Background: For individuals with Alzheimer’s disease, the built environment can be a powerful therapeutic tool. Existing research shows that helpful environmental conditions can 1) ease negative behaviors associated with the disease, 2) improve safety, and 3) reduce stress levels and prescribed medication. This research examined ways that improved design of the built environment can benefit people with Alzheimer’s disease, specifically regarding their wandering behaviors. Wandering, often considered negative, is one of the most common but least understood behaviors associated with Alzheimer’s.

Methods: Information addressing this topic was obtained through multiple methods. 1) A literature review focused on design features hypothesized to support wayfinding and 2) New information collected during on‐site visits to an assisted living facility including: Documentation of existing features in communal areas; observations of resident behaviors in those areas; and staff interviews. Both the observational and interview information address the nature of resident wandering behavior, when and where residents appear to be more or less anxious, and how the residents appear to respond to specific design features.

Results: The literature review revealed that many of the design recommendations supporting beneficial wandering overlap with those suggested for improved wayfinding. Studies have indicated that wayfinding strategies can counteract memory and cognitive mapping deficiencies in individuals with Alzheimer’s. Information from study findings and the literature review were used to develop or refine recommendations for the design of assisted living facilities for those with mid‐range Alzheimer’s. Providing safe and stimulating environments for wandering might relieve some negative symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease. Until a cure is found, the need for supportive housing for those with the disease will continue to increase.

The Syrian conflict resulted in the displacement of around 9 million Syrians. 50% of the displaced population are children. The children of Syria are being referred to as the “lost generation”. Refugee children are exposed to extreme hardships such as loss of home, loss and death of family members, the disruptance of their education, loss of their sense of familiarity and prospects for the future, and this leaves them at a fragile state. This thesis explores ways in which the quality of lives of refugee children in camps can be enhanced by looking into concepts of identity, trauma, home and belonging, and what they entail. Through studying two case studies—Zaatari camp in Jordan and the protracted Dheisheh camp in West Bank—initiatives that promoted placemaking were extrapolated and common themes and lessons learned were explored. Consequently, play as a placemaking tool for children was derived as a concept that could enhance the experience of refugee children in camps and combat reoccurring issues such as boredom, safety, isolation, and a lack of stimulating environments. Subsequently, different scenarios for play were designed that used repurposed materials easily accessible to camp members. The play scenarios correspond to the different forms of play and their developmental qualities. A manual was designed to compile the proposed scenarios with a set of instructions, materials needed, and the possible configuration of the type of play. The manual is intended to be an informative package that would expectantly inspire the use of local and easily accessible materials to create more scenarios for play.

Providing adequate shelter is one of the most pivotal challenges after a natural disaster. Shelter designs incorporating economic and functional aesthetic capabilities aid users in experiencing a more holistic post-disaster recovery. This project gives attention to the in- terior conditions – the kitchen area, in particular – of transitional natural disaster housing. Kitchen products that might contribute to a shelter’s habitability and its occupants’ sense of dignity by suggesting and embodying permanence are chosen. Participants who have had experience with poverty, frequent relocation or disasters are interviewed and asked to rate a variety of kitchen products. These qualitative and quantitative data are analyzed using a mixed-methods approach inspired by Kansei Engineering. Outcomes suggesting implications for future research are outlined with commentary on how attempts to address product design aesthetics, economics, and self-actualization might transform the design of transitional shelters used after disasters. The implications of this work for policy and re- search are useful to governmental and emergency management agencies seeking to integrate progressive, inclusive shelter design into their operations.

The transitional village is a unique form of transitional housing for the homeless because it offers residents an opportunity for ownership over private micro-housing units, an aspect that is a dignifying amenity for many otherwise house-less individuals. Selecting a transitional village project in Eugene, Oregon, this study highlighted two micro-housing prototypes from which to learn successes and shortcomings related to prototype design and application – a necessary evaluation as transitional villages become a more widely-accepted form of transitional housing. The study included a series of in-depth, qualitative interviews with prototype designers, village organizers, and village residents, followed by a qualitative typological analysis that yielded a collection of themes related to the prototype designs and their functionality within the village. From the themes, design and management suggestions were generated for the two prototypes studied, as well as for future micro-housing prototypes in transitional village settings. These suggestions were a reflection of micro-housing needs and preferences as chronicled by participants, revealing an emphasis on thermal comfort, personalization, dimensions for human comfort, storage as a necessity, and the importance of privacy.

Safety is a top priority for building users and should be a primary goal for architects when designing public buildings. Stairway falls continue to be one of the main causes of injuries in buildings, and while research has shown that these incidents are often related to the architectural design of stairways, stair safety remains difficult in practice. This is because knowledge of stairway design and the effectiveness of stair safety standards has been limited or within the profession of architecture. As a result, architects are experimenting with innovative designs that may increase the risk of tripping, slipping and falling on stairs. Steps to closing this knowledge gap and improving stair safety include assessments of design practices, identification of potential risks, and education on applying inclusive design thinking to stairways.

This thesis examined contemporary practices in stairway design and their effects on the behavior of stair users. A review of the professional literature identified innovative stairway design features related to stair safety. Two potentially hazardous features were identified for assessment in the real world: glass stair treads and interactive sound. Observations of stair use were collected at five different stairways in public buildings. The chosen design features were present in three of these stairways, and the other two stairways were constructed in a conventional manner. The incidence of unsafe stair use and key behaviors on the stairways were documented and compared.

The results showed that the glass stairway had incidents at a far higher rate than the conventional stairway. The rate of incidents in the interactive stairways was virtually the same to those in the conventional stairways. The findings suggest that research attention should be given to glass stair treads. Interactive sound needs to be studied in more depth to determine if the perception of hazardous conditions leads to more caution or if the sound features cause people to pay more attention and avoid hazardous behaviour. The research also demonstrates that more assessments of stairway designs in use can help identify best practices and additional gaps in knowledge for the design of stairways.

The architecture profession is rooted in a long-standing history of locally-based practice. As advancements in technology permitted practice to become more removed from the local focus, the field slowly left behind many settings, including small towns. Despite the fact that there are currently over 11,000 small towns in the United States, the architecture profession has focused relatively little on practice in small towns, and less yet on practice in their main street districts. Unlike most clients in the urban setting, clients in a small town may not have any previous experience working with an architect or the general construction process. As a result, successful navigation of this environment may depend on architects’ abilities to understand the nuances and expectations of small-town communities and their main street building owners. This study, focused on the Western New York Erie Canal region, utilized interviews with main street district building owners and architects, as well as an online survey with main street building owners to gain a better understanding of the nature of the small-town architect-client relationship. The findings of this study support the notion that the architecture profession’s relationship to the small-town main street corridor and its clients is quite unique to that in other settings and that the social nature of the small-town environment appears to have a significant impact on the ways in which both architects and clients interact in relation to their projects. Analysis of the findings concluded that familiarity is key, reputation and results matter more than appearances; and persistence, an open mind, and a positive attitude get results for both architects and clients when working in the small-town setting. While the findings from this study support a better understanding of the small- town architect-client relationship, this study also yielded a methodological framework that has the potential to be replicated in other geographic locations and also provided valuable insight into new opportunities for practice for architects in the small-town setting.

Since the end of the Second World War, the dominant form of housing in the United States has been the single-family detached dwelling in the suburbs. Such communities have been barraged by criticism for being aesthetically ho- mogeneous and reinforcing of “traditional” family roles, behaviors, and values. Despite outside criticism, however, many residents describe positive experiences of living in these communities. Previous studies have found that the homogeneity and simplicity of the houses allows the residents to make improvements and customizations that address their own living styles, needs, and preferences.

Building upon Jungian psychology and American studies theories, and using qualitative and quantitative methods, this thesis examines two Buffalo-area neighborhoods. The thesis explores the following questions:

– Who lives in standardized communities, why are they living there, and what are their perceptions of the neighborhoods they live in?

– How are standardized residential environments changed to accommodate varied and changing family structures, needs, and preferences?

– What aspects contribute to or constrain the ability to customize a dwelling?

Information gathered from archival research, photographic analysis, and surveys are used to identify implications and potentials for residential designs that encourage customization and self-expression for a wide variety of user groups. The results of this research are meant to be the beginning of the reinsertion of architects into a previously neglected realm, to fill the role of facilitator of personal customization in housing.

Mixed income public housing developments are touted as providing a variety of social benefits. One of the benefits most frequently referenced is improved “social inclusion”. But whether the policy decisions and design theories promoted to create these new more inclusive environments are realized in the final as-built sites has not yet been demonstrated. “[re]forming regent park: from policy to practice, what’s lost in translation?” has used a case study approach to examine the transformation of one of Canada’s oldest and largest public housing projects. From the community of hope in the 1940s and 1950s, through the socio-economic segregation and marginalization of the 1970s and 1980s, to the six-phase, billion dollar revitalization project that was initiated in 2006, Regent Park has always been a social experiment. In this case study particular attention was paid to who is included and who is excluded by the realized environments and why. Fundamentally, this thesis seeks to provide new insight into the discrepancies between policy and practice in housing related architecture and urban planning, and the effect of these gaps on low-income residents.

Through the close examination of core planning and policy documents, insertion into the environment as an unobtrusive observer, and the administration of an on-site accessibility assessment instrument developed by the author, this study aims to make 2 main contributions to the body of knowledge on planning and architecture for marginalized people. First, by questioning the accepted notions of social inclusion for low-income earners in mixed-income public housing redevelopment, this study demonstrates that public housing residents are subjected to insidious forms of social exclusion and marginalization through architectural and planning oversights. Second, and perhaps most importantly, this study diverges from most public housing analyses by considering the needs of residents with physical disabilities. This group is under-represented in public housing research, yet constitutes a significant portion of the resident population housed within these communities. This thesis makes recommendations important for the next five phases of development at Regent Park and for future Canadian public housing redevelopment projects.