A Vision of Sustainable Design Concepts for Upgrading Vulnerable Coastal Areas in Light of Climate Change Impacts: A Case Study from Beirut, Lebanon

Abstract

Rapid urbanization combined with the effects of climate change has increased the vulnerability of poor urban communities to natural hazards, particularly to informal settlements located in coastal areas. Apart from socio-economic challenges, the effects of climate change threaten the very existence of these settlements. They are particularly vulnerable due to their poor structural quality and lack of adequate infrastructure to mitigate the consequences of any natural event. The article highlights an informal settlement belt, located on the coastline of the southern suburb of the capital Beirut. This area is an example of a complex urban, social, and economic structure. As a result, this research speculates on the possible sustainable design solutions and tested development strategies through urban, architecture, and landscape design proposals, derived from interventions that succeed in facing similar challenges compatible with the studied context. The aim is to advocate for comprehensive consideration and transformation of coastal informal settlements that can be used to encourage neutralizing the obvious challenges of climate change in urban settings. Therefore, planning specifications and quality aspects for future coastal informal settlements are proposed and extracted. The research involves analysis of qualitative data rather than quantitative data, as there is not much definite information available in terms of statistics, such as review of publications and grey literature. The scope of the study ranges from microscale improvement to providing usable and accessible city-wide ecological urban settings and sustainable spaces with new standards for coastal informal settlements as a potential backbone.