Journal of Applied Science Issue (2) April (2019) 85 THE CONCEPT OF SUSTAINABILITY FROM AN ARCHITECTUIRAL VIEW Mariam M Shibub Architecture Department and Urban Planning, Faculty of Engineering, Tripoli University dr.mariamshibub@gmail.com Abstract Libya is considered a virgin land for sustained development, and with its small population, the country’s productivity and consumption are still insignificant. Libya’s architectural heritage, which remains untainted by the pollution problems which plague more industrial countries. The most important problems facing the country are desertification and limited water supply. The failure of the Libyan State to enact laws to address these problems has contributed to their increase. This article deals with the concept of sustainability and its relation to the architecture science and its intellectual and cultural dimensions. In addition, the local efforts in Libya that aim to set up a local plan for coping with the international efforts and the resulting work rules regarding this concern. The researcher used the literature review as a method to focus on the pervious points. This study arrived at an important recommendation that the Libyan authorities should focus on the importance of developing educational curricula especially in the field of architectural engineering and urban planning so as to cope with the theories and principles of sustainable architecture. Keywords: The Environmental System, Sustainability, the Work Rules. Introduction “The most widely accepted definition of sustainable development appeared in 1987. Since then, sustainability means meeting the needs of the present without compromising the capacity of future generations to satisfy their own needs.” (Pascual L.; Francisco,S. p. 1156. 2015) The effects of the fluctuation in temperature impose a great challenge for architects and calls for a new comprehensive vision and an international style of thinking that deals with the human issue everywhere as one unit. The decision to establish an industrial zone or a settlement apart from the agricultural or green land will not only affect the surrounding people but also various places across the world. Its impact will increase with time and population growth. The decision of the architect or the planner has a wide range of impacts, and he/she is therefore called to return to nature and to respect natural sustainability factors, establishing green buildings and cities as a response to the fears emanating from the fluctuation in temperature and international environmental issues. They are the same callings of today that place the sustainability factor as a