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In old Muslim cities, community-based and individual building practices have long shaped the urban environment. These practices express the socio-cultural principles and values that historically guided urban formation and, thus constitute a key component of their intangible heritage. Yet contemporary preservation policies tend to prioritize the protection of physical urban fabrics, a fact that often overshadows the intangible dimensions that gave meaning and coherence to the urban environment. This paper argues that safeguarding the tangible heritage of old cities must thus be accompanied by the recognition and promotion of this intangible logic. It highlights the interactive and causal relationship between these two dimensions of heritage, with a geographic focus on North African cities. The study aims to contribute academically by articulating an Islamic perspective on urban form, and professionally by suggesting ways to refine current preservation policies through a more balanced integration of tangible and intangible values.

In the contemporary era of rapid technological development, many regions continue to adopt development approaches rooted in local knowledge, cultural traditions, and community capacities. These contexts show that sustainability does not necessarily rely on advanced technologies but can emerge from locally adapted practices integrating environmental awareness, social organization, and cultural heritage,this study shows different perspectives of vernacular practices . Ksar Tafilelt Tajdit in Ghardaïa, Algeria, represents a notable example of community-led vernacular development within a Saharan oasis environment. Initiated by the Mozabite Ibadi community through the Amidoul Foundation and based on touiza (collective labor), the project ensured strong community participation in planning and construction. This study highlights also as Ksar Tafilelt as a vernacular model while offering a different perspective on how vernacular practices can contribute to contemporary sustainable development.

This research examines the strategic role of marketing-oriented urban planning and design in enhancing the city's visual image, using Ghardaïa, a UNESCO World Heritage city in southern Algeria, as a case study. The study highlights the problem of the city's eroding visual image, which is a result of the poor integration between urban planning and city marketing. The clarity of a city's visual image generally reflects the interaction between its urban formation elements—buildings, urban blocks, and internal and external spaces—and the background of the visual scene, such as topography and climate. However, the focus of this study is on the formative structure of the city's visual image, which is the combination of physical planning elements and the natural background. This can be conceptualized as the sum of two mathematical functions influenced by a primary variable, time (t). This is not necessarily a quantitative measurement of the visual image's clarity, but rather a qualitative assessment and interpretation of this image's significance, achieved by using strategic urban planning, innovative architectural design, and an effective marketing mix.

This thesis explores the sociocultural continuity and residents’ adaptations to 21st-century conditions within a community-led housing project undertaken by the conservative Mozabite community in the M’zab Valley, Algeria. Using Ksar Tafilelt as a case study, which is a community-led housing project, the research examines the established co-production process to develop a new housing settlement that addresses the needs of the contemporary Mozabite community. It also identifies key lessons in sustainability that can be drawn from this unique and fully realised community-led housing project by examining the relationship between social behaviour and the built environment. The study methodology relies on a combination of questionnaires, interviews, a research diary, and records of physical traces. A sample of 70 residents was interviewed, and various indicators were employed to examine the different types of adaptive transformation changes needed in residents’ homes and neighbourhoods to better meet their contemporary needs. The use, organisation, and occupation of space at both the domestic scale of the house and the urban scale of the neighbourhood have been analysed. Residents’ evaluations and satisfaction with their dwellings and neighbourhoods have also been investigated and assessed in relation to various physical and non-physical features of their housing environments, with a focus on sociocultural factors. The findings of this research indicate that the sociocultural values transmitted from the indigenous Ibadi community remain deeply entrenched in the contemporary Mozabite community, significantly expressed architecturally in Ksar Tafilelt. Thus, these findings suggest that the sociocultural needs of residents must be regarded as equally important as environmental and economic factors. Furthermore, the research iii outcomes have yielded several lessons and principles that can be derived from this settlement, which may inform future housing provision and design practices in Algeria and beyond, particularly in regions with similar geo-cultural characteristics. These lessons can be summarised as highlighting the importance of involving the local community in the creation of urban dwellings to enhance living conditions, as long as the design aligns with their sociocultural and religious beliefs. Additionally, it is crucial to consider the role of sociocultural factors in fostering a more socially and culturally sustainable built environment.

The ksour of the M’Zab Valley, located in southern Algeria, were founded in 1101 by the Mozabites. These fortified villages, in their original configuration, incorporate exemplary architectural and urban planning elements, promoting sustainable habitation that is perfectly adapted to the Saharan context while reflecting local cultural identity. In recognition of their outstanding universal value, UNESCO introduced specific preservation and protection measures as early as 1982. Architect André Ravéreau described this valley as a true “lesson in urban planning”, highlighting a remarkable balance between functionality, sustainability, and respect for the Saharan ecosystem. However, the recent urbanisation transformations in the M’Zab Valley, which are the subject of my doctoral thesis, reveal significant changes. New development projects, located outside the walls surrounding the ksour, are multiplying to meet a growing demand for housing. Although necessary, these interventions create a rupture with the urban landscape and the Saharan architectural identity. A chronological analysis of architectural samples makes it possible to trace the elements that have been abandoned, reproduced, or transformed over time, while questioning how these developments reflect Saharan identity and impact the built heritage.

Cette proposition a pour cadre géographique la vallée du M’Zab, au Sahara algérien, occupée initialement par les Mozabites. La région est connue pour ses ksour historiques, au caractère architectural et paysager exceptionnel, ainsi que par des institutions propres, promouvant une auto-organisation multiséculaire et une forte solidarité sociale, qui ont joué un rôle primordial dans la survie du groupe et dans la création de « nouveaux ksour ». Les nouveaux ksour – des extensions nommées en analogie avec les ksour historiques, puisqu’ils s’en inspirent – sont des extensions urbaines dont la construction a été entreprise à partir des années 1990. L’idée était née au sein de la communauté elle-même, promue et soutenue par les notables. Il s’agissait de trouver une solution à la crise du logement aussi bien au plan quantitatif que qualitatif. La particularité de ces projets réside dans le rôle joué par la communauté et la solidarité sociale depuis la naissance de l’idée, le choix de la population, la conception des projets, la gestion du chantier, les montages financiers, jusqu’à la gestion du projet après son occupation. L’idée est donc de revenir sur la façon dont une communauté (avec ses institutions traditionnelles) a pu répondre à un besoin (le logement) qui est à la base parmi les prérogatives de l’État ? En mettant en place quels dispositifs, et en engageant quels compromis ?

The concept of citizen participation emerged towards the end of the twentieth century as part of the new democratic paradigms of the Western countries of America and Europe.  However, citizen participation is an ancient principle that has guided the political, economic and social management systems of many ancient indigenous social groups. The aim of this paper is to examine the concept of citizen participation and the mechanisms implemented in the management of the environment and daily life in traditional Algerian societies, through the study of two cases: the experience of the new ksour in the M'Zab in Ghardaïa, and the project to classify the village of Ait El Kaid as a protected sector in Tizi Ouzou. The results of this study reveal the particularities of the participatory processes in each case, such as tajmaat in the Kabyle villages and twiza in the process of building the new ksour, while highlighting the similarities and differences specific to each.

The human settlement of M'zab is a traditional habitat located in the Sa-hara of Algeria; it considered by its richness in bioclimatic elements and distinguished by a typological variety. This study aims to discover the traditional habitat in the Sahara of Algeria, by shedding light on the con-structive richness in the habitat of M'zab according to its natural context. We used an analytical approach to examine the fundamental aspects: the natural context, the morphology, housing and the construction. To carry out this study, we carried out numerous field visits, including taking pho-tographs, direct surveys and in-depth discussions with specialists. These initiatives have enriched our understanding of the specificities of the habitat studied. The habitat of M'zab opened the doors to the discovery of traditional habitat in Algeria, which harmonizes perfectly with its cli-matic and natural environment. In addition, it allowed us to understand in more depth the intervention strategies in the heritage areas of the Sa-hara, while drawing valuable lessons from the past.