One of the fundamental pillars of Sostre Cívic is the environmental sustainability. This has meant that our projects have become a benchmark in the creation of sustainable homes, addressing each phase of their projects with a firm commitment to the preservation of the environment and the well-being of communities. From design and construction, to the day-to-day life of the people who live there (with continuous monitoring and shared mobility initiatives), to the end of the useful life of the materials. Here is a collection of how Sostre Cívic is leading the way towards a more sustainable future in the field of cooperative housing:

We design to reduce consumption

We build buildings designed to be owned less energy demand and require less consumption. We do this by taking into account the geometry of the building, the use of spaces and the inclination of the sun depending on the time of year, and how we can generate or avoid drafts, for example. We also think about theorigin of the materials and the construction techniques: that they are responsibly manufactured, respectful of life, and easily constructed, recoverable and recyclable.

We also study what they are environmental impacts of prefabricated systems that are used in housing construction and relate them to their cost. Beyond the theoretical work, we did an applied study on a real case, that of Cal Paler Nou de Cardedeu, the result of which was embodied in a table with "traffic lights" that serves to classify the environmental impacts caused by each material. We consider factors such as the economic cost to the occupational risks of each material. The study also has a pedagogical aspect, as it aims to explain the analysis and show the results, in order to facilitate other projects of the cooperative or other entities. Both the traffic light table and the full study can be downloaded from our website.

We install monitoring systems

Knowing how much washing machines consume, how long the dining room switch is on or interpreting the numbers on electricity bills, as well as adjusting to these aspects, have become important goals for our partners who they live in cooperative projects. For this reason, all our coexistence projects have a monitoring system installed, which allows us analyze energy consumption and CO₂ emissions. This allows each project to become aware of its consumption patterns and the changes needed to improve energy efficiency collectively. According to what each cohabitation unit consumes, it also allows us to adjust the contracted power, and to study the consumption habits of the people who live there for walk towards a more sustainable use.

About the monitoring system, we explain more in this article a Crític.

We fix the problems

In many cases we use innovative systems, which provide solutions but also challenges. We monitor the problems that may arise and we design different solutions to correct them. Thanks to the monitoring systems and the maintenance commissions of the projects themselves, we can make this process of detection and correction as fast as possible.

Let's make community

We drive and create Local Energy Communities (CEL) in collaboration with the platform We are communities. Apart from air conditioning or electricity generation systems, such as photovoltaic panels, we are also pushing to make a cooperative management of the water cycle through the creation of water communities. For example: you can collect rainwater for watering or cleaning, and you can also give a second life to gray water (such as from the sink or shower), which can end up in toilet cisterns or to make washing machines. With this system, you can reach reduce up to 40% domestic water consumption.

We generate knowledge

From the learning we make guides for future projects, to unify criteria, share the knowledge generated with other collaborating actors and move towards more efficient designs. We also share and disseminate the new sustainability strategies so that they reach everyone, as we have done in this article in collaboration with El Crític.

we move

Sustainability also persists when we leave the house. We are committed to mobility that is more environmentally friendly, and we do it by creating alternatives. Recently, we have incorporated a fleet of bicycles shared electricity, which are already present in five projects. At the same time, we work together with We are Mobility to provide shared electric cars to communities. A La Sala, our cooperative housing project in Calonge, already have the first car shared electricity, which they have made extensive use for all the citizens of the municipality.