Title: Smart, adaptive and flexible public spaces for cultural and urban regeneration
Chair:
Prof. Marichela Sepe
DICEA Sapienza Universita’ di Roma, Italy
CNR - National Research Council
Abstract/Description:
The session Smart, adaptive and flexible public spaces for cultural and urban regeneration (Campbell, 2012), aims to critically examine the role of public spaces in processes of cultural and urban regeneration (Carta, 2025), with particular attention to resilience, adaptability and complexity of contemporary urban contexts. In this framework, the notion of smart is understood not only as the integration of digital and technological innovations, but also as the ability to connect practical aspects of urban organization with broader social, cultural, and environmental dynamics—facilitating synergies between tangible and intangible dimensions of the urban realm. Adopting an interdisciplinary and theoretical–methodological approach, the session seeks to explore how smart, flexible, and adaptive public spaces can serve as strategic tools to address environmental and social risks, enhance proximity and liveability, and promote cultural regeneration as key drivers of urban quality (Sepe, 2023).
Within this perspective, attention is also given to university public spaces, which increasingly act as living laboratories where innovation, cultural exchange, and community building converge, thus offering valuable insights into new forms of adaptive and regenerative urban practices (Sepe, 2025).
Contributions are welcomed that range from theoretical reflections on AI, smart cities, adaptation, and flexibility, to innovative methodologies for analysis and design, as well as case studies and best practices at both local and international scales. The exchange of experiences, approaches, and disciplinary perspectives aims to outline research and action trajectories capable of fostering more inclusive, resilient, and culturally vibrant public spaces, able to adapt to complex and ever-evolving urban scenarios.
To frame the theme proposed in the special session the topics include:
- Resilient and adaptive public spaces
- Smart public spaces
- Flexible public spaces
- Liveable and proximity public spaces
- Campus and university public spaces
- AI in public space design
- Cultural and Sustainable Urban Regeneration
- Multirisk and smart urban adaptation
- Theoretical aspects related to AI, smart city, adaptation, and/or flexibility in cultural and urban regeneration
- Methodologies for analyse and design smart, adaptive and flexible public spaces
- Best practices of cultural and urban regeneration with smart, adaptive and flexible public spaces as elements of quality