This book deals with both passive and active methods of controlling the environmental performance of buildings in hot tropical climates such as Malaysia. In these climates the building fabric plays a crucial role in determining the indoor environment and maintaining reasonable thermal comfort. Useful and practical examples from local case studies are used to illustrate solutions. While the book is of a technical nature and based on academic research, the language is suitable for both students and the general public. The book offers a significant contribution towards the move to more sustainable, energy efficient and ‘green’ buildings. It provides building designers with practical and simple solutions that are based on a sound understanding of building physics.

Climate Conscious Low-Energy Tropical Built Environment is a welcome addition to the knowledge on green and sustainable architecture. Both the authors shared their vast knowledge and experience on low-energy and passive solar design. The approach is on the technology adapted and applied to ‘welcoming the sun’ as well as to ‘rejecting the sun’, with the emphasis on the passive elements design. As the world now is facing the rapid increase of population, the architects need to consider the future path of the built environment. A good knowledge in low-energy built environment in order to sustain the well-being of the earth is essential, before considering on the aspects of mechanical components. This book is written in a clear and engaging style to suit all readers, the architecture and built environment students and professions as well as readers in general. As there are many books on this topic, but none emphasize the context of tropical climate. This is the first book on the low-energy built environment within the context of tropical climate. Abdul Malek Abdul Rahman was interested in indoor thermal comfort while researching his PhD topic on “Design for Natural Ventilation in Low-Cost Housing in Tropical Climate”. With a firm belief that to be thermally comfortable without mechanical aids in tropical climates, one should be under shade and receiving ample air movement concurrently, which is not naturally possible. Therefore, he sets out for further researches, literatures and acute observations on this issue. With university research funds, he investigated in hypothesis and experimented on low-cost cooling technologies, attended and read books and references on related topics. Equipped with reliable cameras, he captured ideas and happenings spontaneously to confirm his conviction. He believes that in order to re-examine the philosophy of energy efficient architectural design, one has to detach oneself from architecture and to understand other related disciplines (mechanical engineering, to be exact) in order to value add and upgrade the architecture towards sustainability. He finds the future is very challenging on this issue as population increase is real and that when left uncheck would affect the comfort of human psyche. Technology now is the solution and research must include latest technology available during the particular time of change. Karam Mustafa Al-Obaidi has interest in architectural design systems specifically in the tropics. He focuses on dynamic environment in relation with surroundings. His research is towards energy and how it influences the architectural form. With university research funds, he implemented experimental investigation to obtain reliable examination of the built environment. The future of architecture in terms of technology is challenging in this tropical region. He finds that understanding energy in both consumption and efficiency is limited due to the climatic constraints. Therefore, he believes that creating a platform to integrate related disciplines could provide solutions regarding the issue of energy efficiency. In his opinion, nature is the main source of inspiration, thus designing models that respond to tropical environment could provide comfort and durability for users and buildings.

As the construction industry continues to develop within the natural environment, the industry has to take strong measures to ensure that its activities are in harmony with the environment. The challenge for the construction sector is not just to respond to the need for adequate housing and rapid urbanisation, but to do it in a way that is socially and ecologically responsible. This book begins with the current progress of the construction industry in Malaysia before shifting to the fragile relationship between construction and environment. Knowing the rapid development in Malaysia and how construction can affect the environment, this book delves into some evidence of environmental degradation in Malaysia. In the mist of degradation, there is some light shone by the government agencies, state government and some construction players who have initiated several actions to improve present situation. Construction players must be ready to address these concerns, aware of the requirements and comply with it, while the government must be ready to implement and enforce the requirement. An effective planning, implementation and monitoring is vital if the environment is to be part of the culture of the construction industry everywhere.

Unprecedented urban growth makes sustainability in cities a crucial issue for policy makers, scholars and business leaders. This emerging urban crisis challenges environment-based and economic-based approaches to sustainability, and highlights the complex and critical role that culture plays in ensuring that cities are viable for future generations. This publication assesses the use of cultural indicators as a tool for policymakers, drawing on case studies of Patan (Nepal), Penang (Malaysia), Cheongju (South Korea), and Kanazawa (Japan), and offers fresh insights into the role of culture in fostering community development, environmental awareness and balanced economic growth.

Initially published under the pseudonym Currer Bell in 1847, Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyreerupted onto the English literary scene, immediately winning the devotion of many of the world's most renowned writers, including William Makepeace Thackeray, who declared it a work "of great genius." Widely regarded as a revolutionary novel, Brontë's masterpiece introduced the world to a radical new type of heroine, one whose defiant virtue and moral courage departed sharply from the more acquiescent and malleable female characters of the day. Passionate, dramatic, and surprisingly modern, Jane Eyre endures as one of the world's most beloved novels.