Humans have been thinking of making a comfort zone for their living environment since the beginning, to do so they have no ways except using their surrounding environment. This is known as one the first human actions for sustainable...
moreHumans have been thinking of making a comfort zone for their living environment since the beginning, to do so they have no ways except using their surrounding environment. This is known as one the first human actions for sustainable development. The ways that natives of each region have used to create an environment for developed life over the years. These methods have also become the culture of the region besides improving the lives of native people and have created a sense of belonging for them. Hence, green roofs are considered as one of the first and oldest of these methods. The green roofs can be built in different ways according to the place being used. These methods were specific to places that could be created based on native plants, materials available, and the culture of the region. The green roof technology can be considered as a solution for today’s poor environmental conditions of cities through reducing greenhouse gas, improving human health, and ecosystem. This book investigated the traditional green roofs in different regions of the world and also different impacts that these kinds of roof can have on the surrounding environment. This book aims to create a scientific background for the use of local pattern of each region as a potential solution for the problems of the region and the similar regions through introducing modern and traditional green roofs. Results and investigations can prepare grounds for researchers to express their ideas to build new green roofs.
1. Introduction
Usually everything around human is called environment [1]. The environment is consisted of a set of data that create reality. Set of perceptions that human acquires from the fact, forms objectivity. Objectivity varies in different humans. Different people can have different perceptions from environment.
Mental constant is a factor that contributes objectivity to be unit in a group of people. Having understood the environment and created objectivity humans will adapt it with their mental constant. In addition, whenever this adaptation happens, identity and sense of belonging will take place in the person. Unlike its name, mental constant can be composed of all the human senses. Perhaps a certain type of sound, smell, contexture, or view would remind a common message for a set of human beings that would not mean the same for others. Nevertheless, it can be said that we create a series of schemas or key words in mind when we are dealing with the environment, and we remember the event with reference to these key words. There are factors that bind us with the environment and culture. These factors are called environmental mechanisms which is consisted of a set of specific culture environmental factors (manufactured and non-manufactured), or taken from a culture, which human recognizes it as a symbol or sign. Each area has specific and clarified elements of culture and identity that have been developed throughout the history. A history that continually expresses these symbols as its particular identity, like the fingerprint of a person.
To create a new construction, considering spirit of the place was of high importance in traditional context of each region. Each place, as a living organism, has its own unique spirit that manufactured building, as new data, should be able to exchange information with the old data. New manufactured buildings’ non-compliance with the spirit of the place can make the place a sick existence that its organs are incompatible with each other and with its nature.
Different construction cultures through many years according to different reactions of people to their climate, regularly will become a symbol for that region.
As a result, the geographical location of that place will be recognized with these symbols. In addition to the physiological comfort which these symbols cause in the climate, it also creates a sense of belonging to the inhabitants of this region. It prepares the inhabitants for displaying consistent behaviors with the norms of the region as well. Due to the reason that people observe the same codes and sings in their private homes (with all those memories and backgrounds), they can also observe them in a larger scale of neighbor, neighborhood, and city.
As a result, in a larger scale, they do not consider themselves outside of their own home. Therefore, the same sense of belonging, which is the cause of peace, providing service, and controlling their own home affairs, will make sense in a scale larger than home.
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