Q.No.

1: Discuss the development of Environmental Aesthetics as the

field of study?

Environmental aesthetics is one of the three or four new areas of aesthetics

that have been developed in the second half of the twentieth century. And, although it
has emerged as a major field of study only recently, and considers the aesthetic
appreciation of human as well as natural environments, it has roots in earlier traditions
concerning the aesthetic experience of nature. Eighteenth-century landscape aesthetics
together with notions such as the sublime and the picturesque have exercised
considerable influence on its development (see Nature, aesthetic appreciation of).
Nonetheless, there are important differences in emphasis between eighteenth-century
landscape aesthetics and current environmental aesthetics, differences that stem in part
from the fact that after reaching its climax at the end of that century, the former went into
gradual decline and by the twentieth century was almost totally eclipsed by the
philosophy of art. Thus, to some extent environmental aesthetics had to be fashioned
anew in the second half of the twentieth century.

The twentieth-century development of environmental aesthetics was strongly influenced

by two factors, one theoretical and one practical. The former was the exclusive focus of
twentieth-century philosophical aesthetics on art; and the latter was the public concern
for the aesthetic quality of the environment that emerged in the second half of that
century. Both factors helped, first, to broaden the scope of environmental aesthetics
beyond that of earlier landscape aesthetics, which concentrated primarily on sublime
and picturesque scenery, and, second, to set the central philosophical issue of
environmental aesthetics. The scope of environmental aesthetics was broadened by the
exclusive focus of philosophical aesthetics on art, since this, de facto, excluded from
mainstream aesthetics everything else, leaving it to environmental aesthetics. The
scope was broadened by the public concern for the state of the environment, since this
concern was not simply for preserving natural scenery, but also about the aesthetic
condition of the everyday human environment. Thereby, the central philosophical issue
of environmental aesthetics was set in large measure by the apparently dramatic
contrast between that which had become the focus of public concern, the everyday
environment and that which had become the sole focus of philosophical aesthetics
works of art.

Explain its significance in the context of Urban Planning and Design

in Pakistan.

The natural world has long held aesthetic attraction, but environmental aesthetics
is only now emerging as a discipline in its own right, with distinctive concepts, issues,
and theories. In the last two decades, scholars have begun in earnest to develop the
field from scattered beginnings that predate the current environmental movement. For
environmental aesthetics does not stand apart from other kinds of research. It
draws from philosophy, anthropology, psychology, literary theory and criticism, cultural
geography, architecture, and environmental design, as well as from the arts.

Urban aesthetics focuses on a special landscape, the built environment, shaped almost
entirely by human direction for human purposes. However, we do not have to oppose
the city aesthetically to the countryside or to wilderness, a common tendency. The city
is rather a particular environment, made from materials obtained or derived from the
natural world and embodying the same perceptual elements as other environments, but
designed and controlled by human agency. Moreover, although the city is a distinctively
human environment, it is nevertheless an integral part of the geography of its region,
from which it usually has no distinct boundaries and with which it has a reciprocal
relation. Urban aesthetics deals with the same perceptual factors that are part of all
environmental experience. And as the preeminent cultural environment, the city's social
and historical dimensions are inseparable from its sensory ones. Aesthetic value here,
then, is more than a matter of urban beauty; it encompasses the perceptual experience
of meanings, traditions, familiarity and contrast, as well.

Further, urban aesthetics must also include a consideration of negative aesthetic

values: the obstruction of perceptual interest by noise pollution, air pollution, strident
signage, utility lines, littered streets, dull, trite, or oppressive building designs, and the
destruction of traditional neighborhoods. Indeed, an aesthetic critique should be
a key factor in evaluating a city's character and its success. To incorporate aesthetic
considerations into urban planning is to place the city in the service of the values and
goals that we associate with the full meaning of civilization.

As far the environmental aesthetics in the context of urban planning and design in
Pakistan is concerned an infinite steps should be taken by the Government to realize
the real urban planning of cities and bring the natural beauty of surroundings. Each
plannings must be according to their standards/codes. Whereas the Smart cities are
those that are economically prosperous, where growth and development is not taking
place at the expense of the environment and, most importantly, where the dividends of
growth are being shared equitably among all sectors of society. These are the three
Es of sustainability economy, environment and equity. Such cities are not,
therefore, merely technology-driven spaces but also spaces that are inclusive, where
communities bond. Sometimes, such dynamics are also used to define a city as a
resilient city.

A smart city has certain characteristics. It is not a sprawling city; compact cities
promoting vertical growth have been found to be more energy-efficient and
environment-friendly. A smart city is one where every effort is made to discourage
private vehicles, which are mostly dependent on fossil fuels and also contribute to
urban sprawl.

Instead, public mass transit systems, bicycles and walking are preferred, assisting in
having compact cities and adding a new dimension to land use development through
what is known as transit-oriented development. In this, self-sustaining urban localities
are designed around public transit stations, facilitating environment-friendly modes of
transportation and with public spaces designed to promote interaction between people
from diverse socio-economic backgrounds.

The same thought process is applied to designed smart neighbourhoods and buildings
that can even be rated for their smartness by evaluating them against smart growth
standards, such as the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design rating system
developed by the US Green Building Council. Since buildings have been found to
generate around 40 per cent of urban greenhouse gases emissions, the concept of
designing green buildings is getting much momentum.

Pakistan is rapidly urbanizing. It is estimated that by 2030, Pakistan will be predominantly

urban, with 45.6 per cent of its population living in urban areas and 12 cities housing over a
million people each. The sooner we develop a smart city growth strategy and plan, the better.