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Landscape and territory are concepts that refer to the relationship between human societies and their environment. Despite their widespread use in various studies, these concepts have sometimes been used interchangeably in an unclear manner, leading to ambiguity in their conceptual relationship and proper application in scientific research. Considering this issue, this study aims to clarify the relationship between the two concepts by examining landscape and territory, to ensure their correct usage in future research. Accordingly, this study addresses the following questions: What interpretations of the concepts of landscape and territory exist among different studies? And based on these interpretations, what conceptual relationship can be envisioned between the concepts of landscape and territory? This study is qualitative, and the data collection included a thorough search in both domestic and international databases. The data was analyzed using content analysis methods. The findings of this study indicate that territory is inherently a landscape and can be considered a type of landscape, conceptualized under the term “territorial landscape.” However, this large-scale landscape is itself composed of a collection of smaller landscape units, whose collective perception gives the territory and its identity distinctiveness. Additionally, the “Territorial landscape” refers to a concept different from “Landscape ecology” or “Territorial planning,” and unlike them, it adopts a holistic approach, considering both the objective and subjective dimensions of the territory. It emphasizes that territory is a historical, social, economic, ethnic, cultural, and ecological, unit that gives rise to a set of essential, unifying identity-giving characteristics within a geographical area.

Mehr Housing now deals with a serious quality of residence, which is rooted in its planning system. The housing planning approach in Iran- the custodial approach- that emerged in the frame of a comprehensive plan influenced by the modernism movement in Europe is the reason for this crisis due to its specific attitude towards the space and atomist worldview. On the contrary, the landscape approach with its “holistic” attitude considers the improvement of residence quality depending on a system of space that guarantees the quality improvement in the frame of dual perceptual-physical criteria. This study aims to compare those components that affect the quality of residence within two “planning” and “landscape” approaches and asks what kind of relationship exists between components affecting the quality of residence within two landscape and planning approaches at different levels in Iran. The purpose of this study is to achieve a strategy to improve the quality of residence in Mehr Housing through a comparative analysis of the theoretical foundations of “planning approach” as the custodial approach of Mehr Housing and the landscape approach. The research method of this study is qualitative based on the theoretical analysis of two landscape and planning approaches. The comparison between components affecting the quality of residence in these two approaches was made through logical reasoning. The assessment of data obtained from other studies was done by comparing them with previous components and comparison between them. Due to its sectoral and partial view on some components of quality in the residence environment, the “planning approach” could not guarantee the quality of the environment despite the importance of these components. This is the incident that has responded to the different needs of occupants by improving the quality of residence within the landscape approach in the frame of “spatial arrangement” and creating a “whole” that is simultaneously perceptual and functional. Hence, it is possible to revive the potential social capital in the Mehr Housing Project by “modifying” the conditions of the environment with an idealistic attitude- adopting a landscape approach.

The growing uncertainties in power operations due to the integration of renewable generations (RGs) and electric vehicles (EVs) into electricity grids have amplified the significance of ancillary services (AS). These services have become essential to ensure the sustainable functioning of the grid. In light of this, we introduce a two-stage optimization framework to manage competitive energy and AS markets at the interface of the transmission system (TS) and distribution system (DS). Our approach takes into account a comprehensive set of economic, technical, and security factors. This mechanism is structured in two stages: the first stage encompasses the energy market, while the second stage encompasses AS markets. Spinning reserve (SR) is supplied by conventional thermal units (TUs), whereas regulation capacity is provided by energy storage systems (ESSs), fast-response generators, electric vehicles (EVs), and demand response (DR) aggregators. We applied this mechanism to a 30-bus transmission network connected to four 10-node DSs and utilized the GUROBI solver in GAMS for solving. The simulation results demonstrate that the engagement of DSs in the SR market reduces the reliance on costly TUs, thereby decreasing system costs by approximately 10%. Furthermore, involving ESSs, EVs, and DR aggregators in the regulation market enhances technical performance and results in a 6.91% reduction in total system costs. This approach provides a robust solution to the evolving challenges posed by RGs and EVs in modern electricity grids.

In the Persian language, "Sar Panah" (in English, shelter) is a common word used for house. The purpose of a shelter is to protect humans. This compound word consists of two words: Sar means authentic and up, and Panah means a protector. This means the house mainly protects a person and guards his head and value from the outside, including atmospheric factors such as wind and rain as well as the dangers of the earth and its creatures. The common ground of the two hidden meanings in the word "head" signifies the high spiritual rank, geographical location, and a place of refuge. The concept of "Panah" is also associated with protection and enclosure. Therefore, shelter is expected to be the name of a structure characterized by introversion and isolation to protect others, highlighting perfectionism and meaning-seeking. This output is the structure that derives from the term shelter. This process ends in a dense, closed, and introverted structure that is completely shut off from the outside, whether the neighborhood or the environment. However, the analysis of the evolution of the house in Iran is different from this process. Not much exists on the early samples of Iranian houses and shelters. Scrutinizing early samples of settlement in Iranian caves such as Krafto in Kurdestan shows that the concept of "Sar Panah" has been equated to enclosed space, interconnected, narrow, and separated from the surroundings.Investigation into the oldest archeological site in the prehistoric period, including Shahr-e-Sokhte-y-Zabol (in English, the burnt city of Zabol), with a history of 5000 years confirms that the house and shelter have been conceptualized as before. The houses include narrow and dark spaces attached (for protection purposes), covered, dim, and void of any big opening outwards. The protective role of the house and its enclosure equates to isolation from the outside, which could be apart from the neighborhood or the environment. Examining the houses over a thousand years in different historical periods, including Median, Achaemenid, Parthian, and Sassanid, based on the documented physical and spatial changes, shows the first philosophical leaps in the definition of home and shelter compared to the previous era. Despite the technical changes in the construction and size of the house, which mirror a perfected achievement over time, the emergence of new organs in the architecture of the house presents a new conceptualization of shelter in this era, among which there is a central courtyard along with iwans. Opening the heart of the house towards the sky, closing it from four sides, and forming its spaces is the most heartwarming reading of the new concept of shelter. In this interpretation, isolation from nature and the sky is not an example of being sheltered any longer. Rather, it represents a special connection with the upper world or heaven, which not only is not misaligned with the concept of protection but also reflects an evolutionary relationship with the sky, which describes the house under its protection. This approach, which has gradually shaped the original pattern of Iranian architecture, has continued until the contemporary period. The initial samples can be seen in the Zoroastrian house in Jandaq and Mazra eh Kalantar in Yazd.The pattern of the central courtyard was improved, and different patterns emerged across Iran. Early samples in hot and arid areas included changes in some parts of Chahar-Soffeh houses, whose central opening, which sometimes includes the stem of an open dome, is a small courtyard that frames the sky.The residents of this house cohabit with the sky in an enclosed space compared to the surroundings. The selection of blue color for the domes in the main space of Iranian architecture seems to be associated with such a landscape. The popularity of the aesthetic combination of khaki and blue colors in Iranian art can also be associated with such space creation.The Iranian aesthetic system hinges on the pattern of the central courtyard, whose idea was linked with living space and home and then was extensively used as an essential and inseparable part of architecture. Shortly, this pattern was adopted in the spatial system of schools and caravanserai, mausoleums and mosques, gardens, and prisons. Iranian architecture is shut off from the neighborhood and open to the sky.Outside the village named Cham near Yazd, at the foot of the hill on which the Zoroastrian Dakhma (tower of silence) is located, a complex has been built to bolster the ceremonies and rites of commemoration of the dead. In a part of this pristine complex, there is a Chahar-Soffeh house, in the middle of which an open dome base connects the four iwans of the courtyard where nothing but the sky alongside the residents can be found. Repetition of such a landscape, while the purpose of a house is to create a shelter with all its complex and perfectionist concepts, has contributed to specific Iranian aesthetics in house architecture, which equates beauty to the presence of the sky in an enclosed space. The contrast created by coexisting openings and enclosures has contributed to the attractions of the Iranian house.

Abstract Qanats, as traditional and intelligent water infrastructures, have garnered attention across various scientific disciplines. However, a comprehensive, holistic view of Qanats remains elusive. This study aims to identify and present a thorough perspective on Qanat features. To achieve this objective, a semi-systematic review methodology was employed. The semi-systematic or narrative review approach is well-suited for subjects that span multiple disciplines and different periods. The research process commenced with an extensive search for the keyword “Qanat” within the titles and abstracts of articles across the MagIran, ScienceDirect, Taylor and Francis, and Springer databases. Subsequently, a thematic content analysis method was applied to analyze the content of these articles. Thematic content analysis involves the identification and presentation of recurring patterns in the form of distinct themes within the textual data. At this stage, Qanat features were extracted from the articles and categorized thematically. The research findings underscore the functional significance of Qanats as vital water supply systems. Furthermore, within the realm of management, Qanats are recognized as essential water infrastructures. In light of these findings, this study incorporates relevant literature from the infrastructure domain to systematically categorize Qanat features. In the research, the Landscape approach, characterized by its objective-subjective perspective, will serve as an overarching narrative framework to comprehensively classify all Qanat features. The resulting model portrays Qanats as possessing a diverse spectrum of tangible and intangible attributes, spanning environmental, cultural, social, and economic domains. This comprehensive analysis enhances our understanding of the multifaceted nature of Qanats, facilitating their preservation and sustainable management.

Yazd emerged at a central point in Iran at the intersection of two main roads, Kerman-Ray and Fars-Khorasan, at least in the Sassanid era. Due to the presence of the Iranian plateau at this point, Yazd turned into one of the cities with low water. However, with the growth in population and consumption, the water shortage in Yazd turned into a crisis. Yazd›s water supply was in Shirkuh, a city 45 kilometers away from Yazd. The cities of Taft and Mehriz were constructed several centuries after Yazd, in the vicinity of Shirkuh. Yazd was initially a fortress serving as a guard and providing road services but gradually expanded. Since huge economic and military activities have long been dependent on the two old roads, Yazd is still a larger city than Taft and Mehriz. It has stronger civilizational and cultural indices compared to the national average, even though it has been farther from the water source.Water, a manifestation of ancient Iranian civilization, received much attention in Yazd and outstandingly excelled. Water in Yazd, this prosperous but waterless city, was conceptualized in two ways: as a verse of existence and a symbol of goodness. It was a manifestation of existence and perfection (the legend of Anahita) and served as a symbol of perfect existence manifesting itself on Earth.The lower and more sensible aspects of water in various shows were an attempt to grab the attention of users using different forms of water. The man-made symbols in natural elements, patterns, characters of nature, language, manners, and the like were the narrators of the beneficial qualities of water in the lives of the people of Yazd. This approach is a necessity for the continuation of life in the water-scarce area and serves as a means of water conservation.The higher and emotional aspect of water›s role in Yazd was creating situations in contact with water and water itself so that users could experience different effects of water. The maximum exposure to the existence of water in various forms was the agenda of expanding the ontological relationship between man and water. The capabilities of water and its various aspects were tangible in spaces and situations where the observer could look at the water from their perspective.The architecture of Yazd is a well-known embodiment of the cultural-civilizational capacity of Yazd. Despite being a waterless city in an arid and barren area (desert), Yazd has been able to achieve superior development indicators. The growth of houses with courtyards centered on the water feature, which is the essence of the architecture of the house, is an example of this embodiment. In the path of the aqueducts passing underground, a connection with water was established wherever possible, so that people could gather around the water’s edge. The garden ditch splitting the ground of the courtyard to flow the water as an exemplary element in front of the residents is another example. The huge fountain in Daulatabad Garden has no justification in a water-scarce environment other than accentuating the glory of water. After carefully researching the formation of architecture in Yazd, it can be said that architecture in this city is based on water landscaping and human contact with water.The cover photo of the author related to the Pahlavanpur Garden Pavilion in Mehriz is an example of landscaping with the approach of maximizing exposure to water and nature. The good feeling that the observer experiences in this space is created by immersion in the landscape through encountering and touching nature.

Space syntax theory proposes a quantitative and tangible method to recognize and analyze the space configuration and structure. Although it is not a new technique, it is still applied and evolved. In this regard, the current study sought to solve some of the structural and conceptual limitations and deficiencies of the space syntax by providing a novel method through recognizing the landscape aspects. Then, the novel term definition, “Landscape Syntax”, can be obtained using the achievements of this method. This research seeks to answer the question that How different will the indicators and assessment method be if we use landscape syntax instead of space syntax? This study aims to reconcile the definition of landscape with space and syntactic patterns of space, seeks to enable a specific syntactic pattern of landscape to understand the syntax of the landscape. The current basic research is qualitative in nature and applied in terms of purpose. The research process is a mixture of content analysis (descriptive, analytical, and deductive explanation). The space syntax concepts are classified using the content analysis method and are corresponded to the landscape concepts. According to the results of this study, the landscape has neglected aspects in space syntax concepts. (Some of the landscape aspects has been neglected in space syntax.)The main part of the new concepts of the landscape approach that are not in the syntactic system is the semantic factors, especially interpretive-subjective factors. These factors have value indices that must be inserted into the syntactic simple graph calculations. To this end, a network of the new landscape approach indices is put on the syntactic network to determine the valuable points. The newly developed method is the landscape syntax network. The graph obtained from the landscape syntax is a weighted graph, which is weighted through the value of the landscape approach indices. Landscape syntax is developed by adding the new aspects of the landscape approach, which is an upgraded and developed version of the previous versions.

Urban landscape, as the consequence of the human perception of diverse dimensions of the city, the physical form, action, and meaning, is an objective-subjective phenomenon. Different human senses, including sight, get information about the urban scene as a perceived reality. “Seeing” is a large aspect of how humans get environmental information as part of their perceptual process. Everything seen in space forms the visual system of the urban landscape which makes sense when it is combined with information received through other senses and interplay with the subjective aspect (one’s understanding based on experiences, memories, conditions, and personal-social characteristics), and the urban landscape. Many studies on the visual system of the urban landscape have focused on the “physical form,” its characteristics, and the way its components are organized, rather than the “activity”, which is part of the urban environment as experienced by humans. As a result, the function of activity in forming the visual system of the urban landscape should be addressed. The present study aims to understand the notion of a visual system in the urban landscape by describing its parts and the types of their correlations, which is accomplished through studying the theoretical relationship between the idea of the urban landscape and its components, as well as explaining perception by highlighting the information obtained through the sense of sight. The data of this descriptive and interpretive study were analyzed using documentary and bibliographic analysis and then were categorized and interpreted using logical reasoning. Findings demonstrate that the components of the urban landscape visual system can be explained in terms of visual elements (such as physical form and activity) and visual values (elements and their correlations quality, including the nine qualities of naturalness, sociability, readability, vitality, and dynamism, beauty, coherence and continuity, sense of identity, complexity, diversity, and contextualism) which are conducted through the research.

Relocating industries from the urban fabric of the cities emerging from globalization to their outskirts, like what happened in the 19th district of Tehran, has resulted in post-industrial landscapes and various and numerous social problems for these landscapes’ surrounding areas. Despite this issue, post-industrial landscapes are an opportunity to revive the dimensions of urban life; however, urban approaches on which actions have been taken in the 19th district, including the 2007 Master Plan of Tehran and the 2005 Detailed Plan of the 19th district, have not been successful in solving problems and increasing social sustainability. This article examines the reasons associated with the failure of the applied approaches in increasing social sustainability and attempts to understand how to revitalize post-industrial landscapes to increase social sustainability. For this reason, after studying the concept of landscape and post-industrial landscape, the standard views towards them, and social sustainability, different layers of the landscape of the case study were analyzed and integrated. Finally, the reasons for the failure of the currently used approaches were outlined, and general suggestions for solving social problems were provided. The result of the research is that the use of non-inclusive definitions of these landscapes has resulted in physical actions, ignoring the identity of these post-industrial landscapes, the main audiences, and their needs. However, the social problems in this area are not only related to physical issues but are also influenced by a set of characteristics. An accurate definition of the landscape by emphasizing the objective-subjective and holistic nature of the landscape by examining the different dimensions of post-industrial landscapes can lead to the origin of existing problems in the area. The problems of the residents around the kilns, who are their main audience in these landscapes, require comprehensive solutions according to the origin of the problems.

Village and city are the only official categories in the classification of human social life. This division includes the period when early humans stopped wandering and living in caves and settled down. The name of this period has been given as the agricultural revolution, which is based on settling and living in a fixed place. Since then, the stability of the place of residence has been recognized as the essence of human and societal growth, and its product has been named civilization. Civilization means the achievements of the Madinah, referring to the array of manners that the urban man adopted by dividing work and having more spare time to foster his culture and relationships. Given that compared to villages, customs were higher in the cities, the term civilization was selected to reflect supposedly the product of his urbanization. Comparatively, the village connoted a kind of backwardness and lack of development, which was documented by his place of residence. In naming, any manners originating from the city are superior to rural manners and customs because they reflect a higher level of knowledge and mastery over nature. Neither the divider nor the essence of division in this naming can be said to echo integrity but is the locus of occurrence. As the application of civilization to every movement of urban dwellers is against common sense and general human understanding, its accuracy makes it clear how important "place" is in the classification of human understanding of perfection and transcendence. So instead of providing a single spiritual criterion to explain perfection, he used an index that leads to a material criterion (city or village). In this approach, every act arising from urban life is a sign of superiority and a manifestation of civilization, even if it is not in line with rational and moral standards. In contrast to this naming, the Qur'an's approach is to separate the village and the Medina, which, instead of depending on the population or the type of production, has defined the characteristics of integrity as a criterion for the separation. "In the Qur'an, the word Medina has been used 14 times and village 60 times... In the Qur'anic terminology, all settlements on earth have been identified with the sign of a village, unless they are compatible with special criteria... The criteria of the Qur'an in identifying a city include the cultural competence of individuals and the presence and residence of a prophet from God's prophets" (Rehbari, 2008).In the logic of the Qur'an, a place is addressed with the two titles of village and Medina at two different times. When the event violates human development and integrity standards, the name of the village is used, and when there is a perfect event in that mentioned place, the name of Medina is used. Therefore, the Qur'anic division in the classification of the place of human life is not based on the location or the size of the place, which is based on its moral status. This implicit conclusion can be arrived that two different addresses to the same place for two different actions prove that the "place" is spiritual and, in today's interpretation, is a "place." The way today's knowledge recognizes the place and landscape as a living, soulful phenomenon that carries the meaning that the observer gains from the simultaneous interpretation and perception of "outside". So far, two opposing logics have been proposed to describe the terms city and village: first, the size and type of economy, and second, the action of the community living in. Although this discussion is per se attractive and important, limiting the place of human social life to the village and the city means neglecting an important and common group in Iran and many other lands. The result of this mistake is adopting plans and taking actions that are against the natural, human, and national rights of its inhabitants. Moreover, in the contemporary period of Iran and from the time of Reza Khan onwards, such a mistake has been repeated under the name Takht Qapu, or nomad settlement.Nomadic life is the third type of human social life, which, unlike the city and the village, is not only dependent on living together, but the condition for its realization is the fluidity of the "place" of the life of this society. Nomads have based their way of living and production on the dairy production economy rather than agriculture, which is dependent on land and its forced results requiring settlement and production dependent on a fixed place. They have set up their social system based on migration, benefitted from wide and dynamic pastures in the territory, and made a living by producing dairy, meat, textiles, and handicrafts. They have organized their social relations by defining the tribal and clan systems as described in various studies, and they have built a great civilization based on two specific social and livelihood systems, whose immaterial manifestations outweigh their material aspects. The traits of chivalry, freedom, chivalry, naturalism, patriotism, and many other social and moral traits are present in nomadic society. With this description, due to the occurrence of such mistakes in the classification of human habitations into cities and villages and the neglect of nomadic places, a large group of Iranian society has been eliminated. The calamities that have been imposed on this society under the title of development but caused by power-oriented motives or ignorance have caused great human and natural losses. The increasing unemployment and poverty in the nomadic areas of the country, which has led to the appearance of a strange figure of 20 thousand people awaiting death sentences for drug trafficking in Delfan city (Ebrahimi, 2023), is the result of these policies. For a nation that has established a nomadic civilization for thousands of years and lives in a positive interaction with its natural and human environment, the burden of monotony and customs that it does not know has no meaning other than the destruction of its existence and civilization. The way to improve the lives of nomads is to recognize their civilization and address their needs with regard to their living conditions. The nomads are the people of the place who have experienced and know the place to its vast extent, and unlike the nomads, they have a deeper understanding of the land and the place. What is the desire of man today?

--The land stands for a geographical territory of a nation with a historical background. It is a material-spiritual whole and a unit. It has by nature a boundary, and beyond that boundary, the term ‘residents’ does not make sense if dwellers are out of that boundary and not settling there. Contrary to that, the concept of land refers to the unlimited substance of the earth. Everywhere, there is land while the land absolutely requires inhabitants and history to emerge. The territorial boundary is the territory of its inhabitants, and it is the residents› perception of the territory that creates the concept of the territory through their memories and lived experiences. This menas that land is a simultaneous material-immaterial phenomenon. It is one of those creatures that emerges in the space between the world of matter and meaning and plays a more key role in the lives of man and society in proportion to the hierarchy of existence that it obtains in this respect. Due to the duality of its nature, which is objective-subjective, the land becomes more capable of interacting with humans in their growth process. While it is objective and material, the human body responds to the needs of its material life, and at the same time, due to its immaterial and abstract, it can establish a direct connection with the human soul. This is why the place is considered not only the container for the emergence of meaning but also the meaning itself. The difference and duality between content and container cannot be recognized in the category of place. Therefore, among human needs, space is very important and equal to basic needs. At the same time, due to its semantic aspect, it also goes along with higher human needs, which are cultural. In practice, contrary to the majority of known human needs, which fall into either of the two classes of physical (objective) and spiritual (mental) needs, the place falls into different classes of human needs due to its dual nature in items such as land. Therefore, the planning phase starts with the first necessity, which is safety, and continues until the last human demand, which is the sense of beauty and being understood. Development literature, as it is expected, was formed based on economic indicators. The authors of the idea of development first place it in economic prosperity and providing the chain of human physical needs. Provision of food and other human welfare needs were ordered. In the next phase, human social needs also became the criterion of development. Equal opportunities, social justice, and their positive indicators entered the development literature. At a more advanced stage, the protection of nature and land was exposed to the attention of development. At this stage, sustainability was called the most important characteristic of development to preserve and transfer nature›s heritage to the next generation. Complementary approaches to this path, including resilience, were newer interpretations that made the concept of development more complete. Scrutinizing the evolution process of the concept of development from the beginning to today shows that although the definitions and meaning of development have gained more depth at each stage than before, the curve of continuous evolution has been in the direction of the objective world. The common denominator of physical, social, environmental protection, and resilience needs is their objectivity. So far, sustainable development has been an objective element, such as economic justice, social equality, ecosystems, and planning. Naturally, due to the nature of science that intervenes in explaining the concept of development, which is experimental and objective science, the criteria, indicators, and methods used also remain objective.The evaluation of the experience of a purely objective approach to development indicates its failure in satisfying humans and society. The most obvious example is the urban and rural development programs, which, although they have been successful in improving some objective indicators, have failed to ensure the satisfaction of the residents. A lot of research emphasizes the importance of the mental aspect in terms of desirability and human satisfaction. Parallel to this need, the growth of knowledge that deals with objective-mental bipolar phenomena is also influential in development literature. The change in the understanding of the important categories of human life cannot ignore the transformation of the concepts of development. Place and landscape are among the most important achievements of the new understanding of man in creating a fundamental change in the objective and subjective duality of Descartes and the modern world. Humans have now understood that there are intermediate and common concepts between the objective and subjective poles, which are one of the most important and influential factors in defining human life and satisfaction. Therefore, in new approaches to development, it is necessary to bring about fundamental transformations in words, concepts, and examples of planning according to new definitions of development issues, including land. Using key words such as region in regional planning should give way to real concepts such as land, city, and neighborhood. In this reading of development, when the real concept of the land is known and its values are appreciated, dear Khuzestan will no longer witness the loss of its historical-geographical advantages against the invasion of British developers and Iranian oil technocrats. Today, rich Khuzestan has become one of the lowest regions of Iran in terms of development. As a result of wrong oil-based development plans, it has lost many of its landscapes, and we are witnessing the largest migrations from this fertile region. Undoubtedly, ignorance of the local values and landscape of Khuzestan in the process of oil-based development in the past century has played the most important role in the decline of the satisfaction of the new generation of that land.

“We have sent down the wind” [i] … To remove the hat from their heads (Sohrab Sepehari, Surah Tamasha)[ii]In the harbor city of ‘Bandar-e Lengeh’ there is a house that is known as one of the Iranian architectural masterworks. The ‘House of Fekri’, a less-known work, looks like a classic house according to the Iranian profound house-building culture. Since it does not represent huge spectacular architectural characteristics such as a tall portal, luxurious decorations, and expanded water features (Aab-Nama), it is a less-seen work and an unknown building. However, in the conceptual realm of "Architecture as an observation platform of Nature"[iii], it is an exceptional work.‘Bandar-e Lenge’ has a hot-humid climate, with a long and harsh season. The architecture of ‘House of Fekri’ has two necessary conditions[iv] for living in this environment: The landscape of sea and the blowing wind, and some additional characteristics (sufficient conditions)[v], introversion, and responding to the diverse required functions of the residents. Forming the house is the outcome of the interaction between these two conditions. To observe the sea, a raised platform (Soffeh) has been built on a flat ground far from the sea, to let the house residents have a broad view of the sea landscape. So, the house has turned into an observation platform for the house residents to let them perceive the sea as a sign of celestial verse, and an adopted element of Nature on a tangible scale to fulfill the mission of making them feel[vi] and perceive[vii] the wholeness of existence. This is the first condition for becoming an ‘observation platform or Nazargah; it is an opportunity that provides the chance of feeling Nature. In addition to this characteristic, to satisfy the physical comfort of the house residents in the hardship condition of Bandar-e Lenge, the wind flow and air circulation have been provided by making space between different parts of the building mass and hollowing out the volume of the building.The distance between the filled masses besides making the condition for the passage of the airflow, increases the speed of the air and lets a current of air be produced as the result of the pressure difference between the top and the bottom of the passage. This is apart from the natural wind that is directed into the house rooms by the windbreakers. The artificial wind produced by the perforated architecture of this House flows both in the outer spaces and the spaces between the built sections. It is the place where the porches and corridors of the house have been built for the greater efficiency and comfort of the residents during the long and hot summer season. This way of intervening in the space, which causes the breeze to flow in the house in the outer spaces and at a level lower than the height of the natural wind, besides making the house a comfortable place to live, is a sustainable and enduring measure for the human to interact with a sign of Nature. The wind in the House is highly perceived on a tangible scale, as the observer constantly feels the wind blowing. Having the exterior and interior spaces for both formal space and living environment, and landscaping in a garden pit are among the sufficient conditions that make the entity of the house.The form of the House has its advantages from both ontological and epistemological levels. Initially, the house inhabitant is in constant interaction with the two natural signs as celestial verses, the Sea and the Wind, and at the second level, it shapes the natural and historical needs of the inhabitants in the light of the historical culture and civilization. The outcome of that ontological “Promise” with this epistemological "Appearance" is making a kind of architectural landscape, which the ‘House of Fekri’ is a prominent example of this approach. [i] The descent of the wind, same as the descent of the Quran, refers to encountering a tangible and lower form of the transcendental truth.[ii] A hat, like a covering for both the head and the truth; removing the hat implies to the uncovering the truths. Sohrab ironically refers to direct confront with the wind reality as a celestial verse for the perception of existence.[iii] According to my belief, "Architecture is meant to be an observation platform of Nature" as a mission. Nature is an important book of knowledge for humans, and architecture has to create the context for encountering the ontological signs of Nature with humans as the inhabitants.[iv] Necessary condition is a condition required for an object to occur and allows the object to be existed and created.[v] Sufficient condition is a condition that is complementary and ontological cause for the occurrence of the object. Objects are divided into different types following their creation. The rank of their existence precedes their essence.[vi] Make something feel is a term coined by Shafi'i Kadkani to interpret Masnavi poems written by Maulana (Jalaluddin Mohammad Balkhi).[vii] General perception or the sense of space is an interpretation for encountering and understanding the ‘existence’ of an object. It happens when the existence of an object is perceived regardless of it ‘essence’ that has not yet been understood.

The village of Laft in ‘Qeshm Island’ is placed on a coral reef, the initial reason for its emergence. The rock slope at the edge of the beach has created a natural space for docking huge barges. This feature alone lets this rural place be targeted, where its economy is highly dependent on the sea. The presence of coral reefs does not afford much farming land to its residents. However, in the highest state of adopting Nature, they can take advantage of this natural depth of water on the beach, which provides a suitable space for docking huge barges. As a result of this happening, Laft village has turned into a crucial trade space and a fishing port on Qeshm Island where the residents profit from this flourishing trade.The huge presence of coral reefs, Marjan, neither provides suitable agricultural land, nor even a flat space for building houses. Therefore, there are small houses in a dense village space. However, the land owner is quite satisfied with this affluence business condition, which is resulting from the natural depth of the water at the bottom of the coral reef, which let them establish a luxurious architecture, as the dominant architecture of Laft is iconic to its wind-catcher, central courtyards, and handling air circulation and the wind flowing in the rooms and courtyards, as a symbol of Qeshm Island, which along with the architecture of Bushehr City and Sana'a, is reminiscent of the ‘Persian Gulf’ and the Gulf of Oman. This advantage is also due to the blessing presence of the coral reef. The coral reef by having natural cavities inside it, besides resisting water force, has a function like a sponge, which store huge amount of water among its tiny saclike cavities. This property, in addition to the existence of possible hidden cavities, provides an indefinite source of water storage. Supposing a barrier between the coral reef and the water salt to prevent its permeation into the depth of the reef, let coral reef to stop water permeation, and the holes in the rock be a good source of water desalination. It is supposed to be the exact happening in Telo wells, somewhere inside the coral reef and on the upper edge of the dense and integrated texture of the village, which is protected by the residents and their persistent culture for ages. The upper third of the coral reef is the watershed area of the Laft region. The monsoon rains falling on the rock are finally trapped inside the rock holes are the handmade water reservoir of the village and penetrated the coral reef through numerous shallow and deep wells to be preserved there. Some of this water is transferred into the reservoir ponds after purification for early use by the residents. The water well once functions as a water reservoir of the village, but in the warm months of the year, the residents draw this water by buckets and ropes, and gradually lead the reserves of tiny coral holes to the original head of the well. The dual function of Telo wells, sometimes as a water reservoir and sometimes as a water well has turned them into the most attractive landscape of the village, along with the coral reefs, as the origin of the Laft area. It is believed that the Laft village is identical to coral reefs and Telo wells. The other manifestations of the village appear in photos and architecture, are arising from these two fundamental stones of the life and survival of the village. This continues only if the water softener system does not disturb this natural ecosystem.

Over almost a decade, façade committees have been established in Tehran and then in other cities in imitation of the center to monitor the architecture of the buildings. This was a response to a demand that goes back several decades after the victory of the Islamic Revolution, which was first called for «identity» and then «Iranian-Islamic identity» in the city and architecture. The heightened sensitivity to «returning to oneself» and the beginning of the «Islamic renaissance» in the first years of the establishment of the Islamic Republic led to the establishment of numerous academic and religious meetings to examine the relationship between «tradition and modernity.» During the pre-revolutionary struggles, the spread of intellectuals› and revolutionaries› dissatisfaction with the regime›s self-defeat against the West led Farah Pahlavi, the cultural politician of the regime, to create an artificial and form-oriented movement by combining modern architecture with traditional elements. A generation of monumental architecture, such as the Museum of Contemporary Arts and the School of Management, was the result of this policy. To theorize this process, the «Link of Tradition and Technology» conference was held in Isfahan in the presence of a selected group of famous Iranian and world architects, chaired by Farah Pahlavi. At the same time, the official trend of the country›s architecture and what was promoted by the governing body in the guise of the model and law was a mutilated and meaningless modernism dependent on the consumption of luxury goods and imitation of the Western currents. The Islamic revolution represented the demand for the restoration of the historical identity of the Iranian nation. In the years before the revolution, however, no effective action was taken in this regard. The economic stagnation caused by the war and embargo, the ignorance of the relevant administrations in the country, and the gaining power of Western trends in the executive body of the system left no room for a scientific and deep response to the claim for identity restoration. In the 1990s, a study was conducted on the order set by the municipality for façade standards. The study method was similar to the procedure of bulletin makers, who managed the emotions of officials by selecting news. In the city of Tehran, where thousands of buildings were being built at the same time, a few special examples that no one except but a few knew about their existence became a symbol of the trend towards vulgarity; Taking advantage of the unanswered demand of the last century to return to oneself, extraordinary and strange decrees were issued: the use of vulgar colors was prohibited; and to make the rules religious, «prohibition of installing statues on the façade» was also added to the rules.The excitement caused by this biased and not rigorous study of urban management quickly led to the creation of institutions to intervene in the most private parts of society. Façade committees were formed to approve the façade plan, which was added to the previous technical documents. This committee expressed its existential philosophy to protect public rights. Since then, the façade committee in Tehran and many Iranian cities has become a tool to extend the issuance of permits, make construction more expensive, and impose the taste of committee members on thousands of applicants who need permits. The process of changing the rules has been based on the quantitative rise in technical details and is not related to the demand for national-religious identity. In this period, less effective and complicated details have been added to the basic criteria to justify the necessity of the existence of the committee›s action. Over a decade of its activity, the committee has failed to restore Iranian-Islamic identity. This claim is confirmed by the demand of the supreme leader of the revolution in the last report of the mayor of Tehran to the council (Rosen Online, December 23, 2023), emphasizing the movement towards Iranian-Islamic identity in urban architecture. This is the fundamental demand of a multidimensional and complex strategy that cannot be realized by simplifying the problem. Like Farah Pahlavi, who failed to divert the claim for identity with the superstructure and memorial measures, the façade committees will only have dissatisfaction. The perception of identity, in the sense of understanding the continuous nature of a phenomenon, depends on the survival of its existence. The understanding of the existence of a city, which is obtained through encountering and experiencing the space, is first dependent on the survival of the city›s existential components. The importance of the existence of the city is associated with its prerequisites and conditions for understanding its nature and identity. In the case of the survival of the city›s existential components, we can talk about its defining characteristics. The Sunnah of the Holy Prophet (PBUH) in organizing the city of Yathrab, named Madinah al-Nabi, also indicates his precision and insistence on the priority of the order of the components of the creation of the city rather than the form of urban elements. The knowledge related to space and place also validates the same procedure and the originality of the existence of the city in relation to its nature to achieve desirability.By giving priority to the taste of the committee members instead of the taste of the owner, it seems that the façade committees have not conformed to the verse «people are in control of their property» and have taken the wrong path in achieving the great goal they set. Instead of identifying and studying the nature of the city and the main components contributing to its creation, preservation, and expansion, they have completely stuck to the form of urban forms to claim identity. Understanding the identity of the city means having the ability to read its past from the city›s present face and experiencing the feeling and understanding of being in a place with specific standards and attitudes. The place whose elements have gradually acquired the color of time and the transformation of the faces have been so gradual and continuous that the sense of separation from the origin does not arise in the observer. It is clear that intervention in a complex phenomenon is of such a degree of importance that it has a direct effect on building the perception of citizens, and in addition to a hundred-year-old social demand, it was also favored by the beloved Prophet of Islam and played a prominent role in his life. First, it is very necessary, and second, it requires a method and is knowledge-based. The cover image is a view of Qom City, although it refers to the duality of two traditional and unrestrained views, confirming the confusion of this generation and city management in creating an identity view of their desired city.

The beach of the city, known as Port is called Bandar in the Persian language. There are two narrations attributed to it in this language: The first one, with transliteration of Bondar, in which kind of stuff is placed (according to Dehkhoda Lexicon), and second composed of ‘Band’ (enclosed), and ‘Dar ‘(door) means a pond-like enclosed area with a gate. The word "Bandar" entered the Arabic language with the plural form of "Banader" which means ports. In Hindi and Indonesian, there is a similar word called Bandargah, which points to the harbor. There are several ports around the world whose names are composed of Bandar. Coastal life is highly influenced by the sea. For coastal inhabitants, the sea is the origin of life and meaning. For those who live by the sea, the landscape of the sea is the reason for the existence of the city and motivation for its survival. The living connection with the sea is the secret of this landscape. The emerging point of these two entities is the borderline between the city and the sea; however, their relationship is expanded to all aspects of life, including: culture, architecture, food, occupation, religion, economy, and society. If living condition depends on the presence of the sea, it is not far-fetched to be the source of other inspirations as well. The sign and symbols, and the representation of human interaction with the nature of the sea appear at the border of their connection, which is the port, and its landscape is the representative of this connection; The port cities and villages have created the compound and complicated emerged relations at this borderline, which according to the local people all these manifestations together are all called ports. On the other hand, with the expansion of urbanization and the growth of port trade, together with the facility services, the part of the whole port which was allocated to the warehouses and transportation facilities, abruptly became the owner of this historical and cultural concept of human civilization. The growth of bureaucracy and the power of central government caused the formation of the 'Ports and Shipping Organization' in the country, which by ignoring the public rights and the cultural heritage of the ports, just relying on the organizational interests and taking advantage of the power, controlled the vital edge of this coastline, and dispossessed the citizens of this unique inspiration source and the reason behind the establishment of their city. Although, the port is a representative of the past and future interactions with the sea, not just a commercial task, the 'Ports and Maritime Organization of Iran' established a strong barrier around its entity to commit to the law, which was not according to the public advantages, but just to meet the partial interests of some groups; it was in a situation where this barrier affected the contact area used to be presented between the city and the sea. To experience the sea, people had to exit the city limits. The extent of damaging this borderline gradually increased, as the sea area was also occupied. Pushing back the sea has become so popular as a creative method under the title of 'land fill' or 'land reclamation'. The authorities tried to manage it extensively and make a 'shoreline retreat' by attracting more funds and moving landward, to get new areas for their activity. This procedure is also imitated by the municipality of port cities in moving seashores. At the far end of the beach, a high wall is built, and by filling the space behind it, a platform overlooking the sea is constructed to consider it as a land area added to the city land. These measures adversely affect people's feeling attached to the sea when they used to experience walking on the beach sands to let the water waves touch their feet. The actions pull people back from 'the sea' area to the 'offshore'; it looks like the authorities are unaware of the damage to the landscape, which used to be the source of inspiration for the residents. The protection of marine civilization is highly dependent on the long-term interaction between humans and the sea. It is not appropriate to extensively occupy the environment, whether willingly or unwillingly, just by exploiting engineering methods. The journal cover image shows 'Chābahār Port', which represents the active nature of the port, its access way on the coastal edge, and the vast areas dedicated to the port dock. All these actions are interventions in the historical and natural edge of the contact area, between the city and the sea, like a barrier prevents the continuity of the citizens' perception of their land. The material achievements arising from invading this precious gem in exchange for losing opportunities for expanding civilization and continuity of identity are so insignificant that they seem negligible in the macro economy of society.