Emerging Hope After Disaster: The Parcobaleno Project

We are currently observing a renaissance of the use of gaming simulation in urban planning. However, it is very rare that a game is followed up by so-called ‘debriefing’ after an urban gaming simulation (UGS), i.e., the practical applications drawing directly from the design process. This paper describes a project on the design and construction of a school park and playground that was destroyed by the earthquake of 2012 in Emilia-Romagna, Italy and the crucial role of the UGS framework called the ‘City of Emotions’ (Rizzi P, Sidoti B, La città delle emozioni. In Rizzi P (ed) Giochi di Città. La Meridiana, Molfetta, pp 101–104, 2004 (in Italian)), which was renamed ‘Park of Emotions’ in this case study. In 2016, Parcobaleno park was awarded for its innovative approach in design and management at the 6th edition of ‘Città per il verde’, amongst other reasons.