MediterraNew

design strategies. It is our intention to give the island community a series of projects that will serve over the years as an overview of guidelines and suggestions to the local administration. The objective is to contribute to a sustainable development from an urban, touristic and economic point of view that will be strongly supported by the local community. The currently underway application of the Hozoviotissa monastery in the tentative list of UNESCO for Greece is a unique opportunity to promote a responsible use of the island which enhances the presence of previously neglected historical and cultural spaces and new artistic and cultural initiatives of an international standing. The projects will be developed by teams of students from the faculty of architecture and design in a context of international competition of projects and ideas. A heterogeneous jury made up of teachers, professionals and local dignitaries will award the prize to the most deserving in a public ceremony on the island. It is the intention of the creators and organizers to repeat the event in the upcoming years in order to provide continuity and consistency with the aims of the design workshop by dealing from time to time with these sensitive issues.

2013 theme
The first topic to be dealt with concerns the development of a site of historical and cultural importance; starting from an urban territorial scale, it will reach the detail of graphic communications. The rural site of Asfontylitis offers students the first opportunity to deal with these issues and will be a matrix of a modus operandi to be applied to other sensitive sites. Because the island is currently dependent on a diesel power plant located near Xora, interventions in the specific areas are advised to propose new energy solutions under the standard of sustainability and low environmental impact. Since an intervention in a socio-cultural context as sensitive as that of a small Mediterranean island involves addressing complex relational dynamics, particular attention should be paid to conflict management and resolution.