Research Article

The bioclimatic approach in developing smart urban isles for sustainable cities

Energy, Environment, Water Research Centre, The Cyprus Institute, 20 Konstantinou Kavafi, 2121 Nicosia, Cyprus

^* e-mail: d.serghides@cyi.ac.cy

Accepted: 6 December 2018

Abstract

The rapid trends of urbanization have catastrophic consequences on the ecology of our cities. The large amounts of energy consumption and the reckless exploitation of natural resources is leading to increased emissions of ozone depleting gases and carbon dioxide emissions, which are polluting our planet and enhancing the effects of global warming. This paper will present the bioclimatic approach in achieving a smart urban isle as a basic unit for the development of sustainable cities of the EU ERANET project “Smart bioclimatic low-carbon urban areas as innovative energy isles in the sustainable city” (SUI). It will outline the project and demonstrate the approach of achieving bioclimatic urban isles through the Cyprus case study. The main aim of the SUI project is to develop sustainable cities through balancing locally the energy systems. Thus, the project aspires to move forward with the urban energy and CO₂ reduction. The study will focus on the bioclimatic approach, which is one of the three cornerstone procedures (Bioclimatic design, Smart Grids and Management Platform) on which the project is based. It will exemplify how the various aspects of the bioclimatic design and the utilization of the beneficial aspects of the surrounding environment are exploited and applied on defined urban isles, as a basic unit of the city.