Sustainable rehabilitation of abandoned villages through tourism. Proposal for the village of Colmeal

Abstract

For years, there has been an exodus of people from villages to cities in search of better opportunities, causing the oblivion of small rural clusters, leaving behind the vast and rich built heritage. The case study of this investigation is the village of Colmeal, located in Beira Alta, central and interior region of Portugal was vacated in 1957 by a court order, abandoning all existing space and building. The methodology used in the research process was, besides a bibliographical research on the subject, the visit to abandoned villages, mainly Colmeal, for the development of a sustainable rehabilitation proposal. The still inhabited villages add dynamics of rural communities, with their own organizations and experiences. The abandoned areas have history, joint design and natural resources to enjoy. It is important not to lose these peculiarities and tourism can make a strong contribution to the development of the rural revaluation process. A hotel complex was recently built in Colmeal, recovering part of the existing houses and rehabilitating public spaces, contributing to the revitalization throught tourism. The objectives of this work are to find sustainable solutions for the rehabilitation of the building and public space and the revitalization of abandoned housing and rural settlements, based on design and planning methods. Besides to rehabilitating the building with environmentally friendly and sustainable processes and materials, it is essential to create employability and set up inhabitants.