Abstract

The amount of energy needed for buildings to provide comfortable thermal conditions will eventually become unsustainable. Climate-responsive architecture offers possible solutions to this challenge. Vernacular buildings, in contrast to modern buildings, are more responsive to the environment and are built according to principles developed over many generations. In the Gilan region, located in northern Iran on the southern coast of the Caspian Sea, the climate plays a fundamental role in the diversity and formation of vernacular residential buildings. Climatic factors such as sunlight, wind, excessive rain, and high humidity have significant effects on the form and elements of vernacular houses. This paper studies the strategies used to respond to climatic factors in Gilan and also identifies and classifies architectural elements created in response to those strategies. In order to achieve this aim, it identifies Gilan’s climatic and bioclimatic factors and then investigates methods used to respond to them in the construction of vernacular houses. The climate-responsive approaches used in vernacular architecture are important for modeling an integration between passive and active design strategies. Climate-responsive architecture can improve comfort and use less energy.