Live-work interior quality for older people in low-income housing in Bangkok

This study explores to determine the live-work housing needs of low-income older people in informal settlements, the ways of life of whom contemporary housing provision often fails to consider. A questionnaire survey was conducted in three communities in Klong Toey, the largest informal settlement in Bangkok, to understand households’ satisfaction levels and expectations regarding the interior quality of their live-work housing. Older people’s specific interior spaces and housing requirements and expectations vary depending on the nature of their livelihood activities that can be categorised into three main groups, namely service, cook, and stock. The findings suggest a strong relationship between housing domains and the overall satisfaction of older people. There is a strong relationship between overall housing satisfaction and comfort in interior living spaces, as well as safety for domestic working spaces. Design, Health, Comfort, and Adaptability are important domains for live-work environments that ensure housing meets older people’s expectations. Therefore, housing design and improvements should embrace the live-work concept to maintain a sustainable and healthy ageing environment

An exploration of live–work housing conditions of low-income older people in Bangkok, Thailand

This article explores live–work housing conditions for low-income older residents in an informal settlement in Bangkok called Klong Toey (KT) via interviews with 12 participants. The aim is to understand the housing and livelihood situation of older low-income inhabitants of KT, to assess the suitability of their physical environment and areas that could be improved to enable it to serve as live–work housing and to facilitate aging in place, and to inform future work. Participants were asked about the housing conditions in KT and their impact on residents; types of housing for older people in KT; design guidelines for live–work housing; and any lessons from other low-income housing projects. The study used content analysis to examine the interview transcripts. Four organizing themes were used to analyze the responses: housing conditions and relation to live–work; situation and requirements of older people’s housing; live–work housing design guidelines; and solutions to older people’s live–work housing. Finally, four global conceptual domains of live–work housing were constructed from mapping the basic themes. The global conceptual domains include “space,” “livelihood,” “support,” and “services” that are essential to the provision of live–work housing in KT

Mass housing estate location in relation to its liveability : Budapest case study

The conditions of mass housing estates in post-Communist countries have long been of concern for their inhabitants, while they have also begun to generate research interests. Some authors advocate for upgrading and renewal of these buildings; yet, others see them as a mass of aesthetic and socioeconomic burden reminiscent of the past, centrally planned economy, and therefore propose gentrification and/or urban regeneration to replace them. However, economic realities often dictate the social housing policy of the day. While in most Western European countries mass housing constructed from prefabricated building elements represent about 8-10% of the housing stock, in Central and Eastern European cities, this ratio varies between 15 and 80%. This is the consequence of a complex social, economic and environmental legacy of the previous political system

Future scenarios of “housing with care” for the aging population in China

This paper explores the role of “housing with care” in achieving aging in place and its potential contribution in supporting the aging population in China. The world population is aging, with the number of people over 65 years and over 80 years also rising rapidly, particularly in China. Therefore, there is an urgency to develop support systems that help older people to age well in place. The work presented in this article builds on the research conducted as part of the ODESSA project. The final output was the development of twelve scenarios of possible futures that consider older people’s physical and social health, existing support and care needs. The scenarios were then put through a public consultation (adults aged 45–85) in Beijing. This was used to increase awareness of possible futures and seek feedback from those concerned. The findings from this study provide an insight into the important considerations that will be required to provide effective support to design housing and care environments to enable aging in place for the older population in China

Architects’ tactics to embed as-designed performance in the design process of low energy nondomestic buildings

There is an urgent need to reduce the carbon emissions of the built environment and to foster practices that enable improved quality and efficiency in the building sector. However, research suggests that there are several barriers deterring the achievement of carbon reductions. Research shows that there are significant gaps between as-designed and in-use building performance. This work investigated the design process enacted to facilitate as-designed performance intentions. The study used ethnographic methods to explore the architect’s actions and tactics observed during the real design process in 4 architecture practices. The analysis resulted in an alternative description of the building development timeline that illustrates the activities that designers undertook to facilitate as-designed performance. This work contributes to the understanding of what architects do to incorporate low energy considerations and how architects deliver as-designed energy performance in the design process