PROGRAMMA PRIN 2022 - BCALL PRIN2022 D.D. N.104 DEL 2 FEBRUARY 2022

PROJECT TITLE: RUSH_University_residences_responsive: innovative solutions for the socio-economic and urban regeneration of neighborhoods in Southern Italy. 

CODICE CUP D53D23004210006. 

Budget: € 121.035

P.I. or U.R. Coordinator 

prof. Nicola Martinelli, Polytechnic University of Bari 

Other Research Units or any Sub-Units 

prof. Claudio Piferi, University of Florence 

prof. Oscar Eugenio Bellini, Polytechnic University of Milan 

Brief project description 

The RUSH project investigates University Residences in an innovative key as activators of urban and socio-economic regeneration processes in degraded contexts, identifying the city of Taranto as a representative case study of Southern Italy. Starting from the structural shortage of student housing in Italy and the challenges posed by the PNRR, the research proposes rethinking student living as an urban ecosystem capable of combining temporary hospitality and city regeneration. 

The objective is to develop a “responsive” university housing model that can be replicated in other contexts in Southern Italy, through a multiscalar approach integrating the urban, neighborhood, and building dimensions. 

Purpose

The research aims to define a responsive decision-support model capable of triggering urban and socio-economic regeneration processes in Southern Italy. 

Starting from the case study of Taranto, a post-industrial city emblematic of the challenges affecting Southern Italy, the model investigates the potential and limits that University Housing can generate in terms of urban renewal, and aims to support the various stakeholders in strategic choices, in order to increase the student housing supply and activate virtuous circuits of economic, social, and environmental resilience. 

Specifically, the project pursues the following objectives: 

• provide a methodological framework that, starting from the recovery of the existing building stock, elevates temporary housing to a driver of urban regeneration;
• define the optimal conditions for universities in Southern Italy to train and retain new human capital and increase the competitiveness of the five university cities in Apulia; 

• encourage the retention of local students, counteracting intellectual migration phenomena, and enhance the inflow of international students. 

   

Expected results 

The expected results of the research are closely related to the Work Package (WP) that structure its methodological architecture. The outputs are developed according to an integrated and progressive logic: 

• Consolidation of a systematic documentary base at international, national, and regional scales on the topic of University Housing (WP1);
• definition of a detailed analytical framework for the Apulian regional context, through a survey addressed to university students and a SWOT analysis. This phase provides a definition of hospitality models based on the actual needs identified (WP2);
• analysis of the dynamics and hospitality models for students identified and experimentation in a complex urban context such as Taranto (WP3);
• Definition of the RUSH model, as the synthetic and operational output of the entire research path, namely a multiscalar and interdisciplinary responsive decision-support tool useful for transforming temporary housing into a driver of urban and social regeneration (WP4); 

• research dissemination (WP5). 

   

Achieved results 

The research activity produced results structured according to the logical progression of the planned Work Packages (WP), consolidating knowledge and operational advancement on the topic of university housing in Southern Italy. The descriptions are reported below: 

• The research led to the systematization of a comprehensive multiscalar knowledge framework (national, macro-regional, and local) integrating the most recent scientific literature with the evolution of the current regulatory framework. The main result is the definition of a solid theoretical basis highlighting the specificities and gaps of student housing in Southern Italy (WP1).
• The activity produced a detailed territorial diagnosis of the Apulia region, focusing on the five university cities of Bari, Taranto, Brindisi, Lecce and Foggia. The results include: The mapping of ten-year trends in the student population and related flows;
• the statistical processing of a digital survey extended to the regional territory;
• a multiscalar SWOT analysis identifying the critical issues and potential of the educational, housing, and service offer for university students in Apulia;
• the definition of the users’ needs framework and of the most suitable hospitality models to respond to the actual needs of university city users (WP2).
• The research involved an analysis of the city of Taranto. The results achieved include: The identification of the Old Town as a priority area for intervention;
• the production of co-design laboratories (Summer School, focus groups, and workshops) and structured dialogue with stakeholders and managers (WP3).
• The main scientific result of the research is the formalization of the RUSH responsive model, closely connected to the preceding results. This operational output is distinguished by the translation of identified needs into requirement classes, technical requirements, and performance criteria articulated at the urban, neighborhood, and building scales according to a requirements-performance approach;
• the creation of an open and replicable model, capable of supporting public administrations and managing bodies in planning student housing interventions as drivers of socio-economic regeneration (WP4).
• The dissemination activity transformed the research results into shared knowledge and a scientific network. The achievements include: The ongoing dissemination of results through seminars, international conferences and scientific publications in the field;
• the activation of digital communication channels (website and social media);
• the consolidation of a permanent interuniversity network that serves as a reference hub in the debate on university housing, maximizing the impact of the design proposals on territorial stakeholders (WP5).