La qualità urbana ed edilizia: dall'approccio esigenziale-prestazionale a quello ecosistemico

The contribution is part of a wider reflection on quality, environment and sustainability on whom the book "The Environment of the City as an Organism ", realized by the same author, focuses.
Considering that the urban and construction renewal is always a topic of great interest to both designers and the public administrations, in the essay it is shown how new demands posed by the principles of sustainability require a different design approach, directed to appropriate and especially compatible choices. In this direction, we identify two different approaches: a consolidated one, even with the necessary changes - that is the need and performance approach – that, pursuing the building quality through the explanation of requirements to be satisfied, extends the concept of quality from the construction organism to the larger and more complex one, of the settlement system, substantiating their close relationship and mutual influence.
The other- the eco-system approach - more current and in line with the guidelines of the Agenda 21, researches a "consistent" quality relation, both environmental and urban and in the specific related to construction, with the saving of resources using appropriate "indicators” , described and critically analyzed to foster a new approach to experimentation in the building industry.