Marta Bottero - Böcker

Cities between Conflict and Solidarity, Decay and Regeneration, Exclusion and Participation”, which was held in Rome, Italy, in April 2016, and brought together experts from a diverse range of fields – economics, appraisal, architecture, energy, urban planning, sociology, and the decision sciences – and government representatives.

The book provides a multidisciplinary approach to contemporary green urban agendas and urban sustainability, and addresses the demand for policies and strategies to strengthen resilience through concrete measures to reduce energy consumption, mitigate pollution, promote social inclusion and create urban identity.

This book examines the role of the evaluation models in decision-making processes for the construction of circular cities in the digital revolution. In particular, the book explores the need for a rethinking of development models proposed by the circular economy which requires the valorization of natural, social and economic capital. Urban environment represents a crucial field of analysis in which applying the circular-economy principles in order to steer a course towards a sustainable economy characterized by processes meant to create value instead of extracting it, which put a step forward in the pathway towards a better future in terms of economic, environmental and social effects and desirable outcomes. In this context, the design of urban regeneration processes and housing environments requires the adoption of inclusive analysis/assessment models combined with the structuring and organization of public/private investments that can contribute to creating positive natural and social impacts as well as economic and financial returns. This fundamental paradigm shift is accentuated in the current context, in which the digital revolution is reinventing the future and calls for a rethinking and reformulation of value systems in the era of technological process innovations, while respecting economic, natural and social ecosystems.

This book examines the role of the evaluation models in decision-making processes for the construction of circular cities in the digital revolution. In particular, the book explores the need for a rethinking of development models proposed by the circular economy which requires the valorization of natural, social and economic capital. Urban environment represents a crucial field of analysis in which applying the circular-economy principles in order to steer a course towards a sustainable economy characterized by processes meant to create value instead of extracting it, which put a step forward in the pathway towards a better future in terms of economic, environmental and social effects and desirable outcomes. In this context, the design of urban regeneration processes and housing environments requires the adoption of inclusive analysis/assessment models combined with the structuring and organization of public/private investments that can contribute to creating positive natural and social impacts as well as economic and financial returns. This fundamental paradigm shift is accentuated in the current context, in which the digital revolution is reinventing the future and calls for a rethinking and reformulation of value systems in the era of technological process innovations, while respecting economic, natural and social ecosystems.

This open access book includes a selection of innovative contributions presented at the 4th international conference “Smart and Sustainable Planning for Cities and Regions 2022”, held in Bolzano, Italy in July 2022. Featuring 10 papers by academics and consultants, strongly rooted in practical experiences and international projects, it discusses current ground-breaking research in innovative and sustainable planning for cities, with a focus on the environmental, economic, and social challenges associated with the global sustainability transition and energy systems integration.The contributions are illustrative of the richness of the issues discussed and the breadth of the emerging themes, including innovative business models for building and infrastructure at district level, integrated sustainability assessment schemes for Positive Energy Districts, a material flow accounting model for regional metabolism,  energy communities as a lever to promote historical and landscape values, optimized and electrified last-mile logistics, multi-criteria decision analysis tools to redefine center/periphery relationships, a framework for socio-spatial analysis related to social practices, design principles and communication technologies improving both indoor and outdoor public spaces,  augmented nature-based solution coupling the green elements with the latest technologies to deliver healthier and more appealing cities.

This open access book includes a selection of innovative contributions presented at the 4th international conference “Smart and Sustainable Planning for Cities and Regions 2022”, held in Bolzano, Italy in July 2022. Featuring 10 papers by academics and consultants, strongly rooted in practical experiences and international projects, it discusses current ground-breaking research in innovative and sustainable planning for cities, with a focus on the environmental, economic, and social challenges associated with the global sustainability transition and energy systems integration.The contributions are illustrative of the richness of the issues discussed and the breadth of the emerging themes, including innovative business models for building and infrastructure at district level, integrated sustainability assessment schemes for Positive Energy Districts, a material flow accounting model for regional metabolism,  energy communities as a lever to promote historical and landscape values, optimized and electrified last-mile logistics, multi-criteria decision analysis tools to redefine center/periphery relationships, a framework for socio-spatial analysis related to social practices, design principles and communication technologies improving both indoor and outdoor public spaces,  augmented nature-based solution coupling the green elements with the latest technologies to deliver healthier and more appealing cities.

This book investigates the relationship between universities, real estate markets, and local economic systems in light of contemporary urban regeneration processes and sustainability challenges. Indeed, university settlements can generate important spillovers and opportunities in their territory, thus becoming decisive development and transformation factors for cities' socio-economic, productive, environmental, and infrastructural components. Furthermore, the increasing student mobility to university towns raises relevant sustainability issues concerning the housing demand stemming from off-site students, which, by strongly impacting the real estate market, can place students' families and low-income residents against important financial barriers. By collecting the papers presented at the SIEV (Italian Society of Appraisal and Valuation) seminar, held in Florence, Italy, in November 2023 within the context of the "Urbanpromo Progetti per il Paese" cultural event, the book delves into understanding and assessing the complexity of the effects generated by investments in university settlements as a fundamental factor for effective urban development policies aimed both at meeting the "right to study" and maximizing impacts from a circular perspective. The proposed reflections, finding their common thread in the use of interpretative models and methodological tools of the appraisal and valuation discipline, are organized into three parts: Part I “Investing in university cities: sustainability and urban regeneration issues”; Part II “University and real estate markets: evaluation issues and models”; Part III “Real estate market and governance in university cities: evidence from case studies”.

This book documents the state of the art and the emerging operational perspectives in the field of the appraisal discipline. It covers a wide range of topics, including energy efficiency, environmental sustainability, socio-economic evaluation of regional and urban transformations, real estate and facility management, risk management. It also discusses the potential role of appraisal in minimising unexpected consequences; the role of evaluators in urban development projects as well as the contribution of several methodologies with respect to the overall planning and design processes; the need to manage the complexity of the current decision contexts, while at the same time promoting efficient and effective evaluation processes; improving the quality of discussion and communication of the outcomes of evaluation processes; as well as the appropriateness of current regulation and policy regimes (EU, national, regional etc.). It comprises a selection of thebest papers presented at the SIEV 2015 conference "Appraisal: Current Issues and Problems", which was held in Bari, Italy, in July 2015, and brought together architects, engineers, urban planners, decision-makers and government representatives.

Cities between Conflict and Solidarity, Decay and Regeneration, Exclusion and Participation”, which was held in Rome, Italy, in April 2016, and brought together experts from a diverse range of fields – economics, appraisal, architecture, energy, urban planning, sociology, and the decision sciences – and government representatives.