Stretch the Edge – Design Driven Processes for Reactivating Small Walled Towns and Inland Areas

Stretch the Edge — Design Driven Processes for Reactivating Small Walled Towns and Inland Areas was an international symposium held at the Università degli Studi della Repubblica di San Marino (Antico Monastero Santa Chiara) on June 22–23, 2023. It was promoted by the Research Units in Design of the Università degli Studi della Repub- blica di San Marino, the Advanced Design Unit of the Department of Architecture at Alma Mater Studiorum – Università di Bologna, and Beijing City University. The event explored how design can serve as a valuable tool for reactivating territories located in inland areas, enclosed by natural or artificial barriers. These territories, due to their size, morphology, and environmental or anthropic characteristics, often face significant challenges. However, their unique attributes also grant them a strong identity, making them socially, economically, and environmentally attractive. The values of uniqueness and identity represent tangible opportunities for natural, urban, and rural development. As such, they must be enhanced, revalued, reinterpreted, and systematized in future processes of repopulation and community settlement — with the goal of transforming these territories into multi-species and inter-species ecosystems, tangible places of sustainable living.