With a foreword from Paul King, Chief Executive, UK Green Building Council and Chairman, Zero Carbon Hub As concerns over climate change and resource constraints grow, many cities across the world are trying to achieve a low carbon transition. Although new zero carbon buildings are an important part of the story, in existing cities the transformation of the current building stock and urban infrastructure must inevitably form the main focus for transitioning to a low carbon and sustainable future by 2050. Urban Retrofitting for Sustainability brings together interdisciplinary research contributions from leading international experts to focus on key issues such as systems innovation, financing tools, governance, energy, and water management. The chapters consider not only the knowledge and technical tools available, but looks forward to how they can be implemented in real cities by 2050.

Developing an up-to-date critical framework for analysing urban retrofit, this is the first book to examine urban re-engineering for sustainability in a socio-technical context. Retrofitting Cities examines why retrofit is emerging as an important strategic issue for urban authorities and untangles the mix of economic, competitive, ecological and social drivers that influence any transition towards a more sustainable urban environment. Retrofitting Cities comparatively explores how urban scale retrofitting can be conceptualised as a socio-technical transition; to critically compare and contrast different national styles of response in cities of the north and global south; and, to develop new research and policy agendas on future development of progressive retrofitting. Bringing together a group of researchers from a variety of disciplinary backgrounds that reflect the complexity of the research challenge, Retrofitting cities looks across different infrastructures and types of built environment, dealing with diverse urban contexts and examining formal as well as community responses. This is a uniquely practical book for urban planning and policy professionals as well as for researchers in urban studies and urban design.

A groundbreaking exploration of the most promising new ideas for creating the sustainable cities of tomorrow The culmination of a four-year collaborative research project undertaken by leading UK universities, in partnership with city authorities, prominent architecture firms, and major international consultants, Retrofitting Cities for Tomorrow's World explores the theoretical and practical aspects of the transition towards sustainability in the built environment that will occur in the years ahead. The emphasis throughout is on emerging systems innovations and bold new ways of imagining and re-imagining urban retrofitting, set within the context of ‘futures-based’ thinking. The concept of urban retrofitting has gained prominence within both the research and policy arenas in recent years. While cities are often viewed as a source of environmental stress and resource depletion they are also hubs of learning and innovation offering enormous potential for scaling up technological responses. But city-level action will require a major shift in thinking and a scaling up of positive responses to climate change and the associated threats of environmental and social degradation. Clearly the time has come for a more coordinated, planned, and strategic approach that will allow cities to transition to a sustainable future. This book summarizes many of the best new ideas currently in play on how to achieve those goals. Reviews the most promising ideas for how to approach planning and coordinating a more sustainable urban future by 2050 through retrofitting existing structures Explores how cities need to govern for urban retrofit and how future urban transitions and pathways can be managed, modeled and navigated Offers inter-disciplinary insights from international contributors from both the academic and professional spheres Develops a rigorous conceptual framework for analyzing existing challenges and fostering innovative ways of addressing those challenges Retrofitting Cities for Tomorrow's World is must-reading for academic researchers, including postgraduates insustainability, urban planning, environmental studies, economics, among other fields. It is also an important source of fresh ideas and inspiration for town planners, developers, policy advisors, and consultants working within the field of sustainability, energy, and the urban environment.

A deep understanding of the implications of green roof retrofit is required amongst students and practitioners to make the decisions and take the actions needed to mitigate climate changes. Green Roof Retrofit: building urban resilience illustrates the processes undertaken to develop this new knowledge and thereby embed a deeper level of understanding in readers.Illustrative case studies and exemplars are drawn from countries outside of the core researched areas to demonstrate the application of the knowledge more broadly. Examples are used from the Americas (North and South and Canada), Oceania, Asia and other European countries.The book describes the multiple criteria which inform decision making and how this provides a way forward for making better decisions about green roof retrofit in different countries and climates.

With a foreword from Paul King, Chief Executive, UK Green Building Council and Chairman, Zero Carbon Hub As concerns over climate change and resource constraints grow, many cities across the world are trying to achieve a low carbon transition. Although new zero carbon buildings are an important part of the story, in existing cities the transformation of the current building stock and urban infrastructure must inevitably form the main focus for transitioning to a low carbon and sustainable future by 2050. Urban Retrofitting for Sustainability brings together interdisciplinary research contributions from leading international experts to focus on key issues such as systems innovation, financing tools, governance, energy, and water management. The chapters consider not only the knowledge and technical tools available, but looks forward to how they can be implemented in real cities by 2050.

The current literature compartmentalizes the complex issue of water and wastewater into its discrete components; technology, planning, policy, construction, economics, etc. Considered from the perspective of sustainability, however, water in the urban environment must be approached as a single resource that can be continuously reused and recycled. This book will be the first to capture all of the current work on this idea in a single, integrated, plan for designing the water-centric cities of the future. From new construction to the retrofitting of existing systems, this book presents the case for a new urban relationship to water, one with a more sustainable connection to the environment and the hydrological cycle. Through case studies of successfully planned and built systems around the world, the book will educate the reader about the need for a new approach to urban water management, and make the case that these changes are not only possible but imperative.

Small and mid-sized suburban towns house two-thirds of the world’s population and current modes of planning for these municipalities are facing challenges of both philosophy and form. Common approaches that have prevailed in past decades no longer sustain new demands and require innovative thinking. Rather than dismissing small and mid-sized towns as unattractive suburban sprawl, Planning Small and Mid-Sized Towns offers ideas and methods on how small isolated and edge towns can be designed and retooled into sustainable, affordable and adaptable communities. Coverage includes: the evolution of small towns mobility and connectivity neighborhood and sustainable dwelling design town centers and urban renewal economic sustainability and wealth generation, and more. With numerous case studies from North America and Europe and over 150 color photographs, maps, and illustrations, Planning Small and Mid-Sized Towns is a valuable, practical resource for professional planners and urban designers, as well as students in these disciplines.

This book provides an overview of the environmental problems that arise from construction activity, focusing on refurbishment as an alternative to the current crisis in the construction sector, as well as on measures designed to minimize the effects on the environment. Furthermore, it offers professionals insights into alternative eco-efficient solutions using new materials to minimize environmental impacts and offers solutions that they can incorporate into their own designs and buildings. It also demonstrates best practices in the cooperation between various universities in Andalusia in Spain and Latin America and many public and private companies and organizations. This book serves as a valuable reference resource for professionals and researchers and provides an overview on the status of investigations to find solutions to improve sustainable development in terms of materials, systems, facilities, neighborhoods, buildings, and awareness of the society involved.

Retrofitting expresses, in a traditional approach, the process of improving something after it has been manufactured, constructed, or assembled. These systems integrate new technologies, new functions, and new services that increase the energy performance in existing private, public, and commercial buildings. Retrofitting for Optimal Energy Performance is a comprehensive reference source that examines environmentally conscious technologies and their applications in advancing retrofitting practices. Providing relevant theoretical frameworks and the latest empirical research findings in the area, it highlights an array of topics such as climate change, energy management, and optimization modeling, and is essential for academicians, students, researchers, engineers, architects, entrepreneurs, managers, policymakers, and building owners.

Whilst sustainability is already an important driver in the new building sector, this book explores how those involved in refurbishment of commercial building are moving this agenda forward. It includes chapters by developers, surveyors, cost consultants, architects, building physicists and other players, on the role they each can play in enabling refurbishment to be commercially, environmentally and socially sustainable. Case studies from northern climates show real examples of different building types, ages and uses and will demonstrate what action has been taken to create more sustainable buildings. The chapters raise and discuss all the relevant issues that need to be considered in retrofitting decision making. Changing standards, planning, process management, financing, technical issues, site organisation, commissioning and subsequent building management are all considered. The book demonstrates that buildings can be made comfortable to occupy, easy to manage and low in energy demand and environmental impact.