Smarter4EU was proud to present the Better Homes 2024 conference in Dublin on 15 November.
Highlighting innovation and finance for greener housing, the conference saw leading European doers and thinkers descend on Dublin.
The morning session Innovative thinking in Housing kicked off with one of the most provocative thought leaders, architect and teacher Indy Johar from Dark Matter Labs & Architecture00. He was followed by inspirational implementers Dr Gerardo Wadel of Societat Organica, Dr Judit Kimpian, coauthor of Energy| People | Buildings, and Dearbhla Lawson, Strategic Planner at the Land Development Agency. They all looked at innovative ways of delivering housing, going to the core of what meeting real housing needs within planetary boundaries means.
After that, we heard about the impact of Construct Innovate in its first two years, and in our discussion on Collaboration for Innovation in the Built Environment, panellists shared their experience of how the construction industry can harness innovation and research to collaborate more effectively.
Our next panel was Sustainable Finance as a Driver of Innovation, and this delves into how the finance sector can accelerate innovation beyond business-as-usual for housing. What will be the impact of EU Taxonomy? What is essential for the industry to pay attention to? Green building councils from Austria and France provide insights on the fundamentals of working with the finance sector.
The afternoon session was dedicated to the Smarter Finance for EU project which aims to drive green finance and sustainable certification for homes. Jeff Colley, editor of Passive House + magazine moderated a panel discussion on Hybrid Funding of Affordable Housing. This was be followed by a round table discussion on Green, Healthy and Affordable Housing for all, with invited international guests from Ukraine, Portugal, Spain and Ireland – including financial institutions and municipal councils interested in financing sustainable homes and increasing cooperation. Click below to see a selection of interviews taken throughout the day.
The conference was co- funded by the Smarter Finance for EU Life programme and the NEBULA project, a Horizon Europe research and innovation programme.