This book aims to provide a cross-sectorial assessment in a multidisciplinary and trans-cultural context onto the innovations in urban and architectural approaches in designing next human environments within the Albanian context. The continuous concentration of the world population in the urban areas and their consequent densification require even more quantity of quality spaces and places, integrated resources and energies, alternative modalities of mobility and transports, demand of social inclusion and need for a circular economy. These have become the major challenges for this 21st Century and some of the greatest problems facing humanity in most of current vision for the future. The main objective is to feed a debate about the emerging trans-cultural (and trans-national) approaches in the whole designing field, from Albanian context and its current good practices, attempts and faults, both formal and informal. Thus, the Albanian experience may represent an opportunity through which we all may reflect about how designing is evolving in the Mediterranean arena of “praxis and experiments” aimed to a better quality of life at the human scale and in expanding the concepts of “place and space” such as it has improved by the effects in designing innovations. This book represents a useful read of theories, experiences and case studies, which can help in enlarging reflection on how the designing practice is evolving in the arena of forthcoming development strategies and tactics, all addressed to improve the quality of life, places and spaces. Additionally, it provides a range of architecture and urban design rationales and strategies for reinforcing identities and creating memorable places within the quality of contemporary architecture and urbanism. It addresses the unique needs of architects and planners to deal with topics that cut across social, economic and environmental issues and shows readers how to explore methods, theoretical frameworks and techniques to address the complex needs of architecture, urban and cultural development.

Table of Contents:
Introducing the architectural, urban, and landscape challenges of Albania.- Part 1: Next cities between neoanthropocene and asceticism.- Augmented cities in the neoanthropocene.- A multi-scalar design proposal: s-RGB (Safe - regenerative green blue) design for the contemporary city.- Materiality and asceticism in architecture. A paradigm to learn from.- Part 2: Urban and territorial challenges in Albanian context.- Tirana-next. A complementary development strategy (and consequent urban tactics) for the informal and historical urban fabrics within Tirana super blocks.- An observation on gated communities in post-socialist Albania: Three case studies from Tirana.- The Mangalem quarter in Berat (Albania): Studies in the urban composition of the aggregate and the historical building techniques with relation to seismic action.- A comparative study between the wildfire prone forest surfaces within the metropolitan area of Sarajevo and Tirana.- Part 3: Architectural challenges in Albanian context.- Infill design in informal housing in Tirana, Albania: Transformations and spatial qualities.- Past, present and the claim for a possible future: The case of Tirana national theatre.- A study on the prisons morphology, case of Albania.- Space syntax analysis as a tool for evaluation of social and cultural values of Albanian housing - Case study of Tirana.- The rise of modernism in Tetova.- Part 4: Afterword: Tomorrow challenges in cities and planning.- Cities of tomorrow – Tomorrow of planning. Lessons for the Albanian cities.