Urban social sustainability: a study of the Emirati local communities in Al Ain

The present research examines the design of the public neighborhoods in the United Arab Emirates in terms of social sustainability, especially in the city of Al Ain. Based on the relevant principles and indicators of social sustainability in neighborhoods both globally and locally, the research began with an evaluation of the dimensions of social sustainability by adopting a qualitative research method. The research tools included conducting face-to-face interviews with representatives of Emirati families living in public neighborhoods, analyses of the design patterns of some selected neighborhoods, field observations and spatial syntactic analyses. Through this multi-phase analysis, a clearer understanding of the level of social sustainability achieved in the design of public neighborhoods in Al Ain has been realized, and some neighborhood design guidelines have been proposed.