Urban Menus

Project


A training to improve skills in sustainable urban and regional development

For site development projects with smart setup, stakeholder participation, elaboration and selection of visions in an innovative, Green Deal-oriented, multi-disciplinary way

We make cities and regions fit for Green Deal Development by strengthening the green skills of staff in urban & regional development including decision-makers and investors. A training based on a clear qualification profile for innovative, inclusive, green thinking and competence is needed on the changing market. We deliver it – supporting common societal values and integrating multi-disciplinarity and -perspectivity by civic engagement and participation components.

PROJECT ACTIVITIES (05/2022-12/2023)

WHAT WE DELIVER – PROJECT RESULTS

The planned output to spread Green Deal thinking and doing in the development sector and beyond:

FOR WHICH TARGET GROUPS ARE THE RESULTS

PUBLIC Public developers, politicians and (political) interest groups. Municipal/regional staff in departments of regional/urban planning.
BUSINESS Private developers, project & real estate developers, all involved in visioning, planning and implementing these projects
INVEST Public & private investors, who co-define and invest in development projects. Financial market stakeholders, funding institutions.
ACADEMY Schools and the education sector, research, culture, think tanks.
SOCIETY Societal organizations, NGOs & foundations, citizen initiatives especially in the frame of local development projects plus all involved and interested people.

BENEFITS

→ More operative security for future-proof implementation – up to 30-60% costs savings

ERASMUS+ “GOOD PRACTICE” PROJECT

“Making Cities Fit for Green Deal Development” has been awarded the Erasmus+ Good Practice label. It is listed in this category on the Erasmus+ Project Results Platform.

URBAN MENUS Team

Laura P. Spinadel
Idea generator for URBAN MENUS passionate about global networking around the project
Austro-Argentine architect with a holistic approach, multiple award-winning urban design projects (including the master plans for the innovative housing project Compact City and the university campus WU Vienna), founder and managing director of the architecture firm BUSarchitektur & the architecture-multimedia agency BOA büro für offensive aleatorik, both in Vienna. „I believe that only together, with many small steps, we can create the necessary matrix to allow the emergence of a collaborative space that is good for all of us - the emergence of holistic villages in our smart cities.“
Petra Bußwald
Strategy partner responsible for backend, data structures and algorithm mathematics
Co-managing director of the environmental informatics company akaryon (Vienna and Styria), founded in 1999, studied technical environmental protection and technical mathematics, involved for decades in international research projects on sustainability and conception of web tools for operationalizing sustainability (including CO2 calculator, energy simulation, climate change monitoring, etc.). „Structured data on estimated impacts helps to think about scenarios in an informed and factual way and to come to a consensus with a plan that makes as many different people or stakeholder groups happy as possible."
Petar Dikov
Institute for Urban planning PLC Bulgaria
Institute for Urban planning PLC Bulgaria Architect Dikov has more than 40 years of experience in architecture, urban planning and development from working in different positions as designer architect, deputy general director, commercial manager, executive director and chief architect and jury in various competitions. He graduated from the Higher Institute of Architecture and Construction in Sofia in 1978. His previous positions include: Deputy Executive Director of the National Center for Regional Development, head of design studio "Proarch" (2000-2003), Research and Design Institute for Regional and Urban Planning and Architecture (1978-1990). He was chief architect of Sofia Municipality for 10 years. (2006-2015) He is founder of the Institute for urban planning and lecturer in the Free University of Varna.
Florian Fritz

Responsible for the technical implementation of the websites. Member of the akaryon team.

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Juan Augusto Labriola

Member of the Urban Menus Team

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Teodora Pavlova

In 2018 she graduated with a Master’s degree in Urban and Regional Planning from UACEG, Sofia. She is mostly involved in urban regeneration and sustainable redevelopment projects. She worked for ProArch from 2018 to 2022. She is currently working for the site research team at Lidl Bulgaria.

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Karina Dikova

In 2020 she graduated with a Master’s degree in Architecture from UACEG, Sofia, specializing in History and Theory of Architecture. While studying, she worked in different offices in Sofia and attended several summer architecture workshops abroad in Italy, Belgium and the UK. She tutors children’s workshop classes on architecture and is involved in organizing courses for university students to meet with leading companies in the building sector.

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Margaret Aleksandrova Traykova

In 2014 she graduated from the Sofia high school for building, architecture, and geodesy in Sofia, Bulgaria, in the class water systems and buildings. In 2019 she graduated with a Master’s degree in Architecture at UACG, Sofia. Every summer vacation, she enrolled in different countries Erasmus + internships.

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Barbara Kraml

Supports the URBAN MENUS team with research and text contributions. Studied German and Austrian Studies at the University of Vienna, worked in the cultural sector on expression and now uses her creative and writing talent in the sustainability industry.

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Bautista Antonio Olmos

Urban Menus Team Member

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Emilio Gagliardino

Member of the Urban Menus Team

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Özge Taspinar

Member of the Urban Menus Team

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Julieta Martinez

Member of the Urban Menus Team

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Rati Sandeep Choudhari

Member of the Urban Menus Team

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Tobias Kampl

Member of the Urban Menus Team

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Sebastian Dan

Member of the Urban Menus Team

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Gina Urazan Razzini

Member of the Urban Menus Team

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Gabriela Delova

Master in Urban Planning, graduated from the University of Architecture, Civil Engineering and Geodesy in Sofia. My interest in sustainable development and sustainable planning emerged during my student years and I believe that these topics are fundamental to the Green Deal concept

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Catalina Pedraza Toscano

URBAN MENUS team member since 2016.

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Barbara Kavc

Develops parametrics and algorithms of URBAN MENUS impact analysis. Research focus of the architect is urban transformation, she worked for a long time in Barcelona and Graz, since 2009 in the team.

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Bianca Severin

Programs the 3D frontend for URBAN MENUS. Technology-oriented, fascinated by artificial intelligence, augmented architecture and parametric modeling, studied architecture at the Vienna University of Technology and teaches there, professional and educational stations in Romania, Italy and Holland, among others, joined the team in 2018

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The entire URBAN MENUS team includes numerous other people from the fields of architecture, infrastructure, computer science, mathematics and communications.
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URBAN MENUS Bulgaria Advisory Board

Public

Dara Ivanova

studied architecture. She graduated the American College of Sofia with physics and art with a Cum Laude diploma. She earned a BSc diploma in Architectural Studies form Cardiff University, UK, and a MSc diploma in Architecture and Urban Design from Polytechnic University of Milan. In 2021 she did an internship and then started working in Sofia Municipality as a junior expert in the architectural department.

Ivan Lalev

studied marketing, economy, and politics. Since September 2022 he is product manager at Financial Times. He is a member the political party Da, Bulgaria and former owner from ZigZag Global, a global e-commerce returns management company. He was founder and co-owner from Gravitech IT Services, an IT Consulting firm.

Private

Stanislav Yovkov

studied architecture and construction. He graduated in 2004 architecture and construction in “High School of Civil Engineering, Architecture and Geodesy in Stara Zagora, Bulgaria. The following years he studied in Munich. He is dealing with real estate in Stara Zagora since 2014. From 2019 he is sales manager of Roka Properties in Stara Zagora.

Ivan Velkov

experienced Real Estate professional with a proven track record of successful projects delivered in multinational corporate environment and public policy sectors. Skilled in Marketing; Market Research, Negotiation; Business Planning; Facility, Property and Asset Management. Strong business and Human Capital development and management skills. Chair and Board member at several professional and charity organizations and foundations.

Invest

Mincho Benov

studied economy and international relations and affairs. He has worked in the fields of the capital market, financial sector and international development as an Executive Director of Sofia Stock Exchange, Director Financial Sector and Capital Markets at the US FLAG Consortium and as a consultant of the World Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. Since 2005 to 2010, Mincho Benov managed a residential energy efficiency credit facility. Since 2011 he runs Habitat for Humanity Bulgaria as a National Director of the organization.

Academy

Anna Vitkova

studied Law. She worked in the development and construction of the AES Maritza east 1 power plant where her positions varied from Office Manager to Compliance officer. In 2009 she started working for Gazit Globe - a company, developing shopping malls and trade centers. Since 2017 she became part of the team of the Bulgarian Green Building Council. The Bulgarian Green Building Council (BGBC) is a non-profit organization with a mission to transform the built environment by changing the way buildings and communities are designed, built, and operated.

Irena Spiridonova

studied architecture. She currently works as architect and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Arch. in VSU "Ljuben Karvelov". Her main research area and interests have been in the field of Residential buildings, Residential complexes of closed type suburban settlements for individual living. Additional research interests are focused in the areas of: Interior, urban planning, public buildings, public spaces.

Society

Assya Dobrudjalieva

studied environmental protection and public finance. She worked as head of environmental protection at the Kardzhali Municipality between 1992 and 2010. She is since 1999 chairperson of the Board of Bulgarian Association of Municipal Environmental Experts. She joined the Habitat for Humanity Bulgaria team in 2010 as Project Manager in the field of sustainable development, energy efficient and decent housing.

Temenuzhka Ognyanova

studied law and public administration. She is a co-founder of Botanic Lab - a company for interior landscaping design and innovation. She has 10 years’ experience in entrepreneurship, sustainable business development (cleantech) and project management, sales and marketing. She is an alumnus of Entrepreneurship Program, Babson College USA and Master in European Law, Sofia. Nusha was a coordinator of the Master program in Circular economy and sustainable management in Sofia, ex media producer of radio broadcasting show (Darik), member of Association of Bulgarian leaders and entrepreneurs (ABLE) and member of Female Entrepreneur Community (FEB)