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| Org type | Specialized Agency | ||||
| Acronyms | UN-HABITAT | ||||
| Head | Executive Director of UN-HABITAT
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| Status | Active | ||||
| Established | 1978 | ||||
| Website | http://www.unhabitat.org | ||||
| Wikimedia Commons |
 United_Nations |
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| Portal |  United Nations Portal |
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The United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN–HABITAT) is the United Nations agency for human settlements. It was established in 1978 and has its headquarters at the UN office in Nairobi, Kenya. It is mandated by the United Nations General Assembly to promote socially and environmentally sustainable towns and cities with the goal of providing adequate shelter for all.
Its regional centres are called 'United Nations Centre for Human Settlements' (Habitat)/(UNCHS) 23 , and are situated at Nairobi, Rio de Janeiro, and Fukuoka 4.
Contents |
Overview
According to its 2006 Annual Report, sometime in the middle of 2007, the majority of people worldwide will be living in towns and cities, for the first time in history; this is referred to as the arrival of the "urban millennium". The year 2007 will also see the number of slum dwellers hit 1 billion. As regards future trends, it is estimated 93% of urban growth will occur in Asia and Africa, and to a lesser extent Latin America and the Caribbean. By 2050 over 6 billion people, two thirds of humanity, will be living in towns and cities.
The main documents outlining the mandate of the organization are the Vancouver Declaration on Human Settlements, the Habitat Agenda, the Istanbul Declaration on Human Settlements, the Declaration on Cities and Other Human Settlements in the New Millennium, and Resolution 56/206.
It has three regional offices, 'United Nations Centre for Human Settlements' at Nairobi, Rio de Janeiro, and Fukuoka.
Controversies
UN Habitat has supported the slum clearance project in Durban, South Africa which has been widely critized for being carried out in a violent and illegal manner and which has been protested by shack dwellers in marchers of as many as 20 000 people.[1]
UN-HABITAT in Pakistan
In the morning of October 8, 2005 Pakistan saw a deadly earthquake of 7.6 magnitude which caused 75,000 people dead and left more than that injured. The was the biggest shock pakistani nation ever suffered. In the meanwhile Govt. of Pakistan established an authority named ERRA to let people come on normal routine. Since then, UN-HABITAT has supported the Earthquake Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Authority (ERRA) to establish 13 Housing Reconstruction Centers (HRCs) in Azad Kashmir and North Western Frontier Province.
The main activities were:
- Door to Door Technical Assistance
- Identification of Model houses and Self Builders
- Identification of House Holds for Remedial Measures
- Hands on Training for the Artisan
- Capacity building of Artisans & Self builders.
- Information and Awareness campaign according to ERRA Guidelines.
- VRC Formation
Glossary
A
Absentee landlord
A property owner who does not reside in the property but rents it or leaves it vacant. Not owner-occupant.
Absolute Poverty
That poverty which is not defined in terms of a partile of an income distribution.
Accrediting body
Government or non-government body which conducts and administers a laboratory accreditation system and grants accreditation.
Action Plan
Proposed procedure and methods for achieving specific goal.
Adaptation
A change in the structure or habit of an organism which results in better adjustment to the environment.
Adequate shelter
Objective of the global strategy for shelter to the year 200: housing for all with adequate space, privacy, security, lighting and ventilation, basic infrastructure, servicers and facilities, and access to employment and transport, at reasonable cost.
Adjustable rate mortgage Mortgage with a variable interest rate linked to a standard financial index. Variation may affect size of monthly payments, term of loan, outstanding balance or all of theses.
Aerial survey
Identification and mapping of land-use patterns and other physical features from the air by photographic and electronic devices.Visual data about the Earth’s surface obtained by photographing it from an aircraft or satellite. See: Remote sensing.
Afforestation
Conversion of land into forest. See: Reforestation.
Age Distribution
The constitution of a population according to age group.
Agency
Body acting on behalf of another.
Agenda
A list of specific items of business to be discussed at a meeting, circulated in advance to those who are to attend.
Agglomeration
A coalescence of two or more populations which have outgrown their boundaries and fused to form one large, formless and unplanned population centre. See: conurbation.
Agrarian reform
Reform covering land, production and supporting services structure, public administration in rural areas, rural social welfare, etc Land reform is frequently an important aspect of an agrarian reform.
Agricultural cooperative
A voluntary mutual self-help organization of farmers for the purpose of obtaining credit, sharing equipment, selling farm products, minimizing operating costs and sharing profits.
Agricultural economics
Economics as it relates to the agrarian sector.
Agricultural marketing
Encompasses the system of managing a country’s supply of food and other essential commodities. Factors include adequacy of transport system, food storage and processing, means of payment and government regulation.
Agricultural wastes
By-products resulting from the processing of raw or industrially treated agricultural produce, useful as low-cost building materials.
Agriculture
Cultivation of the soil to produce plants useful to humanity, e.g., grains and seed crops, trees, fruits, vegetables, and the rearing of useful animals, e.g., for breeding and grazing of livestock, dairy animals, poultry, bees, for sale or personal use.
Agroindustry
Integration of agricultural production, processing and marketing under a single comprehensive management. Agriculture-based industry, e.g., grain, meat or milk processing, fishery and lumber products. Essential factor in rural settlement planning.
Agronomy
The application of the various soil and plant sciences to soil management and the raising of crops.
Aid programme
Assistance rendered by one country to another or by an organization Examples: development assistance, disaster relief, economic assistance, emergency relief, food aid, humanitarian assistance.
Aided self-help housing
Housing projects in which members of the community participate in the construction of their dwellings and community facilities with the support of government or community organizations in the form of financial assistance and technical know-how.
Air circulation
The natural motion of air by gravity, or forced motion by a fan, by which habitable space can be ventilated.
Air pollution
The contamination of air by visible and/ or injurious contaminants, including fumes, smog and smoke. Effects include impairment of health, reduction of visibility, injury to vegetation and corrosion of stone and metal.
Air quality standard
The measure of purity of air appropriate to a healthy environment. Prescribed level of pollutants in outside air that cannot legally be exceeded during a specified time in a specified place.
Air rights
The legal property right to use, control or occupy the air space over a designated property (including the right to ground support, but not ground use), or the right to prevent building in the air space.
Air vent
A perforated iron grille built across an air duct into a wall to admit air to a space for ventilation purposes.
Alienation of property
The voluntary transfer of conveyance of real property by one person to another.
All-weather access road
Physical access to a dwelling unit under any weather conditions, i.e., passable in heavy rain or snow, not subject to flooding or washing away. Essential attribute of adequate housing.
Alley
A public or private way providing secondary access to abutting property and not intended for through traffic. A narrow passageway between buildings.
Allocate (to)
To distribute according to a plan or a set of rules.
Allocation of funds
The assignment of funds for specific purposes, as for housing.
Allocation of land
Distribution of land according to a plan.
Allocation of resources
General techniques of scheduling activities and resources so that pre-determined constraints of resource availability are not exceeded.
Allottee
One to whom an allotment is made, who receives a rateable share under allotment.
Allowances (housing, family, etc.)
Cash payments given to families by the government for specific purposes such as housing assistance or food, clothing etc. May be based on the number of children in the family.
Alluvial plain
See: Flood plain.
Alternative sources of energy
New sources for the production of energy to ensure future energy needs, which minimize deleterious effects on the environment, e.g., methane fuel, which is produced from the decomposition of animal and human wastes, a type of biogas system.
Alternative technology
Technology is energy, urban transport, shelter etc. which involves conservation or use of minimum non-renewable resources, minimum interference with the environment, regional or local self-sufficiency, and consideration of individual needs/rights.
Amenities
Natural or constructed features which enhance material comfort or render a property more valuable, desirable, enjoyable, attractive or
Amortization (of debt)
The gradual reduction of a debt for land, buildings or goods by periodic payments sufficient to pay current.
Amortization (of loan)
The graduated and systematic apportioning of repayment or liquidation of a financial obligation or loan over a given term, including the interest.
Animation
The process of involving, moving to action, inspiring or inciting participation of individuals in the economic, social or political life of a community.
Apartment
A room or group of rooms in a building that is rented or leased to a tenant and constitutes a self-contained dwelling unit. See also: Flat.
Apartment building / Apartment house
A building of two or more housing units having their own entrances. See also: Blocks or flats
Appreciation (in value)
An increase in the market value o0f real property due to inflation, increased accessibility or increased demand, not to improvements to the property.
Apprenticeship programme
Training for the development of skilled Labour, particularly for self-help projects, in which most of the training is performed on the job under the direction of skilled personnel.
Appropriate technology / Appropriate small-scale technology
Adaptation of local resources to local needs, utilizing local Labour and energy sources and low- cost, Labour-intensive, small-scale processes and equipment. Characterized by simplicity, ease of maintenance, minimal operating costs.
Appropriation
A legislative grant of money for a specific purpose as part of an authorized bill establishing that purpose.
Aquaculture
Propagation and cultivation of aquatic animals and plant species, e.g., fish, oysters, seaweed, for profit or social benefit.
Aquaprivy
Wet sanitation system with direct discharge of excreta to a sealed water tank.
Aqueduct
A conduit or channel for conveying a large quantity of water over a long distance, structure supporting such a conduit.
Aquifer
A groundwater table. An underground bed or water-permeable stratum of rock, gravel or sand which collects water and serves as the source of wells, boreholes and springs.
Arable land
Land fit for ploughing or tilling.
Archaeology
The systematic recovery of material evidence remaining from human activity in past ages, and the detailed study of this evidence.
Architect
A specially trained, professionally qualified person duly registered and licensed to perform architectural services, e.g., design buildings, prepare construction documents and specifications, and monitor construction.
Architecture
The art and science of designing and building structures in accordance with principles determined by aesthetic and practical considerations. See also: Environmental design.
Area/sphere of influence Area / sphere of economic influence
The area served or influence by one or more central urban functions. A zone influenced by an urban agglomeration or an economic development centre see: catchment area.
Arid region
Any region of the world that supports relatively little or few species of plants and animals due to lack of water.
Arterial road
A major street or trunk road serving through traffic.
Assemb1y
The process of fitting parts together to make a whole.
Assembly line
A line of workers, each of whom performs a specialized task on a manufactured product as it passes on a conveyer belt.
Assembly line production
A large-scale, continuous system of mass production designed to ac standardization and low-cost per unit of a specific manufactured interchangeable parts or subassemblies brought together into a finished product.
Assets
Items of value (e.g., equity in real property, savings, bonds, stocks ~ forms of capital investment) owned by a person or corporation, whether encumbered or not. Current assets: cash and stock. Tangible fixed assets: machinery.
Attic
That part of a building immediately below and wholly or partly within the roof framing. The enclosed space between the roof and the ceiling below.
Audio-visual aids
Materials such as films, video recordings, filmstrips, tapes, recordings, posters and charts used for teaching and research purposes. Audio-visual presentation
Films and slides which present a discussion of a problem, the solution undertaken and evaluation of the solution, as well as recommendations for future action.
Authority (government)
Body, national or local, with power and right to enforce obedience. Automation
Use of automatic devices which perform production and assembly operations and which provide built-in inspection and control features. Us of a machine to replace human Labour, rendering skilled Labour obsolete and resulting in unemployment.
Automobile
Motorized Passenger vehicle with four wheels for urban or highway transport. Passenger car.
B
Background map
Map showing basic information concerning an area under study, for use in making or supporting planning decisions but not intended for official adoption or approval.
Bagasse (sugarcane wastes)
Fibrous residue resulting from the extraction of the juice from sugarcane.
Balance of payments
The net balance between total income and expenditure of a country in its business and trade relations with the rest of the world in a given period of time.
Bankruptcy
A procedure for discharging unpaid obligations through court action, generally involving seizure of all debtor property assets for distribution among creditors and discharge of the debtor from future liability for those debts.
Barrier-free design
Design suitable for the special needs of disabled persons, so that facilities and services such as buildings, gates, doorways, parking areas and transport permit access and mobility of handicapped individuals, especially those in wheelchairs. Basic needs
A human need with a biological referent, e.g., air, clean water, food, clothing and shelter. The human settlements context extends this to include requirements of productive life such as education and health care.
Basic planning law
An act passed by the legislature establishing the legal basis for planning functions It may provide for more detailed regulations, such As Guided bye-laws and ordinances.
Basic services
A group of simple inter-related services to meet the basic needs of the rural and urban poor of developing countries, especially in the fields of education, health and nutrition. Basic skills
Fundamentals expertise required for a particular task or occupation, which may include manual dexterity and/or mental aptitude.
Basic training
Industry related training given outside of the production activities of an enterprise and aimed at imparting the basic knowledge and skill required for a given group of occupations, such as those involved in the construction industry.
Benchmark
A measurement by which others are compared, e.g., in surveying land a fixed benchmark is needed to relate the levels and locations of other points to the benchmark.
Betterment
Increment in property value accruing to its Owner as a result of public improvement (e.g.,, a road, open space or other facility),
Bicycle path/track
Route, usually paved and separated from carriageway and sidewalks, Bikeway reserved exclusively, or during specially assigned periods, for bicycles,
Bid (document)
A formal offer by a contractor, generally in writing, to supply an indicated quantity of material and/or Labour, or to perform specified services for a specified price, pr to execute a complete project at a given rate or price,
Bid price (or contract)
The sum specified in a bid for which the bidder offers to perform the construction work,
Bidder
One who submits a bid to perform a certain contract for a specified price for a specified project.
Bilateral institutions
Institutions which provide assistance directly from one country to another.
Binder
Material used to bind other material, e.g., cement, gypsum, lime, pozzolana, resins.
Biogas
Gas produced by anoerobic digestion of organic materials.
Birth control
Any form of contraception or prevention of conception to limit the number of children a woman will bear, to lower the birth rate, e.g., condoms, diaphragms, intra-uterine devices, rhythm method, sterilization,. Vasectomy, pregnancy termination.
Birth rate
Ratio of the number of live births in a year to the mean population of that year.
Bituminous materials
Tar-like materials derived from petroleum or coal, naturally or by distillation.
Blasting operations
Means of demolishing building by dynamite explosion, utilizing the air pressure and vibration which are effects of the detonation, Faster and less costly than conventional methods of wrecking.
Blight
A condition of neglect and decay in a neighborhood due to lack of maintenance on the part of owners being either unwilling or unable to maintain or renovate the property.
Block of flats
A building containing separate apartments, each with its own entrance approached from a common entry, staircase or balcony and sharing other essential facilities and services, See also: Apartment building.
Block: City block
A unit of land bounded by streets. In a city or town where the street pattern is a grid, the blocks are rectangular.
Body
Legal or administrative entity with specific tasks and composition, e.g., an organization, authority, company, foundation,
Bond issue
Financial instrument issued by a public agency, repayable from anticipated revenues, issued to raise funds to meet specific development objectives. Such an instrument is generally tradeable in the financial capital market.
Borehole
A hole sunk into the ground to be used for obtaining soil information or designed to gain access to subsurface water. Boreholds can be several hundreds of metres deep.
Borrower
One who receives credit or a loan with the requirement of repaying.
Bottleneck (Traffic)
Obstruction of an even flow of movement of vehicles, an element of lowest capacity along a route.
Boundary
A line along which two regions are related and joined. An important organizing features because it is a linear break in continuity, e.g., a shore, railway or wall.
Brackish water
Mixture of fresh and salt water.
Breadth
Width, extent, largeness.
Breadwinner
One who provides support for himself or herself and any dependents.
Break-even point
The point in investment at which gross income equals fixed costs plus variable costs, or revenue equals expenses, showing neither profit nor loss. In real estate, the figure at which sales or production are sufficient.
Breakwater
A wall, mound or other structure constructed in the sea to break the force of Waves in order to protect a natural or artificial harbor or beach from the action of waves.
Bridge
A structure spanning a river or other depression or connecting two points which are at a height above ground and allowing free passage beneath.
Budget
An estimate of income and expenditures arising from a plan for attaining a specific objective within a defined period of time.
Budget deficit
An excess of expense over revenues.
Buffer strip/zone
A strip of land established between two incompatible land-use zones which serves to separate them and to diminish the adverse effects (e.g.’, noise, visual ugliness, smoke, fires, odours, poisonous gases, explosions) of one land use on the other.
Building
An independent, enclosed and permanent structure covered by a roof and enclosed with external walls.
Building and Loan Association
An organization that accumulates funds by subscriptions and savings from its members for on-lending by lending the money they need for building or purchasing their dwellings at preferential terms.
Business services
Includes banks, brokerage houses, insurance offices, professional services, secretarial and data-processing services.
Bustee (India)
A small village or a small group of mud huts set on a narrow lane.
Bye-laws: Planning bye-laws
The planning laws of local authorities. Supplementary laws relating to planning.
Bypass
A road or loop joined to a major road which takes traffic around a built-up area to facilitate movement of through traffic and minimizes congestion.
C
Cadastral map
Large scale map showing the boundaries of subdivisions of land and areas of individual tracts for purposes of recording ownership
Cadastral survey
An official inventory of boundaries, value and ownership of real estate made for title recording or transfer, to define the legal limitations of title, or for determining property taxes.
Cadastre
Public register in which the general survey, dimensions, elevations, value and ownership of real property are recorded.
Campus
The grounds of a school, college, university or other institution.
Canal
Constructed channel or waterway.
Capacity for self-help
The personal resources and abilities of the members of a group to help themselves.
Capital (finance)
Financial resources formed for ventures.
Capital assets
Assets of a permanent nature used in the production of income, e.g., land, buildings and machinery.
Capital base
The total of paid-up capital and reserves. Capital Budget
An annual budgetary statement of proposed public expenditures for facilities and infrastructure together with plans for financing them.
Capital city
The seat of government of a country, region, province or district, generally its chief city.
Capital equipment
Machinery and devices used in the production process of a company and considered a fixed asset. Machines that make machines.
Capital expenditure
Money spent on fixed assets, e.g., land, buildings, machinery and equipment, and on major public works, such as airports, bridges, highways, schools, as opposed to that spent for day-to-day operating expenses. See also: Capital outlay.
Capital gain
A gain realized on the sale of capital assets, i.e., sale price minus total costs. An appreciation in value over a period of time,
Capacity intensity/Capital-intensive
Of a process or production or economic activity. Having relatively greater plant and equipment costs than Labour costs. See: Labour Intensity.
Capital outlay
Direct expenditure for purchase of buildings, plant, equipment and services, required for promoting an enterprise. See: Capital expenditure.
Capital structure
The equity and debt securities of a business together with its surplus and reserves.
Capital cost of
The rate of interest paid on the capital employed in a business. Since capital will be usually drawn from a variety of sources it will be an average cost derived from weighting the cost of each source, including equity capital, proportionately.
Capital-intensive technology
Technology that requires plant and equipment input far in excess of Labour input.
Capitalized expenses
Expenses charged to a capital asset account which would appear on the current profit and loss statement.
Carpentry
Building trade which includes cutting, framing and joining the woodwork of a building.
Carriageway, roadway
That part of a road intended for vehicular traffic.
Case study
A detailed analysis of a portion of some aspect of a project. An account of events and ‘factors of interest relating to a particular sector.
Cash crop
A crop produced primarily for marketing
Cash flow
Net earnings of a venture, determined by deducting expenses from income, This should be positive in order to confer sustainability.
Cast-in-situ work
Work done at its permanent location, not precast. Refers to concrete, ‘concrete pile, formwork and reinforcement work,
Casual Labour
Employment at irregular and uncertain times, for a short time, for limited and temporary purpose, and without seniority rights or fringe benefits.
Catchment area
Drainage basin of a river system or collection area for precipitation. A low-lying area which accumulates and holds water from adjacent areas, or a hilly area from which water drains either naturally or artificially to a river or reservoir
Catchment area
Area from which institutions draw their active members and shopping or cultural centres draw their customers. Places from which people travel to use facilities in a given location. Surrounding areas falling under the influence of an urban centre.
Catchpit
A pit placed at the top of a slope to catch water before it flows down the slope.
CBD
See: Central business district.
Ceiling (of house) The overhead surface of a room.
Ceiling (upper limit)
The upper limit in the highest class in a series of data, e.g., prices, wages.
Census
Official enumeration of a country’s population. Population census include statistics relating to physical, social and economic conditions, age groups, ex or data relating to income, health, education, housing, agriculture or industry. Essential to policy planning.
Central business district
The business core of a city, the downtown area, with the major concentration of retail, office and service functions, which serves as the city’s principal magnet, with convergence of transport and communication lines and the highest value.
Centralization
The concentration of decision-making authority or power in a central Organization or government.
Certificate of compliance
Document issued by a designated authority attesting that plans meet applicable codes and regulations, or that work has been carried out according to the arrangements forming the basis of the administrative agreement for the building permit.
Cesspool
A pit, well or other underground container. Often perforated and brick-lined, connected to plumbing as a receptacle for sewage, that allows the effluent to seep into the surrounding soil but retains the solids of sludge.
Channel
Watercourse with a definite bed and banks which confine and conduct the normal continuous or intermittent flow of water.
Checklist
A series of questions, observations or instructions to be followed in particular circumstances. Used for example, in supervision ofsome self-help construction projects.
Children
Persons under 18 years of age.
Chippings
Crushed rock/stone aggregate, used, for example, for a road surface dressing.
Circuit Breaker.
A safety device, fuse or manual mechanical switch which is placed in an electric circuit, designed to open the circuit automatically on a pre-determined overload of current and prevent overheating due to overloading.
Circumferential highway (Ring Road)
A highway which encircles an urban area, enabling traffic to go partially or entirely around the are without passing through the town centre.
City.
A major population centre providing a range of urban services within the municipal boundaries and sometimes to the suburban fringe. Definition in terms of population varies widely among countries.
City planner
A professional participating in city planning.
City planning
The process of guiding and shaping the expansion of a community in a continuing, cumulative and organized manner and layout following a survey of requirements, with short- and long-range projections and provision for implementation and evaluation.
Civil engineering
The design and supervision of public works such as construction of roads and bridges, grading, drainage and sewerage, water supply and structural design and construction of buildings. Includes earthmoving, excavation, grading, environmental and sanitary engineering.
Classes of society
A concept which denotes different sections or divisions of society regard as a unit due to common occupational or other social characteristics.
Clay
A fine-grained earth with high plasticity when wet that can be moulded in moist conditions and become hard and weather-resistant when burned in a kiln. Used in building materials such as bricks and tiles as well as the pottery and ceramic industry.
Clay soil
A type of soil containing a large proportion of clay which expands when wet and shrinks when dry.
Clay tile
A burnt clay tile for roofs or floors.
Clear water
Water that does not contain sewage or storm water.
Clearance area
Site to be cleared by local authorities by demolition of buildings so that it can be rebuilt afresh under an urban renewal programme.
Clearance, clearing (of land)
In a wooded area, cutting down trees and removing their stumps in preparation for construction or pavement.
Client
Owner of a project. Person commissioning building work. Person or organization to whom or to which a contractor or firm supplies a service or product.
Climatic conditions
See: Geographic and climatic conditions.
Climatology
The meteorological study of climate and of the practical effects of climatic change on the environment.
Cluster blocks
Grouping or clustering of housing units in a high-density housing project with open areas such as parks, green belts and common spaces.
Cluster development
Planning device which permits development of a residential area to prescribed density by grouping houses in close proximity around cul-de-sacs or courts in order to take advantage of site resources and provide green spaces and a sense of community.
Coastal area
See: Littoral.
Coastal zone management
Protection, development and management of land and water resources of estuarine and coastal zones.
Coating
Thin film of material applied to the surface of other materials as a corrosion preventive, colour paint or waterproofing.
Collateral
Any marketable (movable or immovable) property which a borrower pledges as security for a mortgage or loan. Real or personal property or securities provided by a borrower to a lender to guarantee repayment of a loan.
Collective housing
Housing in which some facilities, e.g. kitchens and bathrooms, are shared by a group of households.
Commerce
All economic activities that can be interpreted in terms of money transactions.
Commercial building
Structure used for the manufacture, sale, resale, processing, displaying, handling, storing or distribution of goods or used for business or professional services.
Commercial facilities
Shops, retail establishments and other commercial elements conceived with a view to satisfying the shopping needs of a given population.
Commercial value
Market value.
Commercial zone
A physical area generally within an urban settlement in which commercial activities are carried on, such as a shopping centre, a market place or a high density of office buildings.
Commodity-producing sector
A geographical area from which a particular type of raw material or primary product is available.
Communal facilities
Those elements of collective housing which are shared by a group of households, e.g., kitchens, bathrooms, playgrounds, meeting rooms, elevators, central heating.
Communal housing.
See: Collective housing.
Communal latrine
Public toilets or toilet facilities shared by several households.
Communal tap
See: Public tap.
Communicable disease
Management of infectious diseases through immunization control programmes, water and sewage treatment, hygiene and nutrition education.
Communicable diseases
Infectious diseases transmitted from one source to another either directly or via a vector.
Communication
The transfer of information, ideas, facts, wishes, attitudes or emotions from one person to another, or from source to a receiver, primarily through symbols. The process involves encoding, transmission, decoding, use of and reaction to a message.
Communications media
Means of transmission of information such as books, newspapers, radio, television, sound recordings, video recordings, exhibitions, telecommunications.
Communications network
System for diffusing news and knowledge.
Community
A concentrated, identifiable group of people who live and work in close proximity and form a self-conscious social unit, having a sense of common identity and common interests, satisfying daily needs through a system of interdependent relationships.
Community centre
A neighbourhood building owned and operated by a public or non-profit agency for social, cultural, educational and recreational activities and as a facility for organizing community participation in the neighbourhood planning process.
Community development
Process by which residents develop awareness of and assume responsibility for community problems and mobilize their physical, social, human, financial and other resources toward the improvement of their community with their active participation.
Community development
A professional who assists a community to become receptive to development officer and to utilize its own resources for self-help projects, and who serves as a link between the community and the technical and professional resources available to its members.
Community facilities
Grounds, buildings, equipment and services, including social halls, playgrounds, and parks, to provide for the social, cultural and recreational needs of the people within a community.
Community facilities
Facilities used in common by a number of people, often publicly owned, e.g., streets, schools, parks, libraries, police and fire protection, or operated by non-profit agencies such as neighbourhood centres.
Community organization
The functional organization of a community, i.e., bringing together all agencies to plan and coordinate efforts to provide for residents’ welfare through social, political, economic and physical improvement within the community.
Community participation
The active role of a local community in planning and implementation of community development and improvement programmes beneficial to the whole group. The voluntary involvement of people in making and implementing all decisions directly affecting their lives. The activities undertaken by low-income households, with or without outside assistance, to improve their living conditions.
Community planning
Planning at neighbourhood level with special attention to provision of facilities for improvement of the daily life of residents, Most directly involves public participation and special attention to needs of women, children, the elderly and handicapped.
Commute, commuting
Daily travel between place of residence in one settlement and place of employment in another. See: Rush hour.
Commuter
One who regularly travels some distance back and forth between place of residence in one settlement and place of employment in another. An urban phenomenon linking residential suburbs to city business centres.
Company housing
Housing provided by employers to their employees.
Company village
A village or community owned by a company and inhabited by its employees.
Compensation
Remuneration or reward paid in exchange for services.
Compensation
Reimbursement paid as recompense for loss or damage.
Compensation (for land)
Payment of fair market price to an owner of land or buildings when a government body takes the property for a public purpose or when the value is depreciated by the effect of a public action. See: Compulsory purchase, Eminent domain, Expropriation.
Competition
A contest, held in lieu of placing a direct commission with a planner or architect, which offers the client the advantage of drawing on a wider range of professional skills and expertise than would otherwise be accessible to him/her.
Competitive bidding
Bids which are submitted as the result of public notice or advertising for an intended action.
Completion certificate
Written certification indicating that a construction project is complete and meets contract requirements.
Composting
A controlled process of decomposition of organic wastes, which may include excreta, to produce soil fertilizer.
Composting latrine
Dry sanitation system using composting principle.
Comprehensive plan
See: Master plan
Comprehensive planning
Formal approach to urban and land-use planning that is intersectoral, acknowledges all aspects of development (physical, social and economic), utilizes interdisciplinary expertise and is carried out on a national, regional or local level.
Compulsory purchase
Official order for acquisition or expropriation of private property for public use or benefit, upon payment of fair and just compensation. See: Compensation, Expropriation, Eminent domain.
Computer
An automatic electronic device capable of high-speed calculation of complex and logical operations, manipulation or transformation of data using information and instructions it receives, stores and is able to retrieve, to obtain a desired output.
Computer application Software
A computer program used for a particular kind of work such as word processing or database management.
Computer printout
Processed data or output of a computer issued in printed form.
Computer software
Computer programs, procedures, rules and any associated documentation concerned with the operations of a data-processing system. Data that instruct a computer to perform assigned tasks. Art of instructions to computer, issued in a programming language that the computer understands, that are used by the computer to perform assigned tasks.
Concentrated settlement
A dense settlement pattern in a relatively limited area.
Concentration
The density pattern of population settlement as an outcome of a process in which individuals tend to settle in increasing numbers in a specific area.
Concentric zones
Areas of successive outward expansion of a settlement.
Conceptual design
The gathering of owner-supplied programme information and the assembling of base map and site information during visits to the site and conferences with the owner.
Concerted action
An action that has been planned, arranged adjusted, agreed upon and settled between parties acting together by mutual agreement pursuant to some design or scheme.
Concrete
A mixture of cement, sand and gravel to which water is added, which reacts chemically by a process called hydration and binds the sand and gravel into a solid mass.
Concrete mixer
A machine with a rotating drum to which all raw materials in concrete mix proportions are introduced and then discharged after proper mixing, by tilting the drum to allow the mix to pour out.
Condemned dwelling
Property legally declared unfit for use or occupancy because it does not meet code requirements and should be upgraded, boarded up or demolished. Condemned property may be acquired for public use by declaration of eminent domain.
Conditional land use
Land use tentatively approved by a zoning bye-law provided applicant satisfied stated standards, or permitted after review of the planning authority and subject to specified conditions and limitations.
Condominium
A multi-family dwelling in which each unit is individually owned but the land and common areas and facilities are owned and maintained by all owners on a pro-rated share basis.
Confiscation
The seizure of private land or buildings by government without compensation to the owner, for a public purpose or to halt abuses connected with the existing land use.
Congestion
Highly concentrated use of space, overcrowding with people, vehicles and buildings, thus overloading public services, impeding movement and threatening health and safety.
Connection (water, electricity)
See: House connection.
Consciousness raising/To raise consciousness
Making people aware of social, political and economic realities as a prerequisite for social and political action. See: Public awareness.
Conservancy
Term used in some countries, e.g., India and Sri Lanka, to mean sanitation other than sewerage, i.e., night-soil collection.
Conservation
Planned use and management of natural and constructed resources. Preservation of buildings in a safe and sound state. Prevention of further deterioration in a declining area through enforcement of codes and maintenance of ageing structures.
Conservation area
An area containing a group of buildings of special architectural or historical significance, as designated by the local authority, which is protected against development or redevelopment detrimental to its historic value.
Conservation of resources
Wise use and management of all resources, both natural and artificial, in such manner as to prevent their unnecessary waste, through careful planning to meet the long-term needs of humanity.
Construction
Creation, renovation, repair of structures, involving architecture, engineering, planning and management. All on-site work done in buildings, e.g., excavation, erection, assembly of equipment, finishing.
Construction/building industry
Planning, management, finance and skills related to construction of buildings. See also: Construction industry.
Construction equipment
Machinery necessary in the construction industry, e.g., cranes, earthmoving equipment, concrete mixers.
Consultant
An outside expert engaged on a temporary basis by a government or private organization to provide specialized technical advice or services. For a construction project, professional consulting services complement the architect or engineer’s services.
Consulting engineer
One qualified and authorized by regulatory authorities to design and supervise engineering works.
Contingency allocation
Amount set aside to cover unforeseen items during the execution of a project.
Contingency allowance
Amount designated to cover unforeseen items during the execution of a project, including changes in the work plan.
Contract
Legally binding written agreement between individuals, enterprises or a government department or agency and the successful bidder or contracting organization, covering the performance of work, provision of labour and materials and payment to be made,
Contract price
The selling price of a property, less any mortgage to be assumed, plus the excess of liens collected in addition to seller’s adjusted basis at time of sale.
Contribution pledged
Commitment to pay a given amount to a common fund for a specific purpose.
Controlled market
Market in which there are government-established measures to regulate prices in order to create more stable market conditions and prevent inflation.
Controlling interest
A majority stock ownership in a corporation held by an individual or group which gives control over policy.
Conurbation
A complex settlement system, such as a megalopolis, or a continuous network of cities and towns that has developed spontaneously by the agglomeration of individual towns or urban centres.
Conventional finance
Financing within the framework of the banking system.
Conventional housing
Housing constructed according to traditional designs, methods and materials for building in a given area.
Conventional source of energy
Fuels such as wood, coal, oil, gas.
Cooperative apartment
A multiple dwelling complex in which each owner buys shares in the complex corporation that owns the building in order to have an interest in the entire complex and to lease, not own, an apartment.
Cooperative housing
Housing built operated or managed by non-governmental organizations for the purpose of providing non-profit housing. A type of housing development owned jointly by all its residents, who are mutually responsible for its maintenance and operation.
Core dwelling
The central or basic part of a dwelling, i.e., a sanitary unit plus at least one room, around and above which further improvements can be added by the owner and expanded as earnings permit or family size requires.
Core housing
Housing unit consisting of only the basic structure, i.e., roof and floor, or a basic habitable room with provision for extension of this core by the occupants as their needs and means expand.
Cork
A light, thick, porous material harvested from the outer bark of the cork oak tree, used for sound insulation and flooring.
Corrective maintenance
Activities in response to breakdowns or detected defects.
Corridor plan
A plan for linear urban expansion along transport corridors which are usually connected to other urban centres.
Cost
Amount which must be paid for property, goods or services, e.g., capital costs, construction costs, equipment costs, labour costs, production costs, overhead costs, distribution costs, as well as social costs.
Cost analysis
An analytical technique involving a monetary assessment of total costs and revenues for a project, with the object of identifying and quantifying as many tangible costs and benefits as possible.
Cost-benefit analysis
An analytic method whereby the actual and hidden costs of a proposed project are measured against the benefits to be received.
Cost control
The process of controlling the cost of a project within a predetermined sum throughout its various stages from inception to completion.
Cost-effective
Economical in terms of tangible benefits produced by money spent, i.e., producing the desired results at the least cost.
Cost effectiveness
Determination of economies effected in terms of tangible benefits produced for the moneys spent.
Cost of living
Actual expenditure for goods and services necessary to maintain a current standard of living for individuals or families. Relationship of the average cost of consumer goods and services to the national level of individual family income.
Cost of living index
Benchmark of current prices paid by consumers for goods and services with the cost of the same in the base year, used as a measure of inflation and purchasing power.
Cost overrun
The amount of money expended over and above budgeted costs for any item of a project, e.g., labour, interest, materials, land.
Cost planning
A method of keeping the cost of a project within a predetermined sum during the design process.
Cottage industry
System of employment in which a craftsperson, aided by family members, works at home, either on own account or on behalf of entrepreneurs who deliver raw materials and collect finished goods. Effective solution to unemployment in rural areas.
Cotton stalks
Agricultural Wastes which may be used for low-cost building materials.
Counter-magnet
Growth area intended to provide an alternative attractive power to a major urban centre to help control its growth.
Counterpart funds
Funds set up by a country receiving development assistance, in local currency and generally expected to match assistance received, either in cash or in kind.
Counterpart personnel
Local personnel of a country attached to a technical assistance project who have the same role as, and complement the work of, international experts.
Country planning
See: National planning.
Countryside
Area outside cities and towns. A rural district or region. A tract or expanse of land.
Courtyard
An open area adjacent to or within a house or building which might be enclosed and might contain accessory structures.
Craftsperson
Person who practices an artisanal trade, e.g., pottery, weaving, woodwork, to a high level of skill, often alone, or with one or two assistant/apprentices. Skilled worker. Artisan.
Crane
Mobile or fixed in-place (tower-crane)’ machines equipped with hoists or pulleys to lift and move material.
Credit
A loan to be repaid with interest, on an agreed basis and on terms specified by the lender.
Creditworthiness.
Evaluation of a potential borrower made by a lender on the borrower’s ability to repay a loan. Generally, the assessment is based on collateral available and other criteria of loan history.
Crime prevention
Prevention methodologies such as police, court systems, penal institutions, employed to deter behavior that violates the criminal or penal law.
Cropland
Arable land and land under permanent crops, i e, land cultivated with crops which occupy the land for a long period of time.
Cross-section
A sampling considered a true representation of the population.
Crowding
Excessive density of people within a single shelter or groups of people within the urban environment, creating adverse conditions of physical and mental health.
Cul-de-sac
A dead-end street, lane or alley with an enlarged, somewhat circular area for turning round. Feature of suburban development planning because of noise protection and safety from through traffic.
Cultivated land
Land prepared and used for raising crops.
Cultural centre
Building placed at the disposal of the community with a view to enhancing those activities which allow its members to have access to culture.
Cultural change
Modification in the civilization of a people, i.e., in the built environment, social institutions, folkways and mores, occurring inadvertently or by design.
Cultural facilities
Establishments of historic, artistic or educational interest not operated commercially, e.g., libraries, museums, art galleries, exhibition halls, fair grounds, concert halls, planetariums, aquariums, and historic sites and monuments.
Cultural heritage
A society’s social, artistic and intellectual inheritance from the past. Existing cultural assets, natural or constructed, such as historic and architectural landmarks, monuments, scenic assets, unique biological, concentrations etc.
Cultural heritage protection
Measures utilized to secure and/or protect existing cultural assets, natural or constructed, such as historic and architectural landmarks, monuments, scenic assets, unique biological concentrations etc.
Culture
The social heritage of a community, including material artifacts, aesthetic perceptions, values, beliefs, accomplishments and behavior patterns created within that social context and transmitted from one generation to the next.
Culvert
A pipe, conduit or similar passageway under a road, sidewalk or railway built of masonry, brickwork or concrete, to provide free flow of water or drainage. A sewer.
Culvert
Structure below roadway surface with an opening span of less than six metres.
Curb
The stone or concrete border marking the outer edge of a roadway or paved area.
Current, In progress
Belonging to the present time.
Custom, Tradition
A form of social behavior well established in a society, usually having persisted for a long time and become traditional, legitimate and formally recognized.
D
Dam
A barrier constructed across a waterway to control the flow or raise the level of water for the purpose of irrigation or electricity generation.
Damage
Harm causing loss in value or usefulness.
Data storage, processing and retrieval
The steps from data collection to production: assembly, classification, recording, calculating, analysis and reporting of information.
Data bank
Collection of related information files available under a multiplicity of aspects through computers.
Day care centre
An educational or custodial facility that provides care and supervision for infants and pre-school children while their parents are at work. A social service for single-parent or two-working-parent families.
Day labourer/worker
An unskilled worker who is hired and paid by the day.
Day nursery
See: Day care centre.
Dead bolt
A security device designed to increase burglar-resistance of exterior doors.The end of a horizontal dead bolt fits snugly into the jamb or may drop vertically, and can be locked and unlocked only with a key.
Dead end Street
A street or passage with a single common ingress and egress. See also: Cul-de-sac.
Debenture
A bond not secured by specific property, backed only by the assets and credit of the issuing organization.
Debris
Wreckage, scattered fragments, rubbish, ruins, accumulation of rock fragments.
Debureaucratization
Transfer of administrative, implementing, decision-making, management and functions and resources to voluntary and/or private institutions.
Decay (of a structure or of a neighbourhood)
Deterioration due to lack of maintenance.
Decentralization
Transfer of legislative, administrative or juridical powers from a central authority to regional or local authorities. Spontaneous or planned movement of people or industries from an urban centre to outlying areas or secondary centres. See also: Deconcentration, Delegation, Devaluation, Debureaucratization.
Decentralized planning
Planning in which decisions related to the general plan are made at lower administrative levels.
Decision-making
The logical procedures for evaluating options and choosing among them, especially regarding policies in government or business.
Deconcentrated settlement
A settlement characterized by a markedly hierarchical pattern around some central place. It may be the result of either planned or spontaneous movements of the population.
Deconcentration (administration)
Transfer of administrative and implementing responsibilities from central authority to lower level of government.
Deconcentration (population)
A decrease in the proportion of people residing near the centre of a city and the movement of residences to the outskirts of a metropolitan area.
Decrepit, Falling to pieces
Broken down by long use or weakened due to age.
Deferred payment
A type of mortgage which allows the payment of principal or interest to be deferred payment postponed to an agreed future date.
Deforestation
Cutting down and clearing away of trees, a process which has dire effects on fragile ecosystems, as in high mountain areas, islands and semi- arid regions, causing erosion, landslides and decreased agricultural productivity.
Deforested land
Land stripped of its forests.
Degradation
A diminution of character, quality or estimation. A wearing down by erosion.
Degree of urbanization
The proportion of the total population inhabiting areas classified as urban. Varies from country to country as designation of urban area varies.
Delegation (administration)
Transfer of administrative, decision-making and implementing responsibilities from higher to lower level of government.
Demarcation
Marking off of limits or boundaries on the ground or on a map.
Demographic forecasting
See: Population forecast.
Demography
Records of births, deaths and marriages, population distribution and size, The study of human population statistics and characteristics, including growth trends, household composition, and social data (age, race, ethnic background, etc.).
Density limit
Restriction on the number of dwelling units permitted in a given area.
Density of development
The portion of a development area occupied by structures in relation to the area occupied by large-scale open spaces.
Density of population
The number of persons per unit of land area, including the area covered by housing sites, local public facilities and the network of distributor roads and pedestrian paths.
Density of services
Spatial frequency of service units or outlets provided by a given system.
Dependent
A person who derives his or her main support from another who has an obligation to provide support.
Dependent population
The non-working portion of the population, including the young, the elderly, the disabled and the unemployed, who must be supported by other individuals, by the government or by charitable institutions.
Depletion
Exhaustion of supply.
Depopulation
Reduction of the number of inhabitants of an area, usually as the result of one or more economic, social, environmental or government policy measures.
Deposit point/receptacle for recyclable materials
Location to which people may return such items as newspapers, bottles, aluminium cans, etc., for recycling.
Depreciation
Loss of market value of real property resulting from age, use, physical deterioration, functional and economic obsolescence, or any other cause.
Derelict land
An area or region characterized by economic stagnation, a relative lack of industry and infrastructure, and a low growth rate, in which a substantial proportion of the population is unemployed, underemployed or lives at or near subsistence level.
Depressed area
Land so damaged by industrial or other development as to be incapable of beneficial use without treatment. Vacant land.
Desalination
The process of removing salts and other chemicals from seawater for human, industrial and agricultural use.
Desertification
The spread or pulling outward of deserts due to social and economic patterns incompatible with the region's environmental limitations. Formerly arable and settled land becomes degraded and inhospitable to human life.
Design
A plan, drawing, elevation, section or other graphic representation made as a guide or pattern for conceptualization and construction of buildings, neighbourhoods or cities. Includes architectural and structural detail.
Designer
Professional who prepares the design plan and specifications for a building project.
Detached house
A single-family dwelling that stands apart from others, with walls and roof independent of any other building. Distinguished from apartment, row house, duplex or attached dwelling.
Develop.
To develop a building site to construct houses or other buildings on land, and provide necessary infrastructure.
Developed (urban) land
Land that has been equipped with basic infrastructural networks or other additions or improvements to enhance its value or usefulness.
Developed countries
Countries with a high level of industrialization and economic well-being.
Developer
A person or company who develops real estate through improvement and land subdivision.
Developer
An investor or company that conceives of a housing project, including its infrastructure, determines its conceptual use, organizes the design and construction services required for its completion and arranges the finance and sale of it.
Development
An individual or company engaged in the development and improvement of land for construction purposes, as well as the construction of buildings and infrastructure on that land.
Developing countries
Countries identified by the United Nations on the basis of seven indicators, including per capita gross domestic product, energy consumption and annual income, literacy rate, and life expectancy at birth. More agricultural than industrial economy.
Development aid
Aid given in support or furtherance of development includes fiscal, technical and training aspects of development assistance as well as equipment.
Development area
An area suffering from severe unemployment to which government guides new industry to relieve congested areas and provide a more balanced economy with the country
Development assistance
Assistance to developing countries for long-term development purposes.
Development bank
A financial institution set up specifically for mobilizing and channelling medium- and long-term capital into the private sector of a country's economy and development.
Development planning
In developing countries a form of economic planning for public-sector investments in light of available resources and social needs. Implementation requires support of government, participation of decision-makers and authority granted to planners.
Development programme
List of social, economic and physical objectives to be accomplished by means of development planning, together with the proposed schedule of tasks necessary to implement the programme.
Devolution
Transfer of administrative, implementing and decision-making management and responsibilities and resources from higher to lower levels of government.
Dilapidated housing
Housing that has fallen into ruin or decay through neglect or misuse, too run-down to provide safe or adequate shelter, or so deteriorated that major repairs would be required to restore it to usable condition.
Dimensional standards
Standards that relate to the height of buildings, width of roads, streets or paths, and width of green strips on highways.
Directory
An alphabetical or classified list of names, addresses and other information about organizations or other groups of professionals, including affiliations, officers, functions and other data.
Disabled
Person who has a physical impairment or defect which reduces the functional ability to lead a fruitful daily life and may cause temporary or permanent incapacity for work. See also: Handicapped.
Disadvantaged
Underprivileged. Lacking what is considered essential for a decent standard of living.
Disaster
Any natural or man-made event causing much suffering, distress or loss, e.g., earthquake, drought, flood, fire, hurricane, tornado, tidal wave, explosion, epidemic.
Disaster mitigation
Precautionary measures to protect human life and property against natural calamities by means of legislation, regulatory measures and long-range programmes, principally in the fields of physical and urban planning, public works and construction.
Disaster preparedness
A state of readiness to cope with disasters by education of the population and organization for disaster situations, including preparation of operational plans, training of relief groups, stockpiling of supplies and earmarking of the necessary funds.
Disaster prevention
See: Disaster mitigation.
Disaster-prone areas
Areas in which there are natural phenomena readily susceptible to catastrophes, such as a high-density urban settlement on an earthquake fault line or a heavily settled floodplain area in which there is a history of poor land-management practices.
Disaster relief
An organized form of emergency measures which provides relief to victims, including distribution of food, supplies and equipment and provision of medical care, shelter, casualty and survivor information, and eventually rehabilitation.
Disbursement
Payment made in settlement of a debt or account payable.
Dispersal of population
Outward movement of people from inner areas to new towns or smaller settlements detached and at some distance from the built-up continuum.
Dispersed settlements
Scattered, isolated groups of houses often in rural areas.
Disposable income
Personal income available for use - a measure of the propensity to expend, consume or save.
District
A specific portion of a municipal area having its own special character. An area defined for a certain purpose, e.g., a business district, postal district, school district, residential district, industrial district.
District heating
Supply of heat or hot water to buildings, houses, apartment buildings, offices and industrial premises in an urban area by the conducting of steam or hot water from a central source.
Ditch
A long, narrow excavation or trench used as a boundary line or for draining wet land, irrigation or protection.
Documentation
The collecting, organization, storage, retrieval, analysis and dissemination of documents or information recorded in documents.
Domestic labour
Housework, usually performed by women and without remuneration.
Domestic wastes
Household waste material, excluding excreta.
Domestic wastewater
Effluent from household uses. May include excreta.
Donation
Voluntary contribution or grant for which no valuable consideration is given in return.
Door
A movable barrier, hinged, sliding or rotating, that serves to close an entrance to a building or room. Any means of entrance or exit.
Dormitory community
A suburban residential area or separate community often on the outskirts of a large city, from which a high percentage of residents travel to work in that city.
Down payment
Part of price paid at purchase but not financed by loan.
Downtown
The central area of activity in a city or town. See: Central business district (CBD).
Downtown
The geographical centre or lower part of a city or town. See: Town centre.
Draft: To draft a report
To prepare a tentative, rough copy of a document for the purpose of discussion and revision before issuance of the final version.
Draft
Preliminary draft A sketch, plan, drawing or design for a project. Early stage of preparation of the design and planning of a project.
Drain
Any pipe which carries wastewater. A trench or ditch to convey water from wet land for the purpose of drying it. An easement or servitude for draining water.
Drain pipe
Pipe used for draining wastewater.
Drainage
Removal of excess surface water (run-off) from land, roads and structures by a system of natural or artificial drains to prevent or alleviate flooding and preserve a supply of water.
Drainage basin
Land area from which surface run-off drains into a river and its tributaries.
Drawing board
Board on which drawing paper is placed to make drawings.
Drinking water
Potable water, pure enough for human consumption, available from a fountain, well, water-supply network or other safe source within a reasonable distance from living accommodations.
Dry masonry
Masonry in which stones, bricks or blocks are built up without use of mortar.
Dry rot
A decayed state of wood.
Duct (heating duct)
A metal pipe-like passageway for distributing warm air from the heating plant to rooms, outlets and other spaces.
Dump truck
A truck which dumps its load when its rear portion is tilted back by elevating the front, causing material to slide out the back.
Durable goods
Consumer goods which yield services or utility over a long period of time, purchased for use over a long period. Consumer's equivalent of a fixed asset, e.g., refrigerator, washing machine.
Dwelling
A room, suite or rooms, house, building or portion of a building intended exclusively for residential occupancy by one family.
Dwelling
A structure or portion thereof used exclusively for human habitation. A self-contained residential unit for one family with its own access from a public place.
Dwelling unit
A residential unit, either within a multi-unit structure or an independent construction, designed, occupied or intended for occupation by a single household.
Dyke
Earth embankment or dam constructed to confine water or prevent flooding. Low wall of earth or stone to enclose land.
E
Earmark: To earmark, to set aside, Earmarked
To allocate for a specific purpose. Allocated for a specific purpose.
Earning power
The earnings an asset is expected to return at current price level, volume and profitability.
Earnings
Money earned as a return for human effort.
Earth / dirt road
Engineered road with surface of soil or gravel.
Earthquake
A shaking or movement of a part of the Earth's surface caused by a sudden rupture inside the Earth's crust.
Earthquake engineering
Design and construction of structures in earthquake-prone areas emphasizing the use of bracing or other measures to minimize destruction and loss of life.
Earthquake-resistant construction
Building design and construction engineered to withstand earthquakes and thus to minimize destruction and loss of life.
Earthworks
Action relating to excavation, embankment, moving, piling up, shaping or compacting of earth in construction projects.
Easement
The right given an individual or public authority to make limited use of another's property, as the right to install or repair utility lines or to gain access to one's own land by passing through that of a neighbour.
Eaves
The projecting lower edges of a pitched roof overhanging the wall of a building.
Ecodevelopment
A form of planned growth that optimizes the use of locally-available resources within the constraints of the local environment. Economically sound development.
Ecology
The study of interrelationships of living organisms to one another and to their environment. Destruction of any one element of these complex interrelationships can cause environmental deterioration and adversely affect human settlements.
Economic activity
Generation and distribution of goods and services through activity of the three sectors of the economy: (a) primary: exploitation of natural resources; (b) secondary: manufacturing and the construction industry; (c) tertiary: commerce and tourism.
Economic conditions
The economic situation in an area in terms of equilibrium, growth or recession at a given time.
Economic cooperation
Cooperative measures in banking, trade, industry, etc., between and among countries.
Economic growth
An increase in the capacity of a country to produce goods and services, coupled with an increase in production of these goods and services. Thus an increase in per capita real income.
Economic indicators
A set of economic factors, e.g., wages, prices, profits, investment, unemployment, which, taken together, are used in measuring the economy's tendency to cyclical movement.
Economic planning
The activity of directing the development of the national economy on the basis of a balanced and coordinated plan relating to all sectors of the economy, e.g., agriculture, labour, industry, transport, and to territorial and administrative units.
Economic recovery
An increase in business activity after a recession.
Economic rent
The justifiable rent for a property, sufficient to cover the cost of total expenditures incurred by an owner, including cost of land, buildings, mortgage payments, repairs, maintenance, depreciation, utilities and services, and a reasonable profit.
Economics
The science that deals with the production, distribution and consumption of wealth and goods and the services which supply the needs of humanity. Its broad issues are price theory (microeconomics) and income theory (macroeconomics).
Economies of location
Factors that make a location attractive to a business or industry, such as proximity to markets, raw materials, ancillary services, cheap power or a trained labour force.
Economies of scale
Reduction of unit production costs resulting from an increase in production capacity.
Economy
Production, distribution and consumption of wealth, assets and services. The economic structure of a country.
Ecosystem
The system or interdependent complex of plant and animal populations within a particular geographic context, e.g., an aquarium, a parcel of land, an ocean, the biosphere.
Ecosystem mapping
The drawing of maps which locate different kinds of plant cover in a geographic area.
Education
The process of imparting or acquiring knowledge or skills within an organized framework from teacher to student, from the earliest years to advanced professional training.
Education: Formal education
Systematic instruction in schools or other educational facilities. Process of developing the potential and personality of an individual in institutions of learning.
Education: Higher education
Schools following secondary education: universities, colleges or specialized professional schools, e.g., medical, legal, architectural schools.
Education: Informal education / non-formal education
Knowledge, skills and attitudes acquired through experience and contact with other people. Activities or programmes organized outside the framework of the established educational system but directed to definite educational objectives.
Education: Pre-school education
Instruction of children under the age entry into primary education.
Education: Primary education
The first academic instruction, for children from the age of five to eleven years.
Education: Secondary education
Instruction of youth 12 to 18 years of age, whether as preparation for college or university studies or as the conclusion of formal education.
Education: Specialized education
Specialized education for specific careers, e.g., nursing, drafting, agronomy, and generally directed to a particular career goal rather than toward a broad college education. See also: Vocational training.
Educational facilities
Buildings and equipment used to satisfy teaching needs for all levels of education, including classrooms, laboratories, workshops.
Educational institutions
Schools, training centres, colleges and universities.
Educational needs
Overall national education requirements.
Effective date
The specified date on which an agreement goes into effect.
Effluent
A waste liquid discharge from an industrial or treatment process in its natural state or partially or completely treated and discharged into the environment.
Ekistics
The science of human settlements, devoted to study of all types of settlement from the isolated and nomadic hut to the organized farmstead, village, small town, city, metropolis, megalopolis and future major urban systems.
Elderly, Aged
Persons past late-middle age, usually not part of the economically-active population.
Electric power
The production and use of electricity for purposes of power and illumination in human settlements.
Electric power distribution
The transmission of electric power to an area by means of lines, transformers, networks, etc.
Electric power generation
Methods of producing electric power, e.g., thermal, hydro and nuclear.
Electrical engineering
The design of electric power distribution and lighting systems, including drawings and specifications for incorporation into the building design.
Electricity
Energy carrier generated by electrical power stations which produces light and heat.
Electricity grid / Network
Network consisting of overhead and underground conductors which link power stations to substations and ultimately to the consumers. Grid is normally high voltage and network low voltage. Electrification
The process of bringing electric power and illumination to an area in which it has not been previously available.
Elevator / Lift
A movable platform or cage and its hoisting machinery, used for carrying people and goods from one storey to another within a building.
Embankment
A bank of earth to hold back water. An elevated constructed or natural deposit of soil, rock or other materials.
Embankment
Artificial mound of earth or stone, usually constructed of filled-in material, used to carry railways and highways across low spots or to support a roadbed.
Emergency Maintenance
Maintenance activities in response to serious defects posing potential or imminent danger.
Emergency shelter
Shelter to accommodate homeless families or refugees after major disasters such as floods, earthquakes or war.
Eminent domain
The right of a government to acquire private property for public use, provided that the owner is fairly compensated. See: Condemnation, Compensation, Compulsory purchase, Expropriation.
Emission standards
Legal document specifying the maximum amount of a pollutant permitted to be discharged from a single source.
Employment
Any remunerative work, whether for an employer or for oneself. Recruitment and utilization of available labour.
Employment generation
The creation or expansion of employment opportunities. May result in revitalization of depressed areas with low income levels and high unemployment rates.
Employment information
The means by which employment opportunities are communicated to the economically active population.
Enabling legislation
Act, statute or law authorizing an undertaking or project. e.g., a statute empowering a housing authority to build, manage and finance public housing.
Enabling strategy
Plan of action for shelter construction which involves utilization of locally available resources and promotion of increased activity by all relevant parties.
Encroachment
Trespassing. Unauthorized extension of a structure on to the land of another owner, or unauthorized use of land for purposes other than specified in structure plan etc.
Energy
The capacity of a body to do work. It takes the forms of mechanical, radiant, electrical, chemical or nuclear energy.
Energy conservation
The exercise of public or private, voluntary or obligatory measures to curb consumption of energy resources. Increasing the efficiency with which energy is converted into useful work, primarily at the point of end use.
Energy conservation measures
Energy conservation measures in human settlements include: stimulus to use public transit, improved construction design for thermal controls, better insulation, use of more efficient appliances, recycling of solid wastes.
Energy consumption
A statistical measure of the energy resources utilized within an area.
Energy efficiency
Percentage of the original input energy as final useful energy in an energy-conversion process.
Energy-efficient
A relative term indicating that a process or equipment uses less energy than another similar process or equipment for the same amount of work.
Energy policy and planning
The process of developing realistic goals and plans for utilizing energy resources, developing a supply system network and power generation and distribution facilities.
Energy requirements
Amount of minimal energy required to meet basic needs.
Energy resources
Available or potential sources of energy to meet energy requirements.
Energy-efficient design Design of buildings and appliances incorporating energy-efficient principles and practices.
Energy-efficient technology
Technology which uses energy-efficient principles and practices.
Engineering
The application of scientific principles to the design, construction and operation of efficient and economical structures, equipment and systems.
Enjoyment
The exercise of a right with satisfaction.
Entertainment
See: Recreation.
Entrepreneur
A contractor who undertakes a construction project for an agreed price, who organizes production, finances the project and bears the risks involved.
Environment
The external milieu, natural or constructed, to which an individual or group is responsive. The physical, chemical and biological agents and economic, social and cultural factors affecting living organisms and human activities.
Environmental decay Deterioration of an area caused by changes which reduce the general amenities of the area. Deterioration of one or many aspects of the environment, e.g., air, soil, water, which adversely affects living organisms.
Environmental degradation
Negative net changes in the environment, resulting in conditions such as desertification.
Environmental design
Planning of land use that is based on fundamental concern with the quality of the physical environment and on the premise that a good environment is a basic human right and necessity. Includes architecture, engineering, landscaping, urban planning.
Environmental engineering
Techniques of air-quality management, flood control, noise control, sanitation, water-quality management, land reclamation, pollution control, solar heating, sanitary landfills, solid-waste management etc.
Environmental impact
Net changes in human environment, health and well-being resulting from legislative proposals, policies, projects and operational procedures.
Environmental impact assessment
Activity designed to identify, predict, interpret and communicate information about the effects of human activities (legislative proposals, policies, programmes, projects and operational procedures) on the environment and on human health and well-being.
Environmental impact statement
Document prepared to accompany proposals for major projects and programmes which is based on a detailed analysis of the probable environmental consequences of proposed activities.
Environmental perception
The subjective understanding of an environment and its relationship to human activities.
Environmental planning
That part of the planning process in which the primary concern is the physical environment and its effect on planning considerations and interrelationships in human settlements development.
Environmental policy
Policy formulation concerned with preservation of ecological balance and prevention of deterioration of both the natural and human environments.
Equalization
The process of making equal or bringing about conformity to a common standard.
Equity capital
That owned by holders of ordinary shares. The residual value of a company after all outside liabilities (other than to shareholders) have been allowed for.
Erosion
The wearing away of rocks and soil by the action of running water, ice, wind and other forces of nature.
Establish
See: Set up.
Estuary
Point at which a river flows into open sea, where fresh water and sea water meet, creating unique ecological conditions, e.g., marshes lagoons, which may be damaged by development.
Ethnic group
A group of persons of the same race with a common cultural tradition and a sense of identity, which exists as a subgroup of a larger society or within a country.
Ethnology
The science pertaining to questions of caste, clan, tribe, race and traditional societies insofar as they influence the way of life of a particular society.
Evacuees
Persons removed from an area of danger or disaster for safety or protection. See: Refugees.
Evaluation
Appraisal to establish or ascertain the value, amount or merit of an item. Analysis of comparative advantages and disadvantages of plans or projects to assess the merits of different courses of action.
Evict
To remove a tenant from a property he occupies.
Ection
Ousting, dispossessing or removing a tenant from a property he occupies, whether by authorization contained in the lease, by expiration of the lease, warranted by breaches on the part of the tenant, such as payment in arrears, or for relocation.
Excreta disposal
Any method of removing human waste, treated or untreated, which provides a means of preventing the spread of communicable diseases.
Excreta treatment
Treatment of human waste before final disposal or for further utilization.
Executive board of directors
Governing body and legal head of a corporation, elected at the annual meeting of shareholders, made up of officers and outsiders, authorized to conduct and control the company's affairs.
Expandable house
A house designed for further expansion and additions when need arises. Payment, disbursement or spending of money.
Expert
One having special skill, experience and knowledge in a specialized field, obtained from education or experience, who can form an opinion on a subject under discussion.
Expertise
Competence and extensive experience in a specified area. The opinion of or interpretation by an expert.
Expropriation
The compulsory transfer of landownership rights from private hands to public ownership, with or without compensation. Government exercise of sovereignty to take ownership of land from a private owner. Confiscation of foreign property.
Extended family
Group consisting of a biological family as a nucleus together with kin in the direct or indirect line of a member or members of the nucleus. A family in which more than two generations of directly related family or relatives are living together,
Extension (of a building)
Enlargement of a building or increase in usable floor area of a house. Addition to existing facilities.
Extension services
Educational opportunities, information and technical training provided to the general public through special programmes or projects, sponsored by an institution such as a university.
F
Factory
An industrial building or group of buildings in which goods are manufactured, assembled, treated or processed.
Family
A group of two or more persons related by blood, marriage or legal operation, who occupy the same dwelling unit. A basic kinship unit consisting of a husband, wife and child (ren). A group of persons who live in one household under one head.
Family cycle
Process beginning with the emergence of the family unit at marriage, through stages including birth of children, their departure from home, the parents' old age and death. Housing needs increase and decrease with successive stages of the cycle.
Family income
The gross income from employment, pensions or other sources of all members of a family.
Family planning.
Voluntary planning and action by individuals to determine the number and spacing of births in a family. Reduction in birth rate can lead to improved health, well-being and economic status of a population.
Famine
Massive or drastic shortage of food within a region or country, causing malnutrition, starvation and death, and frequently resulting in social dislocation in human settlements.
Farm
Rural land with a house and adjacent buildings for care of livestock, cultivation of crops and/or storage of tools and produce.
Farm buildings
Structures, such as barns, stables, silos etc., used for agricultural purposes including shelter for animals, storage of produce and tools.
Farm land
Land used specifically for the tillage of soil, production of crops, raising of livestock or poultry, or growing of fruit.
Farm produce marketing
Access to urban settlements for the sale of farm produce.
Farmer
Individual who cultivates land, raises livestock, or operates a farm as a means of livelihood or a business.
Farmers' associations
Multi-purpose organizations of farmers for self-help in marketing farm products, purchasing supplies, acting as agents for savings and loans and as vehicles through which technical assistance and training can be implemented.
Feasibility study
A detailed investigation and analysis conducted to determine the practicability of a project with respect to time, labour and funding available, or the financial, economic or technical viability of putting a particular plan or project into effect.
Feedback (of information)
The return of information or specific responses or reactions to a project or event channeled back to the initiators for evaluation of results and possible mid-course corrections or modifications.
Feeder road
A road that serves as a traffic feeder to a more important road, designed to provide wider access to a highway network.
Fence
A hedge, barrier, structure or partition erected for the purpose of enclosing or protecting a piece of land or garden or as a dividing framework for land.
Ferry
A boat or other commercial means of transport of people and goods across a body of water on a designated route.
Fertility rate
The number of births that occur in a year per 1000 women of child-bearing age. See: Birth rate.
Fibreboards
Board of compressed wood chips or other vegetable fibres forming stiff sheets, generally 1.2 x 2.4 metres and 1.2 cm thick, used as construction material for panels, partitions etc.
Fibreglass
A plastic material which is structurally reinforced by embedding a glass fibre into a resin, used for insulation, furniture, containers etc.
Field assignment (mission)
Operation away from fixed headquarters, i.e., at the site, or "in the field".
Field work
First-hand observation, investigation, research, or study of the actual phenomena under natural conditions in the field.
Field worker
Person assigned to work away from headquarters, "in the field" amidst the subjects under their usual environmental conditions, or to collect data from the individuals who are the subject of the project.
Filtering, filtering down
The change in occupancy in housing that is occupied by one income group and becomes available to the next lower income group as a result of decline in market price.
Financial Affordability
Financial ability of households to use a dwelling unit, by lease or purchase. It is generally evaluated in terms of the income needed to rent or buy a minimum dwelling unit, and to secure any loans availed.
Financial Institution
Any organization authorized to do business relating to finance, including banks, trust companies, building and loan associations, savings and loan companies, credit unions.
Financial rate of return
On income property, the ratio of annual net income, or net profit after depreciation, to invested capital.
Financial statement
A written statement summarizing the financial condition of an organization, e.g., assets, liabilities and net worth, professionally indicated by balance sheet, and profit and loss statement.
Financing
The means by which the monetary sources of an institution are organized for a particular activity. In the area of housing, it would include the measures utilized to provide the means for capital investment in housing, infrastructure and economic development.
Finger plan
A plan in which transport corridors radiate from the true centre like the fingers of a hand, separated by open space, thus providing green areas readily accessible from every part of the developed area.
Fire alarm system
An electrical system designed to sound an alarm when activated by a fire-detection device.
Fire hazard
Condition of a structure or its contents which poses danger of fire or explosion.
Fire hydrant
An upright valved outlet connected directly to a water main, with a nozzle to which a hose can be attached. A street fixture for drawing water from a main to fight fires.
Fire prevention Fire protection
Materials, measures and practices applied for preventing fire or minimizing loss of life and property by proper design, construction, use of detection and extinguishing systems, inspection procedures, training and education.
Fire-retardant material
Material which can reduce flammability, retard spread of flame, or increase resistance to fire spread.
Fireproof
Incombustible. Resistant to fire hazards.
Firewood
Wood gathered or cut and prepared for use as fuel.
Fishery
The equipment and activity of fishing, including storage and marketing.
Fixed-rate financing Fixed-rate mortgage
A long-term mortgage loan with a fixed term, fixed interest rate and fixed monthly payments.
Fixtures
Permanent improvements to property that remain with it and are legally regarded as part of it.
Flat (apartment)
A suite of rooms forming a complete residence within a multi-family building containing similar units.
Flat roof
A roof which is not pitched, having its surface parallel to the ground perhaps with slight slope for catching rainwater.
Flood
Periodic or unanticipated overflow of waterways onto land areas that are normally dry.
Flood area/zone
Area inundated during floods.
Flood control
Legal and technical measures, such as dredging, maintaining vegetation for ground cover, dam construction, taken to prevent damage to human life and property caused by periodic overflow of waterways on to land areas that are normally dry.
Floodplain
Flat or sloping land on either side of a river which is covered with water when the river overflows its banks. A plain formed of alluvial soil carried by the river during floods and deposited as currents diminish.
Floor
The lower enclosing surface of a room or building upon which one walks.
Flow chart
Sequential diagrammatic representation of the interrelations of a series of processes. Graphic presentation of an operational sequence.
Flush toilet
Sanitary facility with a device for flooding with water for cleansing purposes.
Flushing
Sewer cleaning with water, as from a fire hydrant.
Focal point
Person or organization serving as a link between international networks and national or regional institutions.
Follow-up
Action taken in order to utilize information gained from the monitoring or evaluation process.
Food supply
Management of food supplies to human settlements through marketing and distribution.
Foodborne diseases
Diseases caused by eating foods containing bacteria or parasites.
Footpath
A cleared way for pedestrians which may or may not be paved, e.g., a sidewalk, pedestrian walk, path or footway.
Forecasting
The attempt to predict future events or conditions such as population, employment, housing needs, through rational analysis of pertinent data and techniques such as economic modeling.
Foreclosure
Legal action which leads to the forfeiture of a property after the mortgagee fails to meet the terms of the mortgage.
Foreign aid
Financial or technical assistance given by the donor country in the form of grants or in-kind contributions.
Foreman
Person appointed by a contractor as supervisor or overseer, as the contractor's representative on site for the whole or part of the work.
Forest industries
Forest products and processing activities associated with the production of lumber, veneers, plywood, pulp and paper.
Forest resources
Forest land and the trees (timber) on that land.
Forestry
The science of developing, caring for or cultivating forests. General management of forest land for multiple purposes of timber extraction, watershed protection, wildlife protection and recreation.
Formwork
Wooden members made mainly of plywood, used as retainers for concrete before it hardens, i.e., during its placing and subsequent hardening, and removed after concrete has reached its expected strength, to be reused elsewhere.
Fossil Fuel
Fuel derived from the remains of ancient plant and animal life, e.g., petroleum, natural gas, coal, oil shale and tar sands.
Foster
To promote the growth of something.
Frame
Timber or steel work which encloses and supports the structural components of a building. A structure into which something is set, e.g., a door or window.
Frame of door or window
A structure into which a door or window is fitted. Of a window, the fixed, no operable frame that fits into the aperture and is designed to receive and hold the sash or casement and the necessary hardware.
Frame structure/Skeleton structure.
Type of building in which all external and internal loads and stresses are transmitted to the foundations by a rigidly connected framework of metal or reinforced concrete beams and columns, with the enclosing walls supported by the frame beams at each storey.
Framing
The rough timber or steel work of a structure including the flooring, roofing, partitioning, ceiling, joists, studs, rafters and beams. The assembly of parts forming a framework, over which enclosing in611 materials arc attached.
Free market
A theoretical market situation in which there is equilibrium between supply and demand. A market in which the forces of supply and demand are allowed to operate free of government regulation or other interference.
Freehold Tenure
An estate held for life, with the right to transfer it to one's heirs.
Freeway, motorway, expressway
A multiple-lane, divided highway with no traffic signals and fully controlled access for intersecting roads, designed to facilitate intercity traffic at sustained higher speed and with a lower accident rate than a normal street network.
Freight transport
Transport of goods by means of common carriers.
Fringe area
The outer edge of a city.
Frozen capital
Investment capital which has not yet begun to produce a return and is tied up so that transactions are restricted or impossible.
Fuel
Material such as coal, wood, natural gas, fuel oil, which may be relatively easily ignited and burned to produce heat, light or other usable energy.
Full-scale model
A model of the same size as the object being designed.
Funding gap
Shortfall of funds to complete a project.
Furniture
Movable articles supplied to a dwelling to make it habitable, e.g., chairs, tables.
G
G
Galvanized iron sheets
Iron sheets that have been dipped in molten zinc to protect them against corrosion, used for roofing, flashing and damp-proof courses. Produced in flat or corrugated forms.
Garbage
Animal and vegetable waste resulting from the handling, preparation, cooking and consumption of food.
Garbage dump
Land site used primarily for disposal of garbage, trash, refuse, junk and waste or scrap materials.
Garden
A small piece of land appropriated to the cultivation of vegetables, fruits, herbs, flowers and ornamental plants . Garden city
A medium-sized, self-contained planned settlement for a limited population, centered on a park and surrounded by a green belt, with employment opportunities and services.
Gardening
Horticulture. The work or art of a gardener.
Gas supply
Supply of natural gas, manufactured gas or any liquefied petroleum gas.
Gas supply system
Sources and pipelines, storage facilities and the distribution network for transmitting gas to the consumer.
Gazette
Official publication of a government or institution containing public notices and current events.
Geographic and climatic
Conditions of terrain (slope, vegetation, etc.), quality of soils and grounds conditions(underground water, permafrost, etc.), average summer and winter temperatures, rainfall, etc. Factors for consideration in land-use planning and location of infrastructure.
Geology
The scientific study of the structure of a specific region of the Earth's surface. Include mineralogy, paleontology, petrology, cartography, geological surveys and research, geophysics, seismology, soil sciences, glaciers and volcanoes.
Geophysics
Application of the procedures used in physics to the study of the properties of soil, rocks, geodesy and the physical nature of the Earth's surface. Includes hydrology, oceanography, atmospheric and planetary studies best done on international scale.
Geotechnical engineering
Includes pedology, soil science and soil engineering, such as compaction, freezing, electro-osmosis, groundwater lowering and other processes which change the properties of soil.
Geothermal energy
Bowe' extracted or derived from the heat of the Earth's interior, usually in the form of steam.
Girder
A large, heavy principle beam of wood, steel or reinforced concrete used to transmit transversal loads to supports.
Glass
A hard, transparent, lustrous and brittle material manufactured from a molten mixture of silica-sand, lime, soda and other additives, cooled rapidly and polished when it has solidified. Used chiefly for windows, but also as a building material for cladding of high-rise modern buildings.
Glasshouse industry
Intensive agricultural production inside buildings or under roofs of glass or other transparent materials.
Global
Worldwide..
Glossary
A list of specialized terms with definitions and/or explanations. A relatively brief list of items pertinent to a limited field of interest, which may present information concerning the items listed.
Goal
Concrete and clearly formulated purpose, aim, end result or ultimate accomplishment towards which an effort is directed.
Goods
Merchandise, articles for trade.
Government
The organization through which control of a country or locality is exercised. Control or authority over a country or locality.
Graded rent
Rent based on income and/or family size on a sliding scale.
Grading grader
Modifying the existing slope of a site to suit the use for which the site is intended. Leveling or shaping the ground surface by means of earthmoving and excavating equipment (bulldozers or graders).
Graduated payment mortgage
Mortgage to he repaid in rising monthly payments geared to an increase in household income, allowing young home buyers whose income will increase over time to qualify for a loan with less income than they would need for a conventional loan.
Grant/ To grant
Donation or allocation of money by an institution, public or private, for a specific project having social or scientific benefits.
Grasslands
Meadow, permanent pasture.
Grassroots community development
The common people as originators of participation in community upgrading.
Grassroots level
The common people as originators of political feelings, national character, cultural forms or citizen participation.
Gravel
A loose mixture of pebbles and small rock fragments, for use in production of concrete and road construction.
Greenbelt
A wide band of open land, wooded parks, farmland, underdeveloped land or countryside surrounding a city or town, preserved by official authority to limit urban growth or merging of densely built-up areas and/or prevent objectionable use of property.
Green space
Areas reserved as open space. See: Garden, Open space, Park.
Greywater
Wastewater from washing activities. Does not include excreta. See: Sullage.
Gross National Product (GNP)
Monetary expression of the market value of goods and services produced in a country's economy within a specified period of time, usually a year. Excludes allowance for depreciation or consumption of capital goods, includes income from foreign sources.
Ground lease
Legal document for rental of land over a specific number of years.
Ground pollution
See: Soil pollution.
Ground rent
Rent paid for a long-term lease of land, as opposed to rent paid for the buildings on the land. The right to receive ground rents can be bought and sold.
Groundwater
Subsurface fresh water, the top of which is the water table. Water standing or flowing between soil particles below the ground surface, usually rainwater percolating into the soil. Water of a spring or shallow well.
Growth centre/Growth pole
An urban centre often planned to include further development of economic activity and generate economic vitality throughout the region, providing markets for farm products and employment for rural inhabitants.
Growth rate
Statistical estimate of the increase in size or population of an entity or area in a given time period.
Guidelines
Statement of principles and practical suggestions issued by an institution or government agency having authority or expertise in a given area, for detailed application in planning activities.
Gully
Ditch, gutter or channel cut in the earth by running water.
Gutter (roof)
Trough, channel or conduit set below and along the eaves of a house roof, used to collect and carry away rainwater from the roof to the downspout or other point of discharge away from the roof.
Gutter (street)
Channel at the side or in the middle of a street for carrying off surface water.
Gypsum
A common white mineral (hydrated calcium sulphate) found in sedimentary rocks, used as the main ingredient of plaster of Paris, gypsum board and ornamental material. Cannot be used externally.
H
Habitat
Living environment. Dwelling place or habitation. Natural area in which an animal or plant lives.
Hacienda (Lat. Am.)
A large plantation on which the owner is resident. A landed estate, country house, large farm or plantation.
Half-timbered house
A house of which the storeys over the lower one are made and finished with timber.
Half-timbering
Method of construction in which walls are built of interlocking vertical and horizontal timbers, with spaces in between filled with nonstructural walling,e.g., brickwork, wattle, daub, lath or plaster in timber frame.
Hamlet
A very small rural settlement with a few houses or huts clustered together.
Handicapped
Person having a physical impairment due to injury, disease or birth defect substantially impeding the ability to live independently, but of such a nature that the ability could be improved by more suitable building design. See also: Disabled.
Handicraft industry
Production of goods by manual technology usually by families within their own home. See: Cottage industry.
Handicrafts
Manual expertise, art or trade. Objects produced by hand.
Harbour
Body of water of sufficient depth for ships to enter and find shelter. Frequently the site of a port. See: Port Harbour facilities Docks, piers, wharves.
Hawker
Peddler who travels from place to place carrying small merchandise to sell. An itinerant trader.
Hazard reduction
Elimination or reduction of potential sources of danger. Includes accident prevention, disaster mitigation, and fire protection.
Health
State of complete physical, mental and social well-being, not merely but including absence of disease, illness or infirmity.
Healthcare facilities
The physical components of health services, e.g., hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, ambulances, pharmacies. Also training facilities for health workers.
Health care planning
Setting goals and preparing strategies for the allocation of resources for health services and facilities, including distribution of same, preparation of non-health support services and selection of curative or preventive measures.
Healthcare workers / paraprofessionals
All individuals trained to provide some degree of medical service and health education with a minimum of professional training, to assist or replace professional personnel in dispersed or deprived human settlement.
Health education
Instruction of a population in health care and hygiene as a means of preventive medicine, implemented in keeping with local traditions.
Health services
Delivery of health care within or ou