IUSD 4th Intake Journal

Preface The urban context is important for all of us, not least because so many of us live in cities. The Programme of Integrated Urbanism and Sustainable Design recognizes the role that cities play in the lives of so many researchers and has committed itself to act in this area. Urban environments directly influence the lives of millions of citizens and, in turn, have a substantial impact on the wider environment. The Cities in the Middle East and Northern Africa need further than ever to be livable and should attempt the kind of quality of life and opportunity that make people aspire to live in them and make businesses want to advance. Therefore, this issue of IUSD Journal that is launched based on a selected topic raised in the fourth intake of Master Program of Integrated Urbanism and Sustainable Urbanism (IUSD). The working manuscripts are dedicated especially to three main themes: (first), the land and development, (second urban rehabilitation and Socioeconomic Values, and (third) Environmental Design and Energy Efficiency Resources.

In the land and development, the manuscripts under this theme discuss some cases from Cairo, Egypt; Amman, Jordon; Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. They have a particular focus on the relationship with the built environment taking into consecration aspects of society and management process. ‘The Urban Rehabilitation and Socioeconomic Values’ tries to change the aspect of the built environment from being with only a culture value to be with also a valuable economic interest for the investment process.

The primary objective of the presented works is to discover the alternative approaches to raising the financial estimation of the heritage that our cities have.

The manuscript “Rethinking Halted Investments” aims to investigate these projects and explore the potential for interim use. The outcomes structures on the framework of mapping potential of interim use as a temporary solution to those buildings. This will include a comparative analysis of best practice cases from Amman. In Addis Ababa, study approaches of ‘Sustainable strategies for urban renewal’ handles the issue of assessing sustainability through two major phases: the first is to identify the core issues that need to be deliberate, while the second is to design a tool used for assessment. An indicator index classified according to the four pillars of sustainability (social, environmental, economic and institutional criteria) was designed, putting into consideration the key issues identified.

The second track gives a highlight on the urban spaces from different perspectives to solve the problem that they may face in the Middle East. The scars of our city remain in each corner of our spaces, and while some of us can grasp and feel them in a way, others perceive them as disturbing and redundant, or a waste of space. The manuscript “Urban Stress Relief in Heritage Sites as a Sustaining Approach” tell a story about Port Said, Egypt. This story opens a new platform for further outlooks of researchers.

In “The Impacts of the Physical Settings and Human Activities” the author gives a comparison between settlements in Cairo. The importance of this research emerges from the shortening of the residential urban spaces within developed housing projects provided by the government, built for people who used to live.

Passing by Alexandria’s old town centre is like crossing through an open museum incorporate different architectural styles: Italian, British, Greek and French buildings stand there where it exhibits