Initiatives on Urban Transformation in South-East Europe: case Prishtina

Countries forming the South East Europe (SEE) face common post-socialist and/or pos-war challenges since 1990s. Among issues identified in SEE is the rapid transformation of physical environment between early 1990s and today. More specifically, unchecked urban development has been identified as a common challenge in the region, and as such, it has drawn the attention of a wider Europe. Being committed to upgrade urban situations, a number of initiatives, both governmental and nongovernmental, have been created and jointly initiated regional projects for devising solutions in local level that may apply in a wider regional context. The criticism about urban occurrences in SEE, developed by such initiatives has played and important role in raising the awareness about the complexity and the need to address the SEE context within the context of Europe as a whole. This paper documents initiatives for urban interventions in SEE by focusing in projects’ developed in Prishtina, through cooperation with regional and international experts. In the light of this engagement, adequate steps need to be taken in order to foster respective legal frameworks devised through initiatives for urban interventions, along with implementation mechanisms, given that the physical and cultural environment is ranked high in Europe. Although studies on Prishtina became part of the official municipal program, there remains the need to harmonize the city vision with the development capacity and to adjust its deve lopment policies to suite the aspired sustainable development goals and global trends

Modernization tendencies in architecture and street infrastructure in Kosovo during the Tanzimat reforms

Abstract Modernization tendencies in architecture and street infrastructure were introduced in Kosovo during the Tanzimat Reforms, enforced by the Ottoman Empire in the late 19th century. Lack of original archive documentation until now has impeded scientific approach to urban and architectural analysis, for which reason, Kosovo cities often face difficulties in documenting their historical and cultural continuity. In order to fill the gap of knowledge about urban built heritage of 19th century in Kosovo, this paper uses and analyzes original visual archival documents, retrieved by author from the Premiership Ottoman Archives Analyses show that construction of street network and public buildings was realized in line with the needs arising from new administrative division imposed by the Tanzimat Reforms. While street network intended to connect Kosovo settlements, public buildings and especially the government buildings built in Prizren and Prishtina, former centers of Vilayets, intended to introduce new building standards and a new language of architecture. Interrogation of modernization tendencies in architecture and street network in Kosovo during this period is important for establishing a continuity of future planning development, as well as in narrating modernization tendencies that occurred in Kosovo in line with other parts of the Late Ottoman Empire territories in the Balkan

Pristina Socialista. La storia dell’urbanizzazione incompiuta

La formazione della Pristina socialista in Jugoslava è stata influenzata da vari fattori politici, culturali e ideologici. Con il pretesto della modernizzazione, lo stato ha avviato massicce demolizioni, prendendo di mira i siti simbolicamente significativi dell'identità urbana della città durante l'epoca premoderna. L'urbanizzazione e la nuova architettura nella città sono state sviluppate attraverso frammenti che hanno visivamente inciso sul tessuto storico. Questo contributo esamina l'interazione tra le strategie di pianificazione e gli interventi urbani che hanno portato a tale frammentazione. Documenti e dichiarazioni ufficiali vengono esaminati, per esemplificare l'ethos generale del periodo e per contribuire così a una comprensione della urbanizzazione nella Pristina socialista

Achieving Energy Efficiency in Accordance with Bioclimatic Architecture Principles

By using our natural resources, and through inefficient use of energy, we produce much waste that can be recycled as a useful resource, which further contributes to climate change. This study aims to address energy effective bioclimatic architecture principles, by which we can achieve a potential energy savings, estimated at thirty-three per cent, mainly through environmentally affordable reconstruction, resulting in low negative impact on the environment. The study presented in this paper investigated the Ulpiana neighbourhood of Prishtina City, focusing on urban design challenges, energy efficiency and air pollution issues. The research methods consist of empirical observations through the urban spatial area using a comparative method, in order to receive clearer data and information research is conducted within Ulpiana’s urban blocks, shapes of architectural structures, with the objective focusing on bioclimatic features in terms of the morphology and microclimate of Ulpiana. Energy supply plays a key role in the economic development of any country, hence, bioclimatic design principles for sustainable architecture and energy efficiency, present an evolutive integrated strategy for achieving efficiency and healthier conditions for Kosovar communities. Conceptual findings indicate that with the integrated design strategy: energy efficiency, and passive bioclimatic principles will result in a bond of complex interrelation between nature, architecture, and community. The aim of this study is to promote structured organized actions to be taken in Prishtina, and Kosovo, which will result in improved energy efficiency in all sectors, and particularly in the residential housing sector

2. The Concept of “Modelarium” and its Impact on Creativity And Artistic Education

Students and Teachers are an epic symbiosis in process of direct learning and academic advancement. Nowadays, this interaction is more bonded and interdependent with technology and equipment‟s, which in a whole system expands learning horizons. The digital era has introduced in the education system new modes of learning, a new way of life and style in schooling. This phenomenon changed the methods of teaching in universities, where lectures were accompanied with concrete explanations of works in modeling, in structural and conceptual sense. The relationship between a student of architecture and teachers broadened with introduction of computer aided modeling and simulation tools to construct those ideas into the reality. The study presented in this paper investigates conceptual methods in art, architecture, creativity and innovation in academic education, focusing on interactive teaching issues, and methods. The research methods consist of empirical observation carried out during 25 years of experience in academia, and direct observation of teaching methods. The purpose of this paper is to examine the evolutive process in teaching relations between architectural students and teachers, with the focus in educational competencies and communication skills. Findings indicate that through artistic concepts of “Modelarium” as an unconventional learning space, a tool and space that enables the partnership. An informal meeting place for artistic interaction, but, concurrently it is a formal part of the educational system in architectural studies, a strategy by which we can bring more: time, conceptual awareness of space and interactive teaching in architecture, which bonds multidimensional threads between students and teachers; thus, fostering a powerful sense of partnership, avoiding boredom and passive learning, while facing the challenges, associated with the development of technology, life style, real issues and global world trends. Research suggests that uniform and/or partially new strategy, cannot respond to all specific issues faced by students in day to day basis. Therefore, new teaching strategies must involve new partnerships, a brand new and a redefined role as a holistic symbiosis, as an response to a less functional and/or conventional academic system. Partnership, a new working symbiosis between students and teachers is an answer to the needs of working together simultaneously towards continuous improvement of academia processes