I chiostri urbani come risorsa per la mitigazione e l’adattamento climatico. Urban cloisters as a resource for climate mitigation and adaptation

Cultural heritage is a valuable resource for mitigating climate change, as it records past successes and resiliencies. Cultural heritage buildings represent a collection of historical actions, processes, and knowledge that exemplify adaptive practices, including traditional and nature-based methods. Heritage-based knowledge has the potential to enhance our understanding of climate change and its impact on societies across various spatial and cultural contexts. The diverse utilization of cultural heritage buildings can contribute to the development of adaptive solutions to address the present and future challenges posed by climate change. Historical buildings and heritage structures can provide valuable knowledge of climate adaptation strategies, both in terms of pre-existing knowledge and previously unimagined insights. In this work, we consider historical cloisters as a widespread typology that is often found in dense and compact urban areas. The term “cloister” refers to secluded spaces in religious buildings, characterized by a paved or vegetated courtyard and porticoes on one or more sides. The mitigating role of urban cloisters in reducing the urban heat island effect is well-established. However, there is limited information available on the practical implementation of strategies to repurpose these cloisters and enhance outdoor comfort for residents. This work aims to identify strategies and opportunities for optimizing the microclimatic performance of urban cloisters by utilizing the building typology, form, and materials of often-unused spaces. Given the diffusion of the urban cloister type and the typological invariances that characterize these building structures, this study explores how knowledge derived from historical Italian cloisters’ cultural heritage can be applied to present-day climate mitigation and adaptation needs in urban environments, specifically to improve outdoor thermal comfort. The paper presents a study of several cloisters located in the city of Parma (IT). These cloisters are identified and classified based on their H/W ratio, type of transitional space, and microclimatic behavior. The study used the values of PET as an indicator of outdoor thermal stress. Microclimatic simulations and on-site measurements will identify opportunities and challenges in mitigating future heat waves by improving outdoor thermal comfort.