NEB festival is back – see you in April in Brussels!
New European Bauhaus movement's NEB Festival returns after a two-year break. The festival will also feature the New European Bauhaus Prizes 2024 Ceremony.
The NEB Festival, taking place in Brussels between April 9 and April 13 under the theme Planet for All, will bring together people from different sectors to discuss Europe's sustainable future.
The opening event, which will be held on Tuesday, April 9 at 18:00, will include talks by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Belgian Prime Minister Alexander de Croo, among others.
See the entire programme here.
Programme from Finland
The festival programme is built around three key areas. Forum is the festival's discussion programme, Fair brings out exhibitions and events, and Fest includes an arts-related programme.
On Wednesday, April 10, Forum section of the festival will host a panel discussion on "Transforming our built environment: key challenges and opportunities", moderated by Professor Matti Kuittinen from Aalto University, starting at 16:10. In the panel, member of the European Parliament Ciaran Cuffe, Chairman of Stora Enso Hans Sohlström, and Professor Andreja Kutnar will discuss the future of carbon-neutral construction.
Right after this, the panel discussion, "Change on the ground: success stories of the NEB", will start at 17:05 and discuss the positive impact of the New European Building initiative across Europe. The panel will include the Mayor of Turku, Minna Arve, and EU Commissioner Elisa Ferreira.
The Fair section of the festival will feature Aalto University's Time out! Rethinking construction exhibition. Every day, the construction sector affects the climate, ecosystems, people and other living things - mostly negatively. Aalto University is taking a time-out on construction! The exhibition challenges the construction industry's current state by presenting three steps to keep construction within planetary boundaries.
Finimalism, a joint project by Archinfo, Finnish Design Info and Fashion Finland, will be present at the NEB festival. Finimalize this! workshop will be held in the Fair section of the festival on Thursday, April 11, from 14:00-15:00, inviting designers and the public to consider new perspectives on sustainable, beautiful and innovative design. In the Finimalize this! workshop, panelists will discuss – and finimalize – both hot topics in the design field and everyday environments and objects with a deck of cards. The public will also be invited to join the discussion. Panelists Matti Kuittinen, Anna Ruohonen and Jaakko Torvinen will join the game. The workshop will be moderated by Katja Lindroos, Project Manager of the Finimalism initiative.
The NEB Stewardship Lab, led by Metropolia University of Applied Sciences, will present the role of higher education in the EU's social, economic, and ecological restructuring in the Fair section. The NEB Stewardship workshop will take place on Friday, April 12, at noon.
The Fest section of the festival programme will bring a wide range of arts programmes to the festival. On Wednesday, April 10, at 18:45, Joensuu-based Veila, the world's first collective kantele ensemble, will take to the stage, adapting contemporary hits to the kantele tradition.
NEB Prizes 2024 Ceremony
The NEB Prizes Ceremony will again be presented during the festival. Starting Friday, April 12, at 18:00, the awards ceremony will honour inspiring projects and promising young creators who are making Europe sustainable, beautiful, and inclusive.
Prizes are awarded in several different categories. The jury has selected fifty finalists from more than 530 applications, two of which will be awarded by public vote.
From Finland, the Circular Green Blocks project is among the finalists. A partnership between Helsinki Region Environmental Service (HSY), Metropolia and Forum Virium Helsinki, Metropolia and Aalto University seeks sustainable solutions to promote the sharing and circular economy together with housing associations and companies supporting green growth. The project helps companies to identify and develop block-level circular and sharing economy models.
Find out more about the finalists and vote for your favourite here.
Satellite events spread the festival across Europe
The NEB Festival will spread across Europe through satellite events, which will take place both before and after the main event in Brussels.
The "Re/Source – A Live Transmission on Value and Waste in the New Local" satellite event in Pori on April 15 at 13:00 (CET) invites you to reflect on a new relationship with sustainable localism and a new way of looking at existing resources. More information about the Pori satellite event can be found here.
Registration and further information
Location venue: Musée Art & Histoire (Parc du Cinquantenaire 10, 1000 Brussels, Belgium)
The festival can be attended remotely or on-site. Participation in the festival is free of charge. Pre-registration is only required for the opening ceremony and the prize-giving.
Please note that the festival programme is subject to change. All times are given in Brussels (CET) time.
