Social Innovation
Social innovation represents an interpretive and design framework for addressing urban transformations through new forms of collaboration among citizens, urban and territorial governance institutions, and research. Research in this field investigates how civic urban and territorial practices and public policies can converge in building an enabling city that recognises and incorporates collective agency — conflict included. Particular attention is given to co-production processes and collaborative governance in medium-sized European cities.
Active and Just Mobility
Research explores mobility as a social practice and urban project, moving beyond a purely infrastructural perspective. The focus is on active mobility (walking, cycling, public space) and on mobility justice, understood as equitable and inclusive access to urban space. Investigations include the relationship between cycling infrastructure and urban regeneration, and the evolution of planning discourse on the topic in the Italian and European context.
Accessible Housing
Accessible housing is investigated through the study of housing access conditions for vulnerable and marginalised communities, in relation to urban transformation processes and housing policies. Research developed within the Horizon Europe project HouseInc explores analytical models for the spatial reading of housing vulnerabilities, with attention to spatial dimensions, planning instruments, and local governance mechanisms that can support residential inclusion pathways.
Territorial Regeneration
Territorial regeneration is investigated as a multi-scalar process involving historic centres, metropolitan areas, and wide-area territories. Research addresses topics such as cultural heritage recovery, nature-based solutions for ecological connectivity, the river as a landscape and hydraulic regeneration infrastructure, and the relationship between national planning instruments and metropolitan city strategies. The approach integrates environmental, social and cultural dimensions within a vision of adaptive territories.
Energy Citizenship
Energy citizenship is understood as the capacity of citizens and communities to actively participate in the transition towards climate neutrality — not merely as users but as agents in energy production, management and governance. Research analyses experiences in Southern European contexts, focusing on empowerment pathways, equity in transition, and the role of urban spaces as enabling environments for collective energy practices.
Energy Communities
Energy communities represent socio-spatial interfaces for urban transition, capable of interweaving decarbonisation objectives with those of social cohesion and energy justice. Research explores organisational models, regulatory frameworks and governance practices enabling their development in Italian and European cities, with attention to synergies with urban planning and local climate policies.
Intermediate Places and Spaces
Physical and relational intermediation situated between institution and community, between public and private, between formal and informal, is studied within the operational units of social innovation and urban regeneration. Research investigates how these spaces can play a strategic role in activating processes of proximity, inclusion and urban experimentation, contributing to the construction of just territorial ecosystems.
