Action for sustainability: challenges facing Syrian plan for sustainable urban development

This paper focuses on providing the critical requirements for achieving sustainable urban development, by analyzing the opportunities and constraints in the case of Syria. e key requirement is the establishment of a solid knowledge foundation for Syria that will equip the public, urban development stakeholders, architects and planners with accurate and relevant knowledge generated within the framework of the social and economic needs, its cultures and its biophysical environment to guide their decisions and actions towards establishing a sustainable urban environment. Finally, the paper raises questions for future research into the need for new national framework and legislation considering sustainability dissensions, and highlights clearly the practical benefits of treating the urban environment and its components as a whole.