Abstract
Traditional urban fabrics, mainly developed without urban planning, have caracteristics required for Post oil cities : human scale, mix use, low car traffic, low energy emissions building materials, bioclimatic buildings. Their urban fabric are not compatible with the urban planning standards, common urban regulation. They require specific tools and legislation to be preserved. This dichotomy between the urban quality of these areas and the planning standards asks for a reform of the concepts, the regulations and the process to produce cities. Contemporary way of life is based on urban model shaped for cars with urban sprawl, motorways, shopping malls, logistic platforms and separate zoning. The commonwealth urban planning concept is based on real estate market efficiency to make profit mainly on the upper segments, and then separates neighborhoods by revenue categories. In fact, historical urban fabric are facing huge challenges for their protection due to this dominant concepts. In continental Europe the approach is presented as different based on dense cities, reduction of urban sprawl, mix use... but in fact most of the urban production is following the same trends than commonwealth approach, due to the financialization of the economy and the related urban models focusing on what is presented as "good planning and design". The informal urban fabric is generally close to traditional urban fabric, following similar process. Despoite of poor conditions, the result is generally very diverse in urban design, taking into account the geomorphology of sites, the sensibility of the inhabitants regarding the type of housing. Several studies show how these urban fabric are resilient regarding climate change. This extraordinary dynamic based on local actors is producing half of the urban production worlwide without planners. We did several experiences in different rehabilitation projects on historical cities in Istanbul Golden Horn, Islamic Cairo, Tripoli-Libya Rationalist city and old medina, Algiers Casbah, Antananarivo Upper city, Samarkand-Uzbekistan and on heritage component of urban master plans of Damascus, Greater Mumbai, Casablanca, Al Ula-Saudi Arabia and Provins-France. We also did several experiences with informal areas in Cambodia, Morocco, India, Egypt. Based on these experiences we can provide some lessons for the Post-oil cities. Here the continental European pattern seems the most adapted for planning with density and mix use. But informality provide much more with the effective participation of the inhabitants to build their urban environment. The main challenge for planners of the XXIst century is "how to plan the informal": how to introduce the necessary planning tools to offer areas for participatory informal urban development. The idea is not to come back to traditional life, but to take elements and develop some thoughts from these patterns to adapt our planning framework to the contemporary life. In fact, the quality of space describe above are interesting basis for reshaping the urban standards, the vision of city concepts and legislations. With the present crisis of the economy that will push for frugality, the lost confidence from citizens to governments, and the energy revolution that will create new conditions for the urban metabolism, time is to rethink the concepts for planning.
