Abstract
In the fields of architecture and urban planning, research over recent decades has shifted its focus from expansion to the transformation and regeneration of existing urban structures and buildings. In this context, scholars have primarily sought tools and methods to optimize building renovation processes and enhanc their energy efficiency and structural performance. This article considers regeneration as more than a technical issue and proposes an alternative strategy to integrate urban analysis, building analysis, stakeholder mapping, placemaking, and scenario building into a unified process including people from the very beginning too. The contribution, therefore, through the description of a case study involving the development of a feasibility study for the regeneration of a former nunnery in Italy, illustrates a three-stage framework: 1) analysis, 2) discovery, 3) valorization, guided by a research-through-design methodology. It presents a vision of regeneration as a space where design can assume innovative roles, fostering community involvement in shaping urban transformation strategies. Most importantly, it can serve as a means to reconfigure disciplinary knowledge into transdisciplinary frameworks, addressing questions related to the future regeneration of heritag assets with uncertain uses.