Participation in the Rendez-vous de l'urbanisme 2023
Espaces Rivières, Praille Acacias Vernets (© Canton de Genève / PAV)
On the occasion of the Rendez-vous de l’urbanisme 2023, organized from October 17 to 19 by the Département du territoire (DT) of the Canton of Geneva, Dr. Sophie Lufkin from the Laboratory of Architecture and Sustainable Technologies (LAST) contributed to the guided tour of the Espaces Rivières project, which plans the creation of a network of emblematic public spaces around the re-opening and renaturation of two cantonal rivers. In this context, she presented certain aspects of the “Maillages fertiles” research project, which aims to explore more particularly the potential of such spaces as sustainability activators at the heart of neighborhoods in transition.
In a context of climate emergency and contraction of available resources, tangible actions towards the ecological transition are top priorities for the built environment. This means not only drastically reducing our carbon emissions, but also (re)designing our urban spaces to prepare for, and adapt to the inevitable impacts of climate disruption. Complex and intertwined, these challenges require considerable adaptation of current standards and practices.
The Espaces Rivières project, which plans the creation of a network of major public spaces around the re-opening and renaturation of the Aire and Drize rivers at the heart of the Praille Acacias Vernets (PAV) sector, constitutes an action-research laboratory for the study of the multiple questions raised by the transition to a low-carbon society. It is in this spirit that the “Maillages fertiles” research project was designed. It takes precisely this changing perimeter as a case study.
Intrinsically holistic and interdisciplinary in nature, the studies are located at the interface of prospective “research by design” approaches and quantitative and qualitative evaluative approaches designed with a view to supporting decision-making (urban morphology and green spaces, urban climate quality, carbon footprint, uses and lifestyles).
The Rendez-vous de l’urbanisme 2023 offer three days of discoveries, debates and meetings on the theme of resources. During the guided tour, which took place on October 17th in the presence of Franck Pidoux, director of the Office cantonal de l’eau (OCEau), Ruben Villenave, project manager at Direction Praille Acacias Vernets (DPAV) and Pascale Vieux Lautens, communications manager at Fondation Praille Acacias Vernets (FPAV), Dr. Sophie Lufkin discussed the main issues of the Espaces Rivières project, which represents a unique opportunity to create green spaces for the well-being and climatic comfort of urban dwellers, reintroduce biodiversity in urban areas, manage the risk of flooding and rainwater in an ecological manner, integrate productive surfaces for urban agriculture, but also reclaim public space to promote socio-cultural links.