Winning team: LUOGO3

Team members: Gabriele Forni, Rhea Balmforth, Benjamin Michel, Sebastian Bielski, Camilla Romano, Taha Erdem Öztürk, Cèsar Garcia Herrera, Lucas van den Oever | University College London

Advisor: Professor Jeffrey Shumaker | Columbia University and Syracuse University

The Luogo3 team, bringing together students and graduates from UCL, Columbia and LSE across six nationalities, developed a proposal for Rome’s Tufello neighbourhood that combines diverse perspectives with ambitious climate goals. 

Their project introduces a ‘soft mobility spine’ to link public and commercial areas, strengthen local businesses and celebrate neighbourhood heritage. The plan tackles flood risk through nature-based solutions and reimagines an abandoned building as a hub for transit-oriented development. By aligning community needs with the city’s net-zero targets, the proposal offers a scalable model for resilient, people-centred neighbourhoods, demonstrating the impact of youth-driven innovation in shaping more inclusive and sustainable cities.

"To our team is a real honor to have been trusted by the city of Rome and by C40 to develop such a significant public satellite project".

Congratulations to all teams that participated! Check out the documentation tab to view the winning team's proposal. 

Special mention, Second Place | Broskies, Vienna University of Technology (TU Wien)

Team members: Alexander Rapp, Isabelle Siegelmayer, Florian Roedel

Special mention, Third Place | SPQRegeneration, Sapienza University of Rome

Team members: Eman Elias, Amir Shalash

Advisor: Mosè Ricci with Diana Ciufo, Sude Salahor, Zoe Gabrielli | Sapienza University of Rome

Presentation of the site

Located between Via di Val Melaina, Via delle Vigne Nuove, and Viale Jonio, north of the Città Giardino neighbourhood of Montesacro, the Tufello district is in the northeastern quadrant of Rome, within the boundaries of the Third Municipality. The neighbourhood's service infrastructure barely meets the standards required for residents, and public outdoor spaces are poorly structured and almost entirely occupied by cars.

The project area, situated in the southeastern part of the district, involves a cluster of school buildings and cultural and sports facilities concentrated within a few adjacent blocks. Given the presence of multiple functions and public amenities, the project aims to create synergy, enabling diverse uses and, through the continuity of spaces, facilitating internal crossings between the blocks, enhancing slow mobility and pedestrian pathways while reclaiming areas that - due to the geomorphological characteristics of the neighbourhood - are currently not permeable.

The need to enhance open spaces by combining urban livability, environmental sustainability, and climate resilience—addressing changing socio-economic and climatic conditions—is closely aligned with the goals of the Horizon Europe ReGreeneration Project in collaboration with C40 Cities, whose interventions are in the Tufello district.

Also through tactical urbanism interventions, the aim is to rediscover the centrality of spaces and the identity of the neighbourhood, proposing a renewed system of connections where people can walk, find organised spaces for socialising and play, and minimise barriers to accessibility. This approach will contribute to reimagining Tufello as a more livable, inclusive, and resilient district.

Approx. site area:

• The area, spanning approximately 7 hectares, lies at the edge of the plateau on which the neighbourhood was developed in the first half of the 20th century.

Key Information:

The Tufello district is home to around 14,000 residents, with a population density of 161.5 inhabitants per hectare. The elderly population is predominant, with an ageing index (over 65/under 15) of 2.3. The average age of residents is around 48 years. The proportion of foreign residents (9%) is in line with citywide averages. 

Priority areas & main expectations:

The proposals should focus on:

• Connecting existing public services and facilities;

• Transforming areas currently dominated by cars into new public spaces;

• Creating new internal pathways within the blocks to facilitate the development of new gathering and relational spaces;

• Enhancing accessibility to the upper entrance of the metro station;

• Planning tactical urbanism interventions to encourage collaboration and preview project decisions.

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