An Ex Post Evaluation of Sustainability Practices: ‘Green Urban Catalyst’

This paper presents a methodological approach aiming to analyse and evaluate some selected experiences of sustainability. The main purpose is to understand the key-factors that influence the realization of a ‘green urban catalyst’. A ‘green urban catalyst’ reflects the principles of sustainability, and is able to stimulate new dynamics that guide urban transformations: ecological, economic, social, institutional, etc. But, at the same time, it is the engine of change too, able to stimulate a new culture of urban planning, based on an integrated approach that combines reduction of consumes and use of renewable energies, innovation and local participation, creativity and good governance. How to realize a ‘green urban catalyst’ and how to analyse the effects and impacts can be useful to explore the interaction between the ‘real world’ of models and the ‘unreal world’ of everyday life, between expert knowledge and lay knowledge. Through a multidimensional ex post evaluation it is possible to identify objectives and criteria but, above all, strategies, actors and tools in order to understand how to improve future design and to transfer the lesson learnt.