Proposals are expected to address all of the following:

• Develop a systematic and context-sensitive approach for vacant, obsolete or underutilised spaces, including buildings or infrastructures. The approach must cover at least the following:
  • Analysis of common drivers of the vacancy, obsolescence or underutilisation of spaces.
  • Identification and prioritisation of vacant, obsolete or underutilised spaces in the targeted neighbourhoods.
  • Assessment of local community challenges and needs, of the identified spaces being reused to address those challenges and needs, and of potential side-effects or challenges of their reuse (such as overcrowding in the neighbourhood, loss or degradation of green areas, displacement of inhabitants, affordability, potential impacts on gentrification, or regulatory, legal, or funding challenges).
  • In cases where the spaces already fulfil important ecological or social functions: Identification of measures to strengthen the spaces’ governance and oversight together with the community, while strengthening local regulatory frameworks, where relevant.
  • Use of co-creation methods to engage community stakeholders in the process.
  • Identification of funding and financing mechanisms to support the reuse of the spaces.
• Validate the approach in at least three neighbourhoods in urban, peri-urban and rural areas located in different Member States and/or Associated Countries.
• Assess the social (e.g. accessibility, inclusion, social cohesion), cultural (e.g. aesthetics), environmental (e.g. more sufficient resource use, waste reduction, biodiversity, climate resilience), and economic (e.g. economies of scale, efficiency) value of the approach.
• Provide recommendations to inform the adaptation of the approach in different neighbourhood contexts.

Proposals are expected to follow a participatory and transdisciplinary approach through the integration of different actors and disciplines.

This topic requires the effective contribution of social sciences and humanities (SSH) disciplines and the involvement of SSH experts, institutions, as well as the inclusion of relevant SSH expertise, in order to produce meaningful and significant effects enhancing the societal impact of the related research activities.

Proposals are expected to allocate at least 0.8% of their budget for engaging with the Horizon Europe-funded ‘New European Bauhaus hub for results and impact’ to share their intermediate and final results, findings and learnings, as well as to contribute to impact assessment.