Introduction to Young Cities research
Image of Tehran (© UdK Berlin)As the challenge of climate change looms over the 21st century, urban growth continues unchecked and often unplanned in many countries of the Global South. The sprawl of urban agglomerations across ever vaster territories of the Earth and the steady increase of energy consumption and green house gas emissions that go with it are the entry points for research in the Young Cities project. Though cities are currently the greatest drivers of climate change, we believe that they are also the sources for the most sustainable and creative solutions.
As worldwide urbanization rates steadily increase and green house gas emissions continue to thrive, the call for climatically sustainable urban development is as urgent as never before. Since approximately 80% of world wide green house gas emissions are currently produced in cities, the race against climate change can only be won by significantly and sustainably changing the way we build, the way we move and the way we live in our cities.
Like many other countries in the Middle East North Africa region (MENA), Iran has reacted to the enormous urbanization pressure it faces by constructing numerous New Towns in the vicinity of its major urban centers. Hashtgerd New Town, which lies in the Western growth corridor of the emerging mega city of Tehran, is the largest of these new urban settlements.
Research in the Young Cities project focuses on the energy efficient development of New Towns for the semi-arid climatical conditions of Hashtgerd and is carried out with the ultimate goal of giving an impulse for replication throughout the entire MENA region.
