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Urban growth boundaries are considered one of the key tools for controlling and managing the physical development of metropolitan areas. Uncontrolled and unplanned expansion in these regions has become a major challenge for urban and regional planners and managers, as this process leads to the destruction of agricultural lands and natural resources. The aim of this research is to simulate and assess future changes in growth boundaries in the Isfahan metropolitan area with the goal of preserving environmental resources and controlling physical expansion. In this regard, by adopting a positivist approach that follows an analytical and measurement-driven process, satellite imagery was utilized to assess changes in the physical expansion of the Isfahan metropolitan area. Artificial neural networks and machine learning algorithms were employed to predict the extent of future physical growth, and the projected growth boundaries were delineated. The research findings indicate that the Isfahan metropolitan area has experienced significant uncontrolled expansion, particularly in terms of physical development, over recent decades, and the reduction of agricultural and natural lands has become one of its major challenges. Based on the conducted simulations, the proposed growth boundaries can serve as an effective tool for managing and planning urban-regional development and preventing further degradation of natural resources and lands.

 

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This study was conducted to assess the habitat suitability of Carissa carandas in India is crucial for its sustainable integration into agriculture under changing climatic conditions. This study utilized Maximum Entropy (MaxEnt) modelling to evaluate the species’ distribution across current and future scenarios (2050 and 2070) under four Representative Concentration Pathways (RCPs: 2.6, 4.5, 6.0, and 8.5). Results indicated that temperature-related variables, particularly the Minimum Temperature of the Coldest Month (MiTCM, contributing 46.8% in 2070 RCP 2.6) and Isothermality (contributing up to 35.2% in 2070 RCP 8.5), are the dominant climatic drivers. Land use and land cover (LULC) factors such as urbanization (49.8%), total cultivated land (28.1%), and grassland (9.0%) significantly influence habitat suitability. Under current conditions, optimal habitat spans 4,588 km², decreasing by 38.95% under LULC scenarios. Projected habitat changes indicate a 2.04% gain under 2070 RCP 2.6 but an 11.06% decline under 2050 RCP 2.6. Southern and western regions, including Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, and Gujarat, exhibit high suitability, habitat fragmentation is projected in northern and western India due to climate change and land use modifications. These findings underscore the need for proactive conservation planning and climate-adaptive agricultural strategies to optimize the cultivation of C. carandas. Policymakers and stakeholders should focus on preserving suitable regions while mitigating urbanization-induced habitat loss. Furthermore, integrating underutilized crops into climate-resilient agriculture can enhance biodiversity, improve food security, and support sustainable farming practices in the face of climate change.
 

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Previously, neighborhood units were considered as the first identity unit of cities and the most important base of citizen’s social relationships, however recently they have been lost in the shadow of new urban developments. Nowadays, the quantity of citizen’s relationships has been increased but it happened at the cost of quality reduction in social relationships alongside replacement with virtual relationships. It seems that the identity and cultural structure of urban society are being threatened by new urbanism development and loss of their original functions in Iran. This is the result of shrinkage in the function of neighborhood centers and interior public spaces in the neighborhood units. On the other hand, green spaces and valuable natural countryside of cities are destroyed because of population increasing, industrial development and undefined urban expansion. Not only reduction in appropriate urban green spaces has suppressed their effects on urban pollutions but also limited the recreational and social open spaces in the cities. Design and construction of neighborhood parks as a part of urban green spaces, are among the most important issues in the design and planning of contemporary urbanism. In the developing countries such as Iran, establishment of new neighborhood parks is part of the Improvement of minimum necessary urban green spaces, but the effect of such green spaces on the type and quality of citizens’ relationships has not been deeply noticed. Noticing the” neighborhood unit” as an informant unit of city is basically one of the fundamental strategies for solving this problem. Revitalization of old neighborhood unit centers in the form of new neighborhood parks and using the potential of neighborhood green spaces could develop social relationship in the neighborhood units. This research aims to answer two questions: 1) What is the function of neighborhood parks in the social relationship quality of neighborhood communities; and 2) How the neighborhood parks can be used for development of neighborhood social relationships. Two successful samples from the developed countries and one successful sample from Iran were selected for analytical –descriptive analysis of the subject. Besides analyzing the operation quality of these parks in urban spaces, different impacts of such green spaces on neighborhood social relationships were studied. The results showed that, for increasing of neighborhood social relationships, the appropriate conditions for increasing the presence time of people in the parks must be provided at first. Some of these conditions such as easy accessibility, attractiveness, etc have impact on peoples’ attraction to the parks, and some others such as physiological comfort, sense of security, natural scenes, etc have impact on people’s presence time in the park. Suitable tactics for increasing interaction between people were stabilized; such as park furniture arrangement types, multiple and social activities and, good aggregation points. Based on the results of this study, appropriate strategies for the design of  neighborhood parks were developed.

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Aims: The assessment of threats and vulnerabilities of critical infrastructure such as urban water infrastructure can, in many cases, significantly reduce vulnerabilities or minimize the consequences of a threat. The aim of this research was to evaluate the components of the contingency and impact severity of human-oriented and natural-based threats in urban water infrastructure.
Instrument and Methods: In this analytical-descriptive study, a library collection method, including the study of books, research, and domestic and International articles of researchers as well as Internet search was used. The data were collected by questionnaire and analyzed by Hazop model and Friedman test, using SPSS 21 software.
Findings: According to the experts, the highest scores were assigned to terrorism acts and suppression, and, ultimately, human error. The most critical type of threat was recognized as chemical attack, military attack, and drought by the Hazop model. The second threat was rocket attacks, earthquakes, and terrorism. The human error ranked next in critical threats. The military attack and drought were recognized as an unacceptable crisis and the probability of a flood, a military attack (ground) and human error were ranked one to three. The impact severity (damage) of the military attack (ground), earthquake, and chemical pollution were ranked one to three, respectively.
Conclusion: The most critical types of threats are chemical pollution in urban water infrastructure, military attack, and drought and are recognized as unacceptable crisis. The probability of flood, military attack (ground), and human error are ranked one to three, and the impact severity (damage) of the military attack (ground), earthquake, and chemical pollution are ranked one to three, respectively.
 

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Abstract
Aims: Affected by natural and human phenomena, the spatial order forms the urban network. In a balanced urban system, due to hierarchical functions and activities in different cities, and fair provision of services to the existing population, there are hierarchical links between cities. The aim of this study was to investigate the urban network based on functional analysis and factors affecting the urban network deformation in Khorasan Razavi province.
Instruments and Methods: Using survey research method, the present descriptive-analytical study was conducted in 2015 among 118 experts of the provincial government, Road and Urban Development Office of Khorasan Razavi province, Governorate, Municipalities, University Jihad of Ferdowsi University, Geography professors of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, and mayors of Khorasan Razavi province; In this study, convenience sampling method was used. The research tool was researcher made questionnaire. Factors affecting spatial imbalance were evaluated through structural equation modeling and confirmatory and exploratory factor analysis, using SPSS 22 and Lisrel 8.52 software.
Findings: Economic, infrastructural, and political factors had the greatest effect on spatial imbalance with factor loading of 0.77, 0.75, and 0.75, respectively.
Conclusion:  Mashhad is at the highest and Bajgiran is at the lowest level in terms of development factors. Among the factors influencing the spatial imbalance, the changes in the country's division in the provincal level (change village to city), centralized system governance, the lack of attention to the role of the middle cities in division of labor (political factors), the focus of activities in metropolises, disproportionate allocation of credits at the provincial level, the focus of roles in Mashhad (economic factors), and the focus of superior educational and health-care services (infrastructural factors) have a more effective role.

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Abstract
Aims: Metropolises play a vital role in the continuity of human life, the future of human society, and the determination of the future direction. Finding an appropriate pattern for the development of these areas can help to develop sustainable national development and reduce instabilities. The expansion of the scope in the immediate area of the periphery to pyhsical forms, change in land use and roles are of the functions of metropolises. The metropolitan areas are formed through the expansion of the peripheral realm and the spatial-functional integration of immediate areas in the core space of metropolis. The key to organizing Tehran is on its suborb. The linkage of margine and core in metropolitan areas can form opportunities and threats for the core and its periphery. Therefore, the present study was conducted with the aim of analyzing the role of urban periphery in organizing Tehran metropolis with emphasis on new cities.
Conclusion: The methods of organizing Tehran in the spatial, functional, and identity reconstruction of Tehran, in the metropolitan area and regional planning approach, are to engage urban periphery communities in the process of incorporation and integration. An integrated approach to the metropolitan area and analysis of roles and currents within the framework of a single spatial system, the establishment of an integrated management syastem in the metropolitan area and the strengthening of spatial cells and nodes in the form of new cities are required for organizing the political, social, cultural, and economic space of Tehran. Preventing the process of marginalization of the urban periphery area, reconstruction of urban periphery areas, rehabilitation and enhancement of social life in the metropolitan area by creating hierarchies of functional-spatial, social, and economic identity in the urban periphery area, the strategy of replacing new cities and revising their experiences are the key for growth and balanced development of metropolis of Tehran as the capital on its margin.
 

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Almost all western theorists in the field of urban studies pointed to urban vitality in their books and articles. Also, vitality is a fashionable word in the lexicon of urbanism in Iran, but in fact, it received little support from urban planners, urban designers, and geographers. During the years of confrontation with western achievements and modernism in Iran, people experience the incorrect manner of using imported terms, theories and inventions. Urban vitality is another example of such experiences, and the exact meaning and position of vitality in Iranian urban contexts is still unclear. There are lots of articles and projects focusing on urban vitality without clarifying the situation on which people can pursue vitality for an urban context. In the present study, the meaning and position for urban vitality, and the misuses of this concept in Iranian urban contexts is discussed.
 

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Logistic regression (LR) was used to model urban growth between the years 1987 and 2001 in Gorgan city, north east of Iran. Three groups of variables including economic-social, land use and biophysical variables were used in the modeling practice. Using covariance of the independent variables, distance to administrative and sporting centers plus distance to cities were removed. ROC (Relative Operating Characteristic) value for LR was 0.87 that confirmed success of the modeling method. Using maps of urban growth probability predicted by the LR model, urban distribution patterns for the years 2010, 2020, 2030, 2040 and 2050 were created. Land use maps for the years 2001-2050 were created using urban probability pattern maps and the base land use map of the year 1987. We used landscape metrics at class and landscape levels to compare the urban growth effects on other land use types present in the area. The comparison showed that urban development influences agriculture and pasture land use types more than other land uses. Also, we found that the landscape in the study area has undergone fragmentation and will become more fragmented and heterogeneous over time. Urban growth creates higher urban patchiness and increases the number of pasture and agricultural patches. The information thus obtained is helpful in more effective management of the area.

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Aims: Urban spatial planning may be defined as the spatial planning in the geographical location of the city, based on the approach of providing the needs of inhabitants within the geographic spaces, following the recreation of the roles and functions of urban elements. By planning identity signs in urban spaces, it is meant to make the safety and security of the city sustainable. By identifying the emotional, psychological, and educational needs of citizens, visual discipline is created; by planning the identity signs of city’s index and planning the signs, vitality is created for citizens; and in completion, with city architecture, facade and urban landscape will be managed in such a way that the citizens' mental and objective needs are met. Given the role of signs in the city, the question of this study is in what situations, will signs meet the need for security and self-awareness of the inhabitants? In what situations, are vitality and beauty transmitted to the citizens and affect the city's atmosphere? Applying a descriptive-analytical method and using library studies as well as available documents, this study examined the planning of urban signs to achieve the main function of the sign.
Conclusion: Signs in urban spaces with appropriate planning can have positive effects and meet citizens' needs for self-awareness, security, education, etc. In this regard, convergence should be created among decision makers, urban managers, and culture, community, economics, politics, and geography of the urban space of citizens.

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The quality of urban spaces and the presence of residents are some of the primary issues of current urbanism, as the dominance of vehicles has diminished the commuting opportunity for different social groups and the liveliness of urban spaces. This is especially true for urban spaces where once acted as children’s playground and now have turned into vehicle routes, pushing their former function to the sides. In the dense landscape of district 10, with its insufficient open urban spaces, this issue is even more pronounced, doubling the need for creating urban spaces accommodating children. Tactical urbanism is a general term describing such urban interventions regarding different qualities (e.g. the scale of the project, provisional measures for reusing the unused potentials of cities, providing privileges and support, unofficial actions within legal bounds, or attention to and revitalizing abandoned spaces) and has been further extended in specific academic fields such as traffic engineering

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Cultural activities can play a key role in communication between people in a city and help the identification of the space and people through the social memories’ creation. Nowadays, performing rites in Iran as an access to identification and displaying of our culture and tradition, lost their past values and it is necessary to pay attention to them and their magnificent role in the improvement of the urban spaces. In this research, the area around the grand bazaar in Tehran in the center of the city where thousands of people go for everyday shopping and has traditional places like Golestan palace which attracts many tourists every year, has been selected as a study case. Bazaar has always been the significant cultural-social pivot in the center of the cities and every year many social activities such as religious rites like Ta’zieh and Moharam mourning are held in this place. In this research, with the use of analytical-defined method and historical documents in order to reach more information about concepts and after the study of different cases in other parts of the world, the analysis of this case study has been done and in the end, the essential measures have been suggested for the improvement of this place for holding the social rites which emphasize that it is possible to provide the bilateral communication between public urban spaces and these events. 

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Smart City Master Plan Smart cities, at the first stage had been defined as cities that adopt ICT in all aspect of urban spaces. However, during the last three decade,  the approach of urban initiatives turned into employing ICT as one of the main infrastructure of cities. Reviewing the literature around the phenomena of smart cities along with smart city projects experiences indicate the new generation of smart cities. Novel paradigms and concepts are emerging through the development of technology that directly affect urban initiatives. Therefore, the definition of smart cities have a dynamic character though to its integration with technology.
Accordingly, with the evolution of smart cities, urban planning, urban design and urban government had been affected ultimately, which result a new approach into smart cities and urban initiatives as adopting collaborative cities and intelligence cities.  Therefore, this research aim to review definitions of smart cities during the last years within academic literature along with urban projects experiences to explore the definition of new generation of smart cities. To do so, smart cities definition had been explore through academia and experiments and the new concepts emerged in the urban literature been clarified in order to shed the light on how urban design and planning have to reform in Iran to meet the new centuries requirements.

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Smart materials and shells affect on represent the space and identity of a society with their special activity and like any technology and element, it has its own effects and consequences and it can be said that based on the visual attractions and philosophy of the age of communication and visualization the culture of societies founded. The aim of this research is explaination of these effects on urban smart surfaces from psychological and intellectual and cultural anomalies aspects and helping designers to use it logically and in accordance with the culture and smart buildings of the community. The present research has a positive-content aspect and from another aspect, has a normative-content structure. Also, the research method includes descriptive and analytical research along with qualitative strategy, because it addresses contemporary social and cultural conditions. Data collection is based on library studies and documentation. The physical and material effects of smart shells that make urban facades based on perceptual visual cultures in perceptual aspects are criticized: truth and reality, time and space, experience and event, equality and justice, knowledge and information in a society and consider equal the meaning of firmness with persistence, generosity with lavishness, tolerance with indifference, adherence to affection and beauty with pretense and and in sensual aspects: Unity, distance and distance from the world, distorting other senses, undermining the message and meaning of the sender of the message, separation, isolation, apparent attachment, limiting taste, inhumanity of architecture and urbanization would be the results of increasing use of them.

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Introduction: Considering the settlement of more than 60% of the world's population in cities by 2030, producing over 70% of the world's carbon there, and 50% of the damage to the ozone layer by cities, as well as less experience in organizing environmental issues in cities, studying the successful experience of countries, especially global metropolises in planning environmental issues may be essential. Accordingly, this research is theoretical in terms of nature, applied in terms of conclusion, and descriptive-analytical and documentary in terms of method. The data were collected and analyzed from library resources, field observations from some metropolises, and Internet resources related to the world capitals and global metropolises perspective (15 items).
Conclusion: At least since 2000, in all the perspectives for the studied capitals and metropolises, urban environmental issues have been one of their main goals and basic themes. The land of "no burial" and "no waste" is the motto of most of them. The completion of the cycle of reduction of consumption, recycling, and reuse is considered the main objective of sustainable development. The integrated urban environmental management model was emphasized; flexibility and effective strategic resilience are considered to reach the UN's 2030s sustainable development goals. Therefore, it is proposed that the 17-item UN's 2030s sustainable development goal, particularly item 11 that is related to urban sustainable development, as well as the United Nations environment program, be the basis for urban sustainable environmental programs, especially in Iranian metropolises.

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The necessity of coordinated facades especially in city centers plays an important role in the image of the cities. Setting up a reliable framework is crucial to ensure that this coordination is maintained. However, due to the lack of tools for implementing that framework the roles and regulations in this context remain only written.
The review of complied foreign documents shows that there is an intensive tool that leads to implementing façade design instructions. This tool which is called the ‘Improvement Façade Program’ has been employed in many cities across the world.
This paper aims to propound tools for implementing design instructions specified in the façade context. It is noteworthy that the main purpose of this paper is being familiar with one of the intensive tools for improving façade and applying this tool in Iran requires localization with specific conditions and regulations inside the country.