Speaker
Description
At a time when climate change is showing its destructive force, with record high temperatures and environmental catastrophes, we need to look for an alternative approach to the current one that rethinks cities as living organisms and optimises processes rather than products, paying close attention to the management of urban flows so as to develop a more efficient urban metabolism.
In urban contexts, the linear management of resources (water, food, materials, energy) represents a development model that is no longer sustainable as it contributes significantly to aggravating environmental problems such as resource depletion, ecosystem degradation, biodiversity crisis and loss of natural capital.
It is possible to decouple economic growth from the use of resources and the environmental impacts they cause. This can be achieved by replacing the prevailing linear growth models with regenerative and circular models for the preservation and enrichment of urban ecosystems and biodiversity. To combat climate change and reverse the current linear development model, it is necessary to reconvert our production and consumption systems with appropriate economic, social, political and technological changes that go beyond conservation and restoration practices, in the direction of a paradigm shift in the way we produce, use and reuse products and resources (IPBES, 2019) moving from an anthropocentric to an ecosophical vision that shifts the focus from human beings to the ecosphere, integrating environmental, social and mental ecology for the creation of communities integrated with nature.
The article presents a scientific position with respect to the issues raised from an exhaustive screening of the scientific literature, technical policy reports, and research results at the European level, the paper maps and analyses demonstration projects of urban regeneration with a circular transition perspective that allows the definition of intervention scenarios marked by a renewed conception of urban planning characterised by the circularity of material and immaterial resource flows. The article discusses an alternative position in the debate on circular cities with the aim of integrating the themes of circularity, Nature-based solutions, climate change, well-being and health, and urban development to support both ecological balance and social equity.
The paper presents the theme of the Circular Urban Economy, which, through a pro-active approach, encourages cities to implement circular measures that address socio-economic inequalities, promote social cohesion and improve access to urban resources, services and green and blue spaces. To this end, the article explores urban transition processes according to the principles of regenerative design, reinforcing the role of nature and the recirculation of local resources to transform degraded urban areas into ecosystems that enhance biodiversity, contrast climate change and improve the well-being and health of citizens. The main aim is to clarify the role of architectural and urban design in the circular transition of cities. In particular, through the analysis of selected case studies, the paper identifies the effectiveness of urban practices in which circularity is developed beyond purely economic interactions and eco-efficiency parameters, helping to define the potential of a circular degrowth city centred on inclusiveness, social justice and reciprocity. Circularity is not meant to be the final goal, but rather a tool to create healthier, more inclusive and regenerative urban communities that rely on closed material cycles to reduce their environmental footprint.
The article allows us to extrapolate a catalogue of technological and spatial solutions to be implemented in experimental design applications to guide the planning and sustainable design of future cities.
References
Atanasova, N., Castellar, J.A., Pineda-Martos, R. et al. Nature-Based Solutions and Circularity in Cities. Circ.Econ.Sust. 1, 319–332 (2021). [Online] Available at: https://doi.org/10.1007/s43615-021-00024-1
EMAF (2021). Ellen MacArthur Foundation. The Nature Imperative: How the circular economy tackles biodiversity loss . [Online] Available at: https://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/biodiversity-report
IPBES (2019). Intergovernmental science-policy Platform for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services. Summary for policymakers of the global assessment report on biodiversity and ecosystem services, IPBES secretariat, Bonn. [Online] Available at: doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3553579
Maudsley A. & Wallsten B. (2024). Towards Regenerative Neighbourhoods: European Cases, Insights, and Initiatives. A Curated Compilation made by the Circular Urban Economies Transition Pathway in the Driving Urban Transitions Partnership (DUT).
| Keywords | Circular design, Ecosystem services, Nature-based solutions, Regenerative design, Urban metabolism |
|---|---|
| Best Congress Paper Award | Yes |
