Coronavirus: from balconies overlooking the world, it's a green challenge

(ANSA) - ROME, APRIL 9 - No more 'simple' balconies or condominium gardens. These spaces conceived as 'extra' accessories now become "facing the world" in a design of life and city space in a green style. This is the challenge launched by the Green City Network and Foundation for Sustainable Development in partnership with Ecomondo-Key Energy who created an ad hoc dossier on the occasion of the web conference organized today from 4 to 5.30 pm on the Foundation's website (@fondazionesvilupposostenibile). A month after the start of social distancing measures, there is a challenge on the human-food front, lifestyles, waste, energy, climate, sustainable mobility. The Covid-19 crisis also opens up a reflection on how to rethink homes, no longer dormitories but multipurpose spaces, and urban structures that ensure proximity of residences to services, work and recreational facilities, so as to reduce commuting in the city, commuting home-work, and, as stated in the dossier, "all those huge daily trips for consumption, education, leisure".

The dossier on 'Pandemic and green challenges of our time' examines changes in consumption and lifestyles, the challenges of the circular economy of decarbonisation, sustainable mobility and opens a reflection on the future of living. In this sense, proximity services to homes as a formula for breathing cities under the lens. In the foreground, the recovery of spaces equipped for smart working at home. Pandemic, highlights the dossier, "taught the importance of balconies, terraces, courtyards and gardens, including condominiums, all intermediate spaces in general that can play important roles, also from an environmental point of view, with the green building approach. L The coronavirus emergency has also made us rethink the importance of urban space, an urban structure that ensures proximity of residences to services, work and recreational structures, so as to reduce commuting from one area of ​​the city to another and commuting ".

"During this pandemic - underlines the president of the Foundation for sustainable development, Edo Ronchi - consumption has decreased, the attention on food consumption has grown but, afterwards - asks Ronchi - we will have taken a few steps forward to better understand the challenges of the our time? ". And again: "Greenhouse gas emissions are falling but we must not neglect the climate crisis and decarbonisation measures because after the crisis, emissions will start growing again if we do not change," says Ronchi. "Even the emergency has eased or passed - says the professor of Sapienza University of Rome and Coordinator of the international group of experts of the Green City Network, Fabrizio Tucci - it will remain affected and changed in its nature and in its ways the way of life is "We could use this period of forced collective experimentation as an opportunity to decide to produce new forms and new spaces".

In particular, on consumption in the dossier it is noted that in 2050 cities will host 70% of the world population and it is therefore the moment "to carry out a careful analysis of the various critical issues determined by some models of agricultural and livestock production.