Oltre la sostenibilità sociale, culturale e ambientale: esperienze di distretti storici resilienti in area Mediterranea. Beyond the social, cultural and environmental sustainability: Experiences of Mediterranean resilient historic districts

Urban resilience has been thoroughly identified in terms of features - reflectivity, robustness, redundancy, resourcefulness, flexibility, inclusion and integration - and dimensions – environmental, social, cultural and economic. However, methods and tools to tailor the abovementioned issues at the local scale are still needed, since the capability of city systems and communities to maintain their sustainability over the time, particularly by resistance, adaptation and recovery in case of disruptive threads and risks, is very much related to the morpho-typological layout, the material-constructional tradition, the surrounding setting and climate, as well as to the relationships among spaces, activities and users. To this end, the paper focuses on the parameters that could support the assessment of vulnerabilities and qualities featuring historic districts in the Mediterranean area, in order to address suitable intervention strategies for resilience improvement and enhancement. In detail, starting from the most relevant characteristics of the specific geo-cluster, some parameters and indicators, both qualitative and quantitative, are developed for two representative case studies in South Italy: the “Sassi di Matera” UNESCO site (Basilicata Region), where a conceptual analysis is applied, in order to address retrofitting and reuse strategies at the district scale; and the historic centre of Bitonto (Puglia Region), for which the assessment focuses on energy resilience at the building sub-system scale, supporting the identification of suitable intervention materials and technologies.