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Research was undertaken within the Irish Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Environmental RTDI Programme during the six‐month period from March to August 2001 by a partnership formed by the Centre for Environmental Research (CER), University of Limerick, and the Centre for Urban and Regional Ecology (CURE), University of Manchester. This project aimed to inform the development of spatial policies emerging from the National Spatial Strategy (NSS) aimed at finding optimal ways in which to accommodate Ireland’s growing population in a manner consistent with balanced regional development and environmental sustainability. To obtain data and information on settlements, three modes of analysis were adopted. First, for a single city and two villages, both quantitative and qualitative data were collected to provide a comprehensive analysis of the local social, economic and physical environments, track record in enhancing sustainability, current policies in place, and the likelihood of these policies proving successful. Second, for 11 Irish settlements selected to include a range of functions and locations, 29 quantified sustainability indicators were developed and used to compare the level of sustainability achieved by settlements of differing sizes. Third, a review of international literature was undertaken to search for comparable data, models and case studies, so as to provide a context for analysis of Irish data. The framework of significant environmental themes adopted here is taken from recent Irish EPA publications. Results based on all three research methods suggest that on balance larger settlements in the recent past, at present and in the foreseeable future are more likely to create conditions in which sustainability is enhanced. This work provides the basis for a large‐scale three‐year study which commenced in March 2002, which examines the sustainability and future development patterns of settlements in Ireland.

The purpose of this paper is to emphasize passive energy refurbishment of vernacular building heritages and propose new application principles of sustainability from these vernacular heritages into contemporary architecture.

This paper is based on a research project (The Creation of a Prototype Project within the Application of Traditional Methods in Kastamonu, Küre Rural Settlements, 2017), through which vernacular architecture examples were analyzed, projecting for future interpretations for rural environments. Defining vernacular rural design principles is centrally important for the purposes of this project. As a case study from the Black Sea Region in Turkey, this example is investigated, and the outcomes of the analysis are used to reproduce in contemporary architectural terms the energy efficiency and rural patterns of the flexible rural house experience.

The research provides design principles for developing a new living experience in rural environments. The overall planning and architectural analysis are made in five neighborhoods in Küre, and three of unique vernacular architecture examples are chosen according to several criteria defined in “Kastamonu-Küre Ersizlerdere Village Design Guideline Project, 2014” to get the optimum data. Materials, orientation, form, spatial organization and building's indoor-outdoor relationship were analyzed by Autodesk's “Ecotect Analysis” simulation program.

Results of the proposed design principles of rural housing will be useful for new housing interpretations related to better rural development.

While defining energy efficiency criteria of vernacular itself, the results of this paper suggest new local solutions to ecological building design and engage with critical regionalism principles referring to the potentials of what traditional dwellings can teach contemporary design.

Ecologically fit built form and settlement is an outcome of harmonious modes of interaction between the man-made and the natural environment. It is also the prerequisite of a sustainable planning and design process. In building terms, an ecologically fit building involves the existence of appropriate schemes of enclosures and exposures of indoor spaces which is achieved through fundamental building features like relations with the ground, properties of building mass, treatment of the building envelop and roof performance.

While the debate on the conflicting aspects of the two extremes, namely the international style and regionalism, continues to occupy architectural media, a new paradigm of place dependent ecological architecture has to be formulated. In this connection it is not surprising to notice that vernacular built form based on building traditions are ecologically fit and may well constitute a sound source of information. This study aims at deciphering relevant clues to be utilized as design guidelines through the analysis of fundamental building features of vernacular built environments.

This study attempts to assess housing developments on the island of Cyprus by referring to the various actions taken and policies implemented during different periods as a result of changing socio-economic and political dynamics. From this perspective, the methodology of the study is based on an assessment of housing developments throughout periods which coincide with certain socio-political thresholds in the history of the island, such as the year 1974, which resulted in the division of the island into two as Northern and Southern parts, and the year 2004, in which the overall setting is changed as Southern part of the island became member of EU. The overall developments and transformations in housing developments are considered as a mirror image of the actors, actions and associations in building activity throughout the periods referred to in this paper. Nicosia as the capital city of the island, has experienced different spatial transformations, and is comprised of a diversity of housing schemes ranging from the low cost housing units of urban workers, located next to the centers of traditional employment, to the large refugee housing estates and to the institutionalized social housing settlements. In this regard, the study aims to understand, interpret and learn from past experiences in the field of housing developments in order to provide lessons which will serve to support future sustainable living environments, since the current situation is at a critical point, and is currently requiring the interest and attention of the responsible authorities.

The purpose of this paper is to analyse and reflect on the changing relations of class and power in rural England, with a particular focus on housing.

The paper reviews the evidence concerning the changing ownership of housing and land in English rural areas, and the problems relating to this.

The paper finds that, in spite of huge social changes over the course of the 20th century, relations of class and power in rural England have retained the same basic form, based on landownership. The countryside continues to be dominated by landowners, who now include large numbers of nouveaux riches, while the landless (and carless) find it increasingly difficult to access housing, employment and basic services and amenities in rural areas. Landowner dominance is maintained not only by the rule of private property and property markets, but also by a state planning system that is heavily biased towards landowning classes and against the poor.

The paper recognises that the situation varies from one rural area to another, so that solutions to the rural housing problem need, so far as possible, to be locally negotiated. However, for reasons of space, the paper does not go into detail on this issue, apart from a few references to the situation in Lincolnshire.

The paper is original in the way it shows how “old” and “new” gentry, in spite of their differences in terms of “productivism” and “post‐productivism”, have shared class interests and values based on landownership rights. It is also the first to argue that rural gentrification is a form of revanchism – a thesis that has previously been applied only to urban areas. Data that have been previously argued to show the superiority of rural areas, e.g. fewer homeless, higher incomes, etc. can now be explained as effects of revanchism.

To provide an analysis of securities class action filings in 2015 along with related trends over time and a comprehensive current view of the securities class action landscape.

Details 2015 securities class actions and related trends in terms of the number and size of filings; market capitalization losses; the litigation exposure of IPOs; the classification of complaints; litigation likelihood for US exchange-listed companies; resolutions (settlements, dismissals or trial verdict outcomes); timing of dismissals and settlements; filing lags; filings against foreign issuers; number of mega filings; recent rulings related to class certification; and concentration of class action activity by industry sector, stock exchange and court circuit.

The number of filings in 2015 was the largest since 2008. The Disclosure Dollar Loss Index® (DDL Index®), the Maximum Dollar Loss Index® (MDL Index®) and the number of mega filings rose sharply in 2015 after declines in 2014. The Consumer Non-Cyclical sector had the most filings in 2015 while filings against companies in the Financial sector were below historical averages. Dismissal rates appear to be trending down. The median filing lag has never been shorter than in 2015. Filings against foreign issuers remain at high levels. Filings against S&P 500 companies remained below the historical average.

Detailed analysis by legal and industry experts.

Climate change affects the natural resource base and poses enormous difficulty for the natural resource‐dependent indigenous population of the cold desert region in the high altitude Himalayas. The interplay of climatic and eco‐hydrological processes on these fragile ecosystem coupled with increasing anthropogenic pressure, are leading to increasing stress on indigenous agro‐pastoral communities and their livelihoods. The purpose of this paper is to summarize the outcomes of a study carried out in the Trans and Western Indian Himalayas to quantify the level of environmental threat and adaptive capacity.

Field studies were carried out across the cold desert belt in Indian Himalaya. A stratified, nested sampling across four Altitude Bands and three hydrological levels in two bio‐geographic regions. A participatory approach blended with scientific field observations and secondary data collection was adopted. Criterion variables were used to identify the “Vulnerability Hotspots” while component indices helped in depiction of key characteristic features of study units.

Data generated through participatory resource appraisal and scientific field observations were used to determine vulnerable “hotspot's”, identifying the driving factors (both anthropogenic and natural processes), and determining focus areas for interventions.

A pilot project on Water Access and Wasteland Development has been initiated in the Western Himalayas that integrates community based natural resource management with infusion of appropriate technology to address water stress and ecosystem vulnerability.

The research results identify target areas and methodologies for intervention, while the pilot initiative strives to ensure that disadvantaged cold desert mountain communities have access to resources and skills for effective management of these resources.

Aims to investigate the problems of subsidence and their implications for domestic buildings by addressing a number of questions. What are the main causes of land subsidence? What is the potential damage of subsidence, and how can this be prevented and reduced? What are the financial and legal implications for all those involved? Looks critically at the effect of subsidence due to coal mining on residential properties and the particular problems encountered by valuation surveyors. Briefly examines the history and past operation of the compensation system to assess its effectiveness. Finally, considers the fears inherent following privatization, along with future proposals.

This study aims to assess policies and mechanisms in Caribbean and Pacific small island developing states (SIDS) that address climate-induced migration and displacement. The migration of communities away from vulnerable regions is highly likely to be an adaptation strategy used in low-elevation SIDS, as the impacts of climate change are likely to result in significant loss and damage, threatening their very territorial existence. SIDS must ensure that residents relocate to less vulnerable locations and may need to consider international movement of residents. Ad hoc approaches to migration and displacement may result in increased vulnerability of residents, making the development and enforcement of comprehensive national policies that address these issues a necessity.

Interviews with United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) negotiators for SIDS as well as analysis of secondary data, including Intended Nationally Determined Contributions, are utilized to determine policies and mechanisms in place that focus on climate-induced migration and displacement.

While climate change is acknowledged as an existential threat, few SIDS have policies or mechanisms in place to guide climate-induced migration and displacement. Potential exists for migration and displacement to be included in policies that integrate disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation along with national sustainable development plans. Regional bodies are beneficial to providing guidance to SIDS in the development of nationally appropriate frameworks to address climate-induced migration and displacement.

Existing gaps in policies and mechanisms and challenges faced by SIDS in developing strategies to address climate-induced migration and displacement are explored. Best practices and recommendations for strategies for SIDS to address migration and displacement are provided.

Certification students in a post-baccalaureate teacher preparation program investigated the local educational environment in a social studies methods course with a brief community study of several K-4 neighborhood schools. School district maps and street maps guided their exploration of the city between the university and the schools where they had field placements and jobs as substitute teachers. Student summaries and reflections with photos and sketch maps promoted discussion of issues relevant to informed social studies educators. Evaluation of the instructional approach indicated an increased student awareness of local places, using a model of inquiry applicable to elementary social studies instruction, as well as promoting place-based instruction and potential partnerships between neighborhood schools and communities. The approach established a collegial, cooperative climate among future teachers for developing effective social studies programs.