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Shehersaaz

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Shehersaaz

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Remote Sensing and Geographic Information Systems in Urban Planning

May 27, 2023 No Comments

یہ کوئی عام کھنڈر نہیں یہ دسویں (10)صدی کے مشہور سائینسدان ابوریحان البیرونی کی لیبارٹری ہے

May 5, 2023 No Comments

Unveiling the Vitality of the River Ravi: The Lifeline Sustaining Punjab’s Prosperity

May 2, 2023 No Comments

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🏙️ Food for Thoughts | The Secret Life of Cit

🏙️ Food for Thoughts | The Secret Life of Cities: How Urban Spaces Shape Human Minds

Urban life holds a dual nature: dazzling creativity on one side, silent psychological erosion on the other. "Headspace: The Psychology of City Living" by Dr. Paul Keedwell offers a profound exploration of how cities—through their homes, streets, workplaces, and public spaces—directly influence human mental health and happiness.

📖 From the very first pages (p. 2), Dr. Keedwell challenges the notion that architecture is emotionally neutral. He argues that bad urban design can quietly foster alienation, anxiety, and depression, while thoughtfully designed spaces can nurture creativity, security, and wellbeing.

Key insights:

🏡 The Home as a Psychological Fortress: Drawing from Freud and Jung, the book (p. 13) reveals how homes serve as modern caves or wombs—spaces for refuge, intimacy, and identity. The absence of these elements, even in luxurious modern homes like Mies van der Rohe's Farnsworth House (p. 27), can trigger restlessness and chronic stress.
🏘️ Neighbourhoods and Ownership: On page 65, Dr. Keedwell discusses how public housing failures like St. Louis' Pruitt-Igoe project stemmed from poor social integration and lack of communal ownership, proving that livability is more than bricks and mortar; it’s about fostering belonging.
🏢 High-Rise Paradoxes: The psychological toll of high-rise living is deeply dissected (pp. 95–98), challenging the optimism of megaprojects that ignore human need for prospect, refuge, and community cohesion.
🌳 Public Spaces as Healing Grounds: Green spaces are not luxuries but psychological necessities. Studies cited on page 147 show that exposure to nature improves focus, reduces attention fatigue, and lowers stress levels, even when experienced through a window.
🏙️ Workplaces, Playgrounds, and End-of-Life Spaces: Whether designing an office, a playground, or a hospice, the underlying principle remains: design with human psychology in mind (p. 200).

Dr.Keedwell’s compelling argument is clear: architecture and urban planning must integrate architectural psychology into their core philosophies, not as an afterthought but as a foundation.

The End of the Indus Waters Treaty: A Looming Cris

The End of the Indus Waters Treaty: A Looming Crisis for Pakistan

For over 60 years, the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) has been a cornerstone of peace between India and Pakistan, managing the shared water resources of the Indus River system. But with rising tensions, India has begun questioning the treaty, even suggesting changes. If India moves forward with withdrawing from the IWT, the consequences for Pakistan could be catastrophic.

Pakistan relies heavily on the Indus River system for its agriculture—over 90% of the country’s crops, including wheat, rice, and sugarcane, depend on its water. Any disruption in river flow could lead to widespread crop failures, food insecurity, and economic instability, particularly in rural areas. The agricultural sector, which sustains millions of families, would be among the hardest hit.

Furthermore, Pakistan generates a significant portion of its electricity through hydropower. Reduced water flow could result in energy shortages, exacerbating an already fragile energy sector. Power cuts and rising energy costs would impact industries, businesses, and daily life, pushing the country further into an economic crisis.

The environmental impact cannot be ignored. Reduced river flow would deplete wetlands, dry up lakes, and damage ecosystems, contributing to water scarcity in urban and rural areas. The depletion of groundwater reserves could further worsen the situation, leading to long-term environmental degradation.

However, this crisis could also be an opportunity for Pakistan. It could prompt much-needed reforms in water management, including upgrading irrigation systems, building new dams, and adopting more sustainable agricultural practices. Pakistan must accelerate efforts to improve water conservation and management if it is to safeguard its future.

The potential termination of the Indus Waters Treaty is not just a political issue—it is a matter of survival for millions of people who depend on the water that flows through the Indus River. Pakistan must act swiftly to mitigate the risks and explore international support, ensuring that the country is prepared for any eventuality.

#IndusWatersTreaty #Pakistan #India

🚶‍♀️ Food for Thoughts | Designing Cities

🚶‍♀️ Food for Thoughts | Designing Cities Around People, Not Just Cars

When streets become more than passageways—when they evolve into spaces of equity, health, and connectivity—a city transforms. The Miami-Dade County Complete Streets Design Guidelines (2016) is not just a policy document; it’s a blueprint for reclaiming urban spaces for people.

📘 This remarkable guideline (pp. 1–11) shifts the urban planning paradigm by placing pedestrians, cyclists, transit users, and motorists on equal footing. It calls for infrastructure that supports safe, accessible, and vibrant public spaces—a vision rooted in health, safety, equity, and sustainability.

Key insights:

🔹 Health & Equity: With over 55% of Miami-Dade adults classified as inactive (p. 2), integrating walkable and bike-friendly infrastructure directly tackles chronic disease and mobility inequities. Transit-based designs can save households up to $8,700 annually (p. 2), reinforcing affordability and access.

🔹 Road Safety Revolution: Over 50% of pedestrian fatalities occurred where no crosswalk existed (p. 3). Streets with sidewalks on both sides dramatically reduce crash risks—supporting the case for universal pedestrian infrastructure.

🔹 Typologies with Purpose: Streets are redefined by context, not just car capacity. From civic streets that support local economies (p. 26) to paseos designed solely for walking and gathering (p. 32), this typology-based design supports placemaking over throughput.

🔹 Smart, Sustainable Streets: The guidelines embrace stormwater management, tree canopy expansion, and sidewalk zoning to enhance climate resilience and ecological balance (p. 5, p. 60).

🔹 People-Centric Principles: Every chapter echoes a core truth—streets should be built around people, not just vehicles. Design speed, modal equality, and context-sensitive planning (p. 6) are central to safer, more connected cities.

This document sets a gold standard for city-makers, offering inspiration and technical grounding for anyone invested in creating streets that serve all—not just the few behind the wheel.

In the era of sustainable urbanism, the street is no longer a boundary—it’s the beginning of change.

Saudi Arabia is redefining its coastline, transiti

Saudi Arabia is redefining its coastline, transitioning from a focus solely on religious tourism to embracing luxury, eco-friendly, and cultural travel experiences. The Red Sea Project exemplifies this shift, aiming to develop over 90 islands with a commitment to sustainability, including the use of renewable energy and conservation of marine ecosystems. Initiatives like planting 50 million mangroves by 2030 and establishing marine protected areas underscore the Kingdom's dedication to environmental preservation. These efforts align with Saudi Vision 2030, positioning Saudi Arabia as a leader in regenerative tourism and sustainable development. The transformation not only enhances the nation's global tourism appeal but also ensures the protection of its unique coastal biodiversity for future generations.

#SaudiTourism #RedSeaProject #SustainableTravel #EcoTourism #Vision2030 #MarineConservation #RegenerativeTourism #MangroveRestoration #LuxuryTravel #BlueEconomy

🌍 𝗘𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝗗𝗮𝘆 2025 | 𝗗

🌍 𝗘𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝗗𝗮𝘆 2025 | 𝗗𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗮 𝗚𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿 𝗧𝗼𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗿𝗼𝘄

What if every building, street, and city plan became a climate solution? On this 𝗘𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝗗𝗮𝘆, we’re not just reflecting — we’re activating.

Today, we celebrate more than just a date. 𝗘𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝗗𝗮𝘆 2025 is a global reminder of the responsibility embedded in the work we do every day — shaping cities and spaces where both people and the planet can thrive.

As planners, designers, and sustainability advocates, our role extends far beyond construction. It’s about creating environments that are resilient, regenerative, and ready for the future.

With the launch of Sustainability Month, we’re proud to spotlight initiatives that are redefining urban development:

🏝️ Nature-based solutions and green-blue infrastructure integrated into city planning
🚖 Smart mobility and eMobility corridors designed to reduce carbon footprints
⚡ Energy-efficient architecture adapted for arid, urban, and high-growth contexts
🎪 Public space transformations that invite community, equity, and ecological balance

Whether it’s revitalizing old city centers or planning new eco-towns across regions like Riyadh, Lahore, or Islamabad, we believe in placemaking that is bold, data-driven, and human-centered.

Because sustainability isn't a checklist — it's the blueprint.

Join us throughout this month as we share real-world projects, community collaborations, and the innovations powering a climate-conscious urban future.

🗣️ 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀 𝘀𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆?

𝑳𝒆𝒕’𝒔 𝒓𝒆𝒊𝒎𝒂𝒈𝒊𝒏𝒆 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒄𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒔 — 𝒕𝒐𝒈𝒆𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓.

#EarthDay2025 #SustainabilityMonth #SheherSaaz #UrbanSustainability #Placemaking #GreenInfrastructure #EcoArchitecture #ClimateSmartCities #ResilientUrbanism #SmartMobility #PublicSpaceDesign #NatureBasedSolutions #eMobility #CleanCities #NetZeroDevelopment #CityPlanning #UrbanTransformation #MiddleEastSustainability #GlobalUrbanism #DesignForClimate

📘 Food for Thoughts: Reimagining Urban Futures

📘 Food for Thoughts: Reimagining Urban Futures in the Age of Disruption

In a world where technology evolves faster than city skylines, Future Cities, New Economy, and Shared City Prosperity Driven by Technological Innovations (UN-Habitat, 2020) offers a compelling roadmap for inclusive, data-driven urban development.

🧠 Cities Are Systems of Systems
As Michael Keith writes (p.24), cities are not singular machines—they are layered systems: social, economic, infrastructural. Disruption through tech reshapes these systems in unpredictable ways. Case in point:

Defibrillators (p.25) shifted emergency care by decentralizing life-saving tech into public spaces—boosting survival rates while transforming health response logistics.

The Apple iWatch (p.28) tracks health data but also raises ethical concerns as insurers begin using this data to nudge—and possibly penalize—users.

Uber (p.27) may reduce car ownership, but it can also reinforce urban sprawl. The outcome depends on local regulation, infrastructure, and public values.

📊 Data as a Tool for Equity
The publication shifts gears by introducing Computational Socioeconomics (p.30)—a fusion of AI, big data, and social research that enables smarter, real-time decisions:

In Rwanda, mobile usage patterns were used to map poverty with high accuracy.

In India, satellite imagery helped identify and monitor slums (p.33).

Social media and Google Street View are being used to assess urban safety and economic segregation (p.34).

These innovations promise greater transparency and efficiency—but they also demand robust governance to prevent digital inequity.

🌍 Leapfrogging the Past
Developing cities, the report suggests, have the opportunity to leapfrog outdated, car-centric urban models and build smarter, greener systems from scratch (p.29). But that requires tech not just to be deployed—but governed with foresight and compassion.

🔑 The Verdict
This isn’t just a book—it’s a call to action. As cities adapt to AI, IoT, and big data, the real challenge is not technological—but ethical. Will future cities serve profit or people? Privacy or progress? Efficiency or equity?

Cities of the future must be guided by values.

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