International Student Competition 2026-27
After the Storm – Resilient Transitions in Mediterranean Water Landscapes under Climate Pressure
Working period: 15/09/2026-31/01/2027
After the Storm addresses one of the most pressing challenges faced by many European regions today: the transformation of landscapes under climate change, increasing urbanisation and disconnected governance. The catchment area or basin of the Poyo ravine represents a paradigmatic Mediterranean socio-ecological system, where water has historically structured land uses, settlement patterns, agriculture, infrastructure and collective identity, and where high climatic variability – combining prolonged droughts with extreme rainfall events – intensifies territorial vulnerability.
Competition challenge
Our competition invites students to develop systemic landscape strategies for a more resilient future in the Poyo Ravine Basin, in response to the challenges of climate change.
The Poyo Ravine is understood as an interconnected socio-ecological landscape, stretching from its inland sources to the Mediterranean coast. Water provides the common thread linking the analysis and proposals across three interconnected scales:
1. The Basin | 1:50,000–1:30,000
Analyse the Poyo catchment as a whole and develop landscape strategies that strengthen connections and resilience between upstream, central and downstream territories.
2. The Sector / Transect | 1:10,000–1:7,500
Explore the landscape systems of the upper, middle and lower course of the ravine and develop strategies responding to the specific conditions and challenges of each sector.
3. The Pilot Site | 1:2,000–1:500
Translate the strategic objectives into site-specific landscape interventions. Pilot sites should demonstrate how local actions can contribute to the resilience of the wider basin. Sites may include agricultural and natural areas, industrial landscapes, or residential and urban contexts.
Across all three scales, water is the connecting system, providing the basis for a multidimensional understanding of the landscape and for integrated strategies and design proposals.
Three sectors along the water basin transect
Working areas and structure of the expected submission
