Infrastrutture verdi in ambito urbano e periurbano: variazioni sul tema fra definizione, tassonomia e ontologia per la costruzione di uno strumento di supporto alle decisioni

In a global context facing various critical issues in the three areas of sustainability, driven by relentless urbanization, economic inequalities, and conflicts between people, highlighting the programmatic importance of green infrastructure within urban-territorial areas means adopting a valid tool that contributes to a broader, integrated, and adaptive design vision. This careful and proactive device is aimed at responding effectively to future challenges, anticipating them and adapting to current climate changes. It is also characterized by its collaborative nature, engaging all stakeholders, from local governments to communities, from those who are experienced in the scientific and academic sector to private and business entities. The literature review on green infrastructure reveals immediately that this concept is relatively recent in its naming, although it has its roots in previous design experiences that involved the integration of natural elements into urban spaces. The ancient history of this concept is marked by a continuous evolution of name, form and function, intertwined with changes in urban concepts that each time redesigned the urban context and environmental policies for safeguarding and conserving natural capital resources. As a result, the term does not have a single, fixed definition. This plurality of meanings and applications has made green infrastructure a dynamic and polysemic concept that reflects an ongoing rethinking of the relationship between humans and nature, and between settlement systems and environmental systems. In this context, the thesis proposes, through a research path, three moments of reflection (cognitive, methodological and operational) in order to explore the complexity of the device, returning definitions and methodologies that have led to the construction of a decision support tool. This ontological knowledge base enables the effective identification of all elements and modalities that contribute to the definition of criteria for building actions of adaptation to climate change, which are tailored to specific contexts. Moreover, the use of informatic ontology allows to integrate and insert data and links from different sectors and stakeholders involved, facilitating more effective planning of interventions in urban and peri-urban green space management. It also promotes greater awareness among the communities concerned about climate risks and actions necessary to cope with them. Considering this, the thesis aims to encourage and strengthen the synergetic and symbiotic relationship between human settlements and natural capital, outlining procedures of reality analysis that vary according to methodologies and expected outcomes, while always considering the complex and multidimensional nature of green infrastructures.