Ecovillage as a Comprehensive Model for the Sustainable Development of Urban-Villages (Case Study: The Urban-Village of Farahzad, Tehran, Iran)

Kheirkhah, Zeinab; Nemati Mehr, Marjan

Ecovillage as a Comprehensive Model for the Sustainable Development of Urban-Villages (Case Study: The Urban-Village of Farahzad, Tehran, Iran)

Document Type : Analytic Review

Authors

Z. kheirkhah ¹

M. Nemati Mehr ²

¹ PhD student in Urban Design, Shahid Beheshti University

² Associate Professor, Department of Urban and Regional Planning and Design, School of Architecture and Urban Planning, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

Aims: The purpose of this study is to introduce Ecovillage as a comprehensive model for the sustainable development of human settlements, which is an appropriate response to the challenges in the target urban-villages and Farahzad as the case study.

Methods: A descriptive-analytical approach has been applied in this study. In the theoretical part of the research, the principles of ecovillages have been investigated through the study and analysis of written documents and articles (documentary method) and the conceptual framework and general goals of Urban-Village sustainable development have been developed based on the ecovillage model. In terms of experimental studies, several field studies and site visits have been done in order to better understand the case study and its situation. The urban design framework of Farahzad Urban-Village has been developed based on AHP Analytic hierarchy process.

Findings: According to the study findings, the ecovillage model includes four key dimensions of environmental, social, economic and cultural and 18 principles that in Farahzad, environmental dimension and then social and economic dimension are the most important. The selected framework of Farahzad village is based on AHP, based on emphasizing its role in tourism and Residential, and considering both local and tourism areas.

Conclusion: The ecovillage is a comprehensive model for the sustainable development of Farahzad urban-village and the target villages. The principles and objectives of ecovillages include both substantive and procedural dimensions, which can be accomplished through a bottom-up process involving local residents and institutions.

Keywords

sustainable development

Ecovillage

Urban-village

Farahzad Neighborhood

Subjects

Environment and Urban Climate

• گلکار، کوروش (1391) آفرینش مکان پایدار: تاملاتی در باب نظریه طراحی شهری. چاپ اول، تهران: دانشگاه شهید بهشتی.
• مفیدی، سید مجید و یمانی، پریسا (1387) روستاشهر، الگویی برای توسعه شهری پایدار، فصلنامه آبادی، شماره25.
• مهندسین مشاور سراوند ( 1384 ) بهسازی و ساماندهی فرحزاد فصل اول: دقیق سازی اهداف توسعه، جلد اول، تهران: شهرداری منطقه 2.
• مهندسین مشاور سراوند ( 1384 ) طرح تفضیلی منطقه 2 تهران، جلد اول، تهران: شهرداری تهران.
• Arkin, L. (1992) The Los Angeles Eco-Village: A Sustainable Urban Community. In Sustainable Cities: Concepts and Strategies for Eco-city Development, edited by Walter, B; Arkin, L; and Crenshaw, R. Eco-Home Media, Los Angeles. Eco-Home Media, Los Angeles.
• Bang, J. M. (2005) Ecovillages – A practical guide to sustainable communities, Floris Books, Edinburgh.
• Barton, H. (2000) Sustainable Communities: The Potential for Eco-neighborhoods, Earthscan, London.
• Barton, H. Grant, M. Guise, R. (2003) Shaping Neighborhoods: A Guide for Health, Sustainability and Vitality, Spon Press, New York.
• Bates, A. (2003) Ecovillage roots (and branches), When, where and how we reinvented this ancient ecovillage concept, Accessed Sep 2020, Retrieved from http://ena.ecovillage.org.
• Boyer, R. (2013) Transitioning to sustainable urban development: a niche-based approach, doctoral dissertation in Regional Planning, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.
• Chifos, C. (2004) Ecovillage, Encyclopedia of the City, Routledge, London and New York.
• Dawson, J. (2006) Ecovillages: New Frontiers for Sustainability, Green Books Ltd, Devton.
• Erlhoff, M., & Marshall, T. (Eds.) (2008) Design Dictionary: Perspectives on Design Terminology, Birkhäuser Verlag AG, Berlin.
• Gaia Education. (2016) Ecovillage Design Education Curriculum, Accessed Sep 2020, Retrieved from http://www.gaiaeducation.org.
• GEN: Global Ecovillage Network. (2020) Dimensions of Sustainability, Accessed Sep 2020, Retrieved from http://gen.ecovillage.org.
• Gilman, R. (1991) a, The Eco-village Challenge, Accessed Sep 2020, Retrieved from http://www.context.org/ICLIB/IC29/TOC29.htm.
• Gilman, R. (1991) b, Guidelines for Eco-village Development, Accessed Sep 2020, Retrieved from http://www.context.org/ICLIB/IC29/TOC29.htm.
• Hawes, H. (2015) A Pathway to EcoVillages, Accessed Sep 2020, Retrieved from http://www. ecologybasedeconomy.org.
• Holmgren, D. (2002) Permaculture: Principles and Pathways Beyond Sustainability, edition 1, Holmgern design services, Australia.
• Jackson, H. & Jackson, R. (2004). Global Ecovillage Network history. Accessed Sep 2020, Retrieved from http://www.gaia.org/mediafiles/gaia.
• Jackson, H. & Svensson, K. (2002) Ecovillage Living: Restoring the Earth and Her People, Devon, UK.
• Jackson, R. (2004) The Ecovillage Movement, Permaculture Magazine, No. 40, pp.25-30.
• Joubert, k. (2012) Global Ecovillage Network Conference. Accessed Sep 2020, Retrieved from http://gen-europe.org/activities/gen-conference/archives/gen-conference-2012-downloads/index.htm.
• Kim, J & Rigdon, B. (1998) Introduction to Sustainable Design, University of Michigan press, Michigan.
• Kirby, A. (2003) Redefining social & environmental relations at the ecovillage at Ithaca: A case study. Environmental Psychology,Vol. 23, No. 3, pp.323-332.
• Kirby, A. (2004) Domestic Protest: The Ecovillage Movement as a Space of Resistance. Accessed Sep 2020, Retrieved from http://bad.eserver.org/issuesI2004/65/kirby.html.
• Lovell, H. (2012) Eco-Communities. University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK.
• Oxford Dictionaries. (2020) Ecovillage definition. Accessed Sep 2020, Retrieved from http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/ english.
• Permaculture principles. (2020) What is permaculture principles. Accessed Sep 2020, Retrieved from http://permacultureprinciples.com.
• Sizemore, S. (2004) Urban Eco-villages as an Alternative Model to Revitalizing Urban Neighborhoods, Master of Community Planning, University of Cincinnati.
• The Cohousing Association. (2020) What Is Cohousing?. Accessed Sep 2020, Retrieved from http://www.cohousing.org/what is cohousing.
• Vaidya, o, s. & Sushil, k. (2006) Analytic hierarchy process: An overview of applications, European Journal of Operational Research, Vol.169, pp. 1–29.
• Van Der Ryn, S. & Cowan, S. (2007) Ecological Design, Island Press, Washington DC.