Title: Challenging Planning and Design for a More Resilient City
Chair:
Prof. Dimitra Diana Babalis
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
University of Florence, Italy
Abstract/Description:
Climate change emergency has generated new principles and tools for long-lasting urban quality improvement in sensitive historic environment. However, core environments have a huge potentiality to save energy and cities must embrace their responsibilities to satisfy UN targets by implementing specific strategies for urban quality, climate adaptation, health and well-being, significant energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.
Accordingly, core urban areas need to be preserved and re-designed under new cultural, historical, sustainable, and ecological criteria. In turn, measures to promote urban regeneration by promoting urban greening; By making use of under-used small spaces for pocket parks; By creating sustainable and resilient cycle and pedestrian areas for health and well-being; By regenerating urban waterfronts, former industrial areas and other heritage buildings can help to re-gain urban quality, image value, urban risks protection, social and economic benefits.
This special session mainly interrogates on how could be possible to gain benefits of urban and environmental impact within the historic environment including green opportunities and vegetation such as resilient Urban Open Spaces, Sensitive Urban Areas, Green Infrastructures, improving Active Travel, (walking, cycling and urban transport) providing environmental, social and economic benefits. However, future tasks must be mainly focused on added value for urban-ecological and city-structuring within the ′Heritage Urban Landscape′, (HUL), as defined by UNESCO.