The coming years will call on ordinary people, public administrations, architects and planners to take on the challenge of putting in place urban regeneration plans to reduce land use and transform existing built-up areas.
Italy's urban fabric is comprised of around 120 million rooms. Of these, around 30 million are located in “historic” buildings subject to protection.
There are around 90 million buildings situated on the outskirts of Italian cities that are often of negligible architectural value and poor construction quality, and generally do not meet earthquake safety requirements.
Over the coming years, the challenge will be to put in place an urban renewal plan capable of slowing land use and transforming existing built-up sites (for instance, converting derelict railway yards in large cities into community centres and parks). Such forward-looking urban policies have already contributed in other countries towards regenerating the social assets of suburban neighbourhoods.
Environmental, social and economic sustainability is a design pre-requisite at every level, according MADE expo Outlook.
These days the structural basis for "quality” architecture for any project is arguably energy efficiency, the rational use of materials and resources, a focus on the quality of life and the environmental and social context. This may range from embedding natural elements into structures to regulate the microclimate and optimise energy consumption, to opting for renewable energy and recycled materials. Sustainability is a design mind-set and approach that meets social needs and represents the direction that institutions and municipalities are moving in with respect to designing a vision for the future of their cities and towns.