Keough, Noel GerardAkbar, Naji2021-05-192021-05-192021-05-13Akbar, N. (2021). Surveying the Ecologically Embedded Built Environments of the Preindustrial Era with a Focus on the Classic Maya (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca.http://hdl.handle.net/1880/113438The questions that this research raises are: I-Why our modern habitats cause environmental degradation? II-Can we convert our built environments into places that have little or no adverse environmental and social impacts? III-To achieve the above, is there anything for us to learn from the preindustrial cities? The research then discusses industrialization and mass consumption and how these affect urban lifestyles and the built environment. People and place connections are also explored to see why and how people should care about their habitats. As a result, ideas related to sustainability, ecology, and urbanism emerge as key themes that shed light on people-place relatedness. The research then defines these themes and, in order to look towards the future, undertakes a general survey of those preindustrial societies and their built environments that showed signs of implementing them. The research discovers that there are many urban settlements that survived for many centuries without the aid of advanced technology, industrialization, and mass consumption. The key to their survival was understanding what their environment constituted, what it could offer as life-supporting systems, and how could these systems be maintained sustainably. Decisions regarding where to locate settlements and how to configure them with the existing landscape and climate provide insights into these valuable and relevant preindustrial practices. The research records the above-mentioned preindustrial built environment characteristics and carries out a more focused survey of a specific civilization. Various Mayan cities are studied for their land and climatic conditions and the response of the Maya to these conditions. It is noted that the Maya built environment situated in the tropical forest did not differ much from the forest itself. In many ways, it mimicked the way the forest worked, and by doing so, it was able to sustain itself for many centuries. The research ends with a summary of the findings and hints at the lessons learned. If we are to develop built environments today that are truly sustainable, then these lessons could connect us to the knowledge and wisdom of the previous generations that were accumulated over many millennia.engUniversity of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission.Preindustrial Built EnvironmentSustainabilityEcological Wisdom and EmbeddednessAgrarian UrbanismClassic MayaArchitectureLandscape ArchitectureEducation--AgriculturalEducation--Social SciencesEconomics--HistoryUrban and Regional PlanningEcologymaster thesis10.11575/PRISM/38885