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This study evaluates the efficiency and productivity change of 39 electricity distribution companies in Iran over the period 2005-2014. For purposes of electricity management and utilization of scarce resources, Iran’s 33 provinces have been classified into five regions by the Ministry of the Interior. Analyzing the efficiency of distribution companies across these regions yields significant understanding of these resources and helps policymakers to generate more informed decisions.

The proposed method of this study develops nonparametric data envelopment analysis (DEA) with the consideration of geographic classification, size and type of company. At the first stage, a DEA model is used to estimate the relative technical efficiency and productivity change of these companies. At the second stage, distributions of efficiency improvements are examined based on geographic classification, size and type of the company type. A stability test is also conducted to verify the proposed model’s robustness.

The results demonstrate that the average technical efficiency of the companies increased during the years 2006-2009, but decreased during 2010-2014. The productivity measurement reveals that low efficiency change was the largest contributor to the small increase in productivity change rather than technology change. In addition, testing the hypothesis that the large and small companies have statistically the same efficiency scores revealed no statistical difference among them. Moreover, another test did not detect a difference among companies at the urban and provincial levels.

By applying this approach, policymakers and practitioners in the power industry at the country and corporate level can effectively compare the efficiency and productivity changes among electricity distribution companies, and therefore generate more informed decisions.

The paper’s novel concept applies DEA to Iran’s electricity distribution companies and analyzes them by examining geographic classification, size and the type of the companies. In addition, a stability test is conducted and productivity changes are estimated.

Despite long decades of research studies in the field of urban neighborhood resilience, there are still some unknown dimensions. In this regard, the study aims to develop a new framework for assessment of physical and social resilience at neighborhood level against earthquake.

Accordingly, first all indicators affecting earthquake resilience at neighborhood level have been determined. Subsequently, they have been weighted and prioritized, using analytical hierarchy process technique. One of the neighborhoods of Tehran city in Iran was selected for the case study. Then, four criteria of “robustness,” “redundancy,” “rapidity” and “resourcefulness” were considered as the basis for assessing neighborhood resilience.

It is shown that besides four well-known criteria, four other criteria including “adaptability,” “regularity,” “density” and “efficiency” should also be considered to assess earthquake resilience at neighborhood level. Therefore, a new framework is developed and formulated at this level. Paying attention to all eight criteria, the appropriate interventions to improve resiliency can be addressed.

This study proposes several practical approaches toward the more resilient neighborhoods against earthquakes. By considering the complexity and dynamic characteristics of earthquake resilience, it recommends the implementation of all resilience phases at every neighborhood to increase resilience.

This study proposes a framework in which in addition to physical and tangible indicators of resilience, non-physical and intangible ones are presented. Also, it is shown that besides well-known criteria, other criteria should also be considered using practical and community-based approaches.

As a flood-prone region in Iran, Golestan province has encountered various disasters in its history. The last one occurred in March 2019, affected Aq-Qala County and caused irreparable physical, economic, social and environmental problems. The purpose of this study is to investigate the process of providing shelter in emergency, rehabilitation and reconstruction phases after the floods in the villages of Aq-Qala.

A research method is a hybrid approach. The collection of data involved a combination of qualitative and quantitative approaches in addition to reviewing the documented texts in resources to collect the required data using observations, field survey activities, questionnaires and in-depth interviews. From April 2019 to December 2019, nine separate visits have occurred to collect the needed information.

This paper shows dissatisfaction with providing shelter and attempts to identify the factors which caused the challenges. The findings revealed issues such as hygienic problems in collective camps, lack of thermal resistance in temporary accommodations and rising material prices. These findings lead to a contributive list of suggestions avoiding the recurrence of the harms in the future.

This study proposes solutions and approaches to improve the post-flood settlement process for possible floods in the future such as equipped camps, proper temporary housing, monitoring the reconstruction and the price of the materials. If these approaches are used by authorities and people in similar rural areas, the long-term effects of inadequate post-flood shelter can be reduced.

The purpose of this paper is to show that cultural heritage is very important in fostering a quality of life with value and pride in all civilizations. It comes together with an historic message and information that the cultural materials transmit from the past to the present and the future. Therefore, the protection of world cultural heritage from natural and man‐made disasters has been a focus both nationally and internationally for the last 50 years. There are a number of examples which indicate the extent of the irreplaceable destruction of heritage by natural disasters, such as Arg‐e Bam.

Now more than four years after the disaster this paper analyses the extent to which such opportunities were capitalized upon and proposes strategies and recommendations for future risk preparedness planning in Bam. Similar to most disasters, the 2003 Bam earthquake presented windows of opportunity for disaster mitigation, risk preparedness, physical planning, and socio‐economic and cultural developments. The earthquake damaged a significant part of the historical areas of the city and created an opportunity for developing a resilient community that could be used as a model city for other parts of the country.

The study finds that the earthquake provided an opportunity for further development and growth of the city's unique and internationally known date production through more publicity, renovation of the old irrigation systems, and expansion of its related industries. The Bam disaster created new opportunities for the city's exceptional cultural heritage and further developments in tourism. The city could also use this disaster to reshape its physical planning and development by introducing new planning ideas and innovations.

The Bam disaster created new opportunities for the city's exceptional cultural heritage and further developments in tourism. The city could also use this disaster to reshape its physical planning and development by introducing new planning ideas and innovations.

The geographical location of Yazd province has significant potential for religious tourism. To make the most of this opportunity, it is important to develop an interpretive structural modeling. This paper aims to outline a model for the development of religious tourism in Yazd province as a Global Religious Destination by identifying and analyzing the interaction of effective drivers in future religious tourism development.

The research methodology is based on the interpretative paradigm and is developmental in nature. It takes an exploratory-analytical approach through the adoption of an inductive method and uses mixed research (qualitative/quantitative) involving religious tourism experts and tourists. The study consists of three main steps. In the first step, effective drivers in future religious tourism development were identified through content analysis of published articles. In the second step, the identified drivers were finalized through a survey of experts. Using futures research and Micmac software, a model was designed to investigate the interaction of the future drivers of religious tourism development. In the third step of the research, 384 tourists who visited Yazd Global Religious Destination participated to check the accuracy of the presented model.

Content analysis and review of scientific documents have identified 14 effective drivers in future religious tourism development that have finalized in a layered model. The model identified factors from the most influential at level one to the least influential at level eight. the theoretical foundations of this research confirmed by 384 visitors participated.

developing religious tourism, whether in the form of a religious city, a religious value system, a religious ceremony and a religious business, requires a comprehensive view that includes tourist’s mental and visual imagery, destination brand’s ideals and visions, religious belief, governmental and formal activities and the material and spiritual capital that can offer religious life style in the world markets to audiences from all over the world in the best way and in the dynamic conditions of competition between destination brands, occupy the first rungs of the audience’s mental ladder.