The theme

Urban Sustainability – Future Proof Urban Development

For each session of Europan, themes are set to stimulate debate and organise the diversity of sites across Europe. The themes are set by the central Europan governing body, and for Europan 10 the theme is Urban Sustainability – Future-Proof Urban Development, summarised as follows:

“Cities can only cope with future challenges if urban development is not merely based on unbridled consumption of space and energy. They must grow in the awareness that their resources are finite. Urban sustainability extends far beyond the simple application of technological requirements. It is rather a question of integrating changing social, cultural and economic practices.

Strategies for intensity and integration

Intensity is not about density and the relationship of private and public spaces, but about the intelligent linking of:

• transport and mobility,
• energy efficiency,
• durability,
• and the relationship of determined and non-determined spaces.

In the last few decades, de-industrialization and digitization can be said to have created “leftover spaces”, which may arise at any point in a city. These spaces have often have great potential and the guiding competence of local authorities, not just of the market, is needed for these to be fully realised.

EUROPAN 10 encourages local authorities to participate with sites for which no fully matured concepts have been prepared, challenging young architects to submit proposals for new programmes and to design true urban sustainability.”