New European Bauhaus

The New European Bauhaus brings forward the concept that public models strongly form societal values, this is also true for buildings. It is easier to gain people’s attention to the need for change, to significantly increase the quantity and quality of energy-efficient retrofits in Europe when public authorities and governments are adopting the appropriate approach. It is therefore important to demonstrate exemplary solutions at frequently used buildings like schools and universities. Europe is dependent on having high-quality education spaces for its future generations. The use of educational buildings as front runners will help to increase the market penetration of high-performance retrofit approaches. The 100% carbon-free school building must become the standard of the future. Furthermore, the qualities of a zero-energy (or energy-positive) school, university or science centre, and the process required to create it, can encourage student learning (formal and informal) and student success, create healthy, high-performance learning environments, provide sound fiscal management of community resources, and demonstrate environmental leadership in minimizing the impact of the built environment. Schools and educational buildings in general can act as an incubator for innovation and creativity to drive sustainable design across Europe and beyond, which is also appealing and affordable for all citizens. Schools could act as hubs that will network practitioners from across disciplines and mobilise creative minds to reimagine how sustainable living could and should be in the future. These principles shape the conditions for the design of whole-school projects and activities that could facilitate the development of Sustainability Citizenship by creating the necessary multidisciplinary context of implementation for inquiry and challenge-based learning.