Human development has posed unprecedent pressures on overall natural systems due to extraction, conversion and inefficient use of key resources, as Water, Energy and Food.
Urbanization rates are increasing
Self-sufficiency has been adopted as a driver for sustainability
Cities provide support for majority human activity
Pressure to transform cities as beacons of sustainable development
Self-sufficiency analysis in cities on food and energy, have developed through a silo approach.
Issues like the competitive use of available space in the city to provide energy and food is not prevented, nor the consumers profiles, are some examples hampering the full potential of cities.
CitySelfy will expand a peer-reviewed technology-based Energy system optimization tool: interlinkages with Water and Food resources, technologies and practices + social preferences and economic profiles of its inhabitants
Structured survey will portray this information, as well as their willingness to accept and pay consumer changes and new technologies and products (e.g. food from environment controlled urban farming).
WEF demand scenarios and local production potential. Several levels of self-sufficiency, and climate changes impacts projected for the region, will be tested, and its impact in city sustainability.
The municipality of Cascais will be used as a case study for the following reasons: heterogenous socio-economic characteristics, heterogenous physical infrastructure (e.g., different buildings typologies, land use, coastline), high potential for self-sufficient technologies deployment; region with expected sound climate impacts, already assessed. Cascais has strong commitments towards carbon neutrality by 2050, and strategies intending to help its community to improve competitiveness.
inhabitants
Households
water imports
energy imports
Food imports
*Early and high uncertain estimates
Financial support: Project PTDC/CTA-AMB/6629/2020