the role of courtyard in sustainable development

alongside the industrial revolution, technology has been opposing whit the nature and has become a disaster to the environment. amongst these, buildings and structures have had a great role intensifying the environmental crisis, hence, discussion around sustainable architecture is not an option, but an inevitable necessity. on the other hand, practically all of these principles have been used by our ancestor due to recent discussions on sustainability. it seems that studying about the appearance of courtyard houses and their characteristics in traditional houses which unfortunately is not discussed that much is essential; regarding the importance of home and shelter for mental and physical health, the effect of nature on idealistic environment conditions, and the disconnection of human urban life from nature nowadays. today, we can clearly see the lack of the advantage of traditional architecture in copied designs of non-domestic cultures in our country. sustainability is one of the principle concepts that has been regarded in traditional designs and elements and has been recently approved publicly by the society worldwide. it’s necessary to say that the concept of sustainability and all its element including social, economic, environmental, etc. is under consideration in iran’s traditional architecture and is used to provide comfort for people. in this research, it is tried to identify and introduce the advantages and functions of courtyard in regard to the elements of sustainable architecture.