On 24 November 2020, as part of the Urban Topics and Challenges seminar programme of the Urban Design course, a lecture was held on the topic of The Design of Green Infrastructure and Nature Based Solutions. The students were presented with an in-depth study starting from the recognition of the critical environmental issues affecting urban centres today. Climate change, grey infrastructure impacts and extreme soil sealing are serious vulnerabilities that lead to the occurrence of extreme weather events such as floods and heat waves.

The strategy is to return to the design of urban spaces by re-proposing the oasis city and sponge city approaches, where the thermoregulative efficiency of vegetation can be rediscovered and water is allowed to infiltrate and recharge the water table. This is where Green Infrastructure and NBS can support the design of quality landscapes, mitigating the impact of grey infrastructure and ensuring cost containment, especially during maintenance.

It was recommended to read the Guideline proposed within the SOS4Life project by the Emilia Romagna Region working group.