Climate-Resilient Urban Regeneration: Transforming School Yards for a Sustainable and Adaptive Future

Urban regeneration projects must address the growing challenges posed by climate change to ensure the creation of sustainable, resilient,and livable urban environments. This work proposes a comprehensive and collaborative framework to incorporate updated climate information into the urban regeneration process, focusing on the transformation of school yards in Greece. The study employs an interdisciplinary approach involving urban planners, climate change scientists, policymakers,and local communities.

The framework outlined in this study emphasizes the importance of integrating climate projections into urban planning processes, considering factors such as rising temperatures, shifting precipitation patterns, and the increasing frequency of extreme weather events. The use of climate projections on higher resolution, is necessary to assess the regional climate change signal and their impact over local areas and will contribute to adaptation plans mainly on vulnerable sectors to climate change (including building environment, land-use planning and regeneration, energy sector). Adopting sustainable and climate-resilient urban design principles is also crucial to mitigate urban heat island effects and improve climate change adaptation. These principles include green infrastructure, energy-efficient buildings, and mixed-use developments. Engagement with stakeholders throughout the planning process is a vital aspect of the proposed framework, as it facilitates the identification of locally relevant solutions that address the unique vulnerabilities and needs of communities involved. Additionally, the development and implementation of robust monitoring and evaluation frameworks are crucial for tracking the effectiveness of urban regeneration efforts in addressing climate change impacts.

The framework is applied to a case study involving the regeneration of two school yards located in the city center of the Municipality of Larissa, Greece (pilot action of the EU-funded project LIFE-IP AdaptInGR "Boosting the implementation of adaptation policy across Greece”). Through this case study, it is demonstrated the practical application of the proposed framework, highlighting its potential to guide urban regeneration projects that effectively respond to climate change challenges. Climate parameters and indices, related to the vulnerability of the pilot action, have been produced based on the ensemble mean of selected regional climate models, for two future periods and under three emission scenarios (RCP2.6, RCP4.5, RCP8.5). Several climate indices ,tailored to the climatic conditions of the case study area, were constructed taking into account the relevant climate risks: high temperatures (number of very hot days,maximum temperature), droughts (consecutive dry days), energy demand (cooling degree days), thermal stress (tropical nights, relative humidity,humidex).

By prioritizing the integration of future climate projections under different climate scenarios and adopting a collaborative approach, this study contributes to the advancement of urban regeneration practices that align with long-term climate change adaptation and mitigation goals. Ultimately, the proposed framework can serve as a blueprint for transforming school yards and other urban spaces into sustainable, resilient,and adaptive environments in the face of an uncertain climate future.