LIFE energises shift to climate-neutral Belgium homes
Ben Holbourn
“Renovation of buildings is by far the most cost-effective way to tackle the climate problem”, said Roel Vermeiren from the Flemish Energy Agency, speaking at the LIFE Platform meeting on Climate Action and the Building Sector on 17 June.
Roel Vermeiren heads the Flemish region’s building renovation plan, the Flemish Renovation Pact [pdf]. “We called our work a renovation pact because of the huge range of stakeholders working together on the stock of residential buildings”, he explained.
The plan has gained traction by teaming up with large-scale demonstration projects like LIFE BE REEL!, which hosted the platform meeting in Brussels. LIFE BE REEL! aims to renovate more than 8 500 homes in Ghent, Antwerp, Mechelen, Mouscron and La Louvière. “We are supporting, co-operating and innovating” said project coordinator Eddie Deruwe, “to accelerate a qualitative innovation rate towards Belgium being climate neutral by 2050.”
“We need a systematic change, one involving the property and financial markets, citizens and local authorities,” explained Eddie Deruwe. As an integrated project, LIFE BE REEL! can implement wide-reaching changes and make use of funding from many sources, including the EU, national budgets and the private sector.
LIFE supports many other different types of sustainable building projects across Europe, from nation-wide projects like LIFE-IP CANEMURE-FINLAND to city-specific projects like LIFE @ URBAN ROOFS and LIFE Lugo + Biodinámico.
Looking for funding for your sustainable building project? Apply now for LIFE funding.