Periodic Reporting for period 1 - BIO-POLIS (BIOphilic MetroPOLIS, a holistic model for urban planning and building climate resilience)
Periodo di rendicontazione: 2021-11-01 al 2023-07-31
Rapid urbanization in recent decades poses threats to social stability, economic prosperity, and environmental and human health, prioritized in European and Global Agendas. Despite cities occupying just 3% of Earth’s landmass, they significantly contribute to and suffer from the climate crisis. In response, cities are implementing programs centered on healthier design, sustainable planning, and greenification. While reducing environmental impact, these actions often overlook social implications, including the health benefits of nature. Modern lifestyle and widespread technology addiction led us to spend up to 90% of our time indoors, negatively impacting the urban quality of life. Conversely, growing evidence indicates that regular exposure to nature improves our health and social relationships. This explains the growing interest in biophilia, grounded in humans’ innate affiliation with living beings and systems. Albeit several disciplines having proven multiple benefits of biophilia for both people and the environment, there are limitations to broader and intersectoral progress: issues such as scientific objectivity, measurability, upscaling, and the implementation of Biophilic Urbanism require further investigation. To address these gaps, BIO-POLIS promotes the biophilic city as a holistic urban model to enhance livability by restoring human-nature interaction and to foster climate resilience by maximizing the use of nature in city planning. In compliance with SDGs (3,11,13,15,17), BIO-POLIS recognizes and supports the pivotal role of natural capital in making cities inclusive, safe, and resilient.
The reporting period covers two phases of MSCA Global Fellowship: Initial Secondment (TUD) and Outgoing phase (MIT-SCL). Despite a 5-month delay due to bureaucratic constraints, the BIO-POLIS project progressed according to plan, achieving scientific and training objectives. In WP1, project management, dissemination, and communication activities were successfully conducted, enhancing global outreach and engagement. During the Initial Secondment, Ethical Deliverables and a Data Management Plan were drafted and approved. Supervisors diligently monitored tasks, timetables, and deliverable quality. Frequent meetings with the research team facilitated workflow. Communication via institutional channels marked milestones. Dissemination activities were conducted to share ongoing research with the scientific community and the wider public through in-person and hybrid events (AMS Conference, Maker Faire, AMP Conference, MIT SCL Conference). Scientific publications, project websites, online surveys, and social media posts were utilized to spread key concepts and raise awareness of biophilia-related issues among the general audience. The Initial Secondment fostered trust in a new environment. Mobility experiences enhanced both my professional and personal skills. In WP2, a strategic Career Development Plan was defined and successfully implemented, with slight adjustments due to annual course changes. Training activities were planned to integrate my SSH-based background by acquiring an advanced skill set in Urban Science (big data management, Computer Science knowledge, Machine Learning modeling, and data visualization), cultivating expertise in environmental science, and gaining new scientific and transferable skills. Training was conducted through courses and hands-on activities provided by TUD and MIT, as well as their affiliated entities (Harvard University, AMS). The two-way transfer of knowledge between MIT and our team was effectively facilitated, and our collaboration continues via AMS/SAL. In WP3, the state-of-the-art in Biophilic Urbanism was advanced through a 60-year literature review, synthesizing research outcomes from various disciplines and highlighting the beneficial impacts of biophilia across multiple dimensions. Global online surveys and workshops were conducted to gather data by engaging citizens (Feeling Nature). Fieldwork helped establish baseline datasets, validate sensor performance, and train Machine Learning models (Greenery Scanner). Collaborations with ETH-SEC and UPC were initiated, including a planned visit to Singapore. WP4 focused on identifying, sensing, and mapping urban nature to provide new knowledge tools aimed at developing sensitivity toward natural capital and inspiring biophilic attitudes toward preservation. In response to a biophilic measurement gap uncovered during the literature review process, we designed 'Feeling Nature' to measure the positive effects of biophilia experienced digitally through visual representations of nature, applying the MIT-SCL method rooted in quantitative research. Expanding from three to eight cities across terrestrial biomes, this comparative study provides metrics and maps of biophilic setting and biophilic perception worldwide. Urban nature sensing activities were performed by cooperating with an international group dedicated to smart urban forest monitoring. Delving into the potential synergies with biophilia, I supported the ‘Greenery Scanner’ research team in prototyping an AI-powered, hyperspectral, and thermal mobile for cost-effective detection of tree health using street view images, complementing outcomes from satellites and ground-based sensors. This integrated network empowers local forest services, enhancing the effectiveness and timeliness of their interventions. WP5 merges Biophilic Urbanism and Urban Morphology to define a range of ‘bio-morphologies’, spatial systems based on biophilic solutions at multiple scales (buildings, neighborhoods, infrastructures). To establish this framework, a multicriteria analysis is being developed based on key qualities of the built environment, considering biophilic effects in disciplines, sectors, biomes, and scales. The analytical model is informed by specific insights focused on human-art-nature interaction (for a wider audience), biophilic districts (conference paper for expert audiences), and Living Labs methods. Public events in different cities/biomes are planned throughout the Incoming Phase to collect data involving citizens. Despite the emphasis on environment and design, WP6 and WP7 progress with parallel activities connected to WP5.
BIO-POLIS contributes to the biophilia domain through theoretical and practical advancements. In particular, the literature review substantiates the scientific foundation with multidisciplinary evidence and proposes a new benefit-oriented definition that advocates for biophilia upscaling to maximize the advantages of Biophilic Design and Biophilic Urbanism across scales. It finally identifies research deficits and suggests future insights. Through diverse insights, the applied research introduces new metrics and Machine Learning models to assess biophilia globally, emphasizing its universal value and pioneering the integration of Biophilia and Computer Science to explore the relation between man, nature, and urban digitalization (Visual AI). Actions related to urban forest health monitoring, biophilic districts, and 'bio-morphologies' raise citizens’ awareness of city nature, optimizing the project’s global impact. Beyond advancing the project partners in R&I, BIO-POLIS encourages international cooperation. While acquiring new skills and expanding networking, BIO-POLIS considerably enhances future career prospects.