Second episode – the digital transition

The digital transition is not a race for innovation. It is a transformation of the way we live, participate, and make decisions.

• Lyrics and lead vocals Mauro Fontana
• With contributions and voices from Maria Ferrara, Tommaso Listo, and the young participants in the course Challenges for the Contemporary City.

Zeta _ Cities in Transition is a podcast by FULL – Future Urban Legacy Lab, the research center on cities and territory at the Polytechnic University of Turin, produced for the ZetaLab project of the City of Turin, funded by the Piedmont Region, to promote participation and active citizenship among young people.

• Coordination Mauro Fontana, Erica Mangione, Manuela Ronci.
• With the participation of PoliTo per il Sociale and Lucio Beltrami.
• Post-production and editing Claudio Jampaglia at Radio Popolare studios.
• Music by Gaetano Nicosia.
• Graphics by Giuseppe Mangiola.

The post Zeta – cities in transition /2 appeared first on FULL | the Future Urban Legacy Lab.

A second training module entitled ‘Protecting the Future’, organised by PoliTO per il Sociale, will illustrate theories and practices on the themes of participation and co-design.

The addressees of the initiative are young administrators, under 35 or newly appointed, and young people under 29, in order to approach active citizenship paths by reducing the gap between politics and institutions, addressing topics that aim to increase passion for the common good, public commitment, value ethics and aimed at deepening topical issues.

At the end of the cycle, FULL issues a report to summarise the themes and methods of the initiative, a charter of intentions with the motions expressed by the course participants to be submitted to the administration, and the four-episode podcast ‘Zeta’.

Course program

March 21, 2025 – Visions for a fairer future

• At OGR
• Loris Servillo, Mauro Fontana, Erica Mangione, Manuela Ronci – Polytechnic University of Turin/FULL
Presentation of the course program and objectives.
Lecture on the challenges of planning and managing contemporary cities and the importance of thinking about the city of the future in the context of the “just city,” in line with SDG 11 of the UN Agenda: “Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable.”

March 28, 2025 – Regeneration of urban spaces & community spaces

• Presso Scuola primaria “G. Parini” – Corso Giulio Cesare 26
• Cristiana Rossignolo – Politecnico di Torino, Monica Postiglione e Anna Pratt – esperte della materia
Spazi di comunità come hub ibridi sociali-culturali.
• At the “G. Parini” Primary School – Corso Giulio Cesare 26
• Cristiana Rossignolo – Turin Polytechnic, Monica Postiglione and Anna Pratt – experts in the field
Community spaces as hybrid social-cultural hubs.
The presentation will explore the role of urban regeneration of common goods in Italy, analyzing approaches, policies, and tools available to cities and citizens. We will start from the experience of community spaces as cultural hubs, highlighting their impact on urban dynamics and social and institutional innovations. Within this framework, we will present the results of the SPAZI DI COMUNITÀ (COMMUNITY SPACES) research project, carried out in 2024 by NUVAP (Nucleo di Valutazione e Analisi per la Programmazione, Evaluation and Analysis Unit for Planning) at the Department for Territorial Cohesion of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, as part of the SI.VALUTA project. The research analyzed these practices at the national level, with a focus on significant experiences in the Turin area.

April 11, 2025 – Space justice and social justice in the transition towards fairer roads.

• At the Mollino Room of the Valentino Castle
• Gabriele D’Adda and Elisa Vitale – Polytechnic University of Turin/FULL
Reflections, starting from the “Just Streets” project, on spatial justice and social justice in the context of the transition to active and sustainable mobility and the creation of fairer streets. In order to make the transition from car-dominated streets to public spaces characterized by active mobility and a variety of uses, it is essential not only to take into account but also to prioritize the needs and visions of social groups that are often underrepresented in urban planning. A “critical walk” is planned in the pedestrianized area of San Salvario.

May 9, 2025 – Green/blue infrastructure and the environmental transition

• At OGR
• Manuela Ronci and Tymon Wolender – Polytechnic University of Turin/FULL
Strategic planning in river environments
The first part of the meeting will take the form of a lecture and will consist of a theoretical introduction, an overview of the evolution of the main planning approaches, and an in-depth analysis of international case studies, characterized by different focuses and scales of intervention.
The second part of the afternoon will be dedicated to workshop activities. Starting from a reflection on key issues in the transformation of urban river areas, related to the content of the lecture and applicable to the context of Turin, the workshop will aim to identify areas with regenerative potential and to develop macro-objectives/strategies/actions that could potentially be applied in the river areas of the city of Turin.

May 23, 2025 – Digital infrastructure

• At OGR and the nearby Energy Center
• Maria Ferrara – Polytechnic University of Turin/FULL/EST@EnergyCenter team
Digital Twin and climate city contract
The meeting aims to outline the potential offered by digital twins on an urban scale to support the design, implementation, and monitoring of sustainability policies for cities. In this regard, the European context will be analyzed, and in particular the response of pilot cities to the EU Mission “Climate Neutral and Smart Cities,” including the City of Turin. The meeting will conclude at the Decision Theater of the Energy Center of the Polytechnic University of Turin, with a demonstration of the current capabilities of the digital platform under development to support the drafting and monitoring of the Climate City Contract of the City of Turin, outlining its potential for further development and replicability in other urban contexts.

June 6, 2025 – Intangible culture – data and citizen science

• At Officine Creative (Cecchi Point)
• Sofia Fellini and Tommaso Listo, Polytechnic University of Turin/FULL
Data and citizen science
The meeting will be structured as follows: 1) a theoretical lesson on citizen science as a practice of knowledge construction and exchange between the public and institutions; 2) a visit to La Biblioteca dell’Aria, a citizen science project based at Officine Creative; 3) a workshop activity, in which participants will be asked to work in small groups and propose a possible citizen science project on issues relevant to their local areas, to be discussed collectively.

June 13, 2025 – Young people and public engagement

• At OGR
• Loris Servillo, Mauro Fontana, Erica Mangione, Manuela Ronci – Politecnico di Torino/FULL
Final lesson in which participants are guided through a review of the course content, with the aim of presenting their images of the city of the future through two in-person activities:
• Drafting a letter of intent to be presented to the City of Turin
• The creation of an informative podcast together with a radio communication expert

PROTECTING THE FUTURE – curated by PoliTO for Social Issues

June 19, 2025 – Theories and practices on participation and co-design
• At Castello del Valentino or online

June 26, 2025 – Practical workshop on participation and co-design
• At Valentino Castle

The post Challenges for the contemporary city appeared first on FULL | the Future Urban Legacy Lab.

The course aims to prepare students for local and global challenges by reflecting on the actions needed to make the cities of the future more equitable and sustainable through technological and social innovation. The economic wellbeing and quality of life of more than half of the world’s population depend on urban and metropolitan areas, the ability to balance growth and innovation in urban areas with social needs and the mitigation of environmental risks and social inequalities, and the concern to protect and promote tangible and intangible cultural heritage for future development.

In this context, the teaching proposes an interdisciplinary approach to the most pressing urban issues, such as: mobility, energy consumption, the water cycle, digital infrastructure, the fight against economic and social inequalities, the regeneration of economic and social inequalities, the regeneration of urban spaces through the ability to reuse the material and immaterial heritage embedded in urban forms and landscapes. Methods, technologies and best practices in the development of applications for smart mobility through the internet of things, climate control and zero energy districts in the urban environment, energy communities, ecosystem services for resilient and sustainable cities through an eco-hydrological approach, new tools for representing the city and city data, methods for assessing the socio-economic impact of policies on the future of urban populations are explored. Each topic is addressed by combining a theoretical framework with laboratory and application activities related to the Turin context.

The lectures include the participation of lecturers affiliated with the FULL centre and external guests, and will explore in detail the research conducted both within the Interdepartmental Centre of the Politecnico di Torino and internationally, success stories, and the analysis of some experiments in pilot cities. The disciplinary areas involved are urban studies, planning and architecture, energy, environmental, network and electronic engineering, and geomatics. The first edition of the course ran from November 2022 to June 2023. The inaugural lecture was delivered by Chiara Foglietta, Councillor of the City of Turin for Ecological and Digital Transition, Innovation, Mobility and Transport.

The third edition is underway for 2024/25.

2022/23 Course program

INTRODUCTION

– 04/11/2022 Presentation of “100 Climate-neutral Cities by 2030,” the case of Turin (with Councilor Chiara Foglietta) + presentation of the course and exercise (Loris Servillo, Caterina Quaglio)

MODULE I/a – Physical and social infrastructure

– 11/11/2022 NZEB, Nearly zero-energy buildings (Maria Ferrara)

– 11/18/2022 Integration of renewable sources and energy communities + visit to the PVZEN laboratory – PhotoVoltaic Zero Energy Network (Enrico Fabrizio)

– 11/25/2022 How food market logistics are changing our cities (Agostino
Strina)

– 12/02/2022 The Valentino Park project (Elena Vigliocco)

– 12/16/2022 Wrap-up 1 (Loris Servillo, Caterina Quaglio)

MODULE II – Ecology and circular economy

13/01/2023 – Designing Circularity – Introduction to the Circular Economy (Elena Piera Montacchini and Silvia Tedesco)

03/03/2023 – Reuse of Rainwater (Roberto Revelli)

10/03/2023 – Water Remediation (Tiziana Tosco)

24/03/2023 – Visit to Ortialti (Elena Carmagnati)

31/03/2023 – Wrap-up 2 (Loris Servillo, Caterina Quaglio)

MODULE III – Smart and Digital

MODULE II/b – Ecology and Circular Economy

MODULE III – Smart and Digital

28/04/2023 – Mobility and Vehicle Traffic Simulation Systems (Marco Rapelli)

05/05/2023 – Visit to 5T (2:00–6:00 PM, two groups)

MODULE I/b – Physical and Social Infrastructure

-19/05/2023 – Regenerating the Existing City, Bike Tour of Case Studies in Turin (Daniele Campobenedetto)

– 26/05/2023 Wrap-up 3 (Loris Servillo, Caterina Quaglio)

(TBD) FINAL EVENT: Presentation of the work and open discussion

cover photo credit: Lucio Beltrami

The post CITIES OF THE FUTURE – Interdisciplinary education dedicated to urban themes. appeared first on FULL | the Future Urban Legacy Lab.

The development of a digital infrastructure within which to integrate access to the regulatory system, the clear representation of its contents, and the construction of a narrative of the plan’s forecasts that recomposes the projects currently underway are the hypotheses from which this work departs in order to strengthen the role of the regulatory system as an enabling tool for the design of the city of the future. The resulting collection of actions, although not systematic, is constructed in an attempt to touch on key points of the regulatory system, the modification of which can lead to substantial innovations in the uses and forms of the city.

The post #8 – Coding Tur(i)n appeared first on FULL | the Future Urban Legacy Lab.

A relatively new business active within the rental housing market is the so-called home staging. Comparable with an interior design service, home staging means literally to set-up the domestic environment. It gathers a set of professional and non-professional actors involved in the re-furnishing and re-adaptation of the shelter for commercial purposes, enhancing new aesthetic standards. Indeed, this new model is applied and then showcased in the short-term rental market. More than others, Airbnb developed a strict aesthetic-commercial model, a combination of Scandinavian minimal wooden furniture in a white-box-like dwelling that can be summarized in the Danish word hyggelig.

The digital revolution triggered a crucial paradigm shift in terms of actors involved, practices, production of values, and transfer. The digital space is the new space of capital fluctuation, and thus, it is a critical matter when it collides with staple goods such as housing.

How does the tech-mediated market enact a progressive dissolution of the private domestic space into a staged commodity?

These new tactics adopted from the market highlight the shift in contemporary real estate operators’ rhetoric from the concept of housing to the one of living. In this context, the experiential (staged) features of a domestic scene overcome the typical real estate triad of location, location, and location in housing promotion.Drawing on a taxonomy of contemporary experiences, the paper will investigate the mutated concept of standard. Once linked to representativeness and now projected towards representation, the new standard set by home staging allows landlords to maximize value extraction from the short rental market, marginalizing further the real economy of dwellings within the city.

“I think that idea of commodifying your environment or turning everything into a purchasable object, that seems likely to happen”1

Mark is a property manager based in Copenhagen. He entered the business of home-sharing after a shocking and revealing episode. During his first experience as an Airbnb host, Mark realized that his guests used his clothes and the ones of his wife to share videos on social media under the hashtag #weirdsex. Horrified, he installed spy cameras in his house to control his guests during their stays. After a while, he figured out that more and more guests were using his home to act and perform as characters –literally– in the shoes of someone else. Mark reacted drastically. He deleted his real identity from all social media, quit his job, and created several fake host profiles to rent on housing platforms houses sublet by a real estate agency. He bought on a specific website photographic sets of daily life portraits made by professional actors. Then, he set the house as it if was inhabited by the characters portrayed in the pictures –the fake hosts. In an interview released to Beka & Lemoine in their documentary Selling Dreams, Mark stated that he was fulfilling a precise market demand: “They wanted to have another life, another story, to be other characters for few days. […] It’s not fake, it’s true if you believe in it.”²

Notes

1.Bava A., Branzi A., Yu R., Harvey A. T., (2014) “Everything that is solid melts into Airbnb”, Panel, Aribnb Pavillon, https://www.swissinstitute.net/event/panel-everything-that-is-solid-melts-into-airbnb-with-alessandro-bava-andrea-branzi-rachael-yu-and-aaron-taylor-harvey-of-airbnb-hosted-by-airbnb-pavilion-fabrizio-ballabio-alessandro-bava-luis/ [1/06/2020]

2.Beka, I., & Lemoine, L. (2016). Selling Dreams [Documentary]. Beka&Lemoine. https://vimeo.com/ondemand/sellingdreams/189505421 [1/06/2020]

In 1967 Guy Debord wrote The Society of Spectacle, referring to the dominance of the culture of images as a developing form of the concept of alienation, structuring a Marxist critique to the life-pervasive commodification. During the last century, the power of images strengthened at the point to become nowadays the channel in which profit chains can express and reproduce themselves.

The role of images and the production of imaginaries are at the base of the advertisement and consumption process. The rapid rise of new economies, mostly acting in the digital space, allowed a fast and capillary spreading of the culture of image and, consequently, a pervasive process of commodification. In this article, we discuss the role of images as a commodifying tool lead by digital platforms in the housing market. Questioning, how does the tech-mediated market enact a progressive dissolution of the private domestic space into a staged commodity.

Residential property constitutes the first asset class globally in terms of value, representing 60% of the worlds’ wealth, including stocks, bonds, and gold³. This condition resulted from a half a century process, where the real estate market mutually fed itself with the neoliberal state ethos of the property-owning democracy, leading to what Samuel Stein defines the Real Estate State⁴.

In this context, the residential function of housing is subject to its value as an asset. Nevertheless, this dual and contradictory condition is embedded in any commodity since Marx stated the coincidence of the use-value and exchange value of the commodity⁵.

Therefore, trading of housing as a commodity is nothing new, while referring to the commodification of housing refers to the progressive growth of a large part of housing production and consumption aimed only at speculation, not even contemplating inhabitation. As Hellinikon, the massive development project in Athens, where the developers on a total of 260 hectares of development, provided not even a square meter of social housing⁶.

The effects of hyper-commodification⁷ are palpable in major western cities as New York or London, where the scale of investments is such that the housing prices might be unaffordable for the majority of the urban population⁸. Hyper-commodification of housing unfolds in terms of social exclusion and depopulation. Plus, commodification penetrates the multi-layered urban fabric beyond the real estate market. As noted by Forrest and Williams already in the 1980s, “in understanding the full implications of this commodification process, we must begin to comprehend the way these changes penetrate into the very fabric of daily life”⁹. A similar argument is carried out by Randy Martin in his book of 2002 Financialization of Daily Life, in which he highlights how the contemporary economic structure of self-entrepreneurship could modify the financial borders widely, letting them flood into the private sphere.

Such dynamics are recognizable –among others– in the sharing economy’s mechanism, in which companies make profits by financializing everyday life activities or jobs formerly protected by corporations. UberEats monetized cycling, carpooling apps as CarToGo converted motorists in taxi drivers, and TaskRabbit can now sell housekeeping services without any professional or insurance coverage. This marketplace also includes the domestic sphere, as companies of furniture design, property management, and renting complete the full spectrum of commodified aspects of domestic daily life.

3.The real estate market is worth about 217 trillion of US dollars, almost “60 percent of the value of all global assets, with residential real estate comprising 75 percent of the total”. Farha (2018)

4.Stein, 2019.

5.As David Harvey critically analyzed (2018)

6.https://thehellinikon.com/the-vision/. [15/05/2020].

7.Madden and Marcuse, 2016.

8.For New York see Stein 2019. For London see Minton 2017.

9.Forrest and Williams 1984: 1178.

“How to prepare your home for sale…so it sells!”¹⁰

Airbnb –the major short-term rental platform currently available– has revolutionized the hospitality and housing market since its inception in 2009. As for all the Silicon Valley tech companies, the funding and evaluation system of venture capital defines Airbnb’s performance. Nevertheless, disregarding the downturns of the market, what Airbnb introduced was a concept enabling potentially the global commodification of any single housing unit around the world –including tree houses and boats.

It is important to note that in its early days Airbnb was not even conceived as a service for payment, following the example of websites like Craigslist or Couchsurfing, which based their profits on indirect revenue from advertisements and external funding. This highlights how the platform economy is even less attached to the value generated from the use of its products instead of the mass of data that it generates. This reading shared by Nick Srnicek in his book Platform Capitalism,¹¹defines a taxonomy of the different typologies of platforms currently existing. Airbnb falls in the “lean platform” category, as it generates revenue from housing rents without actually owning none of its listings.

The other disruptive innovation introduced by Airbnb is one of the key elements behind the success of most platforms: reputation¹². Every Airbnb host and guest must submit a detailed review, which automatically positions each listing within a specific market. In line with Srnicek’s analysis, the real asset produced by platforms is data. Reputation is in fact built on a critical mass of product-related data: the number of reviews (and visits), the quality of the service and its amenities. The greater the amount of data and the better the reputation, the higher the price will be. A crucial aspect of this phenomenon is that a significant portion of the data used by Airbnb to sell its product consists of photographs of the listings. Unlike the traditional hotel sector, which has codified systems for defining standards — think of the hotel star rating system —, Airbnb relies significantly on the effectiveness of its photographic apparatus¹³.

This fact complexifies the comparative evaluation of two “equivalent” market products greatly, bypassing most of the traditional mantra of real estate: location, location, location.

On the other hand, this element of complexity justifies the massive initial effort of the company to provide free photo shootings to hosts¹⁴, since once collected the interior photos of the listings were not only showing a determined quality, but they sold a “genuine” product. If we take the sales and promotion process of ordinary real estate, we will find a sheer amount of interior renderings realized by professional CGI companies to enable the developer to sell upfront its buildings before completion. These interiors are usually populated by high-end furniture design objects that are present in 3d model libraries of the major digital companies of the industry, which means that these objects are most of the time placeholder objects. In the case of Airbnb, the “reality” of images and their truthfulness is coupled with the quality of the pictures itself and the photo set in general. Differently from the mere descriptive aim of traditional real estate, an Airbnb photo set can include a still life of pottery on a table, a macro of some flowers in the garden, stock images of the neighborhood, or landmarks of the surroundings.

Such practices of value extraction led to the creation of a parallel universe of new professionals and services. Within the users of Airbnb, many are the companies or society that manage a large number of properties offering a range of services addressed to the reservation and the guest stay. From the more practical automated check-in check-out, luggage storage, and transfer from airport to the leisured experiences, and catering services. Many are also the services offered to hosts as the complete management of the properties at all stages, from the online management to the cleaning services, professional photographs, and consultancy. Some of these companies, indeed, propose an advisory service for the housing renewal in order to increase the market appeal, from the website of Dimorra Hospitality, a Napolitan property manager society, “we turn your normal home into a safe source of income.”¹⁵

This practice is called home staging, and it is used to carry out projects of modernization or renovation of housing units in order to have higher profits both in the sale or rental. From its denomination, it is evident the willingness to set up a stage for commercial purposes. The practice of home staging is not just house renewal, but more emulation of new aesthetic standards and formal rules conformed to the taste of the global market.

According to an Italian association of home stagers (APHSI), with a home staging renewal, the selling times decrease to about 2/3, and the selling price has a reduction of just 4% compared with the 14% of the traditional selling. The costs of this service, still according to APHSI, is around 1000 euro for an 80 square meters apartment with minor interventions (painting, tidying, photoshoot, and advertisement)¹⁶. The costs grow with significant adjustments, like renovation works and furniture purchasing.

Home staging first appeared in the United States during the 1970s, intending to reduce sales times and avoid future discounts on the final price. This practice, even at the time, was nothing new than a small renovation, but the way in which it was promoted and structured, marked another notch in the ecology of housing commodification, reproducing and simplifying existing practices.

10.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVf6_rHnE2E [1/06/2020]

11.Srnicek, 2017

12.https://www.wired.co.uk/article/welcome-to-the-new-reputation-economy. [15/05/2020]

13.Further reputational systems introduced by the company are represented by the SuperHost awarding system, and by the verified prime locations for which the company reserved in 2018 the Airbnb Plus section.

14.Gallagher 2018

15.https://www.dimorra.it. [15/05/2020]

16.https://www.ilsole24ore.com/art/home-staging-cosi-casa-si–vende-piu-fretta-e-senza-sconti-AEKdp5eF%20[1/06/2020]

17.Barbara Schwarz holds around a dozen of trademarks related to home staging including The Creator of Home Staging®

18.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVf6_rHnE2E [1/06/2020]

Figure 1. Video stills of Barb Schwarz promotional video “How To Prepare Your Home For Sale…So it Sells”!

Today this practice is present both in the sales and rental market. In particular, this service quickly expanded its popularity to the short-term rental sector due to the facilitated possibility of profit maximization with minimal effort. Indeed, the recognizable fortune of the practice of home staging has been noted (by all odds) by Airbnb. Meridith Baer, one of the leading home stagers in the United States, wrote for the blog of Airbnb, an article in which recommends ten simple tips to improve the house set up and so to “help get more guests and keep them happy.”¹⁹From the list, it can be read some functional elements as the hotel-like equipped bathroom and the bedroom with the sitting area; to the application of more ephemeral elements, as flowers, color painting walls or doors, mirrors, and lights.

A typical style is recognizable within Airbnb listings, as highlighted by a research project from AMO presented at the Architecture Triennale of Oslo in 2016, which collected a series of examples from Airbnb listings around the globe where such style is particularly evident. With a series of iconic photographs, they build a taxonomy where the living elements (parquet, wooden tables, white light, and designer furnishings) became the standardized components of staged commodities.

Through the years, this practice became more structured, and within the platform market, the actors became more professionalized. Nowadays, the market of Airbnb is in the hands of the so-called multi-properties hosts –hosts that manage multiple properties– these can be real societies, property managers, other platforms, real estate firms, and even construction firms. In Rome, in 2019, 18% of the hosts own more than three properties accounting for 53% of the stock.²⁰ Those societies propose several additional services to the guests and to the house owners (sometimes these societies are the owner themselves), including home staging.

Across the globe, these companies manage and stage houses to make them profitable assets, letting them flow eventually into the vacation rental market. Some of them, as Homm (owning around 200 properties in Greece), propose in their offers from the renovation of the apartment “use only product of top quality and high-end product brands,”²¹ to the complete reconstruction from scratch, owning two condo buildings in central Athens. They also propose advisory to the resident permit program Golden Visa; this European program consists of obtaining a 5-year residency permit for non-EU citizens by investing a given amount of money in several assets, including residential property²². Societies as Homm in Athens or Tamea International in Lisbon propose a full package from the sells of the property to the management of it in the case in which the owners want a return on the investment by renting out the property, possibly in the short-term rental market to the benefit of the flexibility and a maximum profit; in these cases, the houses sold are already fully furnished staged commodities ready to enter the rental market.

19.https://blog.atairbnb.com/attract-guests-10-simple-tips-home-staging-expert-meridith-baer/. [15/05/2020]

20.Data acquired by AirDNA

21.https://www.homm.gr/en/about/. [1/06/2020]

22.This program is present in almost every European Country, the investment for a real estate could variate from the 300.000 € in Portugal, 250.000 € in Greece to the 500.000 € in Spain.

23.https://stayaltido.com/blog/stylingyourvacationrental

24.https://blog.sonder.com/design/introducing-sonder-backgrounds-for-your-next-zoom-meeting/

“A standard that the commodity has lived up to by turning the whole planet into a single world market”²⁵

The monopoly of Airbnb on the short-term rental market prompted an exponential growth of profitable investments on listings by larger economic enterprises than individuals or families. From a platform devoted to stimulate micro gains for households with a spare room to rent, in a decade Airbnb became a marketplace for high yield investments, involving more and more professionals from the real estate and the building industry.

In this light, these mutations happened across the full spectrum of the hospitality industry. In the post-war globalized world, hotel chains built a wide range of options for the growing middle-classes, setting new standards for aesthetics, comfort, and ultimately for life –the ritual of the modern vacation trip. The revolutionary concept introduced by Airbnb is that the main value of its product profits by the opposite of standardization, as each listing is related to the identity of its host.

Nevertheless, as Airbnb market was set in terms of mass consumption some standards started to emerge globally. Striking similarities between the average two-bedroom flat listing rose from Moscow to New York. Home staging found a mainstream “genre” for its plays, and Ikea contributed greatly as the set designer:

“In some ways the generic Ikea home is almost invisible. It’s repetition. It’s predictability. Its sameness across the globe makes it immaterial. It becomes a predictable nexus from which you choose to explore the city. It, in itself, is not an experience. It’s just the baseline allowing you to sleep. That’s appealing to me because then it is sort of like – what is the minimum investment we can make to see the world? Or to facilitate other people seeing the world? Ikea definitely provides that.”²⁶

Hyggelig is the Danish word describing the kind of aesthetic standard pursued by most of Airbnb listings. The term refers simultaneously to the quality of a domestic space of being nice, and pleasant, and cozy, and comfortable²⁷. It’s interesting to note how a word initially referred to an atmosphere and experiential features was later attached to physical objects constructing an imaginary built upon marketability and profitability.

The domestic space of hyggelig could be related to the urban space of Airspace, a notion introduced by some urban geographers referring to the spatializations of sharing economy –including Airbnb– with their mix of comfort, hisperish minimalism and photogenic corners, where human coexistence is efficiently regulated in time by algorithms²⁸.

In order to respond to the demand of an authentic experience promoted by Airbnb –Belong anywhere– the practice of home staging provided the tools to combine standardized comfort with marks of personalization.

Once viewed as a whole, the images of staged listings appear to have the twofold characteristic of being generic and unique at the same time. The hyggelig of the white box with wooden minimal furniture unit is marked by signs of local culture here and there. The motto of Airbnb “belong everywhere” unfolds in the paradox of the simultaneous persistence of the comfort of commercial hospitality combined with the uniqueness of lived-in homes decorated with local touches.

Diving into the staged interiors reveals how the typical rooms of the modern functional house are subject to slight changes to fulfill this double condition. As this may not be perceivable at first sight, a closer look unveils a slight myopia. A generous kitchen actually equipped with few freebies for coffee and tea making, a bathroom full of towels and some free shampoos but with no sign of cleaning devices, or a living room without a TV filled with posters on the wall showing landmarks of the hosting location. These examples may represent a caricature of the staged home, but they reveal the quintessential aspect of home staging. The emptiest space is filled with the bare minimum necessary objects to provide comfort, while the decorative (low cost) apparatus adds value to the listing in its marketing virtual phase –while having a marginal role during the real experience.

25.Debord 1970: 19.

26.https://www.swissinstitute.net/event/panel-everything-that-is-solid-melts-into-airbnb-with-alessandro-bava-andrea-branzi-rachael-yu-and-aaron-taylor-harvey-of-airbnb-hosted-by-airbnb-pavilion-fabrizio-ballabio-alessandro-bava-luis/. [3/06/2020]

27.The word is an extension of the Danish word Hygge. https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/hygge [01/06/2020]

28.Pavoni and Brighenti (2017)

References

Beka, I., & Lemoine, L. (2016). Selling Dreams [Documentary]. Beka&Lemoine.

Debord, G. (1970). The society of the spectacle (Reprint). Black & Red.

Farha (2018). Report of the special rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living, and on the right to non-discrimination in this context. United Nations Human Rights Council.

Forrest, R., & Williams, P. (1984). Commodification and Housing: Emerging Issues and Contradictions. Environment and Planning, 16(9), 1163–1180.

Gallagher, L. (2018). The Airbnb story: Inside the company disrupting the world.

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The research focuses on the relationship between urban form and digital tools for the analysis and transformation of the city. Digital models of urban space are used to connect many layers of information, characterized by different disciplinary scopes, representation scales, and acquisition and processing methods. The thesis investigates the abstractions of physical space that make these city models measurable and suitable for sharing data. The work develops and verifies the hypotheses emerging at the intersection of three main themes: (1) spatial models of cities as “operating systems”; (2) digital tools and the role of abstraction in models; (3) city form as a tool for interpretation.

Publications

• Palma V. (2020, non pubblicato), “Riprogrammare la città digitale”, in Poli (ed.), [titolo da definire]. Anteferma.
• Palma, V. (2020). “AI: Architectural Intelligence. Deep learning and heritage enviroments”. In M. Lo Turco M., Giovannini E.C., Mafrici N. (eds.), Digital & Documentation: Digital Strategies for Cultural Heritage (Vol. 2), pp. 109–119. Pavia University Press. ISBN 978-88-6952-123-2.
• Andrianaivo L.N., D’Autilia R., Palma V. (2019). “Architecture recognition by means of convolutional neural networks”. ISPRS – International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences, XLII-2-W15, pp. 77–84. https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLII-2-W15-77-2019
• Scamuzzi I., Moretti S., Spallone R., Lo Turco M., Palma V. (2019). “Augmented Don Quixote: Performance teatrali e nuovi media digitali / Augmented Don Quixote: Theatrical performances and new digital media”. In Belardi P. (ed.), Proceedings of the 41th International Conference of Teachers of the disciplines of the Representation.
• REFLECTIONS. The Art of Drawing. The Drawing of Art, 1, pp. 1367–1374. Gangemi. ISBN 978-88-492-3762-7. Palma V. (2019a). “Algoritmo”. Philosophy Kitchen – Rivista di filosofia contemporanea, Extra #3, pp. 221–223. https://doi.org/10.13135/2385-1945/4282 Palma V. (2019b). “Architecture potentielle. Algoritmi, replicazioni e città”. Officina 24 (gen-mar), pp. 62–63. ISSN 2532-1218.
• Palma V. (2019c). “Tra spazio reale e realtà virtuale”. In L. Siviero (ed.), Progetto e Data Mining, pp. 88–99. LetteraVentidue. ISBN 978-88-6242-390-8. Palma V. (2019d). “Towards deep learning for architecture: A monument recognition mobile app”. ISPRS – International Archives of Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences, XLII-2/W9, pp. 551–556. https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLII-2-W9-551-2019
• Palma V., Spallone R., Vitali M. (2019a). “Digital Interactive Baroque Atria in Turin: A Project Aimed to Sharing and Enhancing Cultural Heritage”. In Luigini A. (ed.), Proceedings of the 1st International and Interdisciplinary Conference on Digital Environments for Education, Arts and Heritage. EARTH 2018. Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, vol 919, pp. 314–325. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-12240-9_34
• Palma V., Spallone R., Vitali M. (2019b). “Augmented Turin baroque atria: AR experiences for enhancing cultural heritage”. ISPRS – International Archives of Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences, XLII-2/W9, pp. 557–564. https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLII-2-W9-557-2019
• Cecchini C., Cundari M.R., Palma V., Panarotto F. (2019). “Data, Models and Visualization: Connected Tools to Enhance the Fruition of the Architectural Heritage in the City of Padova”. In C. L. Marcos (Ed.), Graphic Imprints, pp. 633–646. Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-93749-6_51
• Accorsi F., Palma V., Tosco T.A.E., Cutrì S., Robiglio M. (2019). “AdRem – Adaptive Remediation Toolkit”. In proceedings of SiCon 2019. Workshop su: Siti Contaminati. Esperienze negli interventi di risanamento, Brescia, 12-14 Febbraio 2019, pp. 739–750. ISBN 88-7850-022-4.
• Palma V., Lo Turco M., Spallone R., Vitali M. (2018). “Augmented Iconography. AR applications to the fortified Turin in the Theatrum Sabaudiae”. In proceedings of Defensive Architecture of the Mediterranean, IX, pp. 1053–1060. ISBN 978-88-85745-10-0.

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As part of the 5G-EVE project, FULL Polito is developing a vertical application of the platform, focusing on the “Smart Tourism” use case. FULL’s research therefore aims to study the potential of the infrastructure to promote new methods of accessing cultural information, based on real-time interaction with physical space—within buildings, sites, or parts of cities. This approach is based on the use of augmented reality (AR) and micro-localization technologies and aims to enrich the user experience by providing contextual information accurately related to the perceived space, on both an architectural and urban scale.

2019 was the year of extensive development of 5G technology, capable of guaranteeing access to large amounts of data at higher speeds, opening the field to new developments and possibilities. This is the context for the European 5G-EVE project (5g-eve.eu), funded by the European Community as part of the public-private partnership of H2020 projects, with the aim of creating a horizontal validation platform for extensive testing of 5th generation cellular network (5G) standards. The project develops and connects the infrastructure of various European sites (in Greece, Spain, France, and Italy) to create a single end-to-end service.

As part of the 5G-EVE project, FULL Polito is developing a vertical application of the platform, focusing on the “Smart Tourism” use case. FULL’s research therefore aims to study the potential of the infrastructure to promote new methods of accessing cultural information, based on real-time interaction with physical space—within buildings, sites, or parts of cities. This approach is based on the use of augmented reality (AR) and micro-localization technologies and aims to enrich the user experience by providing contextual information accurately related to the perceived space, on both an architectural and urban scale.

The trials are taking place in a section of Turin’s Spina 2 district that is already equipped with 5G infrastructure, specifically between the Officine Grandi Riparazioni (OGR) events center and Turin Porta Susa station.

The work involves developing a mobile app capable of requesting and receiving data from a server via the 5G network. The transmission range is exploited to obtain spatial models and large amounts of multimedia information. In addition, the edge computing capabilities of the infrastructure are used to keep the data received by the device up to date, based on the user’s location and activities, defined using GPS, AR, and other location-supporting technologies.

An initial prototype validated the app’s general features. The tool is divided into two parts relating to the two scales of information granularity: architectural and urban. The first part aims to display information about services and landmarks in the context in AR, by superimposing labels on images in open areas. At the architectural scale, and also in closed environments, the second component of the prototype uses AR to display more detailed information (theses, images and videos, structured data).

These functions were tested within the OGR area, where the AR experience was activated through the recognition of works of art. In addition, it is possible to activate a navigable 3D map with information on the services available within the facility.

Starting from this prototype, work is underway to extend the area of application to the various sites covered by the validation infrastructure (Sanpaolo Skyscraper, Porta Susa Station, Le Nuove Prison, and OGR) and to introduce additional functions. These include indoor AR navigation functions – for example, for accessing train platforms at the station – AR functions based on the tracking of three-dimensional objects through point cloud scans, virtual tour experiences with spherical images – particularly at the Le Nuove Prison museum – and access to geospatial and historical information about the urban fabric of Spina 2.

The system under construction is based on a structure with two virtual machines, the first of which enables geo-query web services that filter data and functions according to the buffer area in which the user is located, while the second hosts the geospatial database containing the files to be sent to the devices and the related metadata. The system allows the development of “lightweight” applications that, at the local level, i.e., on the physical memory of the device, maintain the minimum amount of data necessary, leaving it to the 5G structure to quickly update or stream information and ensure a smooth and rich user experience.

Finally, an automated testing system was set up to detect the KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) of the developed architecture without requiring the use of the app in the field, but using an emulator of the app itself, which reproduces its queries and receives the requested content from the server.

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To do so, the scope of this research is to implement a Database and a Design Management System and Dynamic Tool (DMDT) to assist preliminary phases of design and definition of strategic design approach and sustainable development.

Introduction

Building upon ongoing research, this work aims to explore the relationship between sustainable economic models and the management methods for the built environment, by developing and refining a design and management tool that could support decision making, design, delivery and management of sustainable urban and architectural projects.

Theoretical Background

Neoclassical economics studies define innovation as a primary source of economic growth (Schumpeter, 1942; Solow, 1956; Schmookler, 1966; Freeman, 1970; Scherer, 1982; Ruddock & Ruddock, 2009), as well as a key component of company competitive advantage in market economies (Barney, 1986; Bettis & Hitt, 1995; Teece, 2007). Higgin (2013) explained that the interest in the connection between economic growth and the limits of Earth’s natural resources had been lacking up until 1972, when members of the Club of Rome (politicians, business people and scientists) published an alarming report regarding the potential collapse of physical growth on Earth due to pollution, depletion of resources and excessive population growth. Since then, many authors have explained that the paradox exists between the concept of economic growth, progress and innovation and the one of sustainable development (e.g. Higgin, 2013; Gauvin, 2011, Meadows, Meadows & Randers, 1972; Haapanen, Liisa & Tapio, Petri, 2016). Particularly in the context of architecture and management of the built environment, the call for sustainability and resilience has triggered the need for a paradigmatic shift in many parts of the industry. Such changes span from the proposals for new design strategies to the development of novel management systems for emerging social, environmental and economic challenges. Yet, the ability to define effective design methodologies and methods to enhance the management of resources and sustainable innovation by design seems to be complex and to suffer from the dominance of management systems and methods developed within the aegis of neoclassical economic models.

Objectives

The aim of this research project is to explore and highlight the relation between socio-economic context and design organisation, in order to improve the management of urban and architectural projects by design. The scope of this research is thus to implement a management tool to assist preliminary phases of design and definition of strategic design approach.

Methodology and Methods

This research focuses on the relationship between innovative architectural projects and their management. This work thus relies on case-study methodology and analyses a number of case studies of successful urban and architectural projects to statistically explore the recurring relations between design organisation and effects produced.

The methods utilised are as follows:

• Data collection (building component descriptions, procurement methods utilised and project output)
• Data analysis according to innovation management theory
• Statistical analysis of recurring relations between design decisions and socio-economic and environmental output
• Design Management Dynamic Tool implementation through an algorithm refined based on the newly acquired dataset
• Implementation of a database to refine the feeding of the Design Management Dynamic Tool
• Tests on possible relationship with BIM

Expected output

The significance of this research is its ability to provide a dynamic tool for the effective introduction of sustainable innovation through design, optimising environmental resources and maintaining the economic feasibility of a project. Moreover, its ability to envision the potential social, economic and environmental effects in the preliminary phase of projects might contribute to the creation of collaborative environments and resilient organisational business forms, as well as the enhancement of effective communication across multidisciplinary players and stakeholders, involved in the definition of vision for our future built environment. The application of the model might provide assessment of the role of the players involved in projects, socio-economic and environmental results, innovation levels and competences required to absorb innovation and reduce risk.

Publications

• Nigra, M., Bossink, B., (2019). Cooperative learning in sustainably innovative building projects: Insights from thirty worldwide sustainable building demonstration projects. Construction Management & Economics. (Under review).
• Nigra, M., Dimitrijevic, B., (2018). Is Radical Innovation critical to Sustainable Architecture? Lessons from three Scottish Contemporary Buildings. Architectural Engineering and Design Management. Vo. 14, Issue 4. Pp. 272 – 291.
• Nigra, M., Grosso, M. (2018). Progettare la Complessità in Architettura. Collana Architettura Tecnologica, n.226. Maggioli, ISBN 9788891628558
• Nigra, M. (2017). Complexity Theory as an Epistemological Approach to Sustainability Assessment Methods Definition. IN: Proceedings of the 21st International Conference on Engineering Design (ICED17), Vol. 5: Design for X, Design to X, Vancouver, Canada, 21.-25.08.2017, ISBN: 978-1-904670-93-3, ISSN: 2220-4342
• Nigra, M. (2017). Fifty Shades of Green; an empirical analysis of sustainable design approaches in fifty case studies of contemporary architecture. IN: Proceedings of the of 33rd PLEA International Conference, Vol. 1: Design to Thrive, Edinburgh, 2th-5th July 2017

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The complexity of the Italian regulatory system is an obstacle faced daily. It slows down administrative works, makes it difficult to foresee the effects of rules and impinges heavily on the economic activities of citizens and businesses. The need for rationalisation and optimisation of this system is not new. Simplification and streamlining of bureaucracy have been keywords in the international political environment since the post-war period. Despite many efforts taken to overcome these issues –due in part to the progressive increase in the complexity of our societies and the consequential accumulation of rules and laws – the issue of complexity of the regulatory system cannot yet be considered resolved.

1- An Effective Solution

FULL has created the Recoding project, as well as a research team that deals with the simplification of urban rules. The scope is to support policymakers and administrations to optimise the complex system of rules.

2- An Alternative Method

FULL proposes a more radical alternative to the current procedural simplification approach. The method involves: reduction of procedural steps and distribution of responsibilities between actors involved. Existing rules are systemised and put in order. Overlaps, redundancies and contradictions are identified and reduced. Opportunities to reorganise the content within regulations or even to rewrite parts of the rules emerge.

3- An Opportunity to Be Seized

Making rules more readable and transparent means unlocking the potential for transformation of cities and regions.

A ‘simple’ city is a city in which:

• Citizens can easily understand how to transform their properties, feel active in urban transformation and more involved in the system.
• Municipalities – as well as provincial and regional administrations – can effectively facilitate ongoing procedures and transformations, rather than resolving disputes.
• Companies are encouraged to invest in a context with clear rules that enable clear risk assessments.
• Professionals can offer more competitive design costs thanks to simpler compliance verification.

4- An Exportable Model

The Recoding team has been experimenting with this approach since 2018, working alongside the Municipality of Turin. Thanks to its interdisciplinary nature, the group has the skills to operate in different regulatory areas, including construction, energy, urban planning and environmental design.

Through this method, which puts simplification at the core of the activity, FULL is (re)defining an exportable and replicable model.

Publications

• Books C. Barioglio, D. Campobenedetto, M. Nigra, M. Barale, F. Frassoldati, M. Robiglio, Re-coding. Ripensare le regole della città, Dipartimento di Architettura e Design-Politecnico di Torino, Torino 2019, 978-88-85745-28-5. [Contributo elaborato nell’ambito della Convenzione tra Politecnico e Città di Torino e pubblicato anche come allegato alla relazione di revisione del PRGC.]
• Conference proceedings C. Barioglio, D. Campobenedetto, M. Nigra, L. Baima, The Hidden Designer. Rethinking Urban Rules in City Making, EAAE-ARCC International Conference – Valencia 2020 – Conference proceeding (under review)
• Scientific papers (released/forthcoming) G. Mutani, V. Todeschi, The effects of green roofs on outdoor thermal comfort, urban heat island mitigation and energy savings, in: Atmosphere, 11(2), 123 (2020) DOI: 10.3390/atmos11020123. V. Todeschi, G. Mutani, L. Baima, M. Nigra, M. Robiglio (…) Smart Solutions for Sustainable Cities. The Re-Coding Experience for Harnessing the Potential of Urban Rooftops, in “APPLIED SCIENCES” – ISSN 2076-3417, 10:7112(2020), pp. 1-27. G. Mutani, V. Todeschi, Low-carbon strategies for resilient cities: a place-based evaluation of solar technologies and green roofs potential in urban contexts, in: Tecnica Italiana – Italian Journal of Engineering Science (under review). C. Barioglio, D. Campobenedetto, La trasformazione ordinaria. Gli effetti della legge n.106/2011 sulla forma urbana a Torino, in “Territorio”, (forthcoming).
• Scientific papers (ongoing) M. Nigra, V. Lo Verso, A. Pellegrino, M. Maddalena (…) Re-coding Environmental Regulation – Simplified versus Complex Predition Models for Daylighting, in “Energy and Buildings”, ongoing. C. Barioglio D. Campobenedetto (a cura di) Coding turn. Regole, forme e funzioni, nella città contingente, servizio su Territorio, con contributi di C. Baima, M. Barale, C. Barioglio, D. Campobenedetto, M. Nigra, F. Frassoldati, M. Robiglio.

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