Hostraka
Basic information
Project Title
Hostraka
Full project title
Hostraka - learn, dive, nourish
Category
Reconnecting with nature
Project Description
It's time to be an active part of the change: Hòstraka is the first floating resort focused on the protection of the marine ecosystem that demonstrates how a sustainable vision can coexist with an amazing navigation experience.
Our inspiration came directly from the ocean, with the cleaning activity of oysters that are able to create pearls from something bad for them: we want people to learn from what nature has already proved, offering a sustainable pearl experience.
Our inspiration came directly from the ocean, with the cleaning activity of oysters that are able to create pearls from something bad for them: we want people to learn from what nature has already proved, offering a sustainable pearl experience.
Geographical Scope
National
Project Region
Italy
Urban or rural issues
It addresses urban-rural linkages
Physical or other transformations
It refers to a physical transformation of the built environment (hard investment)
EU Programme or fund
No
Description of the project
Summary
Reconnecting with nature: Hòstraka is a sustainable floating resort, located in Capo Gallo Natural Reserve, Sicily, that can be placed in different locations thanks to its scalability: gulfs, bays, and lakes are the perfect possible areas, especially the ones that are particularly polluted by plastics and microplastic debris. The main feature of this resort is that at the same time our guests, mainly divers, sea lovers, and adventurous people, have the opportunity to experience an amazing journey, navigating on their private little Stràka (the name of each mobile suite) and, at the same time, take part in the microplastics collection.
The more you travel, the more you clean.
No matter where you came from, we're all connected by the sea and all of us share the same feelings; it's time for people to act and change course, our guests are all welcome on board to be really, ONE WITH NATURE.
The more you travel, the more you clean.
No matter where you came from, we're all connected by the sea and all of us share the same feelings; it's time for people to act and change course, our guests are all welcome on board to be really, ONE WITH NATURE.
Key objectives for sustainability
Hòstraka's aim is to filter waters, starting from gulfs, bays, then lakes and protected basins, from microplastic pollution. Nowadays this is such an important topic to pass unnoticed and something needs to be done as soon as possible to solve, or at least limit, it. There are several examples of plastic cleaning from rivers and oceans (Ocean CleanUp), however, we believe that sustainability shouldn't be the solution to a problem, but rather a lifestyle.
Sustainability is the core idea behind the design and future construction of our resort: it is completely removable, in fact, it leaves no footprint on the ecosystem thanks to its floating structure and disassembleable design.
Sustainability is the core idea behind the design and future construction of our resort: it is completely removable, in fact, it leaves no footprint on the ecosystem thanks to its floating structure and disassembleable design.
Key objectives for aesthetics and quality
The resort offers our guests water-cleaning activities while enjoying beautiful and amazing moments during their stay.
We aspire to inspire people to a higher level, showing them that helping the earth while having fun and sharing this experience with relatives, friends, and other people with the same interests is possible.
On top of that, guests will experience our exclusive Sustainable Pearl Experience: the possibility to dive directly from their own private mobile suite, the Straka, and then relax on it while navigating on the surface and admiring beautiful landscapes.
Last but not least, in the evening they will have the possibility to rewatch their underwater adventures thanks to immersive projections and, even more importantly, they will be able to collect microplastic debris thanks to an integrated filter present in the Suite's electric motors; these debris will be recycled afterward inside the resort's microplastics lab which also offers educational and entertaining activities.
We aspire to inspire people to a higher level, showing them that helping the earth while having fun and sharing this experience with relatives, friends, and other people with the same interests is possible.
On top of that, guests will experience our exclusive Sustainable Pearl Experience: the possibility to dive directly from their own private mobile suite, the Straka, and then relax on it while navigating on the surface and admiring beautiful landscapes.
Last but not least, in the evening they will have the possibility to rewatch their underwater adventures thanks to immersive projections and, even more importantly, they will be able to collect microplastic debris thanks to an integrated filter present in the Suite's electric motors; these debris will be recycled afterward inside the resort's microplastics lab which also offers educational and entertaining activities.
Key objectives for inclusion
Hòstraka believes in social sustainability having it as one of its main goals: the resort offers the pearl experience to several types of guests, such as families with children, singles, groups of friends, and couples of all ages, who have in common desire to preserve nature and live an experience at 360 degrees inside it. Everyone will be able to reach their private suite thanks to the resistant and on one level easily-accessible path, and dive completely safe.
In fact, each Straka has an integrated electric elevator platform that allows people with motor disabilities to reach the surface of the water and then, once the diving experience is finished, helps them get back on board.
In fact, each Straka has an integrated electric elevator platform that allows people with motor disabilities to reach the surface of the water and then, once the diving experience is finished, helps them get back on board.
How Citizens benefit
Hostraka involves local communities, in fact, it offers services such as restaurants, bars, and other facilities, if necessary, otherwise, the resort aims to rely on local realities in order to support the local economy and not to create useless and unnecessary services.
The guide for the diving and other possible activities will always be local, to embrace better the culture and offer our guests a more intense and culturally true experience.
The guide for the diving and other possible activities will always be local, to embrace better the culture and offer our guests a more intense and culturally true experience.
Physical or other transformations
It refers to a physical transformation of the built environment (hard investment)
Innovative character
There are already several activities and companies that clean waters from pollution, and others that recycle plastic objects and fragments, but none of them has ever thought about mixing directly the two activities and adding them to the hospitality industry.
In a world full of adventures, with people always more projected to an always-on-the-go lifestyle, we think this could be the turning point: Hòstraka doesn't just want to add another "sustainable activity" to its resort, but instead, to create a lifestyle, a different holiday experience even if it’s just for one entertaining activity such as the moment of diving, in a sustainable way.
It aims to create a community full of people who share the same passion for preserving nature through their sustainable choices.
In a world full of adventures, with people always more projected to an always-on-the-go lifestyle, we think this could be the turning point: Hòstraka doesn't just want to add another "sustainable activity" to its resort, but instead, to create a lifestyle, a different holiday experience even if it’s just for one entertaining activity such as the moment of diving, in a sustainable way.
It aims to create a community full of people who share the same passion for preserving nature through their sustainable choices.
Disciplines/knowledge reflected
Design is the main field in our project: starting from how we should think about the entire system of a resort, its configuration, its viability, the fluxes of people, the liveability of the big common spaces until the shapes of the private suites, thinking them in the most comfortable way according to an amazing and comfy experience and a sustainable choices. In fact, in this way of thinking, we embrace the field of hospitality, and how it works as a big system, designing the path for each type of guest and for each type of employee. We embrace the discipline of marine sports, especially the diving world, combining the technologies for filtering water from microplastics with a natural marine experience.
Methodology used
The project starts from nature itself: it already offers us solutions for those human-created problems, an example of this is the work made by oysters that create pearls by filtering water impurities; Hòstraka tries to combine different technologies that already exist and are being tested, in order to create a global vision, a system that offers sustainable solutions.
A good designer should design a project thinking in a sustainable way from the beginning: with its life cycle, Hòstraka shows that, starting from its floating structure, the resort has the minimum possible impact; it's completely removable so it doesn't leave any footprint on the ecosystem and all the blocks composing the marina could be recycled in order to be used for other projects.
Inside the project, we only find technologies that have already been tested, so as to be sure about their feasibility, like the Cloud Filter or the Suzuki Lavalacqua systems to collect microplastics, or the desalination implant for the saltwater in order to use it instead of wasting other clean and potable water.
Even the initial prompt for the materials used in the indoor part of the project, especially the suites, were selected with sustainable and recyclable criteria.
A good designer should design a project thinking in a sustainable way from the beginning: with its life cycle, Hòstraka shows that, starting from its floating structure, the resort has the minimum possible impact; it's completely removable so it doesn't leave any footprint on the ecosystem and all the blocks composing the marina could be recycled in order to be used for other projects.
Inside the project, we only find technologies that have already been tested, so as to be sure about their feasibility, like the Cloud Filter or the Suzuki Lavalacqua systems to collect microplastics, or the desalination implant for the saltwater in order to use it instead of wasting other clean and potable water.
Even the initial prompt for the materials used in the indoor part of the project, especially the suites, were selected with sustainable and recyclable criteria.
How stakeholders are engaged
In the design process of the project, we started with the involvement of locals through a dedicated survey. This happened thanks to the presence of a person from the affected area within our group. In this way, we were able to understand the interests and needs of the place and the people who live there. We also collaborated with Politecnico di Milano and met with professionals from the naval and hospitality sectors. It is precisely in the hospitality sector that Politecnico is very involved in research regarding the role of interior design in building a new sector more open to sustainability. This gave us added value that allowed us to make our project more concrete and achievable.
Global challenges
The project aims to take part in the care and protection of the marine ecosystem, recognizing its importance and impact on human health and beyond.
This occurs through active participation in the collection of microplastics, a current global problem of great importance. Starting from a very affected location like that of the Tyrrhenian Sea, the will is to broaden the range of action with the progressive scalability of the resort, combining magical sailing experiences with sustainable and proactive actions.
This occurs through active participation in the collection of microplastics, a current global problem of great importance. Starting from a very affected location like that of the Tyrrhenian Sea, the will is to broaden the range of action with the progressive scalability of the resort, combining magical sailing experiences with sustainable and proactive actions.
Learning transferred to other parties
We designed the resort in a completely removable and scalable way, in order to locate it in several possible polluted areas: the marina is built with floating plastic blocks, anchored to the seabed by blocks of oceanite, a sustainable material that hosts marine ecosystem without any dangerous impact on it. The suites are mobile little catamarans that float and can navigate thanks to their shapes and electric motors.
The concept is basically clean while having fun, so, a possible location could be the Capo Gallo Natural Reserve in Sicily due to its big problem of plastic pollution; other feasible locations could be Subalpine lakes, such as Garda's Lake and Como's Lake since the environment that hosts better this type of structure is a closed/semi-closed area that doesn't have problems of seaquakes and high waves.
Thanks to its floating structure it's placeable even in high tide areas, without repercussions on guests’ experience.
The concept is basically clean while having fun, so, a possible location could be the Capo Gallo Natural Reserve in Sicily due to its big problem of plastic pollution; other feasible locations could be Subalpine lakes, such as Garda's Lake and Como's Lake since the environment that hosts better this type of structure is a closed/semi-closed area that doesn't have problems of seaquakes and high waves.
Thanks to its floating structure it's placeable even in high tide areas, without repercussions on guests’ experience.
Keywords
Sustainability
Scalability
Cleaning
Microplastics
Seas
