Interregional Cooperation for Sustainable Social Housing in Europe

Overview: The Social Green project, funded by the Interreg Europe programme, aimed to enhance regional policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the social housing sector and address fuel poverty across six European countries: Croatia, Estonia, Portugal, Romania, Spain, and Sweden. By fostering interregional cooperation and mutual learning, the project sought to identify, share, and implement best practices in green building interventions for both new constructions and the retrofitting of existing social housing units.

Objectives:

1. Improve Regional Policies: Enhance policy instruments to support the greening of the social housing sector, contributing to a low-carbon economy.
2. Address Fuel Poverty: Develop strategies to reduce energy consumption and costs for low-income households, alleviating fuel poverty.
3. Promote Mutual Learning: Facilitate the exchange of experiences and best practices among partner regions to implement effective green housing solutions.

Key Features:

• Interregional Learning Process: Conducted study visits, workshops, and stakeholder meetings to share knowledge and experiences related to green social housing policies.
• Development of Action Plans: Each participating region formulated action plans to integrate green measures into their social housing policies, informed by shared best practices.
• Good Practice Identification: Compiled and evaluated successful green housing initiatives from partner regions to serve as models for implementation.

Target Audience:

• Regional and Local Authorities: Policymakers responsible for housing and environmental policies.
• Social Housing Providers: Organizations managing social housing units seeking to implement green initiatives.
• Residents of Social Housing: Beneficiaries of improved living conditions and reduced energy costs.

Impact:

• Policy Improvements: Enhanced regional policies supporting energy efficiency and renewable energy integration in the social housing sector.
• Reduction in CO2 Emissions: Implementation of green measures contributed to the EU's CO2 reduction targets by decreasing energy consumption in social housing.
• Alleviation of Fuel Poverty: Improved energy efficiency in social housing reduced energy costs for residents, addressing fuel poverty concerns.

Recognitions and Awards: While specific awards for the Social Green project are not documented, its innovative approach to greening the social housing sector has been recognized as a model for interregional cooperation and policy improvement.

Additional Resources: For more information, visit the Social Green project on Interreg Europe.