Sustainable design perspectives for heritages’ reconstruction

Abstract

[EN] Natural disasters and conflicts effects, on a large scale, on communities and their heritages, together with the semantic expansion and democratization of the concept of heritage itself, have determined recently a shifting attitude towards the idea of reconstruction. The contribution, moving through theoretical positions and operational experiences, intends to explore the role and perspectives of design for heritages’ reconstruction, framing this crucial issue between contemporary urgencies and sustainable development scenarios promoted by the Agenda 2030 and its SDG. The intense ongoing debate, also in the design disciplines, shows the need for a reflection on reconstruction, seen, without prejudice, as a design possibility for communities to imagine different forms of existence for their destroyed heritages. But also, to understand approaches, methods, tools and ways through which the project shapes reconstruction. Through a series of emblematic case studies, which move between re-building and re-constructing and their reciprocal overlaps, this contribution will also highlight the "order of similarities" that each reconstruction project interprets within a sustainable development framework. Both built an un-built projects will be presented as possible references to orient a debate and a critical reflection on contemporary heritage reconstruction, seen as strategical for heritage enhancement and an opportunity for promoting sustainable development for places and communities.The proposal for the International competition on the Buffer zone of the UNESCO site of Villa Adriana will be presented as a design experimentation, showing how sustainability could inform design strategies for reconstruction according to global agendas.