Speaker
Description
The UNESCO-designated World Heritage Sites represent an invaluable treasure of our planet's history, culture, and nature. These places, marked by their outstanding universal value, house both tangible and intangible testimonies that shape humanity’s identity and collective memory. However, these heritage sites face the challenge of balancing conservation with the sustainable development of local communities, using approaches that promote sustainability and efficient use of limited resources. Despite their great importance, often these sites fail to build significant relationships within the territory.
The paper shows a strategic proposal for the Urban Plan of the Municipality of Padula, in the Vallo di Diano, in South Italy. In the municipality there is a Unesco site, the religious complex Certosa of Padula, and a widespread system of archaeological emergencies. The large size of the Unesco site, combined with the morphological difficulties of the city formed by a lower and an upper part, puts in second light the other sites of historical, cultural and naturalistic value. The construction of the new station in the city for the fast line connecting Salerno to Reggio Calabria is also planned. On the one hand this represents a great opportunity for the development of the territory and for its tourist identity, on the other hand it risks underlining the territorial disconnection that today characterizes the urban pattern of the city.
The project deals with the recognition of the need to build significant relationships between different parts of the city. The goal of the proposal was therefore to identify a path that could unite these diverse landscapes
through the proposal of new routes crossing the territory with a new sustainable mobility. And to do so we started from a geographical question of connection between the upper and lower part of the country to be reunited in a green infrastructure that could incorporate the main sites of interest of the city, the UNESCO site of the Certosa di Padula and the new station.
The proposal is based on underlining the role and the urban value of the valley of mills, a forgotten landscape very important for history and the past life of Certosa. In fact, it represented an important source of energy supply. The valley is characterized by the Fabbricato stream and in the past, it could cause significant flows of water to flow downstream and operated several mills along its path. The valley of the mills today becomes a key site for linking parts of the territory that are now disconnected in a green infrastructure that contains the existing traces relating to the historical and contemporary presence of the natural element of water. The green infrastructure represents a new public space for the city and a sustainable device for crossing the territory.
Integrating green planning into urban frameworks is essential for enhancing the liveability and ecological resilience of the city. In fact, green urban networking can lead to successful revitalization efforts that align with community needs and sustainability goals. These strategies demonstrate that through an integrated approach, it is possible to develop strategies that not only protect heritage but also promote urban development that benefits the local community without compromising the site's authenticity and value.
| Best Congress Paper Award | No |
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