. Therefore, this paper attempts to examine the interactions between the energy consumption and urban development by using system dynamics as the most widely used methods for complex problems. The proposed approach demonstrates the interactions using causal loop and flow diagrams and finally, suitable strategies will be proposed for urban development through simulations of different scenarios.

  9. Development of a lightweight electric urban delivery truck

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gillespie, G.; Martin, R.; Vader, S. [Unicell Ltd., Toronto, ON (Canada)

    2007-07-15

    A study was conducted to develop a lightweight urban parcel delivery vehicle that features a composite material, monocoque low-floor body and a zero-emission electric drive system. The long-term goal of project was to produce a vehicle with an energy efficiency that was nearly 90 per cent better than a conventional delivery vehicle. The objectives of the development phase were to complete the structural design of the composite, monocoque low-floor body. Electric drive options were explored to confirm the feasibility in terms of vehicle range, zero emissions and energy efficiency. This involved characterization of the vehicle duty cycle, development of a computer model of the electric powertrain, and simulations to confirm the vehicle's power and energy requirements. The design of the prototype was validated through testing in accordance with recognized vehicle performance tests and an in-service trial by Purolator Courier Ltd., a major Canadian courier service. Testing of the QuickSider delivery truck included vehicle dynamics, energy consumption, safety compliance, and in-service evaluation. No unacceptable stresses, deflections or resonances were identified in the structure. The vehicle's performance was found to be consistent with design expectations. Dynamometer tests have indicated that the ZEV range of the prototype is greater than the targeted 120 km. The overall energy efficiency of the vehicle was 50 per cent, as compared 11 per cent for a conventional diesel delivery truck. It was concluded that an overall energy efficiency of 75 per cent is achievable in production vehicles if improvements are made to the battery system, drive train, regenerative braking and auxiliary systems. 29 figs., 2 appendices.

  10. Perspective on an urban transportation strategy with BRT for developing cities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fumihiko Nakamura

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available A Bus Rapid Transit (BRT system is one of the best strategies for urban transportation, especially in developing cities, mainly because of its cost-efficiency. Starting from Curitiba, Brazil in 1974, including Bogota, Colombia in 1999, many cities in Latin American Countries have implemented a BRT system. In almost all cases, BRT systems are working as a reliable high capacity service. In some cases, BRT systems are well coordinated with an urban transportation strategy framework and/or an urban planning strategy framework, integrating other transportation modes and land uses. Alternatively, there have been very few cases of BRT systems in Southeast Asian countries. Many cities considering implementation of BRT systems do not consider other urban transportation strategies such as Transit Oriented Development (TOD. The objective of the paper is to discuss the perspective of a BRT for developing cities. First, the paper reviews the history of BRT systems followed by a field survey of the results in Curitiba, mainly from an urban transportation and planning strategy point of view. Second, multimodal and inter-modal aspects are discussed, where the relationship with city buses, a balance between private car use and parking policies are emphasized. Third a framework of urban bus planning, management and operation is discussed considering the roles of public and private sectors based on the experiences of several developed cities. Finally, in terms of an urban planning strategy, reviewing the original and applied concepts of TOD, the authors discuss how a TOD strategy could work with BRT systems. The authors address the possibilities and limitations of BRT systems, especially in developing cities. More specific implications are presented in the case of medium sized cities of Southeast Asian countries.

  11. Urban Ideas From Around the World

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    2010-01-01

    The Urban Best Practices Area (UBPA) of the World Expo in Shanghai aims to introduce various ongoing practices designed to improve the quality of urban life as global urbanization increases, and provide a platform for all the cities of the world to share and exchange experiences in urban management and development. In an exclusive interview with Expo Weekly reporter Gong Haiying, Sun Liansheng, Director of the UBPA Department of the Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination, shares the story behind preparing the unique project.

  12. Optimization of Urban Wastewater Systems using Model Based Design and Control

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Velez Quintero, C.A.

    2012-01-01

    In this research a considerable amount of scientific evidence had been collected which leads to the conclusion that the urban wastewater components should be designed as one integrated system, if the protection of the receiving waters is to be achieved cost-effectively. Even more, there is a need

  13. Towards a Social-Ecological Urbanism: Co-Producing Knowledge through Design in the Albano Resilient Campus Project in Stockholm

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hanna Erixon Aalto

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available If we are to promote urban sustainability and resilience, social-ecological knowledge must be better integrated in urban planning and design projects. Due to gaps in the two cultures of thinking that are associated with the disciplines of ecology and design, such integration has, however, proven to be challenging. In mainstream practice, ecologists often act as sub-consultants; they are seldom engaged in the creative and conceptual phases of the process. Conversely, research aiming to bridge the gap between design and ecology has tended to be dominated by a relatively static and linear outlook on what the design process is, and what it could be. Further, few concrete examples of the co-production of ecological and design knowledge exist. In this paper, we give an account of a transdisciplinary design proposal for Albano Resilient Campus in Stockholm, discussing how design—seen as a process and an assemblage of artifacts—can act as a framework for co-producing knowledge and operationalizing concepts of resilience and ecosystem services. Through a design-based and action-oriented approach, we discuss how such a collaborative design process may integrate ecological knowledge into urban design through three concrete practices: (a iterative prototyping; (b generative matrix models; and, (c legible, open-ended, comprehensive narratives. In the conclusion, we sketch the contours of a social-ecological urbanism, speculating on possible broader and changed roles for ecologists, designers, and the associated actors within this framework.

  14. New Approaches to Ecologically Based, Designed Urban Plant Communities in Britain: Do These Have Any Relevance in the United States?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    James Hitchmough

    2008-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper discusses the reasoning behind the development of a new approach to designed urban planting with grasses, forbs and geophytes that has been undertaken at the University of Sheffield over the past 15 years. The resulting plant communities are the result of applying contemporary ecological science to planting design, to maximize their sustainability while at the same time meeting the aesthetic and functional needs of the users of urban public landscapes. The geographical origin of the plants used in these communities varies according to the physical, ecological, and cultural context in which they are to be used. In some cases species are entirely native, in others entirely non-native. In many cases, a mixture of both is used. In discussing the rationale for the development of this approach in the United Kingdom context, the paper raises important issues about increasing the capacity of urban landscapes to support a greater diversity of native animals and to engage ordinary citizens in these activities at a time of dramatic climatic and social change. The approach we outline addresses some of these issues in the United Kingdom context, but it is uncertain whether there is merit in these approaches in the context of American towns and cities.

  15. The Historic Urban Core of Antakya under the Influence of the French Mandate, and Turkish Republican Urban Conservation and Development Activities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mert Nezih RİFAİOĞLU

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available Antakya, known as Antioch during the ancient period, is significant among Turkey’s historical urban contexts. It is located in the south-east of Turkey, near the Syrian border and is the capital of Hatay province. Called the ‘Queen of the East’ at one time, it is an important city historically since it was an early center of Christianity and one of the capital cities of the Roman Empire. As a result of its importance, the city has been formed/re-formed over time by different empires, and many structures from various periods are still persist in the current urban form. The aim of this paper is to examine the French Mandate and Turkish Republican Period urban conservation and development strategies in Antakya in order to better understand their influences and effects on its historical urban core. The paper thus begins with an introduction and brief outline of the historical development of the core of Antakya. The second part focuses on the French Mandate and Turkish Republican Period urban conservation and development plan strategies. The final part discusses the effects of different urban development strategies on the historic core of the city.

  16. Prevalence of Internet addiction and risk of developing addiction as exemplified by a group of Polish adolescents from urban and rural areas

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Beata Pawłowska

    2015-02-01

    Full Text Available [b]Objective. [/b]The objective of the study was to determine the prevalence of Internet addiction and the risk of developing this addiction in Polish adolescents attending junior high schools and high school in Lublin Province, to indicate the differences regarding the intensity of Internet addiction symptoms, and the types of online activity of adolescents residing in urban and rural areas. [b]Material and Methods[/b]. The examined group comprised 1,860 participants (1,320 girls and 540 boys with an average age of 17 years. 760 students lived in urban areas and 1,100 lived in rural areas. The following were used in the study: the Socio-demographic Questionnaire designed by the authors, the Internet Addiction Questionnaire designed by Potembska, the Internet Addiction Test by Young and the Internet Addiction Questionnaire (Kwestionariusz do Badania Uzależnienia od Internetu – KBUI designed by Pawłowska and Potembska. [b]Results[/b]. The adolescents living in urban areas showed a significantly greater intensity of Internet and computer addiction symptoms measured by the KBUI Questionnaire, compared to those living in rural areas. [b]Conclusions.[/b] The Internet addiction criteria were fulfilled by 0.45% of adolescents living in urban areas and 2.9% of those living in rural areas, whereas 35.55% of urban dwelling students and 30.18% of students living in rural areas showed a risk of developing this addiction. More adolescents living in urban areas, compared to those living in rural areas, use Internet pornography, play computer games, disclose their personal data to unknown individuals encountered on the Internet, use Instant Messaging (IM services, electronic mail and Facebook social networking service. Compared to their peers from urban areas, significantly more adolescents from rural areas use ‘Nasza Klasa’ (Our Classmates online social networking service.

  17. Prevalence of Internet addiction and risk of developing addiction as exemplified by a group of Polish adolescents from urban and rural areas.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pawłowska, Beata; Zygo, Maciej; Potembska, Emilia; Kapka-Skrzypczak, Lucyna; Dreher, Piotr; Kędzierski, Zbigniew

    2015-01-01

    The objective of the study was to determine the prevalence of Internet addiction and the risk of developing this addiction in Polish adolescents attending junior high schools and high school in Lublin Province, to indicate the differences regarding the intensity of Internet addiction symptoms, and the types of online activity of adolescents residing in urban and rural areas. The examined group comprised 1,860 participants (1,320 girls and 540 boys) with an average age of 17 years. 760 students lived in urban areas and 1,100 lived in rural areas. The following were used in the study: the Socio-demographic Questionnaire designed by the authors, the Internet Addiction Questionnaire designed by Potembska, the Internet Addiction Test by Young and the Internet Addiction Questionnaire (Kwestionariusz do Badania Uzależnienia od Internetu - KBUI) designed by Pawłowska and Potembska. The adolescents living in urban areas showed a significantly greater intensity of Internet and computer addiction symptoms measured by the KBUI Questionnaire, compared to those living in rural areas. The Internet addiction criteria were fulfilled by 0.45% of adolescents living in urban areas and 2.9% of those living in rural areas, whereas 35.55% of urban dwelling students and 30.18% of students living in rural areas showed a risk of developing this addiction. More adolescents living in urban areas, compared to those living in rural areas, use Internet pornography, play computer games, disclose their personal data to unknown individuals encountered on the Internet, use Instant Messaging (IM) services, electronic mail and Facebook social networking service. Compared to their peers from urban areas, significantly more adolescents from rural areas use 'Nasza Klasa' (Our Classmates) online social networking service.

  18. Urban Development from the Perspective of Geodivesity in South Korea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mo, Y.; Lee, D. K.; Han Kyul, H.

    2015-12-01

    In regard to ensuring a sustainable Earth, geodiversity (which is the variety of non-living nature) has been recognized as being equivalent to biodiversity in terms of importance. Geodiversity, as a platform, provides diverse habitats; however when a city is developed, threatened and vulnerable species are seen as important components of conservation but geodiversity is not. This study analyzes the components of geodiversity in cities that developed rapidly, and identifies which characteristics of geodiversity were related to this development. We estimated the components of geodiversity through the use of land cover maps and digital elevation maps (DEMs) in South Korean cities that developed rapidly between the 1980s and early-2010s, such as Yong-in and Namyangju. The relationships between land use changes and geodiversity components were analyzed and a factor analysis for land use changes was conducted using geodiversity components. Results show that even though adjacent rivers and streams, low elevation, and flat surfaces have high geodiversity, these areas were mainly converted into built-up areas and agricultural areas. As such, it can be stated that urban development in these cities has lowered geodiversity. Other geodiversity components related to urban development, such as slope, upslope contributing areas, streams, and lithology, were also identified. To conclude, this study showed how geodiversity components related to urban development has been affected by this growth and how they are intimately connected to each other. Identifying geodiversity in future development sites could help to estimate the most sensitive areas regarding the planned development; therefore, we need to view urban development from a geodiversity perspective.

  19. Mass transit development for small urban areas; a case study: Tompkins County, N. Y. Second-year final report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Meyburg, A.H.

    1976-11-01

    This report presents the results of the second-year effort within a three-year research project to develop a transportation planning methodology for small urban areas concerned with the provision of public transportation service. This phase of the research concentrates on problems of access to health services, transportation service for the disadvantaged, potential coordination and integration of existing transportation systems, alternative systems designs and their evaluation, and suitable marketing and monitoring programs for public transportation service in small urban areas. This effort, together with elements of the first-year research will culminate in the preparation of a transit planning manual suitable for use by the transportation planner in small to medium-size urban areas.

  20. 77 FR 66483 - Public Comment on the Draft Federal Urban Design Element and the Draft Update to the Federal...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2012-11-05

    ... NCPC review required by law. The new Federal Urban Design Element provides policies that will guide the... public comment a draft new Federal Urban Design Element and draft revisions to the Preservation and... Features Element articulates policies that guide federal actions preserving Washington's historic character...

  1. Development of climatic zones and passive solar design in Madagascar

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rakoto-Joseph, O.; Garde, F.; David, M.; Adelard, L.; Randriamanantany, Z.A.

    2009-01-01

    Climate classification is extremely useful to design buildings for thermal comfort purposes. This paper presents the first work for a climate classification of Madagascar Island. This classification is based on the meteorological data measured in different cities of this country. Three major climatic zones are identified. Psychometric charts for the six urban areas of Madagascar are proposed, and suited passive solar designs related to each climate are briefly discussed. Finally, a total of three passive design zones have been identified and appropriate design strategies such as solar heating, natural ventilation, thermal mass are suggested for each zone. The specificity of this work is that: it is the first published survey on the climate classification and the passive solar designs for this developing country

  2. All-Inclusiveness versus Exclusion: Urban Project Development in Latin America and Africa

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Christien Klaufus

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available This paper scrutinizes current processes of urban fragmentation, segregation, and exclusion that result from the increasing flows of capital in gated communities, walled-off condominiums, and similar exclusivist investment hubs in Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa. Gated community-like developments are growing and spreading into new areas. Although not all of the walled projects offer all-inclusiveness, they are unanimously based on the pre-selection of specific categories of residents. Moreover, all-inclusive urban developments are taking on new and more encompassing forms, such as ‘gated cities’. Hence, socio-spatial inclusion and exclusion in the urban built environment are continuously transforming under the influence of investment capital (i.e., new urban investment flows and speculation, urbanistic concepts (e.g., different interpretations of safety and crime, and human mobilities. This paper builds on a comparison of empirical cases from Latin America and Africa to develop a qualitative framework of segregation indicators. In Latin America, gated communities have a long history, but exclusionary developments are changing in form, as well as in implications. In Africa, research on gated communities has particularly focused on South Africa (where they have a longer history, but exclusionary developments are spreading rapidly across the continent, and will influence future real estate development and land markets. Based on such complementary experiences, this paper grapples with the question of how these new all-inclusive developments influence the possibilities of achieving inclusive and sustainable urban transitions, as advocated in Sustainable Development Goal 11 (SDG11 and the New Urban Agenda.

  3. Infrastructure development, income inequality, and urban sustainability in the People's Republic of China

    OpenAIRE

    Mendoza, Octasiano M. Valerio

    2017-01-01

    This paper examines the relationship between infrastructure development and income inequality in urban People's Republic of China. Recent policies target reductions in income inequality while increasing sustainable urban development. Infrastructure investment plays a key role in achieving both goals, yet the effects of different infrastructures on income disparities at the city level remain undetermined. Using 10 city-level infrastructure indicators relating to sustainable urban development a...

  4. Urban Maglev Technology Development Program : Colorado Maglev Project : part 2 final report

    Science.gov (United States)

    2004-06-01

    The overall objective of the urban maglev transit technology development program is to develop magnetic levitation technology that is a cost effective, reliable, and environmentally sound transit option for urban mass transportation in the United Sta...

  5. Channelling urban modernity to sustainable pro-poor tourism development in Indonesia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Prasetyanti, R.

    2017-06-01

    Sustainable urban planning and development requires not only a fast-growing economic growth and modernity, but also social equity and environmental sustainability. Meanwhile, the global goals of sustainable development have fascinatingly set a promising urban development future by enhancing ecology based pro-poor policy program. Apparently, pro-poor development agenda has led to the notion of pro-poor tourism as part of urban development strategies on poverty alleviation. This research presents Jakarta Hidden Tour and Kampung Warna-warni as certain cases of pro-poor tourism in Indonesia. By the emergence of criticism on “pro-growth” paradigm, the critical analysis of this research focuses on the scenario of sustainable pro-poor tourism through eco-cultural based Kampung-Tour development. In accordance, debates and dilemma have been continuously arising as pros and cons regarding the ethical issues of poverty alleviation based Kampung-Tour development. Nevertheless, this paper tries to redefine Slum Kampung as potential; the writer wildly offers a concept of poverty alleviation by reinventing pro-poor tourism strategy; revitalizing slum site to eco-cultural based pro-poor tourism development as an embodiment of a sustainable urban development. By holding system thinking analysis as research method, sustainable pro-poor tourism highlights the urgency community based tourism and eco-tourism so that poverty alleviation based tourism can be tangibly perceived by the poor. In this sense, good local governance and public private partnership must be enhanced, it is due to, like any other development projects; sustainable pro-poor tourism needs a strong political commitment to alleviate urban poverty, as well as to pursue a better future of sustainable nation.

  6. Retrofitting the Low Impact Development Practices into Developed Urban areas Including Barriers and Potential Solution

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shafique, Muhammad; Kim, Reeho

    2017-06-01

    Low impact development (LID)/green infrastructure (GI) practices have been identified as the sustainable practices of managing the stormwater in urban areas. Due to the increasing population, most of the cities are more developing which results in the change of natural area into impervious areas (roads, buildings etc.). Moreover, urbanization and climate change are causing many water-related problems and making over cities unsafe and insecure. Under these circumstances, there is a need to introduce new stormwater management practices into developed cities to reduce the adverse impacts of urbanization. For this purpose, retrofitting low impact development practices demands more attention to reduce these water-related problems and trying to make our cities sustainable. In developed areas, there is a little space is available for the retrofitting of LID practices for the stormwater management. Therefore, the selection of an appropriate place to retrofitting LID practices needs more concern. This paper describes the successfully applied retrofitting LID practices around the globe. It also includes the process of applying retrofitting LID practices at the suitable place with the suitable combination. Optimal places for the retrofitting of different LID practices are also mentioned. This paper also highlights the barriers and potential solutions of retrofitting LID practices in urban areas.

  7. Retrofitting the Low Impact Development Practices into Developed Urban areas Including Barriers and Potential Solution

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shafique Muhammad

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Low impact development (LID/green infrastructure (GI practices have been identified as the sustainable practices of managing the stormwater in urban areas. Due to the increasing population, most of the cities are more developing which results in the change of natural area into impervious areas (roads, buildings etc.. Moreover, urbanization and climate change are causing many water-related problems and making over cities unsafe and insecure. Under these circumstances, there is a need to introduce new stormwater management practices into developed cities to reduce the adverse impacts of urbanization. For this purpose, retrofitting low impact development practices demands more attention to reduce these water-related problems and trying to make our cities sustainable. In developed areas, there is a little space is available for the retrofitting of LID practices for the stormwater management. Therefore, the selection of an appropriate place to retrofitting LID practices needs more concern. This paper describes the successfully applied retrofitting LID practices around the globe. It also includes the process of applying retrofitting LID practices at the suitable place with the suitable combination. Optimal places for the retrofitting of different LID practices are also mentioned. This paper also highlights the barriers and potential solutions of retrofitting LID practices in urban areas.

  8. The challenge of sustainable mobility in urban planning and development

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Xue, Jin; Næss, Petter; Yao, Yinmei

    2011-01-01

    The theme of this article is how the challenge of sustainable mobility has been dealt with in urban planning and urban development in the metropolitan areas of Copenhagen (Denmark) and Hangzhou (China). The two metropolises have followed different trajectories in their land use and transport...

  9. Urban Green Network Design: Defining green network from an urban planning perspective

    OpenAIRE

    Andrea Tulisi

    2017-01-01

    From the theoretical context of Smart City various studies have emerged that adopt an analytical approach and description of urban phenomena based on the principles of “network design”; this line of research uses the network systems theory to define the principles that regulate the relationships among the various elements of urban sub-systems in order to optimize their functionality. From the same theoretical basis, urban greenspaces have also been studied as networks, by means of the creatio...

  10. The Web 2.0 concept of urban disaster information in Taipei city: Mobile application development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tsai, Yuan-Fan; Chan, Chun-Hsiang; Wang, Han; Pan, Yun-Xing; Lin, Gine-Jie

    2014-05-01

    In recent years, due to the global warming and global climate anomaly, more and more disasters appear such as flood and debris flow. The disasters always cause loss of life and property. However, the cross-aged invention, smart phone, makes our life more conveniently for delivering lots of information instantly. This study uses Eclipse as the development platform, and designs the urban disaster information mobile Application (APP) which is for debris flow and flood in Taipei city area. In this study, an urban disaster information APP, Taipei Let You Know, has successfully developed under android development environment, combined disaster indicators and the warming value of disaster. In order to ameliorate official information delay problem, this APP not only shows official information, but also offers a WEB 2.0 platform for public users to upload all disaster information instantly. As the result, the losses of life and property can decrease, and the disaster information delivery can be faster and more accurate by utilizing this APP in the future.

  11. Urban Intensification and Expansion in Sub-Saharan Africa: Impacts on Urban Agriculture and Food Security

    Science.gov (United States)

    Uzokwe, V. N. E. N.; Muchelo, R. O.; Odeh, I. A.

    2015-12-01

    In Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), urban intensification and expansion are increasing at alarming rates due to rapid population growth and rural-to-urban migration. This has led to the premise that the proportion of SSA urban residents most vulnerable to food insecurity is the highest in the world. Using a focused survey and multi-temporal (decadal) land use/cover classification of Landsat images, we explored the effect of urban intensification and expansion on urban agriculture and food security, focusing on a megacity and a regional center in Uganda: Kampala and Mbarara, respectively. We found that food insecurity arose due to a number of reasons, among which are: i) expansion and intensification of of urban settlements into previously productive agricultural lands in urban and peri-urban areas; ii) loss of predominantly young (rural agricultural) adult labor force to urban centers, leading to decline in rural food production; iii) lack of proper urban planning incorporating green and agricultural development leading to low productive market garden systems. We discussed these outcomes in light of existing studies which estimated that urban agriculture alone supports over 800 million people globally and accounts for 15-20% of world food supply. In spite of this relatively low contribution by urban/peri-urban agriculture, it probably accounts for higher proportion of food supply to urban poor in SSA and thus are most vulnerable to the loss of urban and peri-urban agricultural land. Further recommendations require policy makers and urban planners to team up to design a suitable framework for sustainable urban planning and development.

  12. Do Transit-Oriented Developments (TODs and Established Urban Neighborhoods Have Similar Walking Levels in Hong Kong?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yi Lu

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available A sharp drop in physical activity and skyrocketing obesity rate has accompanied rapid urbanization in China. The urban planning concept of transit-oriented development (TOD has been widely advocated in China to promote physical activity, especially walking. Indeed, many design features thought to promote walking—e.g., mixed land use, densification, and well-connected street network—often characterize both TODs and established urban neighborhoods. Thus, it is often assumed that TODs have similar physical activity benefits as established urban neighborhoods. To verify this assumption, this study compared walking behaviors in established urban neighborhoods and transit-oriented new towns in Hong Kong. To address the limitation of self-selection bias, we conducted a study using Hong Kong citywide public housing scheme, which assigns residents to different housing estates by flat availability and family size rather than personal preference. The results show new town residents walked less for transportation purpose than urban residents. New town residents far from the transit station (800–1200 m walked less for recreational purpose than TOD residents close to a rail transit station (<400 m or urban residents. The observed disparity in walking behaviors challenges the common assumption that TOD and established urban neighborhoods have similar impact on walking behavior. The results suggest the necessity for more nuanced planning strategies, taking local-level factors into account to promote walking of TOD residents who live far from transit stations.

  13. analysis of urban poverty and its implications on development in uyo

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    DJFLEX

    The study revealed significant relationship between factors of urban poverty and development in Uyo urban area. The study recommended the .... processes of change including economic, demographic, political, cultural, technological and ...

  14. Sustainable Urban (re-Development with Building Integrated Energy, Water and Waste Systems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tae-Goo Lee

    2013-03-01

    Full Text Available The construction and service of urban infrastructure systems and buildings involves immense resource consumption. Cities are responsible for the largest component of global energy, water, and food consumption as well as related sewage and organic waste production. Due to ongoing global urbanization, in which the largest sector of the global population lives in cities which are already built, global level strategies need to be developed that facilitate both the sustainable construction of new cities and the re-development of existing urban environments. A very promising approach in this regard is the decentralization and building integration of environmentally sound infrastructure systems for integrated resource management. This paper discusses such new and innovative building services engineering systems, which could contribute to increased energy efficiency, resource productivity, and urban resilience. Applied research and development projects in Germany, which are based on integrated system approaches for the integrated and environmentally sound management of energy, water and organic waste, are used as examples. The findings are especially promising and can be used to stimulate further research and development, including economical aspects which are crucial for sustainable urban (re-development.

  15. Lunar architecture and urbanism

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sherwood, Brent

    1992-01-01

    Human civilization and architecture have defined each other for over 5000 years on Earth. Even in the novel environment of space, persistent issues of human urbanism will eclipse, within a historically short time, the technical challenges of space settlement that dominate our current view. By adding modern topics in space engineering, planetology, life support, human factors, material invention, and conservation to their already renaissance array of expertise, urban designers can responsibly apply ancient, proven standards to the exciting new opportunities afforded by space. Inescapable facts about the Moon set real boundaries within which tenable lunar urbanism and its component architecture must eventually develop.

  16. A successful local economic development-urban renewal initiative ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Despite the urgent need for local economic development in South Africa, Local Economic Development (LED) as area of professional endeavour/activity has largely failed to live up to this need. In this article, an alternative approach to local economic development, which involved a 'bottom-up' approach to urban renewal is ...

  17. Research on the Development and Enlightenment of Urban Environmental Engineering

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tian, Mingjing; Li, Guanglou; Zhang, Lu; Shou, Youping; Li, Yajuan; Ye, Wei; Xu, Jing

    2018-04-01

    In recent years, under the promotion of reform and opening up, China's economic development has greatly accelerated, urbanization is also gradually accelerated. In the process of urbanization, there are many problems. The development of environmental engineering is one of the most important points. While building our living environment; we should also pay attention to the implementation of sustainable development strategies. First of all, This paper describes basic situation of environmental engineering, and finally provided some measures to promote the strengthening of China's environmental engineering

  18. Sustainable urban development and industrial pollution

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Petrović Julka

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Sustainable development of cities is highly connected with the pollution generated from industrial facilities and power plants. Both affect quality of air, weather, health and quality of life. The main goal of this paper is to determine the impact of selected weather parameters on the pollution from mentioned plants. From the research results, it can be concluded that sustainable urban development and welfare of citizens are dependent on causal relationship between pollution and weather. The greatest level of impact was recorded for nitric dioxide. In the case of carbon monoxide, the level of impact is the middle. The lowest level was recorded for particulate matter. The biggest impact on the carbon monoxide emission and particulate matter is that of air pressure, whereas temperature has the biggest impact on nitrogen dioxide emission. The research shows that air humidity and wind speed do not have a significant impact on the emission of pollutants from the plants. Research shows need for further studies in the field of impact of pollution from industry on urban weather and human health.

  19. Raising Awareness of Urban Environment Development in Primary Schools

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rosi Maja

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available In the past few years, excessive efforts have been made to increase the city’s attractiveness and its international positioning. Also studies on the so-called city destination branding are on the rise. Theorists, as Ramirez (2001, Marzano and Scott (2009, among many others, are discussing different aspects of this complex process. Many approaches and strategies are dealing with the positioning of urban environments and city destinations, trying to provide at least some partial answers about achieving this objective. With proper marketing and branding, cities can do a lot to attract tourists and visitors. For successful city marketing and branding and for the successful long-term positioning of the destination in general, it is necessary to involve the key stakeholders and collaborate with as many as possible despite the fact that the branding of a city destination (or any destination for that matter is a complex process. It is significant that all the stakeholders, who are always carriers of different interests, are invited to collaborate in the planning of the tourism development and tourism development strategies, from the government, the private sector, schools etc. It is also important to involve the citizens, who can provide a valuable opinion about the environment they live in – what they like about their environment, what suggestion would they give to tourists about gastronomy, attractions, shops, events, etc. It is significant that citizens are proud of their urban environment, that they know their own environment, and that they have the motivation for the involvement in the process of improvement of their home environment (through projects, discussions, etc.. It is impossible to create attractive urban environments or cities if residents do not have a positive opinion about the place they live in. That is why it is essential for the education institutions at all levels, but especially for the institutions at the primary levels to

  20. Montepulciano 3D virtual models for urban planning and development of the urban environment

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stefano Bertocci

    2014-05-01

    Full Text Available The research work carried out by the Department of Architecture of Florence and the Department of Civil Engineering and Architecture of Pavia for the administration of Montepulciano (SI was aimed to study new methods of analysis and promotion of the city. The representation of the street fronts of the historic center, realized in a decade of analysis in which it is carried out the study for the planning, has formed a corpus of documents useful for the realization of a three-dimensional model of the city itself. The model, which allows a dynamic interaction with the urban structure, has been designed to develop tools for valuation of the activities and the historical and cultural heritage. It is possible through the determination of a structure of a visual interface and interactive multimedia which would transform the model in a real emotional space.

  1. Assessing the role of urban developments on storm runoff response through multi-scale catchment experiments

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wilkinson, Mark; Owen, Gareth; Geris, Josie; Soulsby, Chris; Quinn, Paul

    2015-04-01

    Many communities across the world face the increasing challenge of balancing water quantity and quality issues with accommodating new growth and urban development. Urbanisation is typically associated with detrimental changes in water quality, sediment delivery, and effects on water storage and flow pathways (e.g. increases in flooding). In particular for mixed rural and urban catchments where the spatio-temporal variability of hydrological responses is high, there remains a key research challenge in evaluating the timing and magnitude of storage and flow pathways at multiple scales. This is of crucial importance for appropriate catchment management, for example to aid the design of Green Infrastructure (GI) to mitigate the risk of flooding, among other multiple benefits. The aim of this work was to (i) explore spatio-temporal storm runoff generation characteristics in multi-scale catchment experiments that contain rural and urban land use zones, and (ii) assess the (preliminary) impact of Sustainable Drainage (SuDs) as GI on high flow and flood characteristics. Our key research catchment, the Ouseburn in Northern England (55km2), has rural headwaters (15%) and an urban zone (45%) concentrated in the lower catchment area. There is an intermediate and increasingly expanding peri-urban zone (currently 40%), which is defined here as areas where rural and urban features coexist, alongside GIs. Such a structure is typical for most catchments with urban developments. We monitored spatial precipitation and multiscale nested (five gauges) runoff response, in addition to the storage dynamics in GIs for a period of 6 years (2007-2013). For a range of events, we examined the multiscale nested runoff characteristics (lag time and magnitude) of the rural and urban flow components, assessed how these integrated with changing land use and increasing scale, and discussed the implications for flood management in the catchment. The analyses indicated three distinctly different

  2. Connecting Urban Students with Engineering Design: Community-Focused, Student-Driven Projects

    Science.gov (United States)

    Parker, Carolyn; Kruchten, Catherine; Moshfeghian, Audrey

    2017-01-01

    The STEM Achievement in Baltimore Elementary Schools (SABES) program is a community partnership initiative that includes both in-school and afterschool STEM education for grades 3-5. It was designed to broaden participation and achievement in STEM education by bringing science and engineering to the lives of low-income urban elementary school…

  3. Interactive lighting art installation in virtual environments as a stimulus for public Ownership in urban development – Brighter Brunnshög

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kim Boa

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Urban development projects are often 1opposed by residents due to a lack of sense of ownership over the project. This study is a methodological approach in creating interactive lighting art installations in virtual environments to stimulate this sense of ownership. The study is part of the Brighter Brunnshög project, which is the initial stage of the urban development plan for new research centres in Brunnshög, Sweden. The main goal of this research is to explore the impact of virtual lighting art installations on residents´ attitudes toward the urban development of their area. The research is based on qualitative field studies and focus group interviews, and was assessed with questionnaires. The design itself is based on the results of the research data and consists of three criteria; awareness, mutuality, and adaptability. The results of the assessment indicate that interactive lighting art installations in virtual environments have the potential to create awareness of areas under urban development, which is a fundamental condition for creating place attachment, and by extension, a sense of ownership over the project.

  4. Urban Multisensory Laboratory, AN Approach to Model Urban Space Human Perception

    Science.gov (United States)

    González, T.; Sol, D.; Saenz, J.; Clavijo, D.; García, H.

    2017-09-01

    An urban sensory lab (USL or LUS an acronym in Spanish) is a new and avant-garde approach for studying and analyzing a city. The construction of this approach allows the development of new methodologies to identify the emotional response of public space users. The laboratory combines qualitative analysis proposed by urbanists and quantitative measures managed by data analysis applications. USL is a new approach to go beyond the borders of urban knowledge. The design thinking strategy allows us to implement methods to understand the results provided by our technique. In this first approach, the interpretation is made by hand. However, our goal is to combine design thinking and machine learning in order to analyze the qualitative and quantitative data automatically. Now, the results are being used by students from the Urbanism and Architecture courses in order to get a better understanding of public spaces in Puebla, Mexico and its interaction with people.

  5. The role of economic clusters in improving urban planning support

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Yang, Zhenshan|info:eu-repo/dai/nl/251865274

    2010-01-01

    Improving the mechanism of integrating economic and spatial developments is an important issue in urban policy analysis and design. As Economic Clusters (ECs) become an important organisation in contemporary urban development in both economic and spatial practices, the research addresses the

  6. Behavior Space Design and Expression by the Theories and Methods of Urban Design—The Yan Dao ancient town of design practice

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chen Wei

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available In recent years, the ancient town of update and development has become a new hot spot, the study of old town renewal of concern is gradually warming. And again there are a lot of space in the middle of the old town renewal design and traditional style, space activities and use the contradiction between population, which becomes a problem urgently to be solved in design stage. The purpose of this study was to explore old town design space and behavior, traditional and modern conflict resolution methods, and to present the town development and design with a design concept. This paper’ uses three theories of urban design (The relationship between figure and ground, Contact theory and Place theory as a real-time monitoring, assessment, comparison of methods, to study Yan Dao Ancient Town, and the space for analysis. In the research, this paper based on the design theory of the three major city as a starting point, detailedly describes the different types in a certain area of difference in the behavior and the properties of space, and the ancient town of Hubei Shennongjia forest region salt path planning and design practice, the ancient town of updating the connotation of the historical context and space behavior of connection. The conclusion of this thesis put forward the method of that based on the space shape of ancient design method of its application in practice.

  7. Spatial and functional changes in recent urban development of Zagreb

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Miroslav Sić

    2007-12-01

    Full Text Available This article discusses the urban development of Zagreb in the transition period. It analyses four processes which have caused spatial and functional changes in the cityćs development within its administrative limits. These are: the process of a new CBD establishment, expansion of hypermarkets and commercial centres, housing construction under new conditions and transportation problems and solutions. Under the influence of these processes the spatiofunctional structure of the city becomes more and more complex. In this connection the city has started to have more influence on the urban regions development.

  8. A Case Study on Sustainable Reuse of Abandoned Infrastructure at Seoul Station Overpass as Urban Park for the Design Strategies in Korea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boo, Yeeun; Kwon, Young-Sang

    2018-04-01

    As the 21st century, known for knowledge information era, many industrial infrastructures built as part of the 20th century urban development have been devastated functionally and new alternatives for them have been demanded nowadays. This study aims to discuss the strategies used in the design proposals of the International Competition for ‘Seoullo 7017 Project’, which was recently completed in May 2017, based on the sustainability of the deteriorate infrastructure as urban park. Through the competition brief, each proposal is analysed against the competition brief and the more generic approaches on the adaptive reuse of infrastructure are proposed. By examining the case in Korea, it is expected to explore the possibilities for the sustainability of abandoned infrastructure through adapting reuse as urban park in Korea, to propose design strategies that can be applied to the future adaptive use of deteriorated infrastructure in Korea, and to provide broader academic base to related works.

  9. City-ecological perspectives of the development of high urbanized multifunctional centers of the largest Russian cities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kolesnikov Sergey Anatol’evich

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available This article presents some results of the author’s dissertation research dedicated to formation of an architectural typology of high urbanized multifunctional units of urban structure of the largest cities (further HUMUUS as centers of social activity, which include buildings, constructions, transportation equipment and open spaces, where human flows transpose, start and end with the purpose of bringing into this space a concentrated maximum of goods, services and information with minimum time expenditures. This article draws attention to the development analysis of the structure-forming functions of HUMUUS and their town planning and environmental impact on the surrounding area. The study of planning structures of the largest Russian cities (Samara, Kazan, Nizhny Novgorod made it possible to identify a number of main objects, in which structure-forming functions of HUMUUS are materialized: railroad complex (historically formed, developed, dominated, system-wide road junction, transport interchange hub (providing intraurban messages, public office and business centers, leisure and entertainment centers, shopping centers. Basing on researches of Russian and foreign experience, it is possible to predict with full confidence the following trends and streams of environmental and urban development of HUMUUS in the near-term perspective: Strengthening of the environmental and urban frame by network evolution of HUMUUS; Inclusion of green areas of HUMUUS in the system of citywide green areas; Increment of the interest of the investors to the public road junction for the purpose of reorganization of them to full HUMUUS with all characteristics of high-urbanized and environmental and urban reorganization (separation of traffic and pedestrian flows, maximum capacity, multiple-level system, multifunctional, increase in landscaped green space, reconstruction of engineering systems and communications, the use of modern ecological building designs and

  10. 24 CFR 570.205 - Eligible planning, urban environmental design and policy-planning-management-capacity building...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... environmental design and policy-planning-management-capacity building activities. 570.205 Section 570.205..., urban environmental design and policy-planning-management-capacity building activities. (a) Planning... known or suspected environmental contamination. (5) [Reserved] (6) Policy—planning—management—capacity...

  11. Development of Dimensionless Index Assessing Low Impact Development in Urban Areas

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jun, S. H.; Lee, E. H.; Kim, J. H.

    2017-12-01

    Because the rapid urbanization and industrialization have increased the impervious area of watersheds, inundation in urban area and water pollution of river by non-point pollutants have caused serious problems for a long time. Low Impact Development (LID) techniques have been implemented for the solution of these problems due to its cost effectiveness for mitigating the water quality and quantity impact on urban areas. There have been many studies about the effectiveness of LID, but there is a lack of research on developing an index for the assessment of LID performance. In this study, the dimensionless reliability index of LID is proposed. The index is developed using Distance Measure Method (DMM). DMM is used to consider the parameters that have different units. The parameters for reliability of LID are the amount of pollutant at the outfall and the flooding volume. Both parameters become dimensionless index by DMM. Weighted factors in dimensionless index are considered to realize the behavior of reliability for the variation of importance to the parameters. LID is applied to an actual area called Gasan city in Seoul, South Korea where inundation is frequently occurred. The reliability is estimated for 16 different rainfall events. For each rainfall event, the parameters with LID installation are compared with those of no LID installation. Depending on which parameter is considered more important, the results showed difference. In conclusion, the optimal locations of LID are suggested as the weighted factors change.

  12. Institutional conditions for sustainable private sector-led urban development projects : A conceptual model

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Heurkens, E.W.T.M.

    2016-01-01

    Across the globe sustainable private sector-led urban development projects (SPUDPs) in the built environment rarely commence as real estate developers face several institutional barriers which limit their capacity to develop economic-viable, social-responsible, environmental-friendly urban places.

  13. Case Studies of Leading Edge Small Urban High Schools. Relevance Strategic Designs: 4. Boston Arts Academy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shields, Regis Anne; Ireland, Nicole; City, Elizabeth; Derderian, Julie; Miles, Karen Hawley

    2008-01-01

    This report is one of nine detailed case studies of small urban high schools that served as the foundation for the Education Resource Strategies (ERS) report "Strategic Designs: Lessons from Leading Edge Small Urban High Schools." These nine schools were dubbed "Leading Edge Schools" because they stand apart from other high…

  14. Case Studies of Leading Edge Small Urban High Schools. Relevance Strategic Designs: 6. Perspectives Charter School

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shields, Regis Anne; Ireland, Nicole; City, Elizabeth; Derderian, Julie; Miles, Karen Hawley

    2008-01-01

    This report is one of nine detailed case studies of small urban high schools that served as the foundation for the Education Resource Strategies (ERS) report "Strategic Designs: Lessons from Leading Edge Small Urban High Schools." These nine schools were dubbed "Leading Edge Schools" because they stand apart from other high…

  15. Case Studies of Leading Edge Small Urban High Schools. Relevance Strategic Designs: 7. TechBoston Academy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shields, Regis Anne; Ireland, Nicole; City, Elizabeth; Derderian, Julie; Miles, Karen Hawley

    2008-01-01

    This report is one of nine detailed case studies of small urban high schools that served as the foundation for the Education Resource Strategies (ERS) report "Strategic Designs: Lessons from Leading Edge Small Urban High Schools." These nine schools were dubbed "Leading Edge Schools" because they stand apart from other high…

  16. Functional Zoning and Urban Development Tendencies of Bucharest City/Romania

    Science.gov (United States)

    Armas, Iuliana; Dumitrascu, Silvia

    2010-05-01

    Any form of urban development policy for environmental management should be based on the differentiation of the structure of a territory that can be found in the shape of functional zoning. Identifying the patterns of morphological structure of the urban space can provide essential clues concerning the proper measures to take into consideration during the activity of urban planning. In this sense, the Bucharest municipality study case provides the example of a dynamic urban space with a complex and distinctive evolutionary structure. The aim of the study is to set out the main events that shaped the Bucharest city space and the patterns resulted from their impact at the functional level of the Romanian capital. In order to identify the development tendencies of the Bucharest municipality, a series of aspects concerning urban morphology should be highlighted that reveal the impact of the socio-economical policies at the structural level of the territory. In this sense, three images of the urban space stand out, representative for the period when they materialized: the Post-Byzantine (XV-XVIII), the Fanariot (XVIII) and the Modern periods (XIX-XX). The corresponding cartographic documents analyzed are: the Franz Purcel Plan (dated 1789), the Romanian Guide Print Plan and, respectively, the AGC Busman Print Plan. The analysis reveals three distinctive morphological types: radial-concentric in the 17th century, polynuclear in the 18th century, leading to the mixed character in the Modern period. The latest trait of the urban territory is based on the concentric character of the street network (three circles were identified at the level of the capital city that point out the evolution of the urban space: Dacia bv-Mircea Vulcanescu, Stefan cel Mare bv-Iancu de Hunedoara and the last circle outlined by the ring road) and the presence of multiple nuclei that accumulate the commercial, administrative and business functions of the city.

  17. Productive Urban Landscape In Developing Home Garden In Yogyakarta City

    Science.gov (United States)

    Irwan, S. N. R.; Sarwadi, A.

    2017-10-01

    Home garden is one type of agroecosystem that supports ecosystem services even in the urban settlement. The studies involved literature references and field survey along with a framework of the productive urban landscape that support ecosystem services in home garden. Productive urban landscape provided environmentally, socially and economically benefits that contained in ecosystem services. Problems on limited space in the urban settlement have to be managed by modified home garden system in order to work for ecosystem service in developing productive landscape. This study aimed to assess home garden (Pekarangan) system in a cluster of high density settlement in Yogyakarta City. Structured interview and vegetation identification of home garden have been conducted on 80 samples in Rejowinangun Kotagede District, Yogyakarta City. People showed enthusiasm in ecosystem services provided by home garden “Pekarangan Produktif” through developing productive urban landscape. Some benefits on ecosystem services of home garden were revealed on this study consisted of food production for sale (4.7%), home industry (7.69%), aesthetics (22.65%), food (14.10%), biodiversity (10.68%), ecosystem (12.82%), education (2.56), social interaction (11.54%), recreation (4.70%), and others (8.55%). Nevertheless, vegetation and other elements of home gardens have been managed irregularly and in particularly, the planned home gardens were only 17.07%. Actually, home gardens provided a large set of ecosystem services including being cultural services those are the category most valued. The urban people almost hided the understanding of the cultural benefit of ecosystem services of home garden, even though Yogyakarta has known the cultural city. Thus, urban home garden, as way as “Pekarangan Produktif” in the limited space that managed and planned sustainably, provide many benefits of ecosystem services in a productive urban landscape.

  18. Risk-based zoning for urbanizing floodplains.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Porse, Erik

    2014-01-01

    Urban floodplain development brings economic benefits and enhanced flood risks. Rapidly growing cities must often balance the economic benefits and increased risks of floodplain settlement. Planning can provide multiple flood mitigation and environmental benefits by combining traditional structural measures such as levees, increasingly popular landscape and design features (green infrastructure), and non-structural measures such as zoning. Flexibility in both structural and non-structural options, including zoning procedures, can reduce flood risks. This paper presents a linear programming formulation to assess cost-effective urban floodplain development decisions that consider benefits and costs of development along with expected flood damages. It uses a probabilistic approach to identify combinations of land-use allocations (residential and commercial development, flood channels, distributed runoff management) and zoning regulations (development zones in channel) to maximize benefits. The model is applied to a floodplain planning analysis for an urbanizing region in the Baja Sur peninsula of Mexico. The analysis demonstrates how (1) economic benefits drive floodplain development, (2) flexible zoning can improve economic returns, and (3) cities can use landscapes, enhanced by technology and design, to manage floods. The framework can incorporate additional green infrastructure benefits, and bridges typical disciplinary gaps for planning and engineering.

  19. Strategies for sustainable urban development and urban-rural linkages

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Nilsson, K.; Sick Nielsen, T.; Aalbers, C.B.E.M.; Bell, S.; Boitier, B.; Chery, J.P.; Fertner, C.; Groschowski, M.; Haase, D.; Loibl, W.; Pauleit, S.; Pintar, M.; Piorr, A.; Ravetz, J.; Ristimäki, M.; Rounsevell, M.; Tosics, I.; Westerink, J.; Zasada, I.

    2014-01-01

    An important driving force behind urban expansion is the growth of the urban population. But for Europe, this is not a sufficient explanation. The major trend is that European cities have become much less compact. Since the mid-1950s European cities have expanded on average by 78%, whereas the

  20. Towards Equitable and Sustainable Urban Space: Introduction to Special Issue on “Urban Land and Sustainable Development”

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yehua Dennis Wei

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available The unprecedented wave of global urbanization has exerted increased pressure on urban land and made land-use sustainability an urgent concern. This Special Issue examines patterns, structures, and dynamics of urban land use from the economic, social, and, to a lesser extent, environmental standpoints, in light of the goal of equitable and sustainable development. This introduction discusses the background and design of the Special Issue and highlights the contribution of the selected papers.

  1. The Experience City and challenges for Architects and Urban Designers

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Marling, Gitte

    2008-01-01

    The article discusse the challenges of the experience economy from a Nordic welfare perspective. It argues that the challenges of the experience economy must be combined with the ambition that our cities are not reduced to entertainment engines. The urban life in the Nordic "welfare cities" must...... emphasise experiences that challenge, that urge reflection and that contain elements of learning just as the Nordic welfare city must strive for a socially and culturally inclusive urban life which includes offers for many different lifestyles and cultures in its diversity.     Consequently......, it is not simply a matter of creating a framework for entertainment and "Fun" or of creating architectural icon buildings that can bring fame to the city. The question is whether or not the experience economy can provide for a more versatile urban development in which architectural innovation goes hand in hand...

  2. Institutional entrepreneurship in sustainable urban development: Dutch successes as inspiration for transformation

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Woolthuis, R.K.; Hooimeijer, F.; Bossink, B.; Mulder, G.; Brouwer, J.

    2013-01-01

    Sustainable urban development is a wicked problem. On the basis of three case studies, we conclude that institutional entrepreneurs play an important role in sustainable urban development. The question we address is how institutional entrepreneurs do this. We theorize and find six tactics that

  3. Institutional entrepreneurship in sustainable urban development Dutch successes as inspiration for transformation

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Klein Woolthuis, R.J.A.; Hooimeijer, F.; Bossink, B.A.G.; Mulder, G.; Brouwer, J.

    2013-01-01

    Sustainable urban development is a wicked problem. On the basis of three case studies, we conclude that institutional entrepreneurs play an important role in sustainable urban development. The question we address is how institutional entrepreneurs do this. We theorize and find six tactics that

  4. Coherences and Differences among EU, US and PRC Approaches for Rural Urban Development: Interscalar and Interdisciplinary Analysis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Roberto De Lotto

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available The main goal of this paper is to translate the indexing of a projects’ Data Base, based on EU vocabulary on rural urban development, into different lexicons. Built on the groundwork laid in previous researches, the authors want to enlarge the methodology applied in European Union (EU territory and defined with Rural Architectural Intensification (RAI and Rural Architectural Urbanism (RAU to other contexts, in particular People’s Republic of China (PRC and United States (US, keeping, however, this research at theoretical and methodological definition level. The study of coherences and differences between EU, US and China for rural urban development implies an interscalar and interdisciplinary analysis approach. It must be in complete adherence with national and specific directives and objectives in all the different selected countries. The analysis of main literature and national and federal laws of Europe, United States and China allows the definition of the Strategic Objectives and Main Goals for Rural Development identifying indicators and criteria. They permit to measure intensification’s outcomes in a qualitative way through the description and interpretation of operative tools for architecture and landscape design. Finally, the organized database and the territorial results can be considered as guidelines to support decision makers in rural-urban context. In addition, the whole procedure presented along with the projects’ database is a significant research package for further interdisciplinary applications.

  5. 24 CFR 1003.205 - Eligible planning, urban environmental design and policy-planning-management-capacity building...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... environmental design and policy-planning-management-capacity building activities. 1003.205 Section 1003.205... planning, urban environmental design and policy-planning-management-capacity building activities. (a... plans, general environmental studies, and strategies and action programs to implement plans, including...

  6. Urban Land Use Planning Trend and Sustainable Challenges in Socio-Economic Development

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Muhammad Yousif Mangi

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available Land use planning is a technical approach for developing and managing the land into various public interests to endorse sustainable socio-economic development. This paper focuses on socio-economic problems by improper allocations of urban land uses particularly in vertical development (High rise buildings. Taluka Qasimabad Town was selected as a case study to observe the existing urban land use trends. Spatial and Quantitative data were collected through detailed land use survey and formal interviews. The ArcGIS and SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Science online software were used to analyze spatial and quantitative data. LRM (Linear Regression Model was used for predicting urban land use change particularly in vertical development by the year 2050. In this context, yearly code and land use change variables were applied in LRM to predict land use change since 2007. The results were found that rapid change in land uses occurred in the study area, by which inhabitants are facing problems like privacy, insecurity, property devaluation, and orientation nearby their accommodations. This research can lead to suggest several ways to improve and enhance urban land use planning approaches for betterment of urban communities.

  7. Professional development strategies for teaching urban biology teachers to use concept maps effectively

    Science.gov (United States)

    McGregor Petgrave, Dahlia M.

    Many teachers are not adequately prepared to help urban students who have trouble understanding conceptual ideas in biology because these students have little connection to the natural world. This study explored potential professional development strategies to help urban biology teachers use concept maps effectively with various topics in the biology curriculum. A grounded theory approach was used to develop a substantive professional development model for urban biology teachers. Qualitative data were collected through 16 semi-structured interviews of professional developers experienced in working with concept maps in the urban context. An anonymous online survey was used to collect quantitative data from 56 professional developers and teachers to support the qualitative data. The participants were from New York City, recruited through the NY Biology-Chemistry Professional Development Mentor Network and the NY Biology Teachers' Association. According to the participants, map construction, classroom applications, lesson planning, action research, follow-up workshops, and the creation of learning communities are the most effective professional development strategies. The interviewees also proposed English language learning strategies such as picture maps, native word maps, and content reading materials with underlined words. This study contributes to social change by providing a professional development model to use in planning workshops for urban teachers. Urban teachers improve their own conceptual understanding of biology while learning how to implement concept mapping strategies in the classroom. Students whose teachers are better prepared to teach biology in a conceptual manner have the potential of growing into more scientifically literate citizens.

  8. Water and Urban Development. Zapopan Jal. MÉXICO

    Science.gov (United States)

    Flores, R. M., Sr.; Rosas-Elguera, J.; Pena, L. E.; Lucia, G. I.

    2016-12-01

    Recently there is a need to make a land management project for the metropolitan area of Guadalajara (GDL), the objective is the momentum of an "orderly growth" however there are a number of problems associated with urban growth, one of which is the provision of Water. There is not an adequate exploration of our resources, nor an adequate record of the minimum parameters that can be measured in the case of groundwater, such as the level of infiltration and extraction volume. The extraction is carried out in the northwest of the GDL (currently the area is more urban development), is approximately greater than 658 l / s (SIAPA 2016), beyond the capacity of natural recharge since precipitation of an average of 850 mm. Besides which currently anthropically waterproof. There is a record of more than 40 existing in this sector of the GDL wells, wells and springs are not accounted for, the production areas varies from 14.45 to 180.55 m depth In the study area (approximately 80km2), there are urban uses, industries, airports, agricultural areas in transition to residential areas and a protected natural area. cracks have already appeared in different years and places, some authors propose that are associated with geological structures and others say it is by massive extraction of water. Mitigation measures or water injection wells to recharge aquifers is poor, not considered as a priority for the territorial urban planning element. Which leads to a significant lowering of the aquifers that is up to 67.2 m in a span of two years in some cases. Some urban developments with golf course, contribute significantly to the purification of waste water and recharge of aquifers for irrigation they do, what should force by the state or municipality to issue a series of fiscal stimulus.

  9. Urban design for mobilities

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jensen, Ole B.

    2017-01-01

    . In this paper, we shall explore the potential for a better understanding of contemporary urban challenges through the cross-disciplinary approach of ‘Mobilities design’. The paper investigates how this notion is based on an understanding of materialities and social action that is framed under the heading...

  10. An Integrated Modelling Framework to Assess Flood Risk under Urban Development and Changing Climate

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    that combines a model for the socio-economic development of cities (DANCE4WATER) with an urban flood model. The urban flood model is a 1D-2D spatially distributed hydrologic and hydraulic model that, for a given urban layout, simulates flow in the sewer system and the surface flow in the catchment (MIKE FLOOD......). The socio-economic model computes urban layouts that are transferred to the hydraulic model in the form of changes of impervious area and potential flow paths on the surface. Estimates of flood prone areas, as well as the expected annual damage due to flooding, are returned to the socio-economic model...... as an input for further refinement of the scenarios for the urban development. Our results in an Australian case study suggest that urban development is a major driver for flood risk and vice versa that flood risk can be significantly reduced if it is accounted for in the development of the cities...

  11. A tool for urban soundscape evaluation applying Support Vector Machines for developing a soundscape classification model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Torija, Antonio J; Ruiz, Diego P; Ramos-Ridao, Angel F

    2014-06-01

    To ensure appropriate soundscape management in urban environments, the urban-planning authorities need a range of tools that enable such a task to be performed. An essential step during the management of urban areas from a sound standpoint should be the evaluation of the soundscape in such an area. In this sense, it has been widely acknowledged that a subjective and acoustical categorization of a soundscape is the first step to evaluate it, providing a basis for designing or adapting it to match people's expectations as well. In this sense, this work proposes a model for automatic classification of urban soundscapes. This model is intended for the automatic classification of urban soundscapes based on underlying acoustical and perceptual criteria. Thus, this classification model is proposed to be used as a tool for a comprehensive urban soundscape evaluation. Because of the great complexity associated with the problem, two machine learning techniques, Support Vector Machines (SVM) and Support Vector Machines trained with Sequential Minimal Optimization (SMO), are implemented in developing model classification. The results indicate that the SMO model outperforms the SVM model in the specific task of soundscape classification. With the implementation of the SMO algorithm, the classification model achieves an outstanding performance (91.3% of instances correctly classified). © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  12. Modeling urban storm rainfall runoff from diverse underlying surfaces and application for control design in Beijing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ouyang, Wei; Guo, Bobo; Hao, Fanghua; Huang, Haobo; Li, Junqi; Gong, Yongwei

    2012-12-30

    Managing storm rainfall runoff is paramount in semi-arid regions with urban development. In Beijing, pollution prevention in urban storm runoff and storm water utilization has been identified as the primary strategy for urban water management. In this paper, we sampled runoff during storm rainfall events and analyzed the concentration of chemical oxygen demand (COD), total suspended solids (TSS) and total phosphorus (TP) in the runoff. Furthermore, the first flush effect of storm rainfall from diverse underlying surfaces was also analyzed. With the Storm Water Management Model (SWMM), the different impervious rates of underlying surfaces during the storm runoff process were expressed. The removal rates of three typical pollutants and their interactions with precipitation and underlying surfaces were identified. From these rates, the scenarios regarding the urban storm runoff pollution loading from different designs of underlying previous rates were assessed with the SWMM. First flush effect analysis showed that the first 20% of the storm runoff should be discarded, which can help in utilizing the storm water resource. The results of this study suggest that the SWMM can express in detail the storm water pollution patterns from diverse underlying surfaces in Beijing, which significantly affected water quality. The scenario analysis demonstrated that impervious rate adjustment has the potential to reduce runoff peak and decrease pollution loading. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. Consideration of Environmental Factors in Planning and Development of Urban Areas

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kustysheva, I.

    2017-11-01

    Environmental factors, in varying degrees, always have a direct influence on the urban environment formation and the provision of favorable and safe conditions for the life of the population. Their role in the planning and development of urban areas remains an integral part of the management of such areas. Management should be aimed at improving the efficiency of use of the territories and ecological environment improvement. Planning must be done with the consideration of identified ecological processes in cities on the basis of the information about their occurrence in the past and present. Currently, cities face a multitude of problems that require urgent and immediate solutions. One of the most important issues is the poor state of the urban environment, so the environmental factors remain one of the most critical problems that should be considered by the authorities while implementing the urban areas’ development plans. The article discusses the role of environmental factors in the management and planning of urban territories by the example of the city of Tobolsk.

  14. An urban runoff model designed to inform stormwater management decisions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Beck, Nicole G; Conley, Gary; Kanner, Lisa; Mathias, Margaret

    2017-05-15

    We present an urban runoff model designed for stormwater managers to quantify runoff reduction benefits of mitigation actions that has lower input data and user expertise requirements than most commonly used models. The stormwater tool to estimate load reductions (TELR) employs a semi-distributed approach, where landscape characteristics and process representation are spatially-lumped within urban catchments on the order of 100 acres (40 ha). Hydrologic computations use a set of metrics that describe a 30-year rainfall distribution, combined with well-tested algorithms for rainfall-runoff transformation and routing to generate average annual runoff estimates for each catchment. User inputs include the locations and specifications for a range of structural best management practice (BMP) types. The model was tested in a set of urban catchments within the Lake Tahoe Basin of California, USA, where modeled annual flows matched that of the observed flows within 18% relative error for 5 of the 6 catchments and had good regional performance for a suite of performance metrics. Comparisons with continuous simulation models showed an average of 3% difference from TELR predicted runoff for a range of hypothetical urban catchments. The model usually identified the dominant BMP outflow components within 5% relative error of event-based measured flow data and simulated the correct proportionality between outflow components. TELR has been implemented as a web-based platform for use by municipal stormwater managers to inform prioritization, report program benefits and meet regulatory reporting requirements (www.swtelr.com). Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  15. Quito's Urban Watersheds: Applications of Low Impact Development and Sustainable Watershed Management

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marzion, R.; Serra-Llobet, A.; Ward Simons, C.; Kondolf, G. M.

    2013-12-01

    Quito, Ecuador sits high in an Interandean valley (elevation ~2,830 meters) at the foot of Pichincha volcano. Above the city, mountain streams descend from high-altitude Andean páramo grasslands down steep slopes through quebradas (ravines) to the Machángara River. Quito's rapid urban growth, while indicative of the city's economic vitality, has led to the city's expansion along the valley floor, settlements along precarious hillslopes and ravines, disappearance of wetlands, and loss of páramo. The upper reaches of the watersheds are being rapidly settled by migrants whose land-use practices result in contamination of waters. In the densely-settled downstream reaches, urban encroachment has resulted in filling and narrowing of quebradas with garbage and other poor-quality fill. These practices have dramatically altered natural drainage patterns, reduced the flood conveyance capacity of the channels (increasing the flood risk to surrounding communities), and further deteriorated water quality. The city's stormwater, wastewater, and surface waters suffer from untreated pollutant loads, aging pipes, and sewer overflows. In response to environmental degradation of the quebradas, awareness is increasing, at both local community and municipal levels, of the importance of stream corridors for water quality, wildlife, and recreation for nearby residents. Citizen groups have organized volunteer river cleanups, and municipal agencies have committed to implementing ';green infrastructure' solutions to make Quito a healthier habitat for humans and other species. City leaders are evaluating innovative low impact development (LID) methods to help decontaminate surface waters, mitigate urban flooding, and promote sustainable water systems. Quito's municipal water agency, EPMAPS, invited faculty and students from Quito and Berkeley to collaborate with agency staff and citizen groups to analyze opportunities and to develop plans and designs for sustainable infrastructure. To

  16. The Influence of Weather Variation, Urban Design and Built Environment on Objectively Measured Sedentary Behaviour in Children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Katapally, Tarun Reddy; Rainham, Daniel; Muhajarine, Nazeem

    2016-01-01

    With emerging evidence indicating that independent of physical activity, sedentary behaviour (SB) can be detrimental to health, researchers are increasingly aiming to understand the influence of multiple contexts such as urban design and built environment on SB. However, weather variation, a factor that continuously interacts with all other environmental variables, has been consistently underexplored. This study investigated the influence of diverse environmental exposures (including weather variation, urban design and built environment) on SB in children. This cross-sectional observational study is part of an active living research initiative set in the Canadian prairie city of Saskatoon. Saskatoon's neighbourhoods were classified based on urban street design into grid-pattern, fractured grid-pattern and curvilinear types of neighbourhoods. Diverse environmental exposures were measured including, neighbourhood built environment, and neighbourhood and household socioeconomic environment. Actical accelerometers were deployed between April and June 2010 (spring-summer) to derive SB of 331 10-14 year old children in 25 one week cycles. Each cycle of accelerometry was conducted on a different cohort of children within the total sample. Accelerometer data were matched with localized weather patterns derived from Environment Canada weather data. Multilevel modeling using Hierarchical Linear and Non-linear Modeling software was conducted by factoring in weather variation to depict the influence of diverse environmental exposures on SB. Both weather variation and urban design played a significant role in SB. After factoring in weather variation, it was observed that children living in grid-pattern neighbourhoods closer to the city centre (with higher diversity of destinations) were less likely to be sedentary. This study demonstrates a methodology that could be replicated to integrate geography-specific weather patterns with existing cross-sectional accelerometry data to

  17. Investment Constraints in Urban Regeneration: Property Developers and Local Authorities Perspective

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mohamed Nurulanis Ahmad

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Urban decay is a phenomenon created due to the expansion of urban population, the restructuring of industrial, social composition as well as the deterioration of urban areas. Consequently this will increase issues of crime, mass unemployment, low quality in urban services, social problems etc. Thus urban regeneration is a tool used to overcome all these issues in order to create quality of urban living, diversify and vibrant cities. However, the involvement of investment in urban regeneration is still infancy in Malaysia as compared to other countries such as Australia, UK, Hong Kong, and etc. This is due to the perception of investors towards the profit generation and the risk involve. The objective of this paper is to determine the constraints involved in urban regeneration investment from the perspectives of the property developer companies and the local authorities. The method used is an exploratory with primary data collection through a questionnaire survey. The findings revealed that the main constraints is in regards of the land issues as well as high cost of investment, however, the benefits gain should also be considered as this create a livable urban living.

  18. Analysis of surface contributions to external doses in a radioactively contaminated urban environment designed by the EMRAS-2 Urban Areas Working Group

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hwang, Won Tae; Jeong, Hae Sun; Jeong, Hyo Joon; Kim, Eun Han; Han, Moon Hee; Kim, In Gyu

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: ► External dose and contribution from radio-activated surface were evaluated for EMRAS-2 Urban Areas Working Group scenarios. ► The external doses showed a distinctive difference with the locations and precipitation. ► The contribution of contaminated surfaces for external dose depends on locations and precipitation. ► These results provide the essential information for decision-making support of countermeasures. - Abstract: The EMRAS-2 Urban Areas Working Group, which is supported by the IAEA, has designed a variety of accidental scenarios to test and improve the capabilities of the models used for an evaluation of radioactive contamination in an urban environment. A variety of models including a Korean model, METRO-K, are used for predictive results on the hypothetical scenarios. This paper describes the predictive results of METRO-K for the hypothetical scenarios designed in the Working Group. The external dose resulting from the air contamination of Co-60 was evaluated, and its contribution was analyzed with time as a function of the location of a receptor and precipitation conditions at the time of the contamination event. As a result, the external doses showed a distinctive difference with the locations to be evaluated and the precipitation conditions. Moreover, the contribution of contaminated surfaces for external doses was strongly dependent on the locations to be evaluated and the precipitation conditions. These results will provide essential information to assist the decision-making of appropriate countermeasures in an emergency situation of a radioactively contaminated urban environment

  19. 2010 World Expo and Urban Life Quality in Shanghai in Terms of Sustainable Development

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    Zhu Dajian; Peter P.Rogers

    2006-01-01

    Based on sustainable development theory and the UN's Human Development Index, this thesis puts forward what the quality of urban life implies,makes a study of the world Expo's potential influences on the urban life of Shanghai and advances the strategy and measures to strengthen the life-quality-facing urban management

  20. Urban Green Network Design: Defining green network from an urban planning perspective

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andrea Tulisi

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available From the theoretical context of Smart City various studies have emerged that adopt an analytical approach and description of urban phenomena based on the principles of “network design”; this line of research uses the network systems theory to define the principles that regulate the relationships among the various elements of urban sub-systems in order to optimize their functionality. From the same theoretical basis, urban greenspaces have also been studied as networks, by means of the creation of models capable of measuring the performance of the system in its entirety, posing the basis of a new multy-disciplinary research field called green network. This paper presents the results of research aimed at clarifying the meaning of green network from an urban planning perspective through a lexical analysis applied to a textual corpus of more than 300 abstracts of research papers that have dealt with this topic over the last twenty years. The results show that the concept of green network appears still fuzzy and unclear, due to the different meaning given to the term “green” and to an incorrect use of the term “network”, often referred to as a generic set of natural areas present in a city, without any reference to the network system theory or to the basic rules linking these elements together. For this reason, the paper proposes a unique definition of green network from an urban planning perspective that takes into account the contribution of other research areas to effective green infrastructure planning. This is the concept of “urban green network design” defined as “an urban planning practice, supported by decision support tools able to model green infrastructure as network, composed by natural and semi-natural areas, whose connections are modelled according to specific variables, in order to deliver an equal distribution of public services for enhancing the quality of life as well as a wide range of ecosystem services”.

  1. Renewed Urban Waterfront: Spatial Conditions of a Contemporary Urban Space Typology

    OpenAIRE

    Beate Niemann; Fabian Pramel

    2017-01-01

    The formerly industrially or militarily used Urban Waterfront is a potential area for urban development. Extensive interventions in the urban space come along with the development of these previously inaccessible areas in the city. The development of the Urban Waterfront in the European City is not subject to any recognizable urban paradigm. In this study, the development of the Urban Waterfront as a new urban space typology is analyzed by case studies of Urban Waterfront developments in Euro...

  2. Disconnecting the autopilot in urban water projects

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nielsen, Susanne Balslev; Jensen, Marina Bergen; Øhlenschlæger, Ny

    2011-01-01

    How can we motivate urban planners, water utilities and house owners to collaborate about sustainable urban water projects and to aim for solutions that go beyond the narrow perspective of individual stakeholder interests? A concept for framing a multidisciplinary learning process is developed...... the early stages of an urban water project. To realise new sustainable urban water designs a project team will need to engage and get acceptance from internal and external stakeholders, and this calls for communication and social skills rather than technical skills. The paper identifies potential...

  3. Exploring the design space of immersive urban analytics

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zhutian Chen

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Recent years have witnessed the rapid development and wide adoption of immersive head-mounted devices, such as HTC VIVE, Oculus Rift, and Microsoft HoloLens. These immersive devices have the potential to significantly extend the methodology of urban visual analytics by providing critical 3D context information and creating a sense of presence. In this paper, we propose a theoretical model to characterize the visualizations in immersive urban analytics. Furthermore, based on our comprehensive and concise model, we contribute a typology of combination methods of 2D and 3D visualizations that distinguishes between linked views, embedded views, and mixed views. We also propose a supporting guideline to assist users in selecting a proper view under certain circumstances by considering visual geometry and spatial distribution of the 2D and 3D visualizations. Finally, based on existing work, possible future research opportunities are explored and discussed.

  4. The population conundrums and some implications for urban development in Serbia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Petrić Jasna

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Population development may reveal either a potential or constraint on functional labour markets and spatial development of the territory in concern. The first results of the 2011 Census in Serbia depict a rather bleak demographic situation, which is only the continuation of population trends from the late 20th and beginning of the 21st century, substantially fuelled by dynamic political and socioeconomic processes featuring Serbia in the past few decades. The focus is on demographic changes in relation to three correlated aspects: 1 intensive ageing process; 2 depopulation and negative natural growth; and 3 migratory movements - population exodus. This paper addresses in particular the spatial consequences and institutional aspects of recent demographic changes and their reflection on urban areas in Serbia. In the past, population movements from rural to urban areas used to colour much of the migratory balance map of the country, however this situation changed due to exhaustion of the ‘traditional’ demographic reservoirs. Still, urban primacy of the capital city Belgrade has been even intensified with the recent demographic movements, or more precisely, a tissue of the two largest cities in relative proximity - Belgrade and Novi Sad is hypertrophied in a demographic sense. Other urban settlements in Serbia, especially the smaller towns, which are numerous but demographically shrinking, have not been empowered enough to substantiate better links with smaller and larger settlements within urban-rural interface, and their role has been challenged in that respect. Demographic changes, which affect urban growth or decline, are largely to do with border effects, economic and social gaps, educational opportunities, and search of certain ‘urban lifestyles’. The latter is particularly stressed regarding the process of ‘second demographic transition’ which encompassed Serbia and is manifested by changes in the family domain, viz. partnership

  5. Controlling Urban Sprawl with Integrated Approach of Space-Transport Development Strategies

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Ambarwati, L.; Verhaeghe, R.; Pel, A.J.; Van Arem, B.

    2014-01-01

    Urban sprawl phenomenon has been a huge issue since 20th century characterized by a rapid and unbalanced settlement development with transportation network particularly in a suburban area. The improvement of public transport system is a major requirement to minimize urban sprawl. Academic

  6. Recent urban policy and development in China: a reversal of "anti-urbanism".

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kwok, R Y

    1987-10-01

    The nature of and reasons for China's urban distribution policy adopted in 1982 are examined. The influence of socialist planning ideology on urban policy is noted. Contradictions between economic reform and urban policies are identified.

  7. The role of public libraries in culture-led urban regeneration

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Skot-Hansen, Dorte; Hvenegaard, Casper; Jochumsen, Henrik

    2013-01-01

    Purpose – The purpose of this article is to present a research project on public libraries in urban development focusing on how libraries contribute to culture‐led urban regeneration as icons, placemakers and community vitalization. Design/methodology/approach – The research project is based...... implications – The article provides a framework for development of strategies and legitimization for public libraries and a point of departure for the discussion of the library's contribution to urban development. Originality/value – This is the first public presentation of the findings of the results...... of the research project Public Libraries in Urban Development – Creativity, Innovation and Experience outside the Nordic countries....

  8. Urban Mining as a Driver for Teaching Architectural Design

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Vestergaard, Inge; Martin Jiménez, Guillermo

    2016-01-01

    To teach sustainable architecture is an ongoing process of establishing a frame where the student’s creativity can be challenged by dealing with actual demands on the anthropogenic scene. To use Urban Mining as a driver has been one of the most challenging teaching approaches since many years....... This approach involves a complex journey from investigating and harvesting local resources to gaining insight into metabolism and finally to design a project of diversity. The methodology used was based on industrial ecology. By realizing local resources and their potentials the students acquired knowledge...

  9. Urban Environmental Excursions: Designing field trips to demonstrate sustainable connections between natural and engineered systems in urban environments

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lemke, L. D.

    2012-12-01

    Field trips are a proven and effective instructional tool to connect students with the world around them. In most communities, opportunities abound to allow students to make connections between concepts introduced in classroom or lab activities and the urban environment that surrounds them. Potential destinations include solid and liquid waste disposal sites, brownfield redevelopment sites, hazardous waste sites, industrial complexes, or sites with ongoing environmental restoration efforts. Each of these locations presents opportunities to explore sustainable aspects of anthropogenic activities in relation to the natural systems that they seek to modify or exploit. Early planning is essential, however, because it can sometimes take several months lead time to arrange for a large group tour of industrial or municipal sites. Several practices may be employed to design effective learning experiences for students when visiting such sites. These include: 1) choose local sites to keep trips relevant and practical; 2) balance sites of environmental concern with those where significant progress is being made in environmental restoration or stewardship; 3) connect sites with a pertinent theme (e.g., air quality, water quality, economic development, environmental justice, etc.); 4) develop a sense of location among student participants by providing a map showing the relationship between campus and the field sites; 5) prepare a guidebook containing one-page descriptions of each stop along with a list of questions to stimulate discussion and promote active engagement among all participants; 6) employ expert guides to maximize students' access to authoritative information; 7) tie each field experience to your curriculum; and 8) model active learning by asking genuine questions and engaging in open discussions with experts and student participants. In this presentation, urban field trip design will be illustrated with examples from trips run in conjunction with freshman

  10. Urban gray vs. urban green vs. soil protection — Development of a systemic solution to soil sealing management on the example of Germany

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Artmann, Martina

    2016-01-01

    Managing urban soil sealing is a difficult venture due to its spatial heterogeneity and embedding in a socio-ecological system. A systemic solution is needed to tackle its spatial, ecological and social sub-systems. This study develops a guideline for urban actors to find a systemic solution to soil sealing management based on two case studies in Germany: Munich and Leipzig. Legal-planning, informal-planning, economic-fiscal, co-operative and informational responses were evaluated by indicators to proof which strategy considers the spatial complexity of urban soil sealing (systemic spatial efficiency) and, while considering spatial complexity, to assess what the key management areas for action are to reduce the ecological impacts by urban soil sealing (ecological impact efficiency) and to support an efficient implementation by urban actors (social implementation efficiency). Results suggest framing the systemic solution to soil sealing management through a cross-scale, legal-planning development strategy embedded in higher European policies. Within the socio-ecological system, the key management area for action should focus on the protection of green infrastructure being of high value for actors from the European to local scales. Further efforts are necessary to establish a systemic monitoring concept to optimize socio-ecological benefits and avoid trade-offs such as between urban infill development and urban green protection. This place-based study can be regarded as a stepping stone on how to develop systemic strategies by considering different spatial sub-targets and socio-ecological systems. - Highlights: • Urban soil sealing management is spatially complex. • The legal-planning strategy supports a systemic sealing management. • Urban green infrastructure protection should be in the management focus. • Soil protection requires policies from higher levels of government. • A systemic urban soil sealing monitoring concept is needed.

  11. Urban gray vs. urban green vs. soil protection — Development of a systemic solution to soil sealing management on the example of Germany

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Artmann, Martina, E-mail: m.artmann@ioer.de

    2016-07-15

    Managing urban soil sealing is a difficult venture due to its spatial heterogeneity and embedding in a socio-ecological system. A systemic solution is needed to tackle its spatial, ecological and social sub-systems. This study develops a guideline for urban actors to find a systemic solution to soil sealing management based on two case studies in Germany: Munich and Leipzig. Legal-planning, informal-planning, economic-fiscal, co-operative and informational responses were evaluated by indicators to proof which strategy considers the spatial complexity of urban soil sealing (systemic spatial efficiency) and, while considering spatial complexity, to assess what the key management areas for action are to reduce the ecological impacts by urban soil sealing (ecological impact efficiency) and to support an efficient implementation by urban actors (social implementation efficiency). Results suggest framing the systemic solution to soil sealing management through a cross-scale, legal-planning development strategy embedded in higher European policies. Within the socio-ecological system, the key management area for action should focus on the protection of green infrastructure being of high value for actors from the European to local scales. Further efforts are necessary to establish a systemic monitoring concept to optimize socio-ecological benefits and avoid trade-offs such as between urban infill development and urban green protection. This place-based study can be regarded as a stepping stone on how to develop systemic strategies by considering different spatial sub-targets and socio-ecological systems. - Highlights: • Urban soil sealing management is spatially complex. • The legal-planning strategy supports a systemic sealing management. • Urban green infrastructure protection should be in the management focus. • Soil protection requires policies from higher levels of government. • A systemic urban soil sealing monitoring concept is needed.

  12. Soundscape design guidelines through noise mapping methodologies: An application to medium urban agglomerations

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vogiatzis Konstantinos

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available In the framework of the European Directive 2002/49/EC, from 2012 to 2016, several cities in Greece have completed noise strategic maps with noise action plans that usually define the main strategies to reduce the noise residents are exposed to and introduce and preserve “quiet zones”. Several medium urban agglomerations in Greece (Volos, Larissa, Chania, Heraklion, Corfu, Agrinio, Thessaloniki have been chosen to also analyse the sound qualities of the soundscapes of specific urban neighbourhoods in order to generate recommendations for the urban design of the soundscapes of these agglomerations in a manner that complements conventional noise mitigation measures. The general principle of this approach is to relate quantitative data (e.g., from measurements, acoustic simulations, urban forms, topography, and traffic model with qualitative data (e.g., from type of sources, interviews, reports on environmental noise perception by creating quantitative and qualitative maps. The aim of this study is to propose possible action tools to the relevant authorities aiming at diminishing noise levels in affected areas and also to provide solutions towards a sustainable sound environment both in space and time. This paper presents the main current methodology, selected important results proposed for the urban agglomerations of a typical Southeast Mediterranean country such as Greece.

  13. Reducing construction waste: A study of urban infrastructure projects.

    Science.gov (United States)

    de Magalhães, Ruane Fernandes; Danilevicz, Ângela de Moura Ferreira; Saurin, Tarcisio Abreu

    2017-09-01

    The construction industry is well-known for producing waste detrimental to the environment, and its impacts have increased with the development process of cities. Although there are several studies focused on the environmental impact of residential and commercial buildings, less knowledge is available regarding decreasing construction waste (CW) generation in urban infrastructure projects. This study presents best practices to reduce waste in the said projects, stressing the role of decision-making in the design stage and the effective management of construction processes in public sector. The best practices were identified from literature review, document analysis in 14 projects of urban infrastructure, and both qualitative and quantitative survey with 18 experts (architects and engineers) playing different roles on those projects. The contributions of these research are: (i) the identification of the main building techniques related to the urban design typologies analyzed; (ii) the identification of cause-effect relationships between the design choices and the CW generation diagnosis; (iii) the proposal of a checklist to support the decision-making process, that can be used as a control and evaluation instrument when developing urban infrastructure designs, focused on the construction waste minimization (CWM). Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. Civic initiatives in urban development : self-governance versus self-organisation in planning practice

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Rauws, Ward

    2016-01-01

    This paper discusses two distinct interpretations of self-organisation with regard to civic initiatives in urban development. One concerns urban developments in which citizens deliberately organise themselves in order to realise a collective ambition. This interpretation of self-organisation

  15. Performance, poverty and urban development: Kigali’s motari and the spectacle city

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    William Rollason

    2013-09-01

    Full Text Available In this paper I explore tensions and conflicts over poverty reduction and urban development in Kigali, Rwanda’s capital in terms of theories of performativity. On one hand, motorcycle taxis offer large numbers of young men good livelihoods – reflecting the government of Rwanda’s stated commitment to poverty reduction, especially amongst youth; on the other, motorcycle taxi drivers suffer harassment at the hands of city authorities and police, who are keen to eradicate motorcycle taxis from the urban scene altogether. I interpret this tension as a conflict over the appropriate performance of development in the city; I argue that in pursuit of urban development, the city itself becomes an image, projected in order to attract the investment which will give body to the simulated spectacle that Kigali present. Conflicts between the city and motorcycle taxi drivers erupt because motorcycle taxis cannot perform to the aesthetic standards of the new Kigali. In conclusion, I suggest that the rendition of Kigali’s development as image has broader lessons for studies of development in general. Specifically, these conflicts expose the operation of images and their performance as political resources, conferring intelligibility and legitimacy in the spectacle of national development. Key words: Rwanda, poverty reduction, urban development, performativity

  16. Spatial and functional changes in recent urban development of Zagreb

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Miroslav Sić

    2007-01-01

    Full Text Available This article discusses the urban development of Zagreb in the transition period. It analysesfour processes which have caused spatial and functional changes in the city’s developmentwithin its administrative limits. These are: the process of a new CBD establishment, expansionof hypermarkets and commercial centres, housing construction under new conditions andtransportation problems and solutions. Under the influence of these processes the spatiofunctionalstructure of the city becomes more and more complex. In this connection the cityhas started to have more influence on the urban region’s development.

  17. Designed technological systems: the cases of urban transportation in Copenhagen and Bogotá

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pineda, Andres Felipe Valderrama

    accomplished in two different parts of the planet: in the city of Bogotá, in Colombia, the first mass bus rapid transit system was designed, built and put into operation becoming the most visible icon of a great urban transformation of the 7 million inhabitants metropolis; in the city of Copenhagen, in Denmark...... is that a problem that has been traditionally conceptualized in technical terms (transportation engineering, transportation economics, planning theory, traffic engineering, urban planning, etc.), has tremendous consequences in the life of cities and citizens. Thus a problem that is often outlined in technical terms...

  18. Development of a simplified urban water balance model (WABILA).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Henrichs, M; Langner, J; Uhl, M

    2016-01-01

    During the last decade, water sensitive urban design (WSUD) has become more and more accepted. However, there is not any simple tool or option available to evaluate the influence of these measures on the local water balance. To counteract the impact of new settlements, planners focus on mitigating increases in runoff through installation of infiltration systems. This leads to an increasing non-natural groundwater recharge and decreased evapotranspiration. Simple software tools which evaluate or simulate the effect of WSUD on the local water balance are still needed. The authors developed a tool named WABILA (Wasserbilanz) that could support planners for optimal WSUD. WABILA is an easy-to-use planning tool that is based on simplified regression functions for established measures and land covers. Results show that WSUD has to be site-specific, based on climate conditions and the natural water balance.

  19. Development of Conceptual Framework for Design Improvement in Urban Housing of Karachi, Pakistan

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Afaq Hyder Chohan

    2011-04-01

    Full Text Available Need of housing and need of quality housing are two issues which remained the subject of research and interest to researchers and designers. It is generally observed that not all designers are fully aware of consequences of their design and only through post occupational survey; the designer usually realizes that what mistakes or bad decisions they have made during design process. Unfortunately, such unforeseen conditions are common in residential building projects in developing regions. This research has identified the causes of design deficiencies and their effects on residential building at the post occupational stage in Karachi Pakistan. In this context housing designs and conditions have been closely monitored and issues of deficient design have been identified. Furthermore, this research has circumscribed the implication of deficient design faced by users of private housing in Karachi. The study has established the criteria that these problems affect users through unplanned maintenance to major repairs, leading to danger of collapse. In order to evaluate these effects on buildings, a case study of private housing projects was conducted in Karachi, a metropolitan city of Pakistan. The collected research data was analysed through SPSS computational software and interpreted to understand the far reaching effects and implications of design deficiencies in the selected site of housing stocks. Based on literature review and findings of research, the study has eventually proposed a conceptual framework for improving design practice.

  20. Case Studies of Leading Edge Small Urban High Schools. Relevance Strategic Designs: 8. High Tech High School

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shields, Regis Anne; Ireland, Nicole; City, Elizabeth; Derderian, Julie; Miles, Karen Hawley

    2008-01-01

    This report is one of nine detailed case studies of small urban high schools that served as the foundation for the Education Resource Strategies (ERS) report "Strategic Designs: Lessons from Leading Edge Small Urban High Schools." These nine schools were dubbed "Leading Edge Schools" because they stand apart from other high…

  1. Case Studies of Leading Edge Small Urban High Schools. Personalization Strategic Designs: 9. MetWest High School

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shields, Regis Anne; Ireland, Nicole; City, Elizabeth; Derderian, Julie; Miles, Karen Hawley

    2008-01-01

    This report is one of nine detailed case studies of small urban high schools that served as the foundation for the Education Resource Strategies (ERS) report "Strategic Designs: Lessons from Leading Edge Small Urban High Schools." These nine schools were dubbed "Leading Edge Schools" because they stand apart from other high…

  2. Approaching integrated urban-rural development in China: The changing institutional roles

    OpenAIRE

    Li, Yuheng; Hu, Zhichao; Liu, Yansui

    2014-01-01

    Ever since the twenty-first century, the Chinese government has been undertaking a series of rural-favored policies and measures to promote comprehensive development in rural China. The fundamental purpose is to accomplish integrated urban-rural development (IURD) given the ever enlarging urban-rural inequalities during the post-reform era. Considering the long time biased policies against the countryside, the paper aims to examine the institutional roles in approaching the IURD. IURD at prov...

  3. Urban Transportation Systems in Bogotá and Copenhagen

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pineda, Andres Felipe Valderrama; Jørgensen, Ulrik

    2008-01-01

    In this paper we explore the socio-technical dynamics of developing new urban transport systems. Based on the analysis of empirical material from the study of the Transmilenio in Bogotá and the Metro in Copenhagen, we propose that the design, construction and operation of urban transport systems...

  4. A Review of Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems Considering the Climate Change and Urbanization Impacts

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Qianqian Zhou

    2014-04-01

    Full Text Available Climate change and urbanization are converging to challenge city drainage infrastructure due to their adverse impacts on precipitation extremes and the environment of urban areas. Sustainable drainage systems have gained growing public interest in recent years, as a result of its positive effects on water quality and quantity issues and additional recreational amenities perceived in the urban landscape. This paper reviews recent progress in sustainable drainage development based on literature across different disciplinary fields. After presenting the key elements and criteria of sustainable drainage design, various devices and examples of sustainable drainage systems are introduced. The state-of-the-art model approaches and decision-aid tools for assessing the sustainable alternatives are discussed and compared. The paper further explores some limitations and difficulties in the application of the innovative solutions and suggests an integrated and trans-disciplinary approach for sustainable drainage design.

  5. Development of an Interdisciplinary Workshop in Urban Transportation. Final Substantive Report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Foa, Joseph V.

    This project has developed an interdisciplinary graduate workshop in transportation engineering to acquaint students with problems of urban transportation and the role of various disciplines in dealing with these problems. It provides an opportunity for students from the fields of engineering, urban and regional planning, and economics to interact…

  6. Urban net-zero water treatment and mineralization: experiments, modeling and design.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Englehardt, James D; Wu, Tingting; Tchobanoglous, George

    2013-09-01

    Water and wastewater treatment and conveyance account for approximately 4% of US electric consumption, with 80% used for conveyance. Net zero water (NZW) buildings would alleviate demands for a portion of this energy, for water, and for the treatment of drinking water for pesticides and toxic chemical releases in source water. However, domestic wastewater contains nitrogen loads much greater than urban/suburban ecosystems can typically absorb. The purpose of this work was to identify a first design of a denitrifying urban NZW treatment process, operating at ambient temperature and pressure and circum-neutral pH, and providing mineralization of pharmaceuticals (not easily regulated in terms of environmental half-life), based on laboratory tests and mass balance and kinetic modeling. The proposed treatment process is comprised of membrane bioreactor, iron-mediated aeration (IMA, reported previously), vacuum ultrafiltration, and peroxone advanced oxidation, with minor rainwater make-up and H2O2 disinfection residual. Similar to biological systems, minerals accumulate subject to precipitative removal by IMA, salt-free treatment, and minor dilution. Based on laboratory and modeling results, the system can produce potable water with moderate mineral content from commingled domestic wastewater and 10-20% rainwater make-up, under ambient conditions at individual buildings, while denitrifying and reducing chemical oxygen demand to below detection (<3 mg/L). While economics appear competitive, further development and study of steady-state concentrations and sludge management options are needed. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. Islamic representation and urban space in Banda Aceh: Linking the social and spatial

    Science.gov (United States)

    Istiqamah; Herlily

    2018-03-01

    Post conflict and tsunami; the city of Banda Aceh is experiencing a massive development as an effort to represent an Islamic city. Some strategic points have been chosen by the municipality to build architectural objects that are considered to represent Islam in the urban space. The issue of such representational practice is the development of neglecting the activities of local communities as users of urban public spaces. The purpose of this design study is to provide an alternative to the urban design of Banda Aceh to represent Islam that is not moving from physical development but by involving community activities. Establish and rediscover the relationship between Islam and urban life in Banda Aceh. This design study uses mental maps of 50 inhabitants of Banda Aceh city of various ages who live in 10 villages around the city center. We use mental maps as a tool to read the daily activities of the community and determine the familiar urban territory with the community. The results of this study will be used to form a Muslim community and present community activities to represent Islam in the urban space.

  8. In-Service Performance and Costs of Methods for Control of Urban Rail System Noise : Experimental Design

    Science.gov (United States)

    1976-05-01

    This report presents an experimental design for a project to evaluate four techniques for reducing wheel-rail noise on urban rail transit systems: (a) resilient wheels, (b) damped wheels, (c) wheel truing, and (d) rail griding. The design presents th...

  9. Urban Insertions and Landscape Visions. Tension between Design and Place in the Cemeteries by Sigurd Lewerentz

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Carlotta Torricelli

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available Designing memorial places involves a reflection about the Origin. Starting from this premise, the paper illustrates some small cemeteries designed by Sigurd Lewerentz in the same years when he was working at the two celebrated sacred spaces of Enskede (Stockholm and East-Malmö. The work developed by the Swedish architect in Forsbacka, Valdemarsvik, Rud and Kvarnsveden shows a peculiar approach aiming to reveal the character of the place. Lewerentz, through the landscape design, gives the ground – seen as a factor of origin – an evocative value. Using signs that allude to archetypes of the relationship between man and the divine, Lewerentz deploys natural features along with artificial and abstract elements. The pursuit of a sense of origin settles the project into the place, and in this we can recognize a founding principle able to orient contemporary urban projects.

  10. Economic assessment of climate adaptation options for urban drainage design in Odense, Denmark.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhou, Q; Halsnæs, K; Arnbjerg-Nielsen, K

    2012-01-01

    Climate change is likely to influence the water cycle by changing the precipitation patterns, in some cases leading to increased occurrences of precipitation extremes. Urban landscapes are vulnerable to such changes due to the concentrated population and socio-economic values in cities. Feasible adaptation requires better flood risk quantification and assessment of appropriate adaptation actions in term of costs and benefits. This paper presents an economic assessment of three prevailing climate adaptation options for urban drainage design in a Danish case study, Odense. A risk-based evaluation framework is used to give detailed insights of the physical and economic feasibilities of each option. Estimation of marginal benefits of adaptation options are carried out through a step-by-step cost-benefit analysis. The results are aimed at providing important information for decision making on how best to adapt to urban pluvial flooding due to climate impacts in cities.

  11. A spatial multi-objective optimization model for sustainable urban wastewater system layout planning.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dong, X; Zeng, S; Chen, J

    2012-01-01

    Design of a sustainable city has changed the traditional centralized urban wastewater system towards a decentralized or clustering one. Note that there is considerable spatial variability of the factors that affect urban drainage performance including urban catchment characteristics. The potential options are numerous for planning the layout of an urban wastewater system, which are associated with different costs and local environmental impacts. There is thus a need to develop an approach to find the optimal spatial layout for collecting, treating, reusing and discharging the municipal wastewater of a city. In this study, a spatial multi-objective optimization model, called Urban wastewateR system Layout model (URL), was developed. It is solved by a genetic algorithm embedding Monte Carlo sampling and a series of graph algorithms. This model was illustrated by a case study in a newly developing urban area in Beijing, China. Five optimized system layouts were recommended to the local municipality for further detailed design.

  12. Sustainable urban development

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jensen, Jesper Ole; Christensen, Toke Haunstrup; Gram-Hanssen, Kirsten

    Sustainability in urban planning has a long history and it has been a widespread solution to build high and compact in order to minimise the need for transportation, land use and heating. Recent research, however, points towards the need for a supplementary approach which includes the consumer...... behaviour of the household. This approach necessarily has to work from below and include the citizens, as it is their daily practices that have to be challenged. This article reviews the literature of to what extent compact cities are the most sustainable and it use lifestyle interpretations of urbane forms...... to challenge the compact cities approach. As an alternative or supplementary approach the article introduce practice theory as a way to understand consumption and it gives examples on how this approach can be used to inspire local authorities to alternative and supplementary strategies of achieving sustainable...

  13. A new tool for quantifying the impacts of water sensitive urban design – the power of simplicity

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lerer, Sara Maria; Sørup, Hjalte Jomo Danielsen; Arnbjerg-Nielsen, Karsten

    2015-01-01

    simulation tools. Emphasis is put on reducing complexity in order to help drainage engineers communicate their priorities to other stakeholders. The tool outputs include two key indicators: The first is the amount of runoff held back in stormwater control measures on event basis, presented graphically......We present a prototype for a new software tool which enables quantification of impacts of water sensitive urban design (WSUD) plans in a simplifying manner. The tool is designed to fill a gap between the needs of utility companies for assessing WSUD performance and available urban drainage...

  14. Growing Canopy on a College Campus: Understanding Urban Forest Change through Archival Records and Aerial Photography.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roman, Lara A; Fristensky, Jason P; Eisenman, Theodore S; Greenfield, Eric J; Lundgren, Robert E; Cerwinka, Chloe E; Hewitt, David A; Welsh, Caitlin C

    2017-12-01

    Many municipalities are setting ambitious tree canopy cover goals to increase the extent of their urban forests. A historical perspective on urban forest development can help cities strategize how to establish and achieve appropriate tree cover targets. To understand how long-term urban forest change occurs, we examined the history of trees on an urban college campus: the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, PA. Using a mixed methods approach, including qualitative assessments of archival records (1870-2017), complemented by quantitative analysis of tree cover from aerial imagery (1970-2012), our analysis revealed drastic canopy cover increase in the late 20th and early 21st centuries along with the principle mechanisms of that change. We organized the historical narrative into periods reflecting campus planting actions and management approaches; these periods are also connected to broader urban greening and city planning movements, such as City Beautiful and urban sustainability. University faculty in botany, landscape architecture, and urban design contributed to the design of campus green spaces, developed comprehensive landscape plans, and advocated for campus trees. A 1977 Landscape Development Plan was particularly influential, setting forth design principles and planting recommendations that enabled the dramatic canopy cover gains we observed, and continue to guide landscape management today. Our results indicate that increasing urban tree cover requires generational time scales and systematic management coupled with a clear urban design vision and long-term commitments. With the campus as a microcosm of broader trends in urban forest development, we conclude with a discussion of implications for municipal tree cover planning.

  15. Growing Canopy on a College Campus: Understanding Urban Forest Change through Archival Records and Aerial Photography

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roman, Lara A.; Fristensky, Jason P.; Eisenman, Theodore S.; Greenfield, Eric J.; Lundgren, Robert E.; Cerwinka, Chloe E.; Hewitt, David A.; Welsh, Caitlin C.

    2017-12-01

    Many municipalities are setting ambitious tree canopy cover goals to increase the extent of their urban forests. A historical perspective on urban forest development can help cities strategize how to establish and achieve appropriate tree cover targets. To understand how long-term urban forest change occurs, we examined the history of trees on an urban college campus: the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, PA. Using a mixed methods approach, including qualitative assessments of archival records (1870-2017), complemented by quantitative analysis of tree cover from aerial imagery (1970-2012), our analysis revealed drastic canopy cover increase in the late 20th and early 21st centuries along with the principle mechanisms of that change. We organized the historical narrative into periods reflecting campus planting actions and management approaches; these periods are also connected to broader urban greening and city planning movements, such as City Beautiful and urban sustainability. University faculty in botany, landscape architecture, and urban design contributed to the design of campus green spaces, developed comprehensive landscape plans, and advocated for campus trees. A 1977 Landscape Development Plan was particularly influential, setting forth design principles and planting recommendations that enabled the dramatic canopy cover gains we observed, and continue to guide landscape management today. Our results indicate that increasing urban tree cover requires generational time scales and systematic management coupled with a clear urban design vision and long-term commitments. With the campus as a microcosm of broader trends in urban forest development, we conclude with a discussion of implications for municipal tree cover planning.

  16. 24 CFR 945.201 - Approval to designate housing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 24 Housing and Urban Development 4 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Approval to designate housing. 945.201 Section 945.201 Housing and Urban Development Regulations Relating to Housing and Urban Development (Continued) OFFICE OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR PUBLIC AND INDIAN HOUSING, DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND...

  17. A method to study the management of urban development projects

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Heurkens, E.

    2011-01-01

    The management of urban development projects in the Netherlands has changed significantly in recent years. These projects have become mainly ‘led’ by developers as they manage the entire life cycle of development projects, while public actors mainly facilitate development projects. This changes the

  18. 24 CFR 597.202 - Submission of nominations for designation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... nominated urban area satisfies the poverty rate tests set forth in § 597.103; (4) The nominated urban area... 24 Housing and Urban Development 3 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Submission of nominations for designation. 597.202 Section 597.202 Housing and Urban Development Regulations Relating to Housing and Urban...

  19. Managing for Multifunctionality in Urban Open Spaces: Approaches for Sustainable Development

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wenzheng Shi

    Full Text Available ABSTRACT: Landscape management plays a key role in improving the quality of urban environments and enhancing the multifunctionality of green infrastructure. It works to guide the efficient and effective management of green spaces for sustainability and the well-being of users. However, while most researchers have emphasised spatial planning as a basis for developing green infrastructure to promote new strategic connections in urban green space, they have simultaneously ignored the impact of management. Against this background, this paper argues that if our towns and cities seek to maintain the well-being of citizens while also achieving sustainable environments, they must engage in effective landscape management to improve their green infrastructure. It is not enough to simply design or maintain parks and green spaces so as to keep up their physical condition; rather, green infrastructure work should be adapted to the understanding and implementation of managers, users and stakeholders in an integrated management process in order to provide more services for sustainable development. A selected study in Sheffield investigated the management planning required for sustainable development. It is beneficial to learn the experiences of management planning in Sheffield, a city which has rich management practices for green and open spaces. This study will analyse how management planning helps local authorities and managers to improve multifunctional green and open spaces in the context of sustainable development. As a result, the study also explores the framework of management planning with regard to the transferability of the existing practices in Sheffield. It also attempts to provide a primer for sustainability impact assessments in other cities with a considered knowledge exchange. KEYWORDS: Management planning, green infrastructure, multifunctionality, sustainability, knowledge exchange

  20. Dilemmas of energy efficient urban development in three Nordic cities

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Große, Juliane; Fertner, Christian; Groth, Niels Boje

    Energy is high on the agenda of the European Union and in current urban development. In this study we focus on the role of urban planning in energy efficiency in 3 Northern European cities - Turku (FI), Eskilstuna (SE) and Tartu (EE). The case studies were developed in close collaboration between...... the authors and representatives of the cities. The research was carried out by field trips, interviews and analysis of local reports and planning documents. This work was done in the framework of the EU-FP7 project PLEEC (Planning for energy efficient cities), GA no. 314704, www.pleecproject.eu...