Abstract
The Venetian landscape is as much a product of its economic activities, past and present, as of its physical environment. Tourism is the main source of income for the city, and also a challenge: the enormous pressure exerted by visitors is creating distorted incentives for inhabitants to abandon the city to the point that depopulation and environmental harm are the most relevant issues in the city's political agenda. The chapter delves into the case of Venice to explore the themes of urban revitalization as a process of framing and social mobilization. In particular, the authors focus on the role of higher education institutions in triggering urban change and on the nature of actors engaged in the transformation of the social fabric of a city. Based on the experience developed within a European project aimed at revitalizing and rethinking cities, the chapter explores the potential of HEIs in transforming cities, the hurdles and critical factors that might inhibit their contribution, and the strategies that can facilitate their engagement in processes of social and economic transformations.
TopBackground: Reimagining Cities As A Response To Covid-19
Over the centuries Venice has faced countless moments of crisis and challenges (i.e. epidemics starting from the one in the 15th century, Napoleonic domination, and Aqua granda/High water) yet it has always managed to regenerate and revive itself. The question now may be if the current COVID-19 pandemic could be considered as a new opportunity for Venice to reinvent itself once again and identify a new model for sustainable tourism for the Queen of Seas, that allows a balance between residents and the presence of tourists.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Co-Design: A participatory approach to designing solutions, in which all members are treated as equal collaborators in the design process.
Innovation: Process of creating new products/services or process of upgrading already existing products/services to the next level.
Design Thinking: Human-centred approach to innovation, focused on understanding people’s needs, generating ideas to meet their needs and developing prototypes that need to be tested with final users and adapted if necessary.
Urban Challenge: Main issues faced by a city and its dwellers.
Facilitator: A person or institution that makes an action or process easy or easier.
Hybridization: The creation of new actors out of selective adaptation, innovation, and change.
Depopulation: Substantial reduction in the population of an area.
Overtourism: When a place of interest is visited by excessive numbers of tourists, causing undesirable effects for this place.
Double Diamond Methodology: Design process model developed by the British Design Council in 2005. Divided into four phases—discover, define, develop, and deliver—it is probably the best known and the most popular design process visualisation.