This project for student apartments takes an all-encompassing vision, following an urban approach to spatial and relational aspects. The eighteen residential blocks are constructed in groups of three and four interconnected buildings, forming a courtyard – an open space like a Roman atrium, which becomes the nucleus of architectural relationships. The courtyard is planted with vegetation, transforming the traditional ‘secret garden’, normally hidden away behind street doors, into a place where people can stroll, meet and engage with nature. The rounded volume of the stairwell is set at an angle to the quadrangular plan of the courtyard, suggesting a destination for walkers. Access to the apartments is off a system of balconies overlooking the courtyard, which also forms walkways between the buildings in each group. And an idea of ‘permeability’ informs the entire project, from the individual buildings to the complex as a whole. The buildings form thoroughfares, with large double-height entrances on the courtyard level. A network of pedestrian and cycle paths extends out across the six-hectare gardens, which surround the apartments and provide opportunities for sport and social interaction. Extensive car parks around the edge this area mean that the gardens are exclusively used by pedestrians. The design of the apartment blocks combines unity in their overall form with diversity, beginning with the way the buildings are placed on the ground, which gently slopes to the height of one floor, thus altering the perception of the building profile. The volumes are basic and regularly shaped in a statement of simplicity and clarity. Combined with the travertine base common to all the buildings are variations in the façade materials, which are industrial, and in the texture of their composition. On the outer shell, the use of back-painted glass and concrete walls divided into different colours creates individuality in the buildings, which, when seen from the courtyard, display a rich palette of colours and materials. A certain number of the apartments, whose size reflects the presence of common services, are intended for use by academic staff. And the sharing of experiences is a goal of the project, through its positioning of spaces and relationships that influence the time spent by the residents both in private and with others. As regards eco-compatibility, the project uses passive measures, such as insulation and fixed sun-shading, while taking advantage of natural ventilation. It also uses active measures, such as photovoltaic technology and energy consumption reduction.