Achieving social equity by addressing the needs of disabled people in heritage building conservation in Malaysia.

Social equity is one of the three main thrusts for a country’s sustainable development that is achieved only when a country fulfills the needs of everyone including those of disabled people. It is known that the design, implementation and management of heritage buildings, undertaken by both the public and private sectors, are influenced by conservation practices that may not consider the needs of disabled people. In Malaysia, with the passing of the National Heritage Act in 2005, it is important to ensure that conservation practices follow sustainable development principles, in particular, social equity. Our paper aims to show the extent to which services for disabled people are being provided in the Malaysian heritage tourism sector through four case studies of heritage buildings. The case studies were conducted to ascertain whether the concepts of Barrier-Free, which are 1. Accessibility, 2. Usability and 3. Safety, were adhered to in the design and management aspects of building conservation. Our survey method was using access audits based on the country’s standards and international guidelines. The results show that in all cases some attempts were made to create accessibility, but often conservation objectives tend to over-ride access. Clearly, a lot is still to be done to ensure that accessibility for disabled people is addressed in Malaysia

Accessibility to historic and listed public buildings : the development control process in England and Wales

In this policy-relevant thesis, the findings also revealed implications in conservation practice. Conservation importance takes precedence over the importance of Accessibility in the regulative framework of development control process, although Accessibility is placed with some importance. This is the main result of the findings from a triangulated study using a Single Case study to validate the findings obtained from the Survey Method using Interviews and Delphi Method conducted on the mechanisms of development processes on the Development Control Process in England and Wales. Accessibility to Historic and Listed Public Buildings involves the practice of conservation, which is accommodating the needs of disabled people to access and use of the facilities provided in historical premises. The implications also include aspects of design, management and operations of the historic building and its services. My study took into account the Accessibility and Inclusive Design development in the United Kingdom since the start of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 until 2005 when the data collection stage was completed. This was when governmental initiatives to include disabled people in mainstream public activities were implemented by the adoption of the Social Model of Disability in U.K. government policies, the establishment of the rights based legislation and the creation of influential financial support for the active reusing of historic buildings by including access plans in applications for the Heritage Lottery Fund. Concurrently, the efforts in adding the value of accessibility to existing historic buildings in many urban regenerated areas in England and Wales involved the stakeholders, local government, the client and their representatives to the development process including heritage service providers. The research aim of my thesis is to ascertain whether the mechanisms used in the development control process and the non development control process were able to contribute in achieving accessibility to historic public buildings in England and Wales.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

The notion of multivalence by Charles Jencks and Kisho Kurokawa – comparison through methods of ‘Abstract Representation’ and ‘Abstract Symbolism’

One of the solutions presented in response to the various limitations of the Modernist dogma was the notion of ‘Multivalence’. In the 1960’s various methods related to this were debated and suggested with the underlying motives for architecture to counter Modernist’s puritanism and express the plurality and diversity of society. This paper aims to compare different themes discussed on this topic by two of its representative protagonists, Charles Jencks in the West and Kisho Kurokawa in the Far-East. Through a review in particular of their respective methods of ‘Abstract Representation’ and ‘Abstract Symbolism’, it will be argued that despite sharing similar conclusions, both their approach simultaneously illustrate contrasting world views

Urban Landscape Changes in Kampung Baru, Kuala Lumpur, from 1969 to 2004 as Observed on Maps

Kuala Lumpur has undergone massive development since Malaysia gained its independence in 1957. Our map analysis describes how Kampung Baru, which is a little pocket of traditional Kuala Lumpur, has changed in two different post-Independence periods: 1. The mid-20th century (1969) and 2. The early 21st century (2004). The maps used are published by the Department of Survey and Mapping Malaysia at the scale of 1:50,000 for the 1969 map and at 1:10,000 for the 2004 map. Our observation shows that in both maps, Kampung Baru is having a historical-spatial relationship with Sungai Klang but the importance of the river to the people has changed over time as does the surrounding areas. The spatial patterns of Kampung Baru at the map scales appeared to be relatively regular, and the natural topography in and around Kampung Baru is clearly shown to be impacted by anthropogenic activities that have been driven by rapid population growth. This map-based analysis adds to our understanding about the on-going process of urban development in Kampung Baru

Role of architectural historical precedent in aesthetic design of contemporary architecture: Safavid architecture / Bahram Shahedi, Nila Keumala, Naziaty Mohd Yaacob

This study essentially examined the architecture of historical precedent of Iranian architecture, and focused on Safavid Architecture from experts' perspective. The study is mainly qualitative in nature, and explained, why historical precedent is important and how it could be applicable to the formation of aesthetic design in contemporary architecture. We collected the data through semi-structured interview with experts, which were guided by the literature and theoretical foundation. The account of the interviews was recorded, transcribed and the content analyzed, examined and evaluated for evidence. Three themes emerged, including aesthetic design attributes, aesthetic design values and application of architectural precedent in the aesthetic design of contemporary architecture. We discussed the themes in the light of the research questions; following drew a conclusion, which recognized the most perceivable concepts as to be applicable in the design aesthetic of contemporary architecture. In addition, it has theorized that the reality and essence of a social phenomenon in the contemporary architecture is in the character of architectural precedent

The capsule living unit reconsidered a Utopia transformed reality

The purpose of this paper is to seek a better understanding of why solely in Japan the concept of capsule living units has been perceived more than a mere utopia and seems to have “made sense” to a wide cultural audience as a possible housing alternative. For that purpose, a thorough literature review was conducted to bring about comprehensive understandings of this phenomenon through a historical review and a definition of the capsule as presented by the Metabolists in the 1960s, and through a comparison between its fundamentals and the one of its hypothetical ancestral precedent; the Japanese tea-hut

Constructing a Mixed Methods Research Design: Exploration of an Architectural Intervention

The aim of this methodological description is to illustrate the application of mixed methods research in architectural design using a hybrid model consisting of a taxonomy development model and an embedded quasi-experimental model. The research employed qualitative and quantitative methods to explore the design of an architectural intervention and determine its effectiveness in improving environmental knowledge, attitudes, and behavior among primary school students. It also outlined strategies adopted to overcome the challenges related to the use of a hybrid design. Combining sequential and embedded mixed methods designs is a relatively new approach in architectural research, providing new insights that contribute to future mixed methods exploration in the field of design and planning

The environmental study on ageing in place: the design practice compliance to accessibility legislation and standards in Malaysia for elderly home environment

Malaysia has been actively providing accessibility in the environmental built since the country signed the ‘Proclamation on the Full Participation and Equality of People with Disabilities in the Asia-Pacific Region’ in 1994. The aim of this research is to evaluate design practice compliances to accessibility legislation and design requirements in Malaysia. With regards of the increasing disability rates with age, ageing population have a significant impact on the needs of housing to be designed for future. The government regulation concerning housing design for ageing and disabled set to ensure a degree of access to their home. The role and relevance of the legislation and design requirements addressing the issue is to be practiced in the housing projects in Malaysia. On the strength of the legislations and design requirements, the analysis examines how Malaysia are practicing design solutions for housing accessibility, which encourages ageing in place. The results further reveal that such requirements was not used in the design practice and construction of housing projects in Malaysia. The outcomes are discussed considering the design requirements and concepts which can partly clarify competent design for the ageing population