(fra Kommisjonens meddelelse 16.12.2025)

Introduction

European citizens and businesses face challenges at an unprecedented scale and complexity: from geopolitical upheavals and security threats on our own continent to the triple planetary crisis as well as technological changes and threats to our democracy and values. In these times of uncertainty, it is natural for citizens to feel concerned and it is therefore crucial to provide predictability and perspective, foster innovation and create places that support a sense of belonging, quality of life and a feeling of security.

This is what the New European Bauhaus (NEB) is doing. Launched in 2020 by Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, it empowers people, communities and businesses to jointly find innovative solutions for a positive future, which combines inclusion, sustainability and quality of life.

The NEB aims at creating tangible change on the ground for people and businesses, acting through an innovative, transformative and bottom-up approach. In five years, it has become a movement, with over 700 projects across Europe and beyond, a vibrant community of nearly 2000 organisations, reaching millions of people, and a network of national authorities acting as a bridge with the local level. The various projects that have been researched, piloted and demonstrated from 2021 to 2025, from affordable housing districts demonstrators to accelerators for construction digitalisation, as well as art-driven participation in local communities, show that an inclusive, sustainable and quality built environment is possible and has the potential to take more citizens on board and to strengthen resilience and competitiveness.

Based on the experience and learnings from the past years, the moment has come to scale-up the NEB and move to the next level as a powerful enabler for the clean transition and innovation in Europe and beyond. This Communication outlines the policy objectives of the NEB for the next years and provides a framework for tangible actions to enhance innovation, resilience and sustainability. To increase its impact, this Communication is accompanied by a proposal for a Council Recommendation 1  to Member States, in full respect of subsidiarity.

The focus of the NEB remains the built environment. It is an essential part of the daily lives of citizens, has a huge potential to improve quality of life, reduce emissions, support affordability and at the same time increase the competitiveness of our industries. Neighbourhoods need policy action, funding and technical support for regeneration. More action is needed to build skills and scale-up affordable solutions that can increase the efficient use of the built space in urban and rural areas, adopt bio-based solutions and innovative materials and techniques, strengthening resilience and creating lead markets for Europe’s innovative competitive industries. In the upcoming years, the NEB will expand to other sectors, namely textiles and fashion.

The potential for co-creation and multidisciplinary approaches, including through digital tools needs to be better used and more opportunities and capacities are needed to bring researchers, artists, authorities, citizens, and businesses together to co-create and implement visions on the ground.

Five years on from the launch of the initiative, the Commission and its partners will strengthen the NEB and enlarge its Community, disseminate and scale-up creative concepts and innovations, with the aim to foster the business case of key projects. The NEB will further support Member States in bringing NEB inspired approaches into national housing policies, building renovation plans and spatial planning decisions, in synergy with the EU Agenda for Cities 2 and cohesion policy territorial tools, as well as the European Affordable Housing Plan 3  and the Housing Construction Strategy 4  presented together with this Communication.