Thank you very much. What a wonderful view here from this stage. Good evening. I'm very glad to welcome my dear friend Antonio Costa, the President of the European Council, dear members of the European Parliament, dear Commissioners, ladies and gentlemen, dear friends of the New European Bauhaus. It is good to be here today surrounded by people and projects that show Europe at its best. Europe has always been a continent of builders. Cathedrals that took generations to complete, railways and bridges to connect our countries, and of course building our European Union itself. A union aspiring to be the best place in the world to live, to work, and to raise a family. The best place to feel safe and to grow old in dignity. The best place to be innovative and daring. The best place to show respect and harvest community. Our buildings have always been more than stones or steel. They embody our culture, our values, and our way of life.
But as the world around us is changing, we also have to change our approach. Geopolitical shocks are shaking our economies. Extreme weather events are the new normal of climate change. Extremists within and outside our union are challenging our democracies. This does not mean we should stop building. It means we must build differently. More sustainable, more resilient, better connected. And that is what the New European Bauhaus is all about. It is a shared effort to tackle the issues that matter most to our people today. From affordable housing to the industries and infrastructure of the clean transition to democracy itself. And we are doing so in a way that is sustainable, inclusive, and beautiful. Because these are the values that have long made Europe special.
Now, coming to the New European Bauhaus, what started six years ago has become a real movement. Over 700 projects, more than 2,000 organizations, and millions of people from Europe to Brazil to Japan. Our Parliament and our member states are fully engaged on this journey. Just last month, the Council adopted our new recommendation on the New European Bauhaus. So the commitment is there. And so is creativity. As you walk through this festival, you see it on display. Building materials created from agricultural waste. Civic spaces reimagined to bring communities together. Neighborhoods that are cleaner, cooler, and more accessible. We are showing that inclusiveness and competitiveness go together. That clean is cool. And that people are driving lasting change. Through projects like these, the New European Bauhaus is building a more sustainable, a more livable, and a more democratic Europe.
Ladies and gentlemen, sustainability is the baseline for everything we do through the New European Bauhaus. It is a big topic, but I want to start small. With an olive pit. Two-thirds of the world's olive oil comes from our European Union. But only 20% of the olives become oil. The rest — pulp, skin, pits — becomes waste. Two years ago, a group of Cypriot entrepreneurs brought their idea to a New European Bauhaus hackathon in Nicosia. They wanted to turn discarded pits into sustainable design materials — tabletops and other commercial products. Cyprus produces over 24,000 tons of olive pits each year. This project both reduces waste and creates new revenues for communities across the island. And this week, the results are here at this festival — beautiful, durable tables. I think this is an amazing success story, and I really want to applaud these fantastic, innovative circular products.
From waste to everyday usability. This project shows a shift in how we can build — making new out of old, turning waste into value. And we need much more of this approach, because the circular economy will help to power our clean transition. Just two figures: the built environment makes up 35% of Europe's waste and 12% of national emissions. Circular buildings can make a huge difference for communities, nature, and our climate. Today, sustainability and competitiveness go hand in hand. As global demand for clean technologies and materials grows, staying at the forefront will give our businesses a competitive edge. This is also a matter of economic independence. The more we recycle, the less we import, the less we depend on vulnerable supply chains.
Later this year, we will adopt the Circular Economy Act. It will create a single European market for high-quality recycled materials to grow supply and strengthen demand. As our Bauhaus projects show, circularity is already a present reality. But we can make it the new normal — so that we waste less, create more, and develop more value at home. Great innovations like these start with people — people who have the vision and the skills. This is why we put the New European Bauhaus Academy at the heart of this project. Today, I can announce that over the next two years, we will commit an additional 50 million euros to the New European Bauhaus Academy. That's a promise.
This will go towards building skills, to research and experimentation, and to supporting startups, SMEs, and creative practitioners. Several of our member states already have New European Bauhaus Academy hubs. Just last month, we officially launched our first international hub in Ukraine. It's a huge step forward. We all know the destruction there in this brave country is abhorrent. But we will overcome it. We're supporting new skills, new jobs, new industries. We will turn rubble into recovery, so that Ukrainians can build back. I'm very much looking forward to hearing more on this soon from our friend Hanna Bondar and to learn from Ukraine's example. One thing is for sure: the European Union will be at the side of Ukraine every step of the way. You can count on that.
When we started this, we knew the true test would be whether people can feel the difference in their daily lives. And this is also true for housing. A home is more than four walls and a roof. It's the foundation on which people build their lives, their families. It's important for their health, their jobs, their sense of belonging. When people put down roots, entire communities flourish alongside them. This is why the housing crisis is one of the most urgent facing Europeans today. And our solution is not just to build more, but to build better — homes that are affordable, sustainable, and genuinely livable. There's a wonderful example in Amsterdam at the Kleiburg flat complex. This is a modernist icon from the 1970s that fell into dereliction. But instead of demolishing it, the local community launched a project to restore it. Each future occupant helped to finish off their own apartment. By giving residents control, the project reduced delays and reduced costs — that never happens normally in the construction business. The result was housing made affordable, fast, functioning, and fit for purpose. We need more of this. Bauhaus funding is still available in our current budget. I encourage our member states to take full advantage, particularly for housing.
Today we're launching a new catalog of New European Bauhaus blueprints. It's a tool for architects, real estate companies, local authorities — use it so that we can build better and faster where it's needed most. The knowledge is out there. Just seize the moment.
Ladies and gentlemen, in 1925, 100 years ago, the legendary Bauhaus opened its doors in Dessau. It was a promising moment, and a fragile one. We all know what was lost in the years that followed and how quickly democracy can fracture. This lesson is especially important today. As polarization and distrust grow and some feel disconnected, we need stronger public places where citizens can come together and engage. This is why participation is the cornerstone of our Bauhaus approach. Because when people act together, they build trust. And stronger communities make stronger democracies. Change starts at the local level — from something as small as an olive pit, or perhaps a new tree in the square. But taken together, our projects add up to something much greater.
Over the past five years, the New European Bauhaus prizes have become a true expression of this idea. This year is very special. For the first time, we launched a European Union-wide competition to design the official trophy. We have many of the finalists with us today. Their amazing work is displayed all around the room. I would ask each and every one of these finalists to please stand up for a moment. Come on, don't be shy.
I counted seven, so I guess the other ones are hiding. We asked these finalists to imagine a symbol for an entire movement. And I must say, dear finalists, you delivered beautifully. Being selected among the ten finalists is already a remarkable achievement. Let us thank each and every one of them for their creativity and their imagination. I thank all of you who came to the opening of this festival. And as I always end my speeches — many thanks to you, and long live Europe. Thank you very much.
