-- The key point I want to make to the members is that without proper understanding of how traditional societies built their villages and towns we would not be able to learn the underlying lessons. Science alone can only provide us insight and some directions. Since I am actively involved in doing this work, I want to encourage all members to push their students and others to do this type of work and to link it to how we can apply the underlying deep structure to processes in our contemporary world. The link to the contemporary world is what I would like to see actively developed. I have tried to do this in the Bahrain project last January/February 2006. I hope I will be invited to present that work at an appropriate venue in the future."

 

All the best,

Besim

Julian of Ascalon's Treatise of Construction and Design Rules from 6th Century Palestine:

http://charrettecenter.net/charrettecenter.asp?a=spf&pfk=7&gk=220&plk=430

 

Comments on this paper from Chris Alexander:
 

Dear Besim,
I have just this minute finished reading your marvelous paper on Northern Nigeria. Thank you very, very much for sending it. It is a  beautiful piece of work.
I am once again inspired to wonder if there is not some way that we can combine the insights of this kind of beautiful empirical work, with the approach of some generative or normative kind, which shows how to apply these principles to modern developments.

If we could identify the underlying deep nature of the kind of system you describe, and separate this deepest structure from the specific nature of the rules themselves, which, at least in many cases, will be culture and period specific, and therefore not transferable to our time and places.
Do you have any plan to be in England again soon. I would very much like to see you.

All best wishes, and congratulations again for such a beautiful paper.

 

Warmest regards

Chris