Regenerative Design Principles:
Regenerative design aims to restore and revitalize natural systems while simultaneously promoting the well-being of human communities. This model transcends mere conservation, with the ultimate goal of active biosphere regeneration. In the process, it redesigns current human structures and infrastructures to create more integrated and resilient systems.
Core Principles of Regenerative Design:
Restoration of the Biosphere and Water Cycle:
The central pillar of regenerative design is the restoration of the biosphere and water cycle. Practices such as reforestation, conservation and enhancement of springs, and ecological water resource management are essential.
Mitigation of Climate Extremes:
Aiming to mitigate climate extremes through concerted actions on the territory, considering landscape specifics and using the watershed as the primary unit. These measures restore essential ecological services, improving ecosystem resilience.
Hydrating the Territory:
Retaining, infiltrating, and efficiently using water increases the resilience of ecosystems and communities against climate change, preventing extreme droughts, floods, and desertification. Landscape structuring allows significant investment in natural spaces, strengthening regenerative capacity.
Zoning for Sustainable Resource Use:
Essential zoning practices in regenerative design ensure the protection and sustainable use of forest resources. This involves identifying and delineating specific areas for different uses, such as biodiversity conservation, sustainable timber production, and recreation. Especially, zoning large forests and natural corridors is vital to create biodiversity reserves that regulate the climate, protect soils, and maintain water balance. These natural corridors function as multifunctional parks, promoting ecological stability and allowing animal and plant life to thrive.
Promoting Local Economies:
Promoting proximity economies and local abundance creation is fundamental to encourage the production and consumption of goods and services within the community. This practice reduces dependence on external resources and strengthens local social and economic ties. Additionally, it aims to create localized financial systems, restoring and regenerating the economic fabric of rural areas.
Energy Independence and Infrastructure Redesign:
A new territorial approach based on regenerative development includes a comprehensive review of infrastructure networks, aiming for regional energy independence. This includes promoting decentralized renewable energy sources, such as solar, wind, and small-scale hydroelectric power, as well as encouraging efficient energy use and conservation.
Integration and Multifunctionality:
Integrating elements and making them multifunctional, as efficient as possible in closing natural cycles like water and carbon, is crucial. To maximize efficiency and resilience, elements should be arranged in the landscape to harmonize with natural flows and elements. This involves strategically placing agricultural areas, forests, water bodies, and human infrastructures to leverage natural resources, such as sunlight, wind, and rainwater. For example, water catchment areas should be located at high points of the terrain to facilitate gravity distribution, while water retention forests can be planted in erosion-prone areas to stabilize the soil and promote water infiltration. Intelligent placement of elements creates self-regulating systems, minimizing the need for human intervention and maximizing sustainability.
Vision for the Future:
Regenerative planning and development offer an integrated, positive, and constructive vision for the future. It is essential to embrace this vision and work together to create a world where territorial structures allow nature to expand, creating favorable conditions for the sustainable establishment of human activities.
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