While risk reduction has been mainly addressed by seismologists and engineers by now, the total impact of earthquake greatly depends on urban planning factors. The effects of planning can be considered in the socio economic and physical aspects. Urban planning may have a dominant role in various earthquake phases: at the time of earthquake, rescue, and emergency, as well as temporary and permanent settlements. There is a strong relationship between the level of planning and the effects of a disaster on the community. Urban planning with the purpose of vulnerability reduction has to recognize vulnerability causes for every physical city elements. Seismic pathology of communication networks, especially urban roads, as one of the main physical elements of city, is a key issue. Initially, urban roads should play key roles in the provision of access to suitable open spaces and escape. The main purpose of this research is to analysis and recognize the factors affecting urban roads vulnerability and to determine their effects. In the context of urban planning criteria, special criteria are selected for evaluation of urban roads vulnerability. In this process, AHP (Analytical Hierarchy Process) method, as well as GIS, SPSS and Export Choice software were utilized. As the case study of the research, Karmandan neighborhood, located in the central established area of Karaj City, some 30 kilometers west of Tehran, the capital, was selected. Some information and data were collected through existed and approved plans for the case study area. However, the main data were collected through field survey, conducted during the research in the city of Karaj. Using previous research and studies, 10 criteria were selected for evaluation the roads vulnerability, including: 1-hierarchical accessibility, 2-degree of roads enclosure, 3-the quality of roads wall, 4 type of roads (dead end or open end), 5 material types used in roads, 6 land use of allotments located in roads, 7-the gradient of roads, 8-location and characteristics of urban infrastructures, 9-internal angle of roads, and 10-population density related to roads. The findings of the research showed that three criteria are the premier factors affecting vulnerability of urban roads, including population density related to urban roads network, the location and characteristics of urban infrastructures, and the gradient of roads. Two other criteria are less important, including hierarchical accessibility and internal angle of roads. The results of correlation analysis showed that it is not possible to determine the level of threshold for the mentioned scales. The reasons for this are: correlation among scales, data overlapping and direct and reverse effects of scales on each other, and seismic vulnerability of urban roads. Vulnerability of urban roads is not the effect of one factor, but it is the consequence of various factors. It seems that the model introduced by this research, benefiting from simultaneously analyzed criteria and factors, can be a fair and efficient method for evaluation of the vulnerability of urban roads. By using this method, priorities may be determined in action plans to prevent seismic vulnerability, as well as pre implementation evaluation in new urban development projects.

Although the vulnerability assessment of forest parks is used to determine the threats they face, a rapid and holistic framework has not been established well. The primary objective of this study is to adopt a framework for rapid assessment of forest parks vulnerability, examined in Lavizan forest park in Tehran (Iran) as the case study. The vulnerability assessment has been conducted, using the evaluation matrix on the basis of landscape and ecological values and threats. In this model, the most important values and threatening factors of the Lavizan forest park have been identified and assessed, based on the intensity of their effect as well as occurrence probability. Finally, this article proposes five strategies to reduce the vulnerability. Results from this research indicate that the most important values have been air purifcation, wildlife, flora and fauna species, environment regulation, mental health, and scientific resources and the most important threats have included reduction of habitat diversity, intensive exploitation of the resources, fire, woodcutting, and reduction of ecological connectivity. Based on these vulnerabilities, the most important strategies propose the use of affordance strategy formulation framework to preserve and enhance ecological and landscape values of the park.

INTRODUCTION: Since the presence or absence of various hazards in a geographical context is a relative matter, the resilience of cities to natural hazards is one of the important issues in urban planning and management, therefore, the objective of the present study is to assess the vulnerability of Konarak city to hazards caused by urban floods. METHODS: In this descriptive-analytical study, field survey and a researcher-made questionnaire were used to collect data. The statistical population of the research included citizens living in Konarak city, 380 of whom were selected using the Cochran formula using a simple random sampling method. The data were analyzed with GIS software. FINDINGS: According to the findings, the vulnerability of Konarak city to floods was assessed in terms of physical-infrastructural, social, economic, and institutional indicators in all neighborhoods. In the neighborhoods of Kalk Bazar, Surg, and Kohiyan, the physical-infrastructure index was higher than the average, which indicates the unfavorable condition of these neighborhoods in terms of physical conditions, socially, the lowest average was for Nazarabad and Surg neighborhoods, also, economically, the lowest average was for Nazarabad, Surg, and Baluchan neighborhoods, and institutionally, the lowest average was for Nazarabad, Surg, and Kohiyan neighborhoods. CONCLUSION: The results showed that neighborhoods of Nazarabad, Surg, Baluchan, and Kohiyan have a very unfavorable situation in terms of environmental vulnerability, respectively, while neighborhoods of Zargaran, Kalk Bazar, and Saheli Markazi have a relatively more favorable situation.

The importance of female heads of households in providing the basic needs of household members on the one hand and the limitations they face in most socio-economic fields have made it necessary to pay attention to the issues of female heads of households in most societies including our country. The purpose of this study is to use the systematic review method to review and evaluate the policy proposals that have been proposed in Iran for women heads of households. A total of 296 articles and 5 reports were identified. In the review and eligibility phase, the total number of selected texts was considered to be 79 texts, of which 62 studies used the quantitative method and 17 studies used the qualitative method. Based on the studies that proposed policy proposals, the characteristics of female heads of the household, the axes of vulnerability, the evaluation of policies and proposals were determined. The findings showed that more policy proposals were made based on the characteristics of low literacy, being unemployed, and being middle-aged. Based on the axes of vulnerability, women heads of households are more vulnerable psychologically and socially than they are materially vulnerable in many cases. The evaluation of policies for women heads of households showed that the most interventions for the empowerment of women heads of households were focused on the economic field and were mainly pursued in the form of financial payments and did not pay enough attention to other aspects of women's empowerment, while the empowerment of women heads of households was successful when It is expected to simultaneously pay attention to their mental health and improve their social and economic status.

1. Introduction: Nowadays, population increase, progress in science and technology and development of industrial installations with the shortage of places in metropolitan areas have made considerable changes in the morphology of watersheds. Violation to territory of rivers, channels, and streams causes alterations in natural drainage pattern and overflowing due to the lower capacity of the changed channels and streams. …

Background: Prevention, mitigation and preparedness are the most important dimensions of pre-disaster management cycle. More than 75% of natural disasters have occurred in Iran; therefore, it is necessary to study about pre-disaster operation and mechanism in disaster management cycle. This paper aims to identify some patterns to decrease human presence in district 6 of Tehran and also to mitigate and prevent the probable environmental hazards effects. Methods: It was studied the district 6 of Tehran by using the dual comparison of human presence based on multiple attribute decision-making techniques.Findings: The findings show that A4 with 0.27 is the best alternative and the second alternative is A5 with 0.23 score. Conclusion: According to the results, it is important for planners to pay attention to the mentioned mechanisms of decreasing human presence in disasters especially in environmental hazards mitigation and prevention.