News

Hanna Szemző and Éva Gerőházi presented the findings of a representative residential survey at the annual conference of the European Network of Housing Researchers in Delft on August 27, 2024. This survey, conducted in October-November 2023 as part of the Budapest Cares project, aimed to gain deeper insights into residents’ attitudes towards renovating their properties in Budapest.

The in-person survey focused on property owners who reside in their homes, gathering information on various aspects, including the condition of their buildings, energy costs, renovation plans, willingness to pay for energy-efficient renovations, and the types of assistance they would need to accelerate the renovation process.

The results were somewhat surprising: 70-80% of property owners neither plan nor consider it necessary to implement any form of energy-efficient renovation in their family houses or multi-apartment flats. Additionally, 85% of owners living in multi-family buildings would not be willing to pay for energy-efficient renovations in common areas.

Two main reasons explain these findings:

1. Nearly half of the respondents believe their building already meets the most recent energy standards or has high energy efficiency (though in reality, less than 2% of this housing stock likely complies with the latest standards).
2. About one-third of respondents feel so financially vulnerable that they cannot even consider renovation, even if subsidies were available.

The survey was conducted at the peak of inflation, and many Budapest residents may have found that the increase in energy prices beyond the “average” consumption level had little impact on them. As a result, financing daily living expenses became a higher priority than energy efficiency. However, the findings indicate that there is still room for public sector intervention. In addition to essential subsidies, increasing public awareness and knowledge about the benefits of energy efficiency is crucial.

Please find the Study here.

Nora Teller from MRI serves as a research manager in the development of a common European Union cross-sectional data collection methodology on homelessness. The project aims to (1) define a common operational definition of homelessness and a common methodology for data collection, and (2) test the common data collection methodology at the urban level in various member states. The project establishes the basis for regular and comparable local-level data collection on homelessness. Thanks to the project, local, national, and European decision-makers can gain insights into the nature and extent of homelessness, as well as the different dimensions of homelessness and the basic characteristics of homeless individuals. Furthermore, the project aims to draw attention to the complexity of homelessness for the general public and policymakers and contribute to consensus building on solutions.

For further details, please read here in Hungarian.

For more details in English, please visit the project website at KU Leuven.

We are excited to announce the launch of the Horizon Europe project, ReHousIn, coordinated by MRI, which officially commenced on March 1st, 2024. We recently held our inaugural online kick-off meeting on March 18, 2024, marking the beginning of our collaborative efforts with the following partners:

• TU Wien,
• University of Vienna,
• Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona,
• SciencesPo,
• Politecnico di Milano,
• Norwegian University of Life Sciences,
• University of Lodz,
• University College London,
• ETH Zürich,
• ICLEI Europe.

The primary objective of ReHousIn is to dissect the intricate mechanisms contributing to the (re)production of housing inequalities and their interconnected relationships. We aim to explore the collective impacts of contemporary crises, including environmental challenges and digital transformations, which have compounded housing disparities.

Despite the positive strides made by certain policy instruments in fostering inclusive urban communities, evidence suggests potential socio-spatial ramifications of initiatives promoting environmental sustainability. These include increased housing costs, ecological gentrification, and exacerbation of wealth disparities.

Moreover, the digital transition presents its own set of challenges, such as uneven access to digital services and the proliferation of housing-related digital platforms, which further contribute to housing inequalities.

In ReHousIn, we posit a central hypothesis that green and digital transition initiatives influence housing inequalities across various levels and domains, contingent upon governance structures and contextual factors. Our approach involves conducting qualitative analyses across nine countries in 27 case study areas (one large city, one medium and one small locality in each country) to comprehensively understand the relative impact of these initiatives.

By refraining from prioritising specific transition initiatives, we aim to provide a nuanced understanding of their respective roles in shaping housing inequalities within diverse urban contexts. Ultimately, ReHousIn seeks to inform policy interventions that promote equitable housing outcomes amidst evolving environmental and digital landscapes.

In the podcast episode titled “Homelessness No More! How Do We Tackle the EU’s Housing Crisis?”, the urgent issue of homelessness across the European Union was addressed. Despite Europe’s relative wealth, the challenge of ensuring safe and decent housing for all citizens persisted, prompting crucial reflections on the EU’s core values of social justice, solidarity, and inclusivity. Key voices in the fight against homelessness, including Frederik Spinnewijn from FEANTSA, Nóra Teller from the Metropolitan Research Institute, and María del Carmen Barrera Chamorro from EESC, participated in the discussion. Frederik shed light on FEANTSA’s multifaceted approach, emphasizing mutual learning and innovative solutions like Housing First. Nóra provided valuable insights into the stark realities of homelessness in Europe, highlighting successful strategies from countries like Finland, Austria, and Denmark. María outlined the importance of collaborative efforts through platforms like the European Platform for Combating Homelessness and called for concrete actions at the EU level.

Listen the episode here!

In April 2023 Budapest municipality launched a new initiative: City Governance Academy. This is a whole-year course with meetings every second Saturday between 10-17 hours. During the 13 occasions the participants get three presentations each day, covering all important fields of urban government and governance, from the best Hungarian academics and practitioners. The cost of the course is sponsored by the municipality, as a result of which the course is given for free for the selected participants. The director of this initiative is Iván Tosics.

There was a large interest in this initiative, the number of applicants was 120, of whom 25 were admitted as a result of a two-step recruitment process. They are coming from very different disciplines, having at least one university degree, many of them studied partly abroad. They work currently in very different places (a minority of them in city administrations). They had to prove their interest in public administration issues with a motivation letter.

The teaching phase of the City Governance Academy ended early December 2023. This was followed by a 2 day long study trip to Vienna. At the end of the course the students must prepare a final thesis document, related to the subjects of the course, which they have to defend in the presence of the other students, the reviewer and the lecturers, in the framework of a closed professional conference. Those who successfully finish the course, get an accredited adult learning diploma, issued by the Budapest Cultural Center.

On 8 February 2024 Ivan Tosics participated in an International Roundtable, as part of the Greater Paris Metropolis Meetings #1. The topic of the conference was: Metropolises facing the challenges of density: what concrete solutions for sustainable and desirable density?

The Greater Paris Metropolis and its Development Council (CoDev) organized at the Maison de la Chimie (Paris) the first edition of the “Metropole du Grand Paris” meetings. This conference brought together 200 elected officials, academics and French and international practitioners around one objective: to discuss concrete solutions to promote sustainable and desirable densification.

Ivan Tosics gave the afternoon keynote presentation at the urban@it National Center for Urban Policy Studies conference on 26 January 2024, at the Enzo Biagi Auditorium in Bologna. The title of the presentation was: „The challenges of the post-pandemic recovery in EU: are cities crucial?”

The presentation was followed by a moderated roundtable, attended by Marco Cremaschi – Sciences Po, Paris; Pietro Reviglio – Eurocities; Simone Ombuen – Roma Tre University; Carlo Cellamare – La Sapienza University of Rome; Laura Colini – IUAV University of Venice; Gabriele Pasqui – Polytechnic of Milan; Camilla Perrone – University of Florence; moderated by Valeria Fedeli – Polytechnic of Milan.

The presentation, the roundtable and the following debate can be seen on the link:

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ce4BFRhWO3U

“Urban@it – National study center for urban policies” is an association promoted by numerous Italian universities (University of Bologna, Polytechnic of Milan, IUAV University of Venice, University of Florence, Roma Tre University, Federico II University of Naples, Polytechnic of Bari) and by three other entities (ANCI, Italian Society of Urban Planners, Laboratorio Urbano). It was established on 15 December 2014.

Iván Tosics’ New Year’s photo-essay, titled “GREEN GROWTH – DEGROWTH – COLLAPSE,” offers a thought-provoking exploration of climate change based on an early Autumn 2023 meeting, three Budapest intellectuals organized an informal weekend meeting for 30 people in a village, where they gathered in thatched roof secondary farmhouses. The focus of the ‘Vértesacsa conversation’ was climate change, addressing the challenges, prevailing policies, and possibilities for local and individual actions.

Through captivating imagery and insightful commentary, Tosics delves into the dichotomy between green growth and degrowth, prompting reflection on the urgent need for environmental sustainability in the face of potential collapse. His artistic exploration serves as a catalyst for dialogue and introspection among non-climate-expert intellectuals, inviting them to contemplate the multifaceted dimensions of the climate change issue.

Discussing the possibilities of deep renovation in the multi-unit building sector On November 7th and 8th a workshop series, consisting of three distinctive modules, was organised by MRI. The event brought together researchers from Szolidáris Gazdasági Központ, REKK, BME and F4STER, independent experts as Zoltán Varga, as well as representatives of the Municipality of Budapest, and districts 8, 11 and 13. Additionally Habitat for Humanity International, as well as representatives of the national government governmental were present.

Part of an ongoing work to support the development of a complex energy efficiency renovation program that enables energy poor households and buildings to begin the refurbishment process. Focusing solely of multi-unit buildings, the work has focused on three distinctive pillars: technical, financial and community development, based on the firm belief that vulnerable households need extra support to get engaged.

The outcomes of the workshop, as well as the entire research will be summarized in the forthcoming report about recommendations, which will be available on the ComAct project website from January, 2024. The discussion shed light to some important findings, such as:

• Energy efficient interventions must be strongly linked to overcoming structural deficiencies, as the latter are placed higher on the agenda of the inhabitants;
• Interventions under the principle of “energy efficiency first” can have decades long pay-off periods, thus can’t be financed by purely market-based models (like ESCO schemes or energy obligation schemes);
• Integrating the issue of energy poverty into potential subsidy schemes in Hungary is extremely difficult due to the separation of tasks and responsibilities between various ministries and departments.

On 30–31 May 2023, representatives of European metropolitan areas, universities and associations met in Brno for the official launch of the MECOG-CE project (Strengthening Metropolitan Cooperation and Management in Central Europe). The project is funded via the Interreg Central Europe programme, and Brno is the first Czech city to be its leading partner.

The purpose of the MECOG-CE project is to strengthen metropolitan cooperation and management in Central Europe. It is divided into three phases. The first phase will focus on benchmarking, mapping the current situation of territorial and strategic planning in Europe. The second phase will identify the best tools and methods to strengthen metropolitan cooperation and management, and the final phase will involve the practical implementation of these tools and methods by the participating cities and metropolitan areas. The project will help raise awareness of metropolitan issues among European and national-level institutions, reflecting the crucial importance of the metropolitan dimension. The project will run until the spring of 2026.

The role of MRI in the project is to act as a knowledge partner, a quality reviewer for the materials developed in the project and raise awareness on the topic of metropolitan cooperation and governance and encourage many other cities to launch the process. Beside that, MRI will be involved in creating policy documents and disseminating these results to the European level via its membership in a range of important European networks.