Green facades as a strategy for the refurbishment of buildings in mediterranean climate

The topic of resilience to climate change has long been addressed on a global scale with repercussions at the local level. The UN Agenda 2030, Goal 11 (2023) and the European Green Deal (2019) identify Nature Based Solutions (NBS) as strategies for the climate resilience of cities. The Green Infrastructures (GI) are a particular type of NBS and among these Vertical Greenery Systems (VGSs). Scientific studies demonstrate the positive contribution of VGS from an environmental and social point of view, resulting in: Reduction of the Urban Heat Island (UHI); Reduction of energy demand in air conditioning processes, especially for cooling; Improved indoor thermal comfort; Improvement of indoor and outdoor air quality; Aesthetic improvement of the building envelope; Noise reduction; Positive psychological impact on citizens; Increased biodiversity. Despite these advantages and the recommendations provided by international agreements, VGS have been slow to spread as greening strategies, especially when they are applied to building stock. This paper investigates a type of VGS, called Green Facade (GF), adopted as greenery strategy for the refurbishment of a building in Mediterranean climate. The use of VGS will try to mitigate the obsolescence of the building through a specially designed GF. GF's modularity and structural autonomy allow the system to be used in contexts other than the project building, to adapt to the articulation of the openings of the façades behind, to be totally disengaged from the building and to make maintenance operations safer.