Urbanism, Architecture, Agriculture facing the Challenge of Climatic Changes

International PhD Seminar (2019)

In the context of increasing exposure to climatic and environmental risks, the category of high-constraint environments is now being extended to all inhabited areas. The concepts, instruments and figures of urban planning need to move away from an approach focused on the needs and aspirations of human beings alone, to deal with the world of vital connections.

If, in the 1970s, the concept of the ecosystem offered itself to the disciplines of the project as a strong and reassuring paradigm, on the verge of positivism, it is once again returning to the fore in order to apprehend the specificities of complex socio-ecological situations, for which there are increasing demands for design sustainability strategies.

The aim of this seminar was therefore to initiate a dialogue between Morocco and Switzerland, mobilising researchers from different horizons who, by leveraging project issues, initiate (re) implementation trajectories in a holistic and non-sectoral approach. Organised by the Centre Jacques Berque in Rabat, the seminar was part of a partnership between the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, the Global Heritage Fund, and the Institut National d’Aménagement et d’Urbanisme.