Heritage as climate strategy: how India’s old towns hold the key to resilient cities

Reimagine heritage cities to revive lost history and urban life, preserving cultural identity and addressing climate challenges.

A walk through the medieval streets of Mylapore, George Town, or Karaikudi reveals a lost history, where abandoned houses and institutions, built over a hundred years ago, now stand in disrepair. A reimagination of heritage cities by planning authorities, in collaboration with civic society, could rejuvenate these derelict neighbourhoods.

While newfound mobility and technology resulted in mega-cities with metros and automobiles, the medieval town, at its core, was often abandoned or subjected to densities far greater than it could absorb. Recognising this predicament, the First Master Plan of Chennai moved the inner-city markets and transport hubs to Koyambedu to decongest GeorgeTown and Parrys Corner. But it was not impetus enough to revive its heritage precincts.

Alexander Tzonis and Liane Lefaivre — architectural theorists, authors and historians, known for their interdisciplinary approach towards design theory, history, and political critique, leaving a lasting impact on architectural pedagogy and practice — discuss this urban phenomenon in the context of globalisation: how rapid urban growth has been responsible for large-scale constructions at the cost of losing identity through the erasure of historic precincts.

Professor Lefaivre believes cities across climatic regions are beginning to look alike, resulting in a loss of climate-responsive and site-specific spatial identity.

Most often, heritage buildings give way to uniform, hermetically-sealed and air-conditioned constructions, which rarely respond to climate.

However, in the face of adverse environmental conditions, cities across the world are recognising the value of heritage in a refreshingly new context. Medieval structures often reveal significant cultural and climatic features that hold lessons for responding to inclement weather patterns, whether urban heat or incessant monsoons.

Vernacular architecture, with its shade and natural ventilation elements, creates a cooler micro-climate.