Brussels
September 7 – 13, 2011
| Location: | Boulevard de l`Imperatrice |
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| Opening hours: | daily 10 a.m.–07 p.m. Wed 01 p.m.–07 p.m. |
In Brussels the European Commission selects the European Green Capital. And the city can do even more, because Brussels shows that sustainability works through social cooperation.
City websiteBrussels – a city in the fast lane
Starting from 2015, all new buildings in the Belgian capital must be built in the passive house manner. And a car-sharing program for electric cars has begun to lower air pollution.
Brussels started a sustainability program back in the 1990s. Since then, neighborhood contracts have been concluded every year at four “hotspots” in the city and these locations have bee sponsored with a sum of 60 million euros. Thus, for example, projects involving the construction of social housing, the design of public spaces and alternative energies have been developed. The program isn’t just about sustainability in the environmental sense, but also responsibility in the social and urban planning sense.
Sustainability with grassroots charm
Social concerns were at the forefront when the program was started: For years, those who could afford it were moving out of the city into the surrounding countryside. In the old city, it was predominantly people with few financial means that remained. Nobody worried about the state of the buildings for a long time. That has changed with the program. One of the sponsorship conditions is: Whatever is done is decided not just by politicians but also by people in the neighborhood. In the Masui inner-city district, not only were old buildings renovated, but a formerly fallow river bed was also planted with greenery. A model project: In Hamburg, as part of the International Construction Exhibition IBA in the Wilhelmsburg district, it has likewise been planned for people to take part in the design of parks as well as sustainable development.
Relaxing in a rush
Brussels had to catch up on another point: Until 2007, there wasn’t one building in the city that was up to “passive house” standards. The project BATEX – batiments exemplaires (exemplary buildings) – is changing that. 117 projects with a total area of 265,000 square meters have now received support. According to current legislation, all publicly sponsored buildings must correspond to this energy efficiency benchmark. From 2015, this will hold true for all new buildings. And Brussels has something similar in mind for traffic emissions: The publicly sponsored car-sharing program with electric cars has just been launched.
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