Sostre Cívic has been one of the three awarded initiatives among the 21 finalist proposals of the European Social Innovation Competition

The jury has assessed the capacity for social and ecological transformation of the housing projects in Barcelona and Calonge, both designed by the cooperative of architects Celobert

Congratulations! We add a new international recognition, just one month after receiving the Housing Silver Award awarded by the United Nations, the most prestigious international housing awards. Yesterday the winners of the tenth edition of the European Social Innovation Competition (EUSIC), awarded by the European Commission and the European Innovation Council and the Executive Agency of SMEs (EISMEA). In an event held in Brussels, the Jury announced the three winning initiatives among the 21 finalist proposals, where we appear as Sostre Cívic sharing the podium with other innovative proposals from Italy and Austria. It is the third time in 10 years that a Catalan initiative has won a prize in this competition.

The finalist project submitted to the European competition was developed between Sostre Cívic i Celobert, that we presented two cooperative housing projects at different scales that incorporate social and environmental impact strategies, in addition to the desire for replicability in the territory. Of the winning proposal, the Jury has assessed that "successfully implements an alternative housing model, fairer and more accessible, non-profit, non-speculative and transformative". Hubert Gambs, Director General of Industry of the European Commission, has stated that with this award "we support social innovations that bring social, environmental and economic value at the same time. The three winners of the 2022 edition contribute greatly with their innovative projects to the future of our life".

The EUSIC competition, launched in 2013, supports innovative initiatives that respond to the challenges of today's society, and this year it was convened with a specific call for projects that face the challenge of innovation for affordable and sustainable housing in Europe. Each winning initiative takes home €50.000, but all finalists were able to participate in a two-day business innovation training stay in Brussels. Among the finalists of this year's edition were also two cooperative housing projects in right of use from Catalonia: The Board, pioneer in the new construction of cooperative housing in Sants (Barcelona); i The Titaranya, project in promotion accompanied by the dynamo in Valls (Tarragona).

Cirerers i La Sala, two innovative cooperative housing in social and environmental transformation

One of the projects is the cooperative co-housing Cirerers built on municipal land in the Roquetes neighborhood of Barcelona, ​​an eight-storey community building with a wooden structure that houses 32 coexistence units. This has been designed together with its inhabitants and stands out for its commitment to the city, the community and the environment. It is a passive building designed with bioclimatic criteria that incorporates efficient and renewable facilities, with minimal environmental and energy impact and that integrates into the neighborhood through its volume and use of low floors. In addition, the building is dry-built, a technique that allows materials to be recycled at the end of their useful life, and is almost entirely made of wood. This makes it, currently, the tallest building in the state built with this material.

The other project is La Sala, a renovated building in Calonge and Sant Antoni (Girona), the first cooperative housing in Catalonia intended exclusively for young people under the age of 35. The rehabilitation of the building has given the space habitability, sustainability and energy efficiency, and has converted a system of individual installations into a collective one that works through renewable energy. In addition, there is an energy control and management system that allows you to considerably reduce energy consumption. This project represents a key strategy to make the right to housing effective through the cooperativeization of disused spaces and public-private collaboration, and serves as a precedent to promote similar initiatives in neighboring towns on the Costa Brava, many with problems of access to housing due to tourism.