Shahbaz Ghafoori

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Showing posts with the label Urban Planning

Machine Learning Environmentally Responsible

Green AI: Making Machine Learning Environmentally Responsible By: Shahbaz Ghafoori Artificial Intelligence (AI) is transforming every industry, including architecture, urban planning, and environmental design. Yet, behind the promise of automation and data-driven innovation lies a hidden cost: energy-intensive computations. Training large-scale AI models often requires massive processing power, consuming megawatt-hours of electricity and emitting substantial carbon. As cities and design practices seek sustainability, the paradox of AI’s environmental footprint is impossible to ignore. “Green AI” has emerged as a response, advocating not only for intelligent algorithms but also for responsible ones that minimize their ecological impact. In the built environment sector, where sustainability is a core priority, Green AI offers a roadmap for aligning machine learning advancements with climate goals. The Environmental Impact of AI Training a single state-of-the-art ...

Digital Twins for Cities Heritage

Digital Twins for Cities: From Heritage to Resilience By: Shahbaz Ghafoori Digital twins—high-fidelity virtual replicas of physical environments—are reshaping the way cities are planned, managed, and experienced. Originally developed in manufacturing and aerospace, digital twin technology now provides cities with a dynamic, data-rich model that integrates IoT sensors, satellite imagery, GIS data, and real-time analytics. Unlike traditional static models, digital twins evolve continuously, reflecting changes in infrastructure, mobility, and environmental conditions. They create a living representation of urban systems that informs decision-making, optimizes resource allocation, and enhances urban resilience in an era of climate uncertainty and rapid urbanization. From Static Maps to Living Models Traditional city models rely on static datasets, often becoming outdated within months. Digital twins overcome this limitation by connecting a city’s physical infra...

Resilient Infrastructure for Climate Future

Resilient Infrastructure for a Climate-Ready Future By: Shahbaz Ghafoori The 21st century is defined by climate volatility—rising seas, heatwaves, flooding, droughts, and increasingly severe storms. Traditional infrastructure, designed under assumptions of stability and predictability, is proving inadequate. To face this reality, architects, planners, and policymakers are reimagining cities through the lens of resilience. Resilient infrastructure is not simply about hardening systems against disaster; it is about designing adaptive, flexible, and regenerative frameworks capable of thriving in a future shaped by uncertainty. Why Resilience Matters Climate change is no longer a distant possibility—it is a present reality. Infrastructure is at the front line of this crisis. Roads buckle under extreme heat, power grids collapse during storms, and water systems are strained by droughts. The consequences ripple through communities, economies, and ecosystems. Resi...

Adaptive Reuse & Circular Performance

Adaptive Reuse and Circular Performance: Extending Life Cycles in Architecture By: Shahbaz Ghafoori Architecture is no longer just about creating new structures; it is about rethinking what already exists. As cities grapple with the dual challenges of rapid urbanization and the climate crisis, adaptive reuse and circular performance emerge as essential strategies. By transforming obsolete or underutilized buildings into vibrant, functional spaces, architects not only preserve cultural memory but also significantly reduce the environmental costs of construction. Adaptive reuse, when combined with the principles of circular performance, extends the life cycle of built environments while aligning with sustainable, low-carbon futures. From Linear to Circular Architecture Traditionally, architecture followed a linear model: design, build, use, and demolish. This model generates enormous waste and consumes massive resources. Circular performance redefines this cy...

Digital Twins for Heritage

Digital Twins for Heritage: Preserving Architectural Memory in the Age of Data By: Shahbaz Ghafoori Heritage architecture represents not only the material culture of societies but also the memory of collective identities. However, climate change, urban expansion, and resource-intensive development increasingly place these assets at risk. In this context, digital twins—data-driven virtual replicas of physical structures—are emerging as powerful tools for preserving, studying, and managing architectural heritage. These dynamic models go beyond static documentation by enabling continuous monitoring, predictive simulation, and interactive engagement, creating a new paradigm in heritage conservation. A digital twin is not just a 3D scan; it is a living model that connects real-time data with historical and architectural knowledge. By integrating sensors, AI-driven analysis, and immersive visualization, digital twins allow architects, urbanists, and conservationists...

Planning Without Combustion

Planning Without Combustion: Net Zero Carbon as Spatial Policy By: Shahbaz Ghafoori Urban planning has long been associated with growth — the expansion of cities, the multiplication of buildings, roads, and infrastructure, and the promise that development will translate into prosperity. In the 21st century, this growth paradigm collides with a planetary boundary: the carbon budget. Net zero carbon is not simply another policy target to be accommodated within existing frameworks; it is a structural threshold that demands a redesign of the logic of planning itself. In this sense, “planning without combustion” is not metaphorical rhetoric — it is a literal call to plan cities as if burning fossil fuels were no longer an option at any stage of their life cycle. At the planning scale, the challenge of net zero is not confined to individual projects or neighbourhoods. It involves orchestrating the spatial, economic, and institutional systems of an entire metropo...