We are proud that we have the chance to finish our project’s voyage with a public event during our Network’s last in person meeting in Rome, 17-18 June. It is so satisfying and motivating to be able to share the Network’s six cities’ experiences and future plans from engaging with their hydro-heritage assets.
The event will be held on Thursday 18 June, second day of the HHC Network meeting, at the Urban Center Metropolitano of Rome. It will host two panel discussions and/with interactive moments bringing together municipal leaders, water authorities, cultural and heritage actors, EU representatives, and urban practitioners to reflect on the Network’s journey, its key learnings and its messages for the future.
The scope of the event is to present how cities can acknowledge water as a strategic urban system, reconnect water with culture, identity, and community and integrate hydro-heritage into policies, governance, and investment planning.
PANEL 1 - WATER AS HERITAGE: REDISCOVERING HIDDEN URBAN LANDSCAPES TOGETHER WITH COMMUNITIES AND PARTICIPATION, 15:00 - 16:30
This panel will focus on how diverse hydro-heritage assets e.g. canals, aqueducts, irrigation systems, and invisible water infrastructures can become part of contemporary urban identity and regeneration. It will discuss how can hydro-heritage become a driver for participation, education, and collective ownership of urban spaces?
The conversation between partner cities and external speakers will be informed by local testing actions, schools and community engagement, artistic practices and participatory approaches developed during the project.
Chiara Lucchini and Branislav Antonic, EUI experts, will moderate this session.
PANEL 2 - FROM LOCAL EXPERIMENTS TO URBAN POLICY, 16:40 – 17:30
This session will engage with how hydro-heritage management relates and contributes to broader urban agendas such as climate adaptation, water-sensitive cities, culture-led regeneration and sustainable urban development. Policymakers, external experts, and city representatives reflect on governance, investment, long-term sustainability, and the future legacy of the Hydro-Heritage Cities project.
Daniele Cecchi, from the City of Rome, will moderate this session.
PARTICIPANTS
Besides the Hydro-Heritage Cities members and ULG actors, among the event’s participants and panelists will be:
Sabrina Alfonsi, Councillor for Agriculture, Environment and Waste Management Cycle - City of Rome,
Raffaele Barbato, Head of N.R.R.P. and European Funds Department – City of Rome,
Fabrizio Mazzenga, Director of the Territorial Environmental and Green Area Management Directorate from the Department of Environmental Protection – City of Rome,
Alexis Mavraganis, Executive Mayor of Digital Governance, New Technologies and Citizen Service Centers from the Municipality of Chalandri,
Tom Vanblaere, Head of the Heritage & Archives team - Municipality of Roeselare,
representative of Italy’s National URBACT Point – ANCI,
Elisa Filippi – Lead Expert of URBACT ITN RECUP
Gábor Dóka - Kalocsa City Municipality (Hungary), Representative of EU’s URBAN AGENDA Water Sensitive Cities Partnership.
