Is Cycling an Attractive Transport Solution in a Mediterranean City?

By exploiting the opinion of the society in a Mediterranean city, this paper identifies the mechanisms behind utility cycling and determines the aspects of using the bike in cities for daily commuting. This study focused on the assessment of biking as an alternative mode of transport within a typical Mediterranean city in Crete. Limited road safety is the principal reason that hinders 60% of respondents from cycling, and 41% from riding more frequently. The survey results are congruent with this statement, provided a significant difference in the ratios of actual recreational cyclists (39%) and those who like to ride for entertainment, but they hesitate (71%). In order to quantify this, the attitude of the bikers was grouped in two fact factors influencing: the clothing and the technological one. Based on the opinion of the local society, high priority policies are recommended, such as proper infrastructure, sensitization campaigns, and education programs.

Scholarship, trade and politics: Andalusian contribution to the Mediterranean standing of Tripoli (3rd/9th–5th/11th centuries)

Given the lack of local sources, the history of Tripoli as a global Mediterranean city remains unclear until the Ottoman conquest of the 16th century. Given that documentary record, the exploration of the rich Arabic tradition written in al-Andalus provides a fresh insight into how Tripoli constructed its Mediterranean stature prior to the 11th century. First, the systematic analysis of Islamic biographical literature (ṭabaqāt) shows Tripoli was one of the most visited cities by the Andalusian scholars across the Islamic world. It also reveals they were in close contact with the Tripolitanian Mālikī networks. Eventually, The Tripolitanian elites took advantage, of that specific Andalusian connection, and using the rivalry between the caliphal powers at the dawn of the 11th century they assured the independence of the city for the first time while rejecting the Fatimid-Zirid power and recognizing the sovereignty of the Spanish Umayyads.

Spatial Planning and Climate Adaptation: Challenges of Land Protection in a Peri-Urban Area of the Mediterranean City of Thessaloniki

The growing interest in climate change and related risks has triggered efforts to address both its causes and impact. Climate action is mainstreamed in various public policies in which spatial planning has a key role and operates as a coordinating framework as well as one that enables specific interventions. At the same time, land, an indispensable element of spatial planning, is gaining attention as a natural resource that is closely related to climate change. Increasing need for land protection raises the need for a renewed role of spatial planning of all types and levels. This paper examines issues of land protection related to climate change in a peri-urban area of the Thessaloniki metropolitan area in Greece and seeks to identify how the types of spatial planning contribute to land protection. It is argued that when viewing land protection from a climate adaptation perspective, a renewed relationship between the types and levels of spatial planning that demands emphasis be placed on their cooperation and the enabling of novel approaches such as nature-based solutions becomes apparent.