Student design project – International Summer School 2011 – Venice Institute of Architecture
Team – post-graduate students of planning and architecture from Venice, Vilnus, Bucharest and Sheffield.
Brief:
Develop scenarios for the delta region of Italy's largest river; the Po, and explore the impact of climate change on the landscape and thus its environmental, social and economic structures over one hundred years.
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| The Delta has always been a fragile environment |
Concept:
The Positive-trend Scenario - Land use, management and form adapt to rising sea levels and surface temperatures, resources and facilities are re-organised to the ensure sustainability of livelihoods.
Strategies:
- Allow sea defences to be breached.
- Allow the growth of swampland to form natural barriers between the salt water and irrigated agricultural fields.
- Encourage eco-tourism based upon 'experiencing the changing landscape'.
- Allow new lagoons to form providing greater area for expanding shell-fish farming.
- Reduce fish farming and hunting industries.
Narrative:
In the 1700s the Po was redirected toward the south in order to prevent it's silt disrupting access to the Republic of Venice. The result was the formation of the delta; a man made landscape subsequently shaped to provide rich agricultural resources.
However the majority of residences and activities remain four meters below sea level; protected by constant drainage, irrigation, desalination and sea defences. Tourism is a growing sector based upon the areas of nature reserve. Shell-fish farming makes use of the shallow lagoons that are open to the sea. Conventional fish farms occupy highly controlled basins which provide less employment.
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| The project was the focus of the International Summer School 2011 hosted by the Institute of Architecture of Venice, involving post-graduate students from Sheffield, Vilnus, Bucharest and Venice. Inter-disiplenary teams were formed consisting of planning, urban design, architecture and landscape students. |