After two years of absence, Saturday 7 May 2022 marked the return of the EU Open day across EU institutions buildings in Brussels. While during the Covid crisis European institutions were more present than ever in the lives of European citizens, this year’s Open Day revived a time-honoured occasion for the EU institutions and citizens to interact again in a festive environment.
Among the many Commission projects, initiatives and policies that were showcased at the Berlaymont building, DG REGIO was present within the Green Deal Village with a pavilion displaying the priorities of the New European Bauhaus and the projects developed in its framework. Specifically, three display walls and a video screen showed the winners of the 2021 NEB Prizes, projects such as APROP Ciutat Vella, Xifré’s Rooftop Floating” Wild Garden or ESSERI URBANI.
Dubbed the heart of the European Green Deal by Commisison President Ursula Von Der Leyen, the New European Bauhaus (NEB) is a creative and interdisciplinary initiative connecting the European Green Deal to peoples’ living spaces and experiences. The NEB is articulated around the three core values of Sustainability; Aesthetics; and Inclusion. In this spirit the stand showcased the Commission’s vision for a greener, more accessible future.
At the same time, the stand invited visitors of all ages to share their own vision of a beautiful, inclusive and sustainable future for their community and to pin it inside three big heart-shaped boards, each entitled “sustainable” “beautiful” and “together”.
Valentina, a visitor of the NEB pavilion said that she was pleased to see a tangible example of the policy that she studied in her political science master.
Another visitor, Erendirawas already familiar with the Xifré’s Rooftop: “Floating” Wild Garden from when she lived in Barcelona. However, only at the NEB stand did she discover the project was among the winners of the 2021 NEB Prize.
For this edition of the EU open day, DG Regio also took a more “nomadic” approach to showcasing its contribution to green initiatives and projects of urban development. Throughout the day, three guided bike tours departed from the Berlaymont esplanade. Each tour allowed participants to discover three ongoing EU co-funded projects in Brussels. In a 10-km only radius from the Commission’s building, participants got acquainted with a cutting-edge, sustainable swimming pool; an associative hub of creativity and innovation that revamped a neighbourhood; and an urban rooftop garden.
All three tours were fully booked by Saturday morning and participants’ feedback proved enthusiastic. Some of the participants even admitted to reserving their spot on the tour without knowing it would be the EU Open day.
One of the EU staffs who was animating the New European Bauhaus and directly interacting with the public said “The Open Day was an excellent opportunity to speak about the New European Bauhaus with various people, and a good way to show what cohesion policy contributes to.”
According to her most visitors had never heard about the NEB initiative before. However, volunteers at the stand said they observed a lot of nodding and “aha!” moments when they heard about the NEB main values. People especially positively reacted to the principles of linking sustainable products and spaces with good design, and to making them accessible for everybody irrespective of their income.
“Visitors were pleased with the possibility to vote for ideas and projects in the NEB Prizes and enrolled to do so from home. Another piece of information that was generally welcomed with enthusiasm was that, through the New European Bauhaus, young people can receive substantial support for developing and implementing their ideas and projects”, said the same colleague.
Many visitors were curious to learn that the Commission (and REGIO in particular) invests in every region in the EU through cohesion policy, and that it is encouraged to apply the New European Bauhaus values to projects on the ground. Finally, many visitors shared their ideas on how the NEB can change their neighbourhood and communities and posted them on the walls, with notable contributions from the many children who drew their dreams and aspirations for a sustainable future.
The Open Day was an opportunity to exchange with the public and receive feedback, rather than just a “show and tell”: visitors entrusted their visions for beautiful, inclusive and sustainable communities, while others toured those projects that herald that same vision of community.
