Housing and Rural Environment
Year:2010 | Volume:29 | Issue:130|Papers Count:7

Today, natural environment, saving energies and sustainable development have become the important international issues. In this regard, preventing earth pollution, saving energies and living compatible with natural condition are significant solutions in Architecture and Urbanism, which make the architectures and urbanists comply with the specific construction principles. The necessity of utilizing the new kinds of energy and boosting in population have resulted in lack of energy in the world which is detrimental to human’s life. The continous effort of scientist may give hope to eliminate the grave consequences of environment pollution and lack of energy.One of the important factors of environmental pollution, especially in Iran is using common fossil energy at homes for hot water and ventilation.Admittedly, increasing population in cities leads to exponential consumptions of energy which is fundamental parameter for technology and industry in a country, such as Iran. Hence, this problem is surmountable through the design which is well-grounded on sustainable environment principles.The Iranian traditional architecture enjoys unique characteristics. For example in Iran qualities not only consider aesthetic issues, but also provide climatic needs in each region. The techniques applied in mentioned architectural style contain multitude new concepts of sustainable architecture. This article investigates these type of concepts in Iranian Housing Architecture.

Till some years ago, there were still some master builders and masons constructing by the use of traditional building techniques that learnt the skill from their ancestors. These buildings were indeed a good response to residents` spiritual and somatic needs. There buildings are considered as a reflection or presentation of Iranian art parade.The originality concealed in their chronic structures, refer to the tale of Iran's extensive culture. Their pure and innocent nature obviously affected the melodious and decent traditional architecture. However, with development of industrial productions in Iran, the traditional characteristics disappeared. The change was more in urban areas while rural and remote sites as the case of Loft village remained safe and protected. There, you can still find a continuation of the region architectural style.Thus, this study aims to recognize the main characters of traditional architecture in the region and the ways to endure it in order to have a more valuable architecture. To approach the above goal, it is needed for the constructors to be familiar with the regional materials and specialties.This is in indeed important in coastal sites of the Persian Gulf. The research method of this study is descriptive and analytical. Experimental methods are also utilized with particular attention to the climatic characters (muggy weather) of the Loft region.

Social life and behavior of human are due to cultural function where they born and grew. Surely, this culture is result of geography; human and natural geography. This geography is foiling the human conformations into special perspectives that recover the time needs. One of these human conformations and/or the most important case is housing and its architecture.In each culture, these housings are constructed the geography of that culture such as:religion, literature, weather, considering and …. This geography in Iran has left specific samples in construction that one of them is the sample of introverted culture and veiling observance in construction. This culture exists in ancient texture of all Iran cities. Shiraz city is one of the cities that due to the long background have maintained this tradition inside itself, ultimately not only in current industrial architecture but in ancient texture architecture. The disregard of introverted culture has caused severe and basic differences in constructions; in this case destruction of indigenous culture is one of its consequences and absolutely, will entail the destruction of other cultural samples in this frontier and terrain.In the word, current architectures have attracted western methods insomuch that the indigenous culture observance only could be seek in ancient building construction. The veiling and camouflage traditions that have been observed for last 2000 years, now it could be observed on mixture of tradition and industry in building construction such as security glass, curtain and/or reticulated terraces, open and perforce reticulated kitchens and …. The walls and doors (gate) of yards house entrance, kitchens, baths and water closets through camouflage tradition observation still could create the secure and veiling precinct in houses.This article presents the discussion in two parts: 1- Foreground studies, includes: A- the introverted of indigenous housing construction B- the demonstrative in modern architecture (western architecture) C- Shiraz ancient texture (at destruction). 2- The principal discussion on housing geographies, the introverted and demonstrative culture. The introverted and the main principle of return to self.

New Urbanism has been described as the most influential movement in architecture and planning in the United States in the modernism movement.Some argue that new urbanism is the answer to suburban sprawl and the way urban centers were decaying and the simultaneous increase of communities that were fragmented, car-oriented and spread out. In recent years, new urbanism principals have been adopted for many housing and neighborhood planning efforts. New urbanism emphasis on traditional neighborhood design to create sustainable and efficient communities.Traditional neighborhoods design is a set of development practices to create more attractive and more compact communities designed to encourage bicycling and walking for short trips by providing destinations close to home and work, and by providing sidewalks and a pleasant environment for walking and biking.This article has tried to introduce new urbanism movement and its charter and the most important principal of it that are applied increasingly to projects at the full range of scales from a single building to an entire community such as walkability, connectivity, mixed-use and diversity, mixed housing, quality architecture and urban design, traditional neighborhood structure, increased density, public transportation, parking planning, public participation, etc.while the benefits and criticism of the movement have been studied, then new urbanism neighborhood design features and the sequence of design were investigated.The main question of this article is what and how principals of new urbanism can be applied in inner city neighborhoods planning, while the design features and sequence of design should have been taken into consideration.This article concludes that new urbanism principals are consistent with boarder policies aimed at improving living conditions and opportunities for inner city residents.

One of the most comprehensive concept in all time is sustainable development. Objectives of sustainable development at all spatial levels (local, regional, and global) is considered. Metropolitan areas, including areas that due to different systems of residency, their relationships and various forces which originating from the metropolitan hub has given different physiognomic to its rural centers. Tehran's location at the regional level in addition to the national level also has the highest number of functions, in provision of goods and services to other cities around itself.Thus, it seems that to reduce the effects of non doctrinaire cities to rural areas and also to guarantee the economic, social and environmental interest for each of them, emphasis on sustainable management approach which is inevitable. Therefore, according to the findings in general, where there is incidence of economic, social, cultural and physical transformation, the anatomical functions of new rural areas around Tehran as spontaneous creats, which have undesirable effects on city of Tehran and its souronding areas.However, in order to control the development in the line of an integrated and sustainable development in the urban and rural areas, the provision and implementation of upgrading plans is necessary.

The core of civilized life is identified as the village in the history of man. With all the advances made in urbanization, the rural area has not lost its essence in the practical behavior of a culture’s socioeconomic life. However, with the increasing threats whether natural or manmade, the susceptibility of rural area is the same as urban area and the same efforts regarding the sustainability of urban area must be taken for the rural area on national bases. There are four major factors that have to be closely considered and monitored: sustainability of the natural resources, social sustainability, political sustainability and economic sustainability. In fact sustainable development of the country/village is not justified through its environmental wellbeing, but through the total of the above mentioned factors. In this article, through assessment on the rural procedures with respect to the population density, the economical abilities in agriculture and the capacity of accepting urban population during emergencies etc. are being discussed. This consideration can be clarified when the geographical position and situation of the urban area is assessed and evaluated nationwide. Regarding the existing rural area and their development plans, the pilot project, in addition to the previously practiced measures and used indexes, the passive defense is of essence and should be observed in full extent if the objective is to have sustainable rural development in Iran by close consideration of the above mentioned four factors. Passive defense includes a total of defensive measures that do not use arms, while increasing the prevention of harm, mitigation of vulnerability, sustaining the essential activities, promoting the national sustainability and facilitating the crisis management against threats, military or other. Therefore, passive defense should be applied and practiced in the rural areas nationwide. In this article the attempt is made to seek and identify the details necessary for implementation of passive defense in the rural area.

Severe problems from rapid population growth and erratic and irregular expansion of urban and rural settlement, particularly urban centers led to the idea of physical plans for national and regional sustainable development planning and wise land management in past years to be considered. To respond to these problems, three objectives of this project was determined: review the appropriateness of land for future expansion of the current cities and towns and new cities, offer country's future urban network and land zoning for determining the country's desirable lands and Land division, and construction regulations for each of them.After preparation and approval of national physical plan, regional plans must be studies as downstream projects. Studies of regional physical plans, as the second level of physical plan began since 1374 (1995). Considering the common goals of national physical plan with regional physical plan, the difference between these two levels of study was expectations from regional studies. These expectations are: to make accurate, complement and broadening the range of studies than national studies. Using an extensive range of information, processing and analysis of physical plans are considered inevitable. From the beginning of preparation of regional physical plans in Iran's urban and architecture research center (UARC), five regional plans of ten regions has been prepared and ratified. This article overview and introduces national and regional physical plans, preparation techniques and problems, and describes strengths and weaknesses of these projects.