​The International Conference “Seeing the Future from the Rooftops” was one of the highlights of this festival, following on from the 1st European Rooftop Meeting run by Faro council in January this year, which brought international guests and Faro’s community together, to think about the potential provided by rooftops.

​Sustainability, Community and Art

Speakers
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Lívia Tirone
Portugal

Right at the very start of her career, she created and implemented innovative, sustainable solutions to the Portuguese construction industry. She was subsequently invited to develop legislation in the area of energy efficiency, sustainable smart cities and innovation, by the European Commission. She's the curator of the “THNK School of Creative Leadership” in Lisbon. In the public sector, she was invited to draw up the strategy for and manage the Lisbon Energy and Environment Agency. 
​She co-founded of the “Sustainable Construction Initiative” and coordinated the “Sustainable Construction Living Lab”, a platform that acts as a hub for agents from the construction industry, as well as final consumers, aiming to promote sustainable construction in Portugal. She publishes articles and hosts workshops relating to sustainable construction, including living rooftops.

CONTENT PRESENTED

​Léon Van Geest
The Netherlands

​Geest is the director of the “Rotterdamse Dakendagen”, the Rotterdam rooftop festival that welcomed around 22,000 visitors in 2019. He has extensive experience in the field of social and community interventions. In his opinion, rooftops provide the conditions necessary to improve cities, making them more sustainable and inclusive. He therefore sees the festival as an opportunity to implement medium and long-term changes through a short-term initiative. Geest works in the area of socio-economic innovation, with a view to developing cities.​

CONTENT PRESENTED

Ralf ​​Alwani
Irlanda do Norte

Ralf completed a master's degree at the “Royal College of Art”, specialising in new cities and large urban projects. Since gaining the qualification, he has consulted on several public, community and residential architectural projects. He is the director of “Urban Scale Interventions”, a creative agency that works on changing the way we live and work by implementing people-focussed designs. His studio is at the forefront of a project that aims to analyse the effect of the regeneration of the bridges and banks of the River Foyle on the emotional well-being of the people of Derry/Londonderry, coordinating between the private and public spheres. Ralf is an active member of the “Royal Society of Arts” and has had work published in magazines in the fields of mental health, architecture and design.

CONTENT PRESENTED

Subjects Debated ​

Sustainability

"Which visions of Faro's future can we draw upon in relation to SUSTAINABILITY?"

​​Community

"Which mobilising questions do we have to ask in order to produce our vision of the city of Faro?"

Art

"What do we need to overcome now, to fulfil our visions for the city in the future?”

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At this height, about 150 meters above the ground, the city is silent. The rooftop terrace in in question is located in the easternmost tower of De Rotterdam, the complex designed by OMA that has been a dominant addition to the Rotterdam skyline since 2013. Despite the height, the view of the city is limited: the glass and steel facade extends two meters above the roof surface, hiding the city from view."

Sereh Mandias, "Playgrounds for the Imagination"

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