Ambiente e Cambiamento climatico

ECO-HERITAGE – Cultural and Climate Management

New Policies and Contractual Models for the Integrated Management of Cultural Heritage with Greenery to Mitigate Climate Change Effects in Urban Sprawl Areas.

Tipologia: MUR
Programma di ricerca: Progetto di Eccellenza 2023 - 2027
Ente finanziatore: Bando interno dipartimentale finanziato da MUR e Collegio Carlo Alberto
Periodo: Settembre 2024 - Agosto 2027
Coordinato da: prof. Davide Gianti

ECO-HERITAGE

ECO-HERITAGE seeks to redefine the role of cultural heritage and green spaces as catalysts for climate change mitigation and sustainable urban development. By exploring four cases of urban sprawl areas across different European legal systems such as France, Spain, Portugal and Italy, the project aims to uncover innovative strategies for their integrated management. Legal experts will conduct a qualitative analysis to compare governance models across the four countries, while geographers and environmental scientists will carry out an empirical and quantitative investigation, gathering and interpreting data from the case-study areas. Recognizing that regulations and policies must align with the unique environmental and urban dynamics of each sprawl area, the research will highlight how climate data, biodiversity and cultural heritage features should be central in shaping legal frameworks for sustainable urban expansion. With a bottom-up approach, ECO-HERITAGE envisions a seamless connection between cultural heritage preservation and the climate-regulating benefits of urban greenery, particularly in highly industrialized and densely populated areas. The project’s ultimate goal is to develop a forward-thinking policy framework and a pioneering contractual model for the integrated management of cultural heritage and green spaces, with the urban sprawl of La Mandria serving as a key case study.

Obiettivi e attività

ECO-HERITAGE’s ultimate goal is to help cities to be more sustainable. In order to do so, the project aims to develop new legal instruments for the integrated management of cultural heritage and greenery. This includes designing a public-private contractual model for the La Mandria case-study, fostering resilience, social participation and climate adaptation.

ECO-HERITAGE will focus on the following specific goals:

mapping potentialities and limits of different policies and current management models: the first objective is to analyse and compare management models for cultural heritage and green spaces in urban sprawl areas across the abovementioned European countries (France, Spain, Portugal and Italy). The focus will be on how environmental, climatic and cultural heritage factors influence policies and management decisions;
redefinition of public policies on a national level: building on the lessons learned from international models, the project aims to develop a comprehensive policy framework for Italy. This policy will integrate cultural heritage and climate change management, tailored to local urban and climatic conditions;
design of a contractual model for the integrated management of cultural heritage with greenery: the pivot-case of La Mandria: the project will create a public-private contractual model for managing cultural heritage and green spaces in the La Mandria urban sprawl area. This model will focus on enhancing environmental and architectural assets while addressing climate change impacts.

In order to reach these goals, the following activities will be carried out:

a detailed qualitative analysis will be conducted to highlight the legal differences in the management models used in France, Spain, Portugal and Italy;
the project will also carry out an empirical and quantitative study using environmental and climate data from project partners and stakeholders (MFAE of École Centrale de Lyon in France, UAB Observatory in Spain, CICS.NOVA in Portugal, DIST in Italy) for the identified case-study areas;
the data collected from the four case studies will be systematized using a comparative matrix. This will assess the impact of the relationship between greenery and cultural heritage in urban sprawl areas, focusing on the legal and technical solutions adopted;
a legal constructivist approach will be adopted to create a contract-based tool for managing the landscape of the case study area, specifically a Contract of Cultural and Climate Management. The contract will be drafted and tested in the pilot case of La Mandria;
a new Cultural and Climate Management General Policy will be designed for national and/or regional adoption. This policy will aim for effective integrated management of cultural heritage and greenery in urban sprawl areas, combining both qualitative and quantitative analysis, in collaboration with local stakeholders.