URBAN CLIMATE SHELTER TO ADAPT CITIES TO CLIMATE CHANGE. A strategy for re-designing schoolyards in Turin (Italy)

Cities are the most impacted by climate change, yet they are the largest contributor to its impacts. Nowadays more than 50% of the global population lives in cities and in less than three decades nearly two-thirds will reside in urban areas. Since the goal to keep the temperature increase to 1.5 °C is still far-reaching, cities must identify the urgent pathway to leverage their adaptation while acting proactively with stakeholders and the community in order to deal with the current and future effects of climate change. This master thesis aims to understand how cities can adapt to climate change by transforming urban spaces to cope with climate hazards, specifically by understanding if Urban Climate Shelters are an effective way to resolve the intricate interplay between policy and practice. Moreover, the research study explores an innovative project that aims to transform schoolyards from traditionalist approaches, based on impervious surfaces and low-albedo materials, to more sustainable, natural, and resilient approaches that are beneficial for adapting cities to climate change, as well as the quality of life and health of citizens. In addition, the thesis provides benefits for the whole community, where it preserves the use of the schoolyard for educational purposes, although in non-school hours and in summertime the schoolyard is open for the public, providing a climate shelter for everyone and increases access to green areas. To deepen the concept of climate shelter in different European contexts, were first analyzed six cities that successfully implemented the project in the last decade (Madrid, Barcelona, London, Paris, Amsterdam, and The Hague) and, secondly, two front-runner cities that UIA financed to transform ten schoolyards: Paris and Barcelona. Additionally, considering the non-existence of common terminology and that each city provides a unique nomenclature, one of the first goals of this study was to establish the concept of URBAN CLIMATE SHELTER (UCS) that can be defined as a space that provides features for the adaptation to climate change, fostering security from the heat, flood, and droughts, through a multi-hazard approach by using green and blue infrastructures, together with the process of co-design with local stakeholder. Additionally, guidelines with six principles were developed for the successful implementation of UCS: (i) map hazards; (ii) map needs; (iii) select space; (iv) engage co-designing; (v) design elaboration; (vi) ensure upscaling. Finally, the guidelines were tested on a pilot case, in Turin, Italy, a city characterized by highly impervious and prone to climatic hazards such as heat waves and flooding. The selected space for the intervention was the Valdocco area, a neighborhood that is being renovated into a more livable and resilient area following the strategic plan of the city. Nevertheless, in the upscaling perspective (vi) and through qualitative analysis, 610 other schools were identified in the city to be potentially transformed by 2050, meeting the European goals. Concluding, the recommendations state that starting the transformation by schools is a preliminary pilot since it involves numerous key stakeholders and provides awareness of climate change from an early age. However, the upscaling process should go beyond schoolyards involving other sectors and facilities, subsequently fostering resilient and shelter cities.