CO-MIDA

Author:	IAAC Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia
Project Collaborators	Asociación Sun Sun Love, ConnectHort and Asociación Taula Eix Pere IV.
Barcelona 2021
https://iaac.net/project/co-mida/

CO-MIDA is a smart vertical modular system made of 3D printed clay that is co-designed with its users to grow edible plants. Thanks to the bacteria in the soil, the bio-photovoltaic system of the modules produces energy for their operation. The aim of the project is to make fresh local produce available to residents while improving the urban microclimate and local biodiversity.

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According to the latest studies by the Intergovernmental Group of Experts on Climate Change and in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, the Barcelona City Council has made an important call in the Declaration of Climate Emergency to address jointly, in an innovative way, the important challenge of climate change that we all face. We believe that we are at a crucial time to find new city models that are more resilient to possible crises such as the one we are experiencing now with COVID, both from a social, economic, environmental, and political perspectives.

In line with the Barcelona City Council's commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40% in 2030 (in relation to 2005) and to increase 1.6 km2 of urban green space as a measure of adaptation to climate change, the project of Co-mida aims at contributing to the construction of a new normal scenario where the priority is given to the de-globalization and is committed to local production models that are more self-sufficient, sustainable, and resilient.

In this context, CO-MIDA is a model that uses the urban space to produce food while restoring at the same time the ecosystem and biodiversity of its environment, thus reducing greenhouse gases and optimizing air quality. One of the main contributions of Co-MIDA is that it is a bottom-up system that is co-designed by the citizens themselves to adapt to the needs of local communities. On the other hand, it also uses innovative digital manufacturing technologies that allow the prototypes to be easily adapted to any environmental and urban conditions, in accordance with the needs identified by the community. The objective of CO-MIDA is to test the implementation of a vertical garden in two areas of Poblenou (Passatge de Trullàs and ConnectHort) where citizen circular production activities are already being developed

The project studies new innovative models (3D modular manufacturing and bio-photovoltaic systems for energy self-sufficiency) that integrate a circular production from a bottom up approach with the aim of both strengthening the sense of community in the public space and, at the same time, contributing to renaturalize the area and improve air quality

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