NARRATIVE MATERIAL AUTARCHY FOR A NEW MEDITERRANEAN CIRCULARITY. Local Upcycling and Domestic Biodesign

In recent years, the confluence of health crises, geopolitical tensions and protectionist measures has highlighted the systemic vulnerability of global supply chains, reviving interest in production strategies based on locally sourced materials and energy. Within the context of design culture, this scenario has fostered the re-emergence of self-sufficiency models operating on different scales, which reconfigure the relationship between territory, materials and transformation processes. This paper aims to define a theoretical and operational framework for designing new materials – whether grown or upcycled – and bio-based domestic devices capable of enabling autonomous, sustainable and conscious production. It also seeks to formalise the characteristics of autarchic aesthetics as an emerging design language and as a tool for promoting alternative models of circular consumption and the narration of territorial identities.