ABSTRACT
Cité Descartes is an urban fragment located in the east of the greater Paris urban area. Urbanization started in the 1980s to build housing and in particular accommodate major scientific and technical organizations, like Ecole Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées, ESIEE, Paris-Est Marne la Vallée University and CSTB, which have since been joined by IFSTTAR and the Paris School of Urbanism, etc., along with several companies including innovative start-ups. At a time when urban renewal is under study for some of the most ancient buildings, the Cité Descartes neighbourhood continues to inspire ambitious urban development projects. In 2010, the local public development body, Etablissement Public d’Aménagement (EPA) in Marne la Vallée, launched an urban development competition called “Cœur de Cluster Descartes’’, or in other words, Cité Descartes at the core of a bigger area. The competition was won by Ateliers Yves Lion (AYL), with their project for a neighbourhood bringing together Infrastructure, Town and Nature. The Eco-design Chair has chosen this urban development territory, which is a hotbed for design projects, as a study field to be shared by its various research themes.
