95863 - ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN FOR FUTURE CITIES

Learning outcomes

Once completed the course, the student is able to quantify the environmental sustainability levels of planned interventions according to shared and recognized rating systems.

Course contents

The course is included in the Integrated Course "Making the city resilient" and is supplementary to the two core courses "Low-energy buildings and cities" and "Optimizing economic and environmental effectiveness."

The course will illustrate the concepts and criteria for the sustainable design of interventions on the built environment, both at building and urban district scales. An overview of the most recognized international rating systems for assessing the environmental sustainability and climate resilience of these interventions (parameters and levels) will then be provided.

Basic skills related to the concept of Maintainability Assessment and Maintenance Planning of buildings and infrastructure will also be provided.

The course will be structured in four thematic blocks consisting of lectures and interactive moments, which will explore the following topics:

Thematic block 1:

• Introduction to the concepts of environmental sustainability and sustainable design;
• Insight into concepts at the building scale (main technical and technological solutions);
• In-depth study of concepts at the district scale (mitigation and adaptation strategies);

Thematic block 2:

• Overview of international environmental sustainability assessment systems;
• Insight into the most widely used systems (LEED, BREEAM, CASBEE, DGNB, etc.) at both building and district scales;

Thematic block 3:

• Hints of climate resilience in the design of the built environment;
• Insight into climate risk and vulnerability assessment of buildings and districts. 

Thematic Block 4 (extra):

• Hints of Maintainability Assessment applied to the built environment;
• Hints of Maintenance Planning of Buildings and Infrastructure.

Readings/Bibliography

David Bergman, “Sustainable Design. A critical guide”, Princeton Architectural Press, New York, 2012.

Sebastian El khouli, Viola John, Martin Zeumer, “Sustainable Construction Techniques”, Detail Green Book, Insitut fur Internationale, 2015.

Elena Bernardi, Salvatore Carlucci, Cristina Cornaro and Rolf André Bohne, “An Analysis of the Most Adopted Rating Systems for Assessing the Environmental Impact of Buildings”, Sustainability, MDPI, 2017, 9, 1226

Antonio Sánchez Cordero, Sergio Gómez Melgar and José Manuel Andújar Márquez, “Green Building Rating Systems and the New Framework Level(s): A Critical Review of Sustainability Certification within Europe”, Energies, MDPI, 2020, 13, 66.

Cavan, G. and Kingston, R, "Development of a climate change risk and vulnerability assessment tool for urban areas", International Journal of Disaster Resilience in the Built Environment, 2012, Vol. 3 No. 3, pp. 253-269. 

Robert Crawford, “Life Cycle Assessment in the Built Environment”, Routledge, London, 2011.

Roberto Di Giulio, “Manuale di manutenzione edilizia. Valutazione del degrado e programmazione della manutenzione”, Maggioli editore, Santarcangelo di Romagna, 2011.

Supplementary materials (booklets) provided by the teacher in the Virtual platform.

Teaching methods

Teaching activities include classroom lectures and thematic meetings with external experts. Part of the lecture may be devoted to the project activity common to the Integrated Course and agreed with the other courses.

Assessment methods

The learning assessment will be carried out through the final exam, which will consist of an individual written test (mixed: open questions and multiple-choice questions) aimed at ascertaining knowledge and understanding of the booklets and presentations lectured.

The test (30 questions) will include:

Thematic block 1: 6 questions (1 open)
Thematic block 2: 14 questions (2 open)
Thematic block 3: 6 questions (1 open)
Thematic block 4: 4 questions (1 open)

The evaluation criteria for the test will be as follows:

Multiple-choice questions:

0.0 incorrect answer
1.0 correct answer

Open questions:

0.0 wrong or no answer
0.5 incomplete/insufficient
1.0 sufficient
1.5 good
2.0 very good

The grading of the course (expressed in thirtieths) will weigh 20% on the evaluation of the entire integrated course.

The assessment of the courses "Low-energy buildings and cities" and "Optimising economic and environmental effectiveness" (please refer to the respective syllabuses for the assessment criteria) will each weigh 40% on the evaluation of the entire integrated course.

Teaching tools

Lectures with use of multimedia tools, supplementing individual communications with additional specific documentation (booklets) and bibliographical references. Slides used to support the main lectures will be made available on the Virtual Teaching Platform.

Office hours

See the website of Beatrice Turillazzi