Networks and cities' news

Catch up on the latest updates from cities working together in URBACT Networks. The articles and news that are showcased below are published directly by URBACT’s beneficiaries and do not necessarily reflect the programme’s position.

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    Scaling Up Innovation: Partnerships at the Heart of Successful European Projects

    When European cities talk about the housing crisis, the conversation often centers on limits—tight budgets, restrictive legal frameworks, and a lack of space. However, true innovation means facing a complex future head-on. By building strong partnerships, cities gain the vehicle—and the co-created confidence—needed to overcome these challenges. The final conference of the Cities 4 Co-Housing Innovation Transfer Network in Brussels marked the culmination of two years of intensive work. The atmosphere was one of arrival, execution, and a shared look into the future.


    Bringing to a close a journey that culminated in June 2026, the network's six partners gathered to answer a crucial, continent-wide question: How can affordable, inclusive, and collaborative housing models—like Brussels' pioneering CALICO project—be scaled up through different investment channels in Europe?
     

    As the network wraps up its formal URBACT chapter, the lesson is clear: making affordable housing a reality across Europe requires robust partnership building at the city level, between European municipalities, and with other EU institutions and stakeholders. Partnerships are the key to transferring innovation, building the confidence to deliver even when national policies are absent, and maintaining momentum.

    Dr Orna Rosenfeld

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  • Cities 4 Co-housing team

    From Inspiration to Implementation: What European Cities Learned from Transferring the CALICO Collaborative Housing Model

    What does it take to transfer a complex housing innovation? Between May 2025 and May 2026, five European cities tested, adapted and translated the CALICO model into investment-ready local solutions for collaborative and affordable housing.

    Dr Orna Rosenfeld

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  • Illustration Cities 4 Co-housing

    Cities 4 Co-housing: Solutions for Affordable and Inclusive Urban Living

    Access to decent, affordable housing is one of the most pressing challenges in Europe today. The URBACT Innovative Transfer Network Cities4Co-housing was launched in 2024—the year housing was, for the first time, placed firmly at the heart of the European political agenda.

    Dr Orna Rosenfeld

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