Cities are built societies as more and more people are moving to these ever-denser places. Consequently, changing the world and dealing with climate change starts at the local level. "The New European Bauhaus and Sustainable Cities for the Future" was the first edition of a series of roundtable events by Greener EU, in collaboration with the European Initiative Bringing Europeans Together Association (BETA) Italy. This event took place under the High Patronage of the European Parliament.
Dealing with the changes and challenges of sustainable cities, a variety of experts from politics, urban planning, and architecture joined this panel discussion. From the European Parliament, the guest speakers were Niklas Nienass, member of the committee for education and culture (CULT), Jutta Paulus, member of the committee for transport and tourism (TRAN), and Ciaran Cuffe, member of the committee for regional development (REGI). From the urban planning side, the guest speakers were Antonella Contin, professor for architecture and urban studies at the Bocconi University Milan as Sergio Pascolo, architect, and professor at the Università Iuav di Venezia. This event was joined by an interested audience from various backgrounds about culture, education, politics, and urban development.
In the beginning, a short video made by BETA Italia gave an idea of what the old Bauhaus was all about and how their idea was about changing the society we are living in. The first question asked the participants about what is "new" about the New European Bauhaus. Here, participants agreed, that the old Bauhaus was about technology, while the new Bauhaus is about inclusion and the environment. Based on that, the discussion revealed the potential of cities as promoters for the future, considering, for instance, the city of Venice which is not just a city full of challenges, yet, a future city, ready to take on these challenges. Furthermore, this event revealed the creative potential of urban regions, for finding new solutions to upcoming problems, however, this requires inclusion and participation. Consequently, based on the idea of a “right to the city”, citizens shall be shaped by the city, where they live, by being encouraged the shape the city, they want to live in.
Once it was the power of joining art, architecture, and technology for contributing to a more equal and democratic society. Nowadays it is the triangle of art, sustainability, and inclusion, which will be the leitmotif of the New European Bauhaus. This project, focussing on people and the places they are living, emphasizes, that the European Idea of bringing people with their ideas and potentials together is becoming more and more vivid, showing how people in their daily life can contribute to the European project, becoming conscious for being part of it. Focussing on the diversity of urban regions invites people to discover, be curious and become creative. Therefore, the New European Bauhaus delivers the message of sustainable future cities are built sustainable future societies, as those are built upon the participation of their citizens.
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Author: Stephan Raab
