Sustainable Urbanism _{Env­s­on­ing New Agents for Plann­ing and Desi­gin­ing Susta­inable Spaces}

Sustainable urbanism studies cities, their parts and urbanisation practices to promote their long-term viability and liveability by reducing consumption, waste and harmful impacts on people, places, and environment, and to enhance the physical, ecological, economic, social well-being, health, and equity of people, places and environment. It turns into practice through planning, design and engineering, while at the same time, caring about the sustainability of natural environment and ecosystems, and social, economic and cultural aspects of urbanism. Additionally, sustainable urbanism is related to the process of constructing sustainable buildings and developing the planning and design strategies for smart urban growth management. Within this perspective, Sustainable Urbanism: Envisioning New Agents for Planning and Designing Sustainable Spaces aims to investigate how sustainability of urban and rural spaces can be attained with multi-scalar, multi-dimensional and multi-stakeholders viewpoints. Also, it seeks to explore new ways of living and developing sustainable urban and rural systems and practices, i.e. sustainable living, working, making public and private spaces by integrating sustainable tourism, conservation and regeneration of spaces. Employing an agent-based design approach, this book shows how these aims and attempts can be achieved by planning and design of urban and rural space. The research and design team of the book from Middle East Technical University (Master of Urban Design) seek to learn, think about and find the ways and possibilities to develop and sometimes invent the tools to attain a higher degree of sustainability via urban design research and projects on Göreme in Cappadocia that is a small but a very precious and inspiring town in Turkey with its fascinating urban, historical and cultural heritage and natural landscape.