Research database

TReE - Supporting the Transition to Ecological Economy in Italian cities Regeneration: circular model tools for reusing architecture and infrastructures

Duration:
28/09/2023 - 27/09/2025
Principal investigator(s):
Project type:
Nationally funded research - PRIN
Funding body:
MINISTERO (MUR)
Project identification number:
2022TN5M7F
PoliTo role:
Coordinator

Abstract

This research is aligned to the PNRR framework (Piano Nazionale di Ripresa e Resilienza), and in particular to opportunities related to the management and adaptive reuse design/planning of cultural built heritage (Mission 1) in the perspective of the implementation of circular economy in cities and urban areas (Mission 2 and 5) (Macarthur, 2015; Williams, 2021). The main challenge is to address operative needs concerning the ecological and digital transition in the historic built environment, finding effective and efficientsolutions and managing the multidimensional issues related to the maintenance of cultural identity, as well as ensuring stakeholders’ involvement in the design/planning decision process. The TReE project represents the operational implementation of the Horizon 2020 CLIC project (https://www.clicproject.eu), funded by the European Commission (5 M€; scientific coordinator L. Fusco Girard and co-coordinator A. Gravagnuolo) to identify: “innovative circular financial, business, governance models” to support the adaptive reuse of cultural built heritage, demonstrating the economic, environmental and social convenience (Fusco Girard,2021; Pintossi et al., 2021). CLIC was concluded in February 2022 with the following evaluation: “the project has delivered exceptional results with significant immediate and potential impact, achieving objectives at satisfactory and in some case excellent level. The project has a great potential to continue to be significantly relevant, for further experiments towards innovative applications". Following the CLIC project, and in parallel with the new Horizon 2020 project Be.CULTOUR (www.becultour.eu) led by CNR (4 M€, Gravagnuolo & Fusco Girard), TReE offers the interpretation of the circular adaptive reuse paradigm to cultural built heritage and its effective management, implementing the “circular city model”, which mimics the nature organization structure of trees/forests, that receive energy from the sun and contribute to the decarbonization through a perfect metabolism. TReE aims at demonstrating the multidimensional convenience of reusing existing built heritage adopting the circular economy model through the transmission of cultural identity, the generation of economic benefits and the introduction of solution for natural resources management. The objective of TReE is to develop and validate multidimensional and multicriteria evaluation tools to support decision making in adaptive reuse processes towards circular and sustainable cities, considering that the evaluation approaches currently used in the cultural heritage sector are deemed unsatisfactory (HM Treasury, 2020; Sagger et al., 2021). The evaluation will be applied to three case studies in Italy representing diverse heritage assets, providing a replicable tool for introducing the principles/criteria of the circular city in the design/planning processes, becoming fundamental in the promotion of new governance capacities.

People involved

Structures

Keywords

ERC sectors

PE8_3 - Civil engineering, architecture, maritime/hydraulic engineering, geotechnics, waste treatment

Sustainable Development Goals

Obiettivo 11. Rendere le città e gli insediamenti umani inclusivi, sicuri, duraturi e sostenibili

Budget

Total cost: € 207,368.00
Total contribution: € 187,328.00
PoliTo total cost: € 70,996.00
PoliTo contribution: € 62,470.00