The River Contract of the Tiber from Castel Giubileo to the Foce: An Innovative Practice for a Relationship between Tiber and Rome

The River Contract is a little-known practice and an unconventional planning procedure but an opportunity in many Italian Regions to overcome the problems of coherence between levels of Government and to promote participation. The River Contract is a voluntary agreement of strategic and negotiated planning, aiming the protection, proper management of water resources, recovery, and enhancement of the river territories, together with flood protection, contributing to the local development of such areas. In 2017, in Rome, started the procedure for the River Contract by Agenda Tevere Onlus. This paper illustrates a practice-oriented research built by multidisciplinary approach and a method able to mix cultural and participatory knowledge. Because the Tiber is the river of Rome, the research aims to raise the possibility of enhancing the strategic and fundamental role of the Tiber in relation to the City through four key issues: the urban landscape, because the Tiber is intrinsically related with the city; the public space, because the Tiber must be a good of the city; the sustainable use, because the Tiber must be for the city; the active participation, because the interventions on the Tiber must be shared in the city by those who live and work in Rome.