Understanding the multiscale dimension of resilience. Yazd as a case study

Traditional building types, whose functional performance, and key urban role, have proven successful for centuries, may be regarded as intrinsically resilient. To clarify this point, our paper focuses on Yazd, included among World Heritage Sites in July 2017. Yazd is the driest major city in Iran, the world largest inhabited city made of adobe. The distinguishing features of Yazd built environment result from a long-term interaction of natural and social orders, bringing to the fore the multiscale dimension of resilience. To explain the relationship between architectural forms and building materials, fresh water supply and natural ventilation, we will give particular emphasis to the presence of qanats: artificial subterranean waterways extensively used in the region for almost 3000 years.