“Building renovation is not just a private business, it is finally a public priority”. CASE attended the European Week of Regions and Cities in Brussels

Last week CASE Economist Karolina Zubel attended the annual European Week of Regions and Cities. This Brussels-based four-day event focuses on topics in the field of regional and urban development and gathers officials from regions and cities’ administrations, as well as experts and academics in order to exchange good practices and know-how. It is also an acknowledged platform for political communication in relation to the development of EU Cohesion Policy, raising the awareness of decision-makers about the fact that regions and cities matter in EU policy-making.

 One of the sessions (Wednesday, October 10, 2018) focused on ‘EuroPACE: Integrated Home Renovation Platform for Europe’. The first EuroPACE session at the European Week of Regions and Cities explored how affordable, up-front financing with technical assistance for homeowners can support the EU’s energy efficiency targets and improve the well-being of European citizens.

 Home and commercial building renovation can be stressful and complicated and EuroPACE is a great locally-oriented tool to make it easier, faster and more reliable for all Europeans. “Building renovation is not just a private business, it is finally a public priority,” said on the EuroPACE session Kristina Klimovich, Head of Communications and Marketing from GNE Finance, one of the partners of the EuroPACE Project, which is led by CASE.

 The speakers also explained why EuroPACE, an innovative building improvement platform inspired by the success of an on-tax financing model called PACE and launched in California in 2008 is uniquely positioned to boost energy efficiency investment in homes and commercial buildings in Europe. All the panelists representing various institutions including the European Commission agreed that, if implemented accordingly across the continent, EuroPACE will contribute to the creation of resilient and vibrant communities that enjoy economic growth and healthy environment.

 The European Week of Regions and Cities was additionally a great occassion for the second EuroPACE project consortium meeting in which CASE experts took part. Representatives of all 8 institutions involved in the consortium updated other partners on the progress in their respective tasks and presented specific timelines for the future endeavours. Within the EuroPACE project, CASE is responsible among others for general project coordination and delivering crossover analysis identifying a roadmap for EuroPACE adoption.

 This year, the European Week of Regions and Cities in Brussels has gathered more than 6,000 people from all around the continent. Under the main headline of 'For a strong EU Cohesion Policy beyond 2020', the event was the main platform to share the views of the regions and cities on both the EU's multi-annual budget and the subsequent legislative proposals, namely with regard to Cohesion Policy and rural development, and the future of Europe in a regional and local perspective. lt served as an occasion to both celebrate the 30th anniversary of Cohesion Policy, and to discuss the need for a strong Cohesion Policy beyond 2020 to overcome structural barriers, boost human capital and improve the quality of life.