Common Floods is a design-research practice that acts as an instigator and advocate for collective climate adaptation. It creates spaces of dialogue and collaboration between institutions, technicians, and communities, supporting actions that are shared, negotiated, and grounded in local realities.
Rooted in work on flood risk, the practice now engages with the wider flows of adaptation—social, spatial, and institutional—that shape how places respond to climate challenges. Adaptation is a dynamic process: shaped by shifting roles, responsibilities, and relationships.
Through frameworks, fieldwork, and storytelling, Common Floods aspires to co-design this process, supporting commoning practices that make adaptation more inclusive, situated, and responsive to real-world conditions.
Common Floods is the practice of Francesca Vanelli.
Hi! I'm Francesca.
Profile
I am a researcher-designer with a background in Architecture and Land Management. My research areas of interest are land governance in face of disasters, shocks or conflicts; flood risk management strategies; publicly-initiated and private-led climate adaptation; land tenure; land and natural resources management; land policies and their impact on social cohesion; community-based initiatives, and co-creation initiatives. I worked across countries and for various consultancy and research projects, maintaining a proactive and independent attitude.
Experience
I am a PhD Candidate for the Marie Curie co-funded Dual PhD Program at POLIMI and RMIT within the REDI program.
Before starting my PhD, I worked for the Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS), Erasmus University, Rotterdam (NL) following research, training and consultancy activities in urban land governance. Previously, I was involved with NGOs and architecture companies across countries.
Education
I graduated cum laude from the MSc. in Urban Management and Development at IHS, Erasmus University, Rotterdam (NL) in 2019, with a specialization in Urban Land Governance. Here, I completed a thesis on the land titling policy in Tirana, Albania, and its social impact on informal settlers.
In 2016 I obtained an MS. in Architecture at the University of Ferrara (IT), with an awarded research on the climate-sensitive regeneration of the seafront of Havana, Cuba, with a focus on climate resilience, natural-based solutions, and land use planning for redevelopment.
Country of Experience
