Regeneration of Urban Open Spaces as a Tool for Integrating Nature and Built Environment

Research in recent years has demonstrated that urban space (green/blue/grey spaces) can provide beneficial effects on human health and well-being. Currently, one of the issues of particular importance in the context of urban renewal interventions is that related to the environmental upgrading of open spaces, which are configured as complex systems capable of assuming the role of nodal elements within the city in ecological, fruitive and environmental terms. The redevelopment of such spaces constitutes an added value for the urban fabric, especially in the presence of unfavorable environmental conditions or if its ecological balance is compromised, playing a significant role in the activation of revitalization processes. The technological approach to the regeneration project of urban contexts is strongly oriented to the quality of living and implies approaches that pursue, on the one hand, environmental and energy objectives, and on the other, conservation and enhancement of the existing heritage according to the inseparable combination of “environment and innovation”. Through illustrative case studies, a review was conducted to analyze urban space regeneration strategies in terms of their significance both for public health and mitigation/adaptation to the main environmental and technological critical issues in urban environments.