Cities currently host more than half of the world population, which is projected to increase up to 70% by 2050. With the expected population growth, cities will hence be the source of an estimated 85% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. There is a growing recognition and awareness that nature can help to provide viable solutions by using and deploying the properties of natural ecosystems and the services that they provide in a smart and “engineered” way.
Working with nature, rather than against it, can further pave the way towards a more resource efficient, competitive, and greener economy. But, why are nature-based solutions not used more often to address the current global urban challenges? One of the main reasons is the lack of interconnectedness and cooperation between the biology and biotechnology sectors with design, industry, and entrepreneurship experts. Furthermore, the funding for the much necessary disruptive and visionary startups is highly fragmented and it is not sufficient to develop sound biotechnology solutions.
Building Urban Intelligent Living Design Solutions (BUILD Solutions, a project co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union) aims to give response to this challenge. BUILD Solutions sets up a transdisciplinary cooperation among universities and businesses by engaging students, teachers, and researchers of different disciplines and provides them with the necessary entrepreneurial skills and interconnections to bring intelligent living solutions to the market, investigating biological systems, creating prototypes based on information technology and digital manufacturing, business plans and working with accelerators. These solutions in turn can help us overcome the challenges posed by rapid urbanisation.
Cite This Paper
Farinea, Chiara, et al. “Building Urban Intelligent Living Design.” Arts Imagining Communities to Come, Guayaquil, Ecuador, 8-11 November 2021. Cumulus Association, 2022. Accessed [month, day, year].