This article discusses the approach adopted by the researchers into citizen participation in urban regeneration actions and projects. It describes the concepts of sustainability and habitability in relation to the urban environment and architecture within the framework of improving the resilience of our cities through the circular economy and decarbonisation processes in architecture. The authors review the participatory dimension of different urban regeneration actions carried out in Spain and the impact of this dimension on the results obtained by environmental, economic and social urban improvements. They then define possible strategies and methodological tools for integrating this dimension into traditional urban regeneration processes. The article presents case studies and their specific characteristics, and draws conclusions about their effectiveness and relevance. It also compares citizen-led interventions with interventions led by public administrations. Lastly, the authors analyse the potential reasons for success in these processes and projects, identifying weaknesses and proposing possible strategies for future development by researchers.
The article outlines the creation of a method for the development of tools to incorporate sustainability criteria in the field of architectural design. The aim of the research is to provide society with scientific knowledge related to sustainability, evaluating the environmental impact of their actions within the building sector, in a simple and direct manner through specific and contextualised tools. A specific tool is experimentally developed for the context of Seville, called Guide for a more Sustainable Architecture and Urbanism (GAUS), in its first document, GAUS-D1. Based on national and international documentary references, the method principles are defined, and an approach is adopted that prioritises communicative actions with the aim of reaching citizens, professionals, and researchers in the building sector. The specific experiment is developed with GAUS-D1, and an initial evaluation is made of its suitability and the validity of the proposed method. The approach followed ensures that the experience of developing this type of tool is internationally transferable to any other place. Further statistical verification of the use of the tool (which implies a defined testing strategy) is necessary so that the method can be consolidated as a national and international reference.
This article presents a methodological proposal to address the urban issue from the perspective of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Different tools have been developed for this purpose: the Aura Method and the Aura Matrix. The Aura Matrix of relationships built from the SDGs, along with the conceptual proposals to which the project must respond, allows for the definition of a methodological framework of action, defined as the Aura Method, applicable to any project that aims to respond to the urban scale from a more sustainable and healthy approach and within the framework of the above-mentioned goals. Two proposals for the Solar Decathlon Latin America of the Aura Team from the University of Seville (2015 and 2019) in Cali, Colombia, and their comparison, are presented as case studies. The scope of the 2019 proposal based on the use of these tools is more rigorous and bold with respect to the requirements defined by the SDGs than the 2015 proposal, based on the millennium goals. This reinforces to a great extent the resilience of the urban scope under study and its capacity to face serious situations in terms of citizens’ health, such as the pandemic we are currently suffering, and improves life quality. The main findings lay on the defined Aura Matrix and Aura Method tools as pragmatic opportunities to translate conceptual approaches such as G3: ‘Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages’ into practical decisions and urban design proposals to improve the quality of life and health of citizens.
This paper aims to determine bioclimatic strategies suitable for the climate of Tampico and to confirm whether they were applied in the middle housing built during the oil boom in the city. The strategies applicable to the local climate are established using a climatic characterization of Tampico and a review of the recommendations by bioclimatic architecture authors. A housing catalog of the time with bioclimatic characteristics is made, obtaining access to five. Users are interviewed to know their perception of indoor comfort, studying the housing in depth regarding the existence or not of bioclimatic strategies, concluding that they have climate-appropriate bioclimatic strategies, which are the same as those used in the houses of the time (oil boom), and that have helped to improve the indoor comfort of the buildings. Using them today will help reduce indoor heating, the excessive use of non-renewable energies, and the high energy consumption costs.
Utilizar la construcción física de un prototipo como herramienta educativa no es una propuesta nueva, aunque puede ser innovadora en el contexto actual de renovación conceptual vinculado al desarrollo sustentable. En la Escuela de Arquitectura de Sevilla existe una gran tradición investigadora en materia de sustentabilidad, pero poco extrapolada a la enseñanza. También es necesaria una mejora significativa de la educación desde el ámbito metodológico. En este sentido, los concursos proporcionan una oportunidad que define una situación potencialmente afortunada para la innovación educativa. Partiendo de esta base, la presente investigación tiene como objetivo comprobar cómo la construcción de un prototipo a escala real, como estrategia metodológica educativa activa, de la mano de una metodología de diseño bioclimático consolidada en dicha escuela de arquitectura, permite lograr grandes resultados tanto en términos educativos como bioclimáticos. La metodología educativa empleada aúna las siguientes directrices: el taller como ámbito integrador para el aprendizaje arquitectónico; la construcción de un prototipo como situación educativa que trasciende lo arquitectónico; la conceptualización de los nuevos retos marcados por la sustentabilidad y su aplicación práctica y efectiva al proyecto, diseño y construcción arquitectónicos. Todas herramientas puestas en valor dan respuesta efectiva a las carencias actualmente detectadas e interiorizadas del aprendizaje-enseñanza y, por tanto, del quehacer arquitectónico.
En esta sesión el compañero invitado nos contará brevemente alguna de sus experiencias en materia de aprendizaje servicio desarrolladas en el Centro de Estudos em Património Paisagem e Construção (CEPAC) de la Faculdade de Ciências e tecnología de la Universidade do Algarve. Este recurso didáctico está dirigido, principalmente, a estudiantes universitarios y profesorado interesados en el aprendizaje servicio universitario. En esta sesión se presentarán los principios fundamentales del Aprendizaje Servicio, su aplicación a proyectos de transición ecosocial y la vinculación entre investigación acción participativa e innovación educativa en el marco de las gestión social del hábitat. El recurso puede ser utilizado para la reflexión sobre la necesaria transferencia de conocimiento universidad-sociedad. Tras la exposición se desarrolla un debate entre todos los asistentes, en el que se aclaran las dudas específicas relativas a la docencia o se realizan aportaciones y sugerencias desde perspectivas diversas.