The Climate Neutral Architecture of In-Between Spaces. A Methodology for CO2 Emission Tracking in Urban Areas

This contribution presents the results of a research focused on the evaluation of the contribution that in-between spaces can offer to the achievement of climate neutrality goals for neighbourhoods/districts in urban areas. The research technological-environmental approach highlights how the design of such spaces, in the context of regeneration and new construction interventions of the urban fabric, can improve the ecological performance of the built environment. The research focus is on design strategies that can help to cut climate-altering emissions, in their implementation on in-between spaces and in the interaction between indoor and outdoor spaces. In particular, the research developed a methodology for the typological classification of in-between urban spaces. Based on this, a model for the quantitative evaluation of the effects of strategic actions undertaken in the design on these spaces was structured, with respect to climate neutrality goals. In particular, the contribution illustrates the implementation of the model in a pilot case, the Tuscolano I neighbourhood in Rome. Innovative features of the research are, on the one hand, the identification of an interpretative key for the complex classification of in-between spaces, relating them to the criteria of Naturalness, Proximity and Circularity and to the six Strategic Green City Axes; on the other hand, the development of a methodology for in-between spaces climate neutral design, expressed in a multiplicity of possible strategies, and for an effective carbon emission tracking.