CC BY 4.0Richter, ChristineChristineRichterBoonkumkrong, NuchwareeNuchwareeBoonkumkrongBeermann, HenrikHenrikBeermannKaiser, UrbanUrbanKaiser2024-12-122024-12-122024https://doi.org/10.24406/publica-3952https://publica.fraunhofer.de/handle/publica/48062010.24406/publica-3952Thailand is well known for its diverse vernacular wooden architecture. Besides valuing these buildings as cultural heritage and for their touristic appeal, the preservation of wooden vernacular housing in cities can make a significant contribution to sustainable urban development in environmental, social and economic terms. Preservation through use can save materials for new construction, provides living space rather than clearing land for large-scale commercial business, and can foster mixed use neighborhoods. Continued use of these buildings depends not only on technical improvements, but also on several socio-technical factors that play out at different scales. Taking this bigger picture into account, our study’s overall aim is to identify the requirements for the preservation of vernacular wooden houses in the city of Chiang Mai, especially those that are related to indoor comfort, from the perspective of different social groups in the city. In this paper we address this broader aim through two initial questions that have emerged during qualitative research in 2021 and 2022, namely: who are the relevant social groups in the city, depending on varying perceptions of the preservation of wooden houses, and how do the characteristics of houses and their immediate surroundings (potentially) mediate the perceptions of residents? The paper provides a glimpse into the study’s path, where we make the (empirical as well as methodological) move from exploring groups, perceptions as well as contextual dynamics at city and regional scale to the more specific requirements of different social groups at the scale of the individual home.enbook article