Evaluating Sustainable Development In The Built Environment

Sustainable development has been characterised by an emphasis onenvironmental issues and an ad hoc approach to structuring thesubject which hinders the development of knowledge in a systematicway. The built environment contributes significantly to theenvironment but is also one of the major factors in determiningwhether a community is sustainable in the longer term. A structure is required which aids definition, provides a commonset of values, establishes measurement methods to define progress,and suggests a management system and decision protocol whichenables practitioners to engage and use the resultant structuresand information. This book provides a suggested structure in which all aspects ofsustainable development can be included together with a set ofevaluation techniques which can be used within the structure toprovide assistance to decision making.

Future Challenges in Sustainable Development within the Built Environment stimulates and reinterprets the demands of Responsible and Sustainable Development in the Built Environment for future action and development. It examines the methods of evaluation, the use of technology, the creation of new models and the role of human factors for examining and developing the subject over the next twenty years.

Sustainability in the built environment is a major issue facing policy-makers, planners, developers and designers in the UK, Europe and worldwide. The measuring of buildings and cities for sustainability becomes increasingly important as pressure for green, sustainable development translates into policy and legislation. The problems of such measurement and evaluation are presented by the authors in contributions which move from the general to the particular, e.g. from a general framework for an environmentally sustainable form of urban development to a specific input-output model application to environmental problems. The book is divided into three parts: the first covers city models and sustainable systems - research programmes, environmental policies, green corporations and collaborative strategies to make urban development more sustainable; part two discusses the problems of evaluating the built environment in planning and construction, covering economic and environmental methods and construction, development and regeneration processes; part three illustrates a number of applications using different approaches and techniques and referring to a range of environmental aspects of the natural and built environment, from maintaining historic buildings to transport management and air pollution monitoring.

The first edition was extremely well received, providing an introduction and insight to this important topic in a comprehensive yet easy to read form. It was chosen to be issued to the representatives of the organizations from the G8 and G20 countries attending the University Summit held in Turin in 2009 which addressed the issue of how education and research can assist sustainable development. The second edition, completely updated to reflect the significant advances and new insights that have been made since publication of the first edition, focuses on two main issues: Facilitating a dialogue between all stakeholders so that the complexity of the problem can be exposed, structured and communicated Understanding how to assess progress in sustainable development It continues to provide coherent guidance on the techniques that can be used to assess sustainable development in a rigorous manner. The approach is introduced using illustrations and case studies, together with follow-up references. It remains the ideal starting point for those trying to get a handle on the subject and for those who wish to examine a structured and systematic approach to the evaluation of sustainable development in the built environment.

Based on original research, this first volume of a set of groundbreaking new books sets out a framework for analyzing sustainable urban development and develops a set of protocols for evaluating the sustainability of urban development. Protocols included are for sustainable urban planning, urban property development, urban design, the construction, operation and use of buildings. Using these protocols, the book goes on to provide a directory of environmental assessment methods for evaluating the sustainability of urban development and also maps out how these assessment methods are being transformed to evaluate the environmental, economic and social sustainability of urban development. Web-based applications are increasingly being used to support this transformation and the contributors deftly cover this application and issues concerning the use of information and communication technologies for evaluating the sustainability of urban development are also dealt with. With its multidisciplinary approach, Sustainable Urban Development presents key new material for postgraduates and professionals across the built environment.

Sustainability is a key issue and its impact on the construction industry, as one of the major users of the Earth's resources, is starting to take hold. This book deals with sustainability as it affects the construction industry, looking at the techniques and issues which designers, engineers, planners and construction managers will have to deal with in their day-to-day activities. It covers methods of analysis such as environmental impact assessment and cost-benefit analysis as well as topics on design and energy regulation and conservation. The book is an important introduction to the subject for senior undergraduate and postgraduate students. Given the importance and novelty of the subject, professionals in the construction industry will also find the book valuable.

This book examines the models of sustainable development and sets out a framework for analysing urban development and the sustainability issues which can arise.