RECREATE: NATURE-BASED CO-CREATION IN SENGLEA

Location: Valletta 

Country: Malta 

Contact Information: [email protected]  

Website Address: https://www.vca.gov.mt/en/valletta-design-cluster%20    

  • Project Details:  

The Valletta Design Cluster within the Valletta Cultural Agency is a community space for cultural and creative practice situated in the renovated Old Abattoir (Il-Biċċerija l-Antika) in Valletta. The project supports design and entrepreneurship having a positive social impact, taking collaborative creative approaches as the key to achieve benefits for individuals, communities and society at large. 

Thematic Area: Healthy public space 

Thematic Sub-category: Buildings & environment, Tourism Adapted to Climate Change, Smart city solutions and tools, Green Urbanism related to improving social relations. 

Type of Actor/Agent: Government 

Typology of Green Urban Site: Creativity centre 

  • Green City Elements used – Green Urbanism, Integrated Photovoltaics in Urban Environment, Energy Efficiency in Urban Planning, Water Recovery and Reuse, Irrigation, Buildings and Climate Change, Green roofs and walls, Buildings and Climate Change, Green roofs and walls, Shading facilities, Green areas and Heat Island Effect, Bee-friendly gardens, Adapted Touristic Facilities, Heatwaves, 3Rs and 7Rs, Conscious Consumption, Short Supply Chain, Smart People, Smart Environment, Smart Living, Citizen Engagement, Co-creation in Urban Planning, Energy Poverty, Energy Efficiency in Buildings. 
  • Engagement and Consultation:  

Target Group – Citizens, 

Public Engagement – YES. 

Consultation Tools Used – Focus groups, Stakeholder interviews, Proper public engagement. 

E-tools: – Zammit, A., Azzopardi, C., & Attard, D. (2015). Assessing the relationship between community inclusion and space through Valletta 2018 cultural infrastructural projects on various community groups. Theme 3 community inclusion & space: evaluation & monitoring research findings 2015, 28-44.  (Link)

  • Innovation and Impact:  

Level of Scale of Innovation: 4 

Abstract of Elements of Innovation –  

  • User-centred on-site consultations with future users and communities; 
  • The establishment of small green roof in the Capital Valletta;  
  • Promotion of green roofs when planning for new urban development areas; 
  • The establishment of new working spaces for creativity and innovation; 
  • Establishment of social hub and place of rest in a dense and historically impoverished slum area; 
  • Planting ‘seeds’ for serenity, greenery and social exchange in an otherwise densely built city.  

Expected Impact High. 

  • Analysis: – Needs Analysis conducted. 
  • Benefits (B) and Challenges (C):  

(B) Temperature & Climate control, Flooding & water Quality, Increased biodiversity, Improved environmental resilience, Limiting impact of heatwaves by reducing urban temperatures, Increased cultural significance, Well-being benefits (such as people’s perception of increased biodiversity and improved visual quality of the environment), Creation of green jobs and business opportunities, Improved visual quality of the environment, Recreational opportunities, Aesthetic enjoyment, Adjusting psychological well-being and physical health, Enhancing social ties, Providing educational opportunities. 

(C) Public challenges since the community was apprehensive and feared losing this space in the neighbourhood. 

  • Resources and Transferability:  

Teaching Materials/Resources: Mostly reports on the methods and results. Valletta 2018 Foundation (2018). The impacts of the European capital of culture: final research report. Cremona, V. A. (2017).  

Mapping culture and cultural interaction in view of Valletta 2018 European Capital of Culture (ECoC). In V. A. Cremona (ed.) 

Capitalising on culture? Malta and the European capital of culture (pp. 1-13). Msida: Malta University Publishing. https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/20063   

Personal Skills Required: LOW 

Non-discriminatory Principles YES 

Transferability Potential High