MULTICULTURAL CITY IN THE MEDITERRANEAN TERRITORY. GREEN CITY PALERMO 2019

Abstract

This contribution aims to examine the territory of Mediterranean cities confronted with the general topic of GREEN CITY. New strategies for urban regeneration, based on the enhancement of tangible and intangible cultural heritage and the acknowledgement of environmental sustainability principles, are the themes that will form the cultural basis for the definition of the hypothesis of candidacy of Palermo for the 2019 European Capital of Culture. Our main research hypothesis will show how multiculturalism, the enhancement cultural heritage and a conscious use of natural resources, are essential factors for a positive change in the development of the Mediterranean cities, involving actors, crafts, inhabitants and users. The preservation of multiculturalism and heritage for the enhancement of community and for the coexistence of different cultures are connected with the multiplicity of particular environments and heterogeneous in the Mediterranean cities. The experience of great european contemporary events has revealed the importance to identify places with great multicultural potential that combine tradition and innovation. Palermo is an interesting example of such a multicultural city, with different communities living together and sharing their knowledge and traditions since its very origin. This city has recently been the subject of the Workshop LabCity Palermo-Barcellona , with the aim to suggest themes and actions to support the city of Palermo as 2019 European Capital of Culture. Urban design projects were drawn in some urban spaces in the area from the Royal Palace to the Valley of the Oreto river. This works, developed by some students of the Faculty of Architecture in Palermo, were based on enhancement of multiculturalism and on a project to design a sustainable urban environment. New strategies of urban regeneration might also give local authorities new opportunities to experience shared policies, to create a fruitful dialogue with the different urban communities and to develop new settlement patterns. Marseille 2013, with the Euroméditerranée project, are clear examples of refurbishment and urban renewal of abandoned industrial heritage and enhancement of Mediterranean multiculturalism.