Socio-Technical Resilient Cells: testing of adaptive technological solutions at community scale

The Water Sensitive Urban Design approach is subscribed as adaptation option to respond to flash floods and heat waves phenomena affecting East Naples, the area of study of Metropolis project. The experimental phase of the research within the “Ponticelli Smart Lab” is based on the WSUD criteria and it was conducted to realize a prototype of a rainwater reuse system for the Social Garden of Ponticelli with the aim to develop and test micro-scale adaptive technological solutions for an integrated water management.The study has been articulated through the activities of the workshop “Socio-technical resilient cells”, based on the hypothesis that the goal of resilience in a multi-risk and fragile scenario has to include the social capital in the actions for the transition of the built environment. This process to be effective has to integrate in the measures for the adaptation the local bottom-up initiatives with the objective of promoting a transition towards sustainable life styles, informed use of the resources, reduction of the consumptions, use of environmental friendly materials and low-impact technologies. The workshop has been structured as a research tool according to a learning-by-doing approach to realize a small scale device conceived as a resilient organism which acts both socially and technically in a sustainable way to adapt, transform and respond locally to climate change (D’Alençon and Visconti, 2016). This experience has been co-ordinated by Prof. Renato D’Alençon (Technische Universitat Berlin, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile) and by Ph.D candidate Cristina Visconti (DiARC, Federico II) in collaboration with local actors “Lilliput” (Re-habilitation daily center), “Casa Mia Nitti”(Social Center) and “ReMida” (Creative recycle laboratory) and with the experts of “Archintorno”(no profit for international cooperation and self-construction). Participants through the methodology of service learning2 shared knowledge and know-how with the community in an experimental process finalized to the design and built of a prototype as response of the claims of inhabitants of East Naples wetland, who are engaged in experiments of urban agriculture as an action of cultural and social release in a vulnerable context. Furthermore the workshop was developed on the model of “design-build”, an acknowledged method as educational tool for student of architecture to learn in a practical way a construction of a project at 1.1.