This thesis undertakes a critical assessment of the impact of Statutory Legislation and UNESCO World Heritage Designation upon the sustainability and continued use of historic industrial buildings, utilising the late 18th Century Georgian Industrial Buildings of Darley Abbey Mills, Derby, as a case study. This thesis provides an indepth and longitudinal analysis of the morphology and evolution of Darley Abbey Mills between 2006-2015, during this time the assessment of whether the mills would find a sustainable and continued contemporary use has shifted from a concern that the site was slowly disintegrating with the danger of an important historical artefact being lost for ever or becoming irrevocably damaged through lack of maintenance and repair to a position where the future of the mills is looking promising. What makes Darley Abbey Mills so unusual or unique is that it possesses the highest possible levels of statutory protection, but that is also under private ownership. The initial findings in an analysis of policy documents and planning applications between 2006- 2010 was that there was limited engagement with the external heritage and conservations stakeholders or the Local Authority, an ‘umbrella of statutory protection’ was not providing barriers or protecting the site, there was just a lack of action by all parties. This changed during the period 2010-13 when the site came under new unified ownership, the new owners started to make small adaptations and repairs to the site that enabled them to encourage new tenants from the creative and artisan communities to the site, however all of this work was not authorised, nor was planning permission sought. Although there was still a lack of enforcement of what can be seen as ‘aspirational urbanism’, a dialogue was started between the owners and the wider stakeholder community. Between 2013-2015, the relationship between all of the stakeholders became more formalised and an unofficial partnership was formed between the owners and the monitoring bodies that resulted in the successful planning application to adapt the West Mills and Long Mill, which moved some of the way towards ensuring the sustainable and continued use of Darley Abbey Mills.

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Sustainable Built Environments Senior Capstone Project / Social equity is an often-overlooked aspect of sustainability and is vital to the health of a community. The most successful sustainable initiatives benefit not only the environment and the economy, but consider the impacts on people as well. Education is an indicator of success and has the potential to improve the lives of low-income populations. Opportunities to receive high-quality education can foster social equity in communities by improving the lives of lower-income cohorts. While the link between the built environment and education level has been discussed, there is insufficient empirical evidence to support this connection. The purpose of this project is to examine the relationship between the built environment and high-school graduation rates, as an indicator of better opportunities for youth. Case studies of the three highest-rated high schools and the three lowest-rated high schools in Tucson, Arizona compare demographics of their surrounding neighborhoods. Social Equity Scores are assigned to each school and its two-mile radius to provide a view of equity through education opportunities in Tucson. Findings indicate that lower-quality education options are more readily available in areas of concentrated low-income and minority populations. The best high schools in Tucson are most available in neighborhoods with higher incomes and less minority residents. Some of the highest-rated schools in Tucson have equitable aspects, but still pose challenges to the provision of quality education to all. By increasing our understanding of equity issues related to the built environment, we can direct urban planning efforts toward more just and equitable societies.

This thesis begins from a concern over the perceived lack of female involvement in performances of play in the public built environment. Its starting point is the male-dominated practice of skateboarding. Although a popular creation myth presents skateboarding as a subversive, socially resourceful activity born from the natural landscape (the riding of waves by surfers), it has since become consumed within a masculine commercial culture. It is used as an exemplar, because of my own history of involvement in the culture, which allows me to question the presence women occupy within its spaces and practices. The practice at the centre of my practice-as-research methodology is a type of playing that has been created in response to skateboarding. It utilises costuming to present a gendered body. One of the first costumes references depictions of ‘Alice’ from Lewis Carroll’s 1865 Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, a presentation that has enabled the consideration of the mythical status of a generic ‘fictional girl’ within public consciousness. My approach to playing is analysed with reference to Lefebvre’s theory of rhythmanalysis, allowing me to consider how play operates within the public built environment. Several practitioners (for example, Jill Magid, Fiona Templeton and Lottie Child) have made performance interventions into public space. They use techniques, particularly the avoidance of spectacle, contact between strangers, and autotelic activities, to disrupt a culture of ‘commerce masculinity’ – which is manifested through possessive spectatorship and authoritarian ownership. Foucault’s theory of panopticism is used to articulate this exercise of power. In reference to Magid and Templeton in particular, a concept of ‘romantic space’ is proposed in which intersubjectivity forms the basis of an antidote to this. The final development of my practice is articulated as an act of inscribing an unknowable feminine archetype that resists the commodification and forms of spectatorship inherent in spaces of ‘commercial masculinity’, and attempts to engender ‘romantic space’.

No abstract available / Dissertation (MArch (Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2007. / Architecture / unrestricted

Though mandatory to be pursued, improved energy efficiency is not the only target to reach. The quality of energy has to be assessed as well. Most of the overall energy use in residential building is for low temperature heat, i.e. temperatures relatively close to the outdoor conditions. From a thermodynamic point of view, this is a degraded form of energy with low potential to be converted into work. On the other hand energy demand is mostly met with high quality energy, such as electricity and natural gas. There is a mismatch between supply and demand, which is not clearly shown by the sole energy analysis. Target of this thesis is to analyze the energy use in buildings from the point of view of its quality, to provide effective theoretical and calculation tools to investigate this mismatch, to assess its magnitudo and to propose improvements aiming at a more rational use of the energy. The idea behind the quality is clarified with the concept of exergy. The potential for improvement in space heating is shown. In no heating system the overall exergy efficiency is above 20%, with fossil fuels. Using direct electricity heating results in exergy efficiency below 7%. Most of the household appliances processes have low-exergy factors but still are supplied with electricity. This results in poor exergy efficiencies and large exergy losses. Systems are poorly performing because little consideration is explicitly given to energy quality. Policies to lower the energy demand, though vital as first step towards an improved use of energy, should not neglect the exergy content. The problem is then shifted to find suitable supplies. Electricity can be exploited with low exergy losses with high-COP heat pumps. Use of fossil fuels for heating purposes should be avoided. District heating from cogeneration and geothermal proves to be a suitable solution at the building level. The issues connected to its exploitation forces to shift the boundary layers of the analysis from the building level to the community level. A rational use of energy should address the community level. The system boundaries have to be enlarged to a dimension where both the energy conversion and use take place with reduced energy transportation losses. This is a cost-effective way to avoid the waste of the exergy potential of the sources with exergy cascade and to make it possible the integration of with renewable sources. Exergy efficiency of the buildings is a prerequisite for a better of energy in this field. / IEA ECBCS Annex 49: Low Exergy Systems for High Performance Buildings and Communities / ESF Cost C24: Analysis and Design of Innovative Systems for Low-EXergy in the Built Environment: COSTeXergy

Cycling for transport is an increasingly popular mode of travel in Hamilton, Ontario. Between 2011 and 2016, the mode share of cycling grew from 0.6% to 1.2%. As of 2019, 46% of the planned cycling facilities network has been built, which suggests that the city is transitioning to a cycling city. However, less is known about the built environment factors that influence cycling trips or the routes travelled by people who cycle in Hamilton. Drawing on the strengths of quantitative and qualitative methods, this research explores the built environment correlates of cycling and the perceptions of people who regularly cycle. First, a spatial interaction model was developed to test the level of cycling flows against various built environment attributes using trips data from the 2016 Transportation Tomorrow Survey. A novel feature of this analysis is the use of a cycle routing algorithm to infer routes as impedance factors. The most parsimonious model suggests that the shortest-path quietest routes best explain the pattern of travel by bicycle in Hamilton. To build upon these findings, objective built environment attributes were documented along select shortest-path quietest routes using environmental audits. The qualitative phase of the study then explores how well these approximated routes match where cyclists travel in Hamilton, as well as how the built environment more broadly in a growing city is perceived and experienced, by interviewing people who regularly travel by bicycle. The interviews highlight that the built environment is not yet bicycle-oriented and that cycling infrastructure influences mobility and route choice. As a result, people who cycle seek out routes that enable them to minimize interactions with cars, by incorporating quiet streets, and that have enjoyable environments. Policy implications and recommendations specific to these findings are discussed to further support the city of Hamilton’s transition to a more bikeable city. / Thesis / Master of Public Health (MPH)

The Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) region is one of the fastest developing in the world, however, some of its countries are the slowest in implementing sustainable construction practices. One of these countries is Kuwait, which contributes one and a half times more global greenhouse gas emissions per capita than the U.S. The dissertation starts by identifying potential barriers to more sustainable design and construction practices among professionals in Kuwait. The barriers identified are not technological, but behavioral, related to perceptions of risk and awareness. Behavioral science offers potential solutions to address these barriers through a concept called choice architecture. Professionals who design and construct our built environment use decision tools such as rating systems to inform their design decision making. These tools are inherently embedded with choice architecture. More intentional choice architecture among rating systems that align individual preferences and beliefs may increase the pursuit of more environmentally sustainable design solutions. One form of choice architecture is called goal framing, which describes the outcome of a choice as either a positive consequence of engaging in a behavior or a negative consequence of not engaging in a behavior. Goal framing was applied to the Envision rating system for sustainable infrastructure to emphasize how long-term sustainable outcomes align with decision makers immediate project needs, preferences, and values. Engineering professionals from the U.S. and Kuwait were randomly assigned either the original version of Envision or the goal framed version. The results indicate that goal framing the credits about people and finances, not just the impact on the environment, increased participants motivation and encouraged them to set higher goals for sustainable performance, specifically among professionals who hold a pro-social paradigm of the world. These findings have relevance to those who design, use, and mandate the use of rating systems during the design and construction process of buildings and infrastructure. Future research should continue to explore how engineering professionals make decisions and what choice architecture modifications can support design and engineering towards more sustainable outcomes. / Doctor of Philosophy / The Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) region is one of the fastest developing in the world, however, some of its countries are the slowest in implementing sustainable construction practices. One of these countries is Kuwait, which contributes one and a half times more global greenhouse gas emissions per capita than the U.S. The dissertation starts by identifying potential barriers to more sustainable design and construction practices among professionals in Kuwait. The barriers identified are not technological, but behavioral, related to perceptions of risk and awareness. Behavioral science offers potential solutions to address these barriers through a concept called choice architecture. Professionals who design and construct our built environment use decision tools such as rating systems to inform their design decision making. These tools are inherently embedded with choice architecture. More intentional choice architecture among rating systems that align individual preferences and beliefs may increase the pursuit of more environmentally sustainable design solutions. One form of choice architecture is called goal framing, which describes the outcome of a choice as either a positive consequence of engaging in a behavior or a negative consequence of not engaging in a behavior. Goal framing was applied to the Envision rating system for sustainable infrastructure to emphasize how long-term sustainable outcomes align with decision makers immediate project needs, preferences, and values. Engineering professionals from the U.S. and Kuwait were randomly assigned either the original version of Envision or the goal framed version. The results indicate that goal framing the credits about people and finances, not just the impact on the environment, increased participants motivation and encouraged them to set higher goals for sustainable performance, specifically among professionals who hold a pro-social paradigm of the world. These findings have relevance to those who design, use, and mandate the use of rating systems during the design and construction process of buildings and infrastructure.

Sustainable Built Environments Senior Capstone Project / Sidewalk fragmentation in Tucson is the result of City Code Ordinance 25-12 that places the responsibility of sidewalk installation and maintenance on property owner. However, with an average household income 27% below the national average and 25% of Tucson residents living below poverty level sidewalk fragmentation has become a pedestrian safety concern. By using Google Earth to measure the percentage of paved, unpaved and not present sidewalks in four historic communities in central Tucson; this study found a directly proportional relationship between the length of time the neighborhood has been listed as a historic community and the percentage of paved sidewalks within the neighborhood.

Sustainable Built Environments Senior Capstone Project / This paper examines Subsurface Drip Irrigation(SDI) as a solution to water conservation in landscape irrigation. This is a problem because of the drought that the southwestern United States is experiencing, and the amount of water that landscapes utilize and which is ultimately wasted due to inefficient practices. Subsurface drip irrigation represents a potential solution due to its high efficiency and water saving ability; however, there are some problems within it as a system. Utilizing a multiple case studies approach, this paper looked at three of the top irrigation companies, Rain Bird, Toro, and Netafim, and examined how they innovated to overcome the problems with SDI. Synthesizing the best and most effective practices from each company, a model for improving SDI was generated.