Mediterranean Architecture And The Green Digital Transition

T​his book contains selected papers presented during the World Renewable Energy Network’s biannual World Med Green Forum (MGF). The 2022 MGF highlights the role of renewable energy applications in the sustainable building sector with a focus on the Mediterranean region as a foundation for a truly positive energy future. MGF is an open roundtable for an international community of researchers, practitioners, and experts to discuss the most innovative and promising sustainable building technologies. The papers presented explore the intersection between twin transitions in policies, programs, projects, and experimentation, with the digital domain innovating the green building sector towards more reliable and inclusive planning and design practices in order to collectively envision future buildings and cities.

This open access book addresses the pressing need for sustainability in urban development and the use of technology, with cities to serve as the main stage for strategies that seek to meet the targets and the cross-sector priorities indicated in the EU’s Next Generation program, all in pursuit of a solid recovery on the part of the European economy, along lines of ecological transition, digitalization, competitiveness, training, and inclusion to overcome social, territorial, and gender differences. The international study encounter is meant to promote visions shared by architectural technology and other disciplines, which, though they may appear to differ, are closely interconnected, with the aim of achieving an open, interdisciplinary integration capable of proposing concrete projects regarding topics held to be of strategic importance to the future of the built environment. These are identified to draw up evolving scenarios of architecture and cities suited to reflection, at various levels, on innovative models of process and product.

This open access book conveys attention to the theme of transition towards resilience and sustainability and its evolutionary perspective that emphasizes the complexity and uncertainty that governments and society are called to address in response to the ongoing challenges. "New Metropolitan Perspective Post COVID Dynamics: Green and Digital Transition, between Metropolitan and Return to Villages’ Perspectives”, 25–27 May 2022, Reggio Calabria, Italy. The papers included in the book are grouped around the following main topics: the envisaged transition towards resilience and sustainability; the relevance of the planning dimension for defining sustainable development pathways and managing complexity; and the green and digital transition by glimpsing at approaches, experiences, and cases that outline innovative solutions in cities and inner areas. The book primarily targets the academic and policymaker communities involved in managing the complexity of the transition for regions and cities.

This book is an in-depth study of the Indo-Pacific region for effective interventions in the megacities system. First, based on several criteria, the region is identified as homogeneous country groupings of diversity, a multi-polar spatial system, and as program regions of QUAD and I2U2 for action programs and investment transcending many nations but mostly the ocean space of the Indo-Pacific, connecting all megacities sub-regions spatially and functionally. Then, the megacities with problems and prospects for economic integration are studied from the point of view of regional economics and international trade, and finally, the rural–urban interface with case studies of selected countries is presented. Prospects of systems of megacities and individual megacities for regional economies are designed. Existing interconnections through rail, air, and ocean of megacity systems, their capacity, performance, and potential are analyzed for emerging issues. International trade among the megacity systems/countries with emerging issues and barriers are presented. The mobility of money, goods, and services among the systems of megacities is analyzed. Rule-based diplomacy and other emerging options are discussed to sustain the above calls for a study of the Security of the Indo-Pacific region. Finally, the emerging architecture for megacity system governance is also presented. Out of 21 megacities in the Indo-Pacific, an in-depth study of a few in India and Japan in the Indo-Pacific region for effective economic interventions in the megacities system at the city level was studied. COVID-19 has affected most of the countries in the Indo-Pacific. With a contraction of GDP and a GDP growth rate negative, the number below the poverty level increased. Foreign Direct Investment is not forthcoming in any of these countries. Job creation becomes a priority in addition to public health concerns connected with COVID-19.

The book aims to face the challenge of post-COVID-19 dynamics toward green and digital transition, between metropolitan and return to villages’ perspectives. It presents a multi-disciplinary scientific debate on the new frontiers of strategic and spatial planning, economic programs and decision support tools, within the urban–rural areas networks and the metropolitan cities. The book focuses on six topics: inner and marginalized areas local development to re-balance territorial inequalities; knowledge and innovation ecosystem for urban regeneration and resilience; metropolitan cities and territorial dynamics; rules, governance, economy, society; green buildings, post-carbon city and ecosystem services; infrastructures and spatial information systems; cultural heritage: conservation, enhancement and management. In addition, the book hosts a Special Section: Rhegion United Nations 2020-2030. The book will benefit all researchers, practitioners and policymakers interested in the issues applied to metropolitan cities and marginal areas.

This unique volume offers insights from renowned experts in energy efficient building from the world over, providing a multi-faceted overview of the state-of-the-art in energy efficient architecture. It opens by defining what constitutes a sustainable building, suggesting bases for sorely needed benchmarks, then explains the most important techniques and tools available to engineers and architects exploring green building technologies. It covers such pivotal issues as daylighting, LED lighting, integrating renewables such as solar thermal and cooling, retrofitting, LEED and similar certification efforts, passive houses, net-zero and close-zero structures, water recycling, and much more. Highlighting best practices for commercial buildings and private homes, in widely varied climates and within vastly different socio-economic contexts, this illustrated reference will guide architects and engineers in making sustainable choices in building materials and methods. Explains the best methods and materials to support energy efficient building Features case studies by experts from a dozen countries, demonstrating how sustainable architecture can be achieved in varied climates and economies Covers both new constructions and retrofitting of existing structures