Placemaking, Livability and Public Spaces: Achieving Sustainability through Eco-liv@ble Design

Livability of places is given by many factors which are in turn influenced by a variety of tangible and intangible elements concerning the area in question and its surrounding. At the same time, computer science and new technologies have in recent decades become increasingly useful supports for improvement of studies and applications in the field of area investigations. Consequently, placemaking has updated its theory and has added new methods and representational tools in order to become suitable to illustrate more complex urban scenes and provide urban sustainability. One of this is the original Ecoliv@ble design method which consists of different kind of surveys, observations and questionnaires. Aim of this paper is to present the Ecoliv@ble design method which is aimed at: identifying sustainable urban livability and the factors which make places happy and livable from the users point of view; identifying design interventions to enhance or create livability. The method is supported by a software, still in development, for smart phone or multimedia tablet. The final product will be constituted by interactive mosaics capable to visualize places and factors which contribute to urban livability and happiness. The main users to who the computer science tool is devoted include visitors, tourists, technicians and administrators who are interested in more liveable and sustainable places. The description of the software which can support the method, and relative observations conclude the paper.