Experimenting with Circularity When Designing Contemporary Regions: Adaptation Strategies for More Resilient and Regenerative Metropolitan Areas of Amsterdam and Naples Developed in University Studio Settings

Libera Amenta,Lei Qu

doi:10.3390/su12114549

Abstract

This paper aims to demonstrate how ‘research by design,’ which is an approach bridging research, design, and planning, can help unpack the complexity of today’s metropolitan challenges by considering the resource flows and processes that were omitted by traditional ways of planning. This is crucial for circular developments. By reporting the experience of two university design studios across Europe, this paper can contribute to a better understanding and imagination of desirable future scenarios of resilient regions. The experiments carried out in the Regional design studio: ‘Spatial Strategies for the Global Metropolis’ held at TU Delft are described alongside with the exercises carried out in the design studio ‘Laboratory of Urbanism’ of the MAPA Course, held at DiARC UNINA. Both courses focused on the regeneration of wastescapes as a fundamental part of holistic adaptation strategies for more resilient and circular regions. Climate change issues related to resilience thinking have been interwoven with other complex challenges such as the co-existence of wastescapes and land scarcity as well as spatial injustice. Through a ‘research by design’ approach, these different aspects are brought together to achieve a holistic approach for urban resilience.

Highlights

Contemporary metropolitan regions are facing increasing challenges caused by the complexity of all the resource flows and processes that were omitted by traditional ways of planning [1], and due to interwoven global issues, such as scarcity of resources [2] and related ecological deficit [3] as well as excess of wasted materials and neglected land, namely drosscapes [4] and wastescapes [5,6], and flooding risks brought by climate change, pollution, and further environmental hazards
The paper explores the different results of the design processes carried on by the TUDelft and University of Naples Federico II (UNINA) urbanism lab courses, and, it deepens the modality in which students critically interlinked all the issues, which they explored, in the study of the AMA and Metropolitan Area of Naples (MAN)
The latter have been used as a starting point to answer the following research question: ‘How could a healthy relation be re-established between man, nature, countryside, and city through the regeneration of wastescapes?’ students proposed to re-design parts of the territory of Acerra through a series of interventions organised by different subsequent steps, arranged along a specific timeline (Figure 7)

Summary

Introduction

Contemporary metropolitan regions are facing increasing challenges caused by the complexity of all the resource flows and processes that were omitted by traditional ways of planning [1], and due to interwoven global issues, such as scarcity of resources [2] and related ecological deficit [3] as well as excess of wasted materials and neglected land, namely drosscapes [4] and wastescapes [5,6], and flooding risks brought by climate change, pollution, and further environmental hazards These challenges are mixed, and they occur simultaneously. Such new ways of planning should not be the only evidence-based/scientific idea aimed at the understanding of the complex metabolic nature of the regional context, and explorative at the same time and prone to search for more desirable future scenarios

Objectives

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion