New European Bauhaus: The EU forest-based sector's role in the transformation of the built and living environment. Open letter to the Permanent Representations of the EU countries to the EU

Brussels, 7 December 2023 2nd Open letter to the Permanent Representations of the EU countries to the EU New European Bauhaus: The EU forest-based sector’s role in the transformation of the built and living environment Executive Summary The Wood4Bauhaus Alliance represents the European industry, research and innovation ecosystem around wood-based materials and engineered products for construction. We wish to support to the EU Commission’s proposal to establish a novel instrument dedicated to the New European Bauhaus (NEB) under Horizon Europe. The transdisciplinary and co-creative approach initiated by the NEB, of which our Alliance has been an early supporter, is an essential driver to speed up and upscale the twin digital and green transformation, notably of the built and living environment within the circular bioeconomy at large – a transformation that is a prerequisite to achieving net zero by 2050. Building with wood is surging in Europe. Producers of wood and wood-based products have experienced a surge of interest post-pandemic, reflecting higher awareness of sustainability aspects, reduction of carbon emission levels by using wood products as well as time and site construction benefits. In creating this momentum towards better living and the mitigation of climate change, the positive impact of the NEB’s three pillars of sustainability, beauty and inclusiveness can clearly be seen in market tendencies. Research and Innovation (R&I) in sustainable biobased construction needs more dedicated support. A novel instrument for the NEB can support the reach of the EU programmes substantially towards society, markets and individual citizens, can better align and create synergies of R&I funding, and can onboard innovative financing mechanisms, to scale and speed up the significance of the societal transformation. NEB support letter 7 Dec 2023 | page 2 / 22 The signatories of this open letter are convinced that the NEB should become: 1) the INTEGRATOR of the entire construction ecosystem, 2) the FACILITATOR of the people-centred approach, and 3) the FUNDING BOOSTER of EU programmes and innovative financing related to the built environment. As evidence, we outline here our perspectives on how the NEB can address Specific Objectives (SO) for urgent R&I needs in relation to the forest-based sector, a key value chain for building a resilient European economy: • SO 1: The NEB can evolve into the right instrument to integrate all actors in the built environment and foster a holistic technology innovation roadmap of the biobased construction sector. This can address specific R&I needs, which are not well considered yet in EU programmes, as well as harmonisation, standardisation and digitalisation, and respond to up-/re-skilling needs by integrating the NEB Academy training platform. • SO 2: NEB offers a powerful narrative to connect to citizens in the context of neighbourhoods. Incorporating Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH) in the NEB can ensure that insights and results gained from R&I projects are directly applicable and valuable to empower individuals and collectives. Transdisciplinary R&I can put people & buildings in the focus, vis a vis human health, aesthetics, and traditional knowledge/skills and cultural heritage. • SO 3: The NEB can help mobilise the financial target groups to unlock support and investment in the wider adoption of innovative, regenerative solutions, circularity, sustainable building, and social value. NEB Hubs or clusters driven from the bottom-up will help to break up silos of nationally funded R&I communities and support programmes. The forest-based sector requires much more dedicated R&I funding support to tackle these challenges. The NEB movement can thus guide the main, interconnected transformational change needed to address the biggest challenge of our times: to rethink and redesign the built and living environments in a sustainable, circular model in response to the escalating climate crisis. To date, this open letter has received confirmed support from 82 signatories, representing 73 organisations in 21 countries, of which are: 33 universities (academic & technical), 17 RTOs, 2 research networks, 3 VET, 5 industries, 4 industry associations, 8 regional cluster organisations, 4 public authorities. Gender: 23 women, 59 men. NEB support letter 7 Dec 2023 | page 3 / 22 Background Europe’s forest-based sector is a leading processing and manufacturing sector established across all EU countries, and a main employer in both urban and rural areas. Biobased materials like wood play a key role in the transformation of the construction sector: • The forest-based sector is directly linked to forests, Europe’s largest terrestrial ecosystem (158 million hectares, 1/3 of EU’s land area) and relies on the sustainable management by numerous private and public owners. Forests/trees sequester carbon into durable wood material, which can be engineered into long-lived products (construction, furniture, flooring, windows, etc) and then stored in buildings for decades up to centuries. About 70% of the wood in the EU is used in construction and furnishings. • The total forest-based sector represents 4 million direct jobs and €520 billion turnover, which represent about 3% of EU GDP. The woodworking sector (sawn wood, wood-based panels, wood construction materials and products) accounts for at least 1 million direct jobs in 180k companies (mostly SMEs) and a €122 billion turnover. A recent study estimates that the forest-based sector in the wider sense represents a combined direct and indirect economic size of a total of 17.5 million jobs, €1,114 billion and 7% of GDP. 1 • A growing body of research, such as the landmark study 2 by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) and others, provides evidence that a higher use of sustainable biobased materials in the construction sector, notably wood and wood-based products, will be essential as a decisive lever for decarbonising the built environment. Wood products have a trifold impact on climate change mitigation: 1. sequestration i.e. carbon capture of atmospheric CO2 by forest trees in woody biomass, 2. carbon storage in long-lived engineered wood products, and 3. substitution of carbon-intensive materials such as plastics, steel, cement or concrete. Long-lived and circular wood products in buildings can save significant carbon emissions compared to energy-intensive building materials. Cities can be turned into large-scale carbon sinks, and the entire forestconstruction chain can become a significant carbon pump to extract carbon from the atmosphere. 1 Figures from EC New EU Forest Strategy 2021, Coalition for Circular Choices 2022, FHP study 2023 2 Churkina G, Organschi A, Reyer C et al., 2020. Buildings as global carbon sink. Nature Sustainability, vol. 3, 269–276. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-019-0462-4 NEB support letter 7 Dec 2023 | page 4 / 22 • Globally, lumber, engineered wood products and wood-based panels used in construction only account for <5% (in volume) compared to other building products such as cement, steel, ceramic and flat glass. In Europe, wood products used in construction accounted for >10% compared to other building products (twice the global average). As wood is a lightweight construction material, the share of material consumption according to weight is estimated to be <1%. However, wood represents today around 12% of materials used in renovation. 3 • Building with wood is a surging in Europe. In Austria, the share of new buildings in wood construction has increased from 14 to 24 % (1998-2018). In Germany, the share in new buildings is 25% in single family houses, 22% in non-residential, and 6% in apartment buildings (2023). In Sweden, modern multi-storey buildings in wood have already reached a 20% market share. Several EU countries have announced ambitious targets for public building with wood and have initiated revisions of their national building codes. 4 • Digitalisation (prefabrication, BIM, digital twins, digital design), circularity (reuse, remanufacture, recycling) and skills are leading drivers for cutting-edge R&I in the sector, to achieve higher resource efficiency, to upscale biobased circular solutions and to generate growth of the resilient SME-led sector. 3 Figures based on AFRY in EPF Annual report 2020, and Circular Buildings Coalition 2023 4 Figures based on ProHolz Austria, Holzbau Deutschland, Swedish Wood. NEB support letter 7 Dec 2023 | page 5 / 22 • R&I is also exploring the potential of other biobased materials for construction, such as straw, hemp, cork, bamboo, reed, clay, earth, algae, mycelium, and others. Among these, wood is the most established and scalable material in terms of market readiness. However, integrated solutions (e.g., smart building elements combining advantages of different materials) are a relevant direction for future development of regional biobased value chains. It must be noted that forest-based sector represents a complex value chain. Besides its strong links to manufacturing and the construction ecosystem, the supply side is equally important and relies on natural ecosystems (water, soil, air, biodiversity), forestry and wood markets. The forest-based sector is essential for the green transformation of cities into carbon sinks and must be considered as a key variable in the climate equation. It represents a value chain of high priority for building Europe’s resilient circular bioeconomy. 1. EU Missions: relation and contribution of the forest-based sector The five EU Missions were launched in 2021 as a novel instrument for Horizon Europe to tackle major societal and environmental challenges and achieve ambitious, inspiring goals: 1) Adaptation to Climate Change, 2) Cancer, 3) Oceans and Water, 4) Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities, 5) Soil Health and Food. The aim of the Missions is to establish an instrument that complements and supports conventional research and innovation (R&I) and delivers tangible societal outcomes. As a novelty, the Missions include for example i) coordination with relevant regulatory and policy processes, ii) engagement of citizens and stakeholders, and iii) promote technology acceptance and inclusiveness as integral parts. Two years into their launch, the EC has now delivered a first assessment of the five Missions (the progress report 6 and the accompanying document 7 ), which provide insights into the first achievements of each Mission. They are based on an external expert study and a self-assessment by the EC Mission boards. 6 EC, July 19, 2023. EU Missions two years on: assessment of progress and way forward. COM(2023) 457 final. 7 EC, July 19, 2023. Commission Staff Working Document. EU Missions two years on: An assessment of progress in shaping the future we want and reporting on the review of Mission Areas and areas for institutionalised partnerships based on Articles 185 and 187 TFEU. SWD(2023) 260 final. NEB support letter 7 Dec 2023 | page 6 / 22 Having reviewed these reports, the W4B members wish to summarize here their main observations and first conclusions: • The Missions ‘Climate change’ and ‘Cities’ are the two main Missions related to the built environment. W4B members are in favour that interlinkages between both Missions must be developed explicitly. However, a holistic view on the construction sector and the built environment, notably including the societal, cultural and environmental dimensions is missing. The strong focus on ‘climate adaptation’ also neglects and reduces the importance of ‘mitigation’ measures and the potential synergies for climate resilience, such as combined sustainable land use and sustainable building. • The Missions have engaged an impressive number of Member States, regional authorities, local communities and many more stakeholders, and have built up a lot of momentum. However, signed commitments, roadmaps and action plans of these actors must also move forward to implementation. Industry actors in the built environment and their R&I needs (materials, manufacturing, architecture, construction, renovation, waste) are still barely represented, but must be included for the broad deployment. • In the Missions on ‘Oceans/Water’ and ‘Soils’, a few links to ecosystems and the forest-based sector can be identified (e.g., greening of infrastructures by tree planting, role of reforestation for ecological restoration). These are however only sporadic references. The EU Missions lack a more systemic, integrated approach to ecosystem management and nature-based solutions (NBS): Forests/trees are a main element of resilient landscapes, essential for the water cycle (retention, erosion control, river basins, local weather, cloud formation, rain patterns). Forest soils are of critical importance for carbon cycles but lack comprehensive science (briefly acknowledged in the ‘Soil’ Mission). They are equally critical for biodiversity. The role of sustainable land use (e.g. forestry, agroforestry) and restoration ecology (NBS) are key levers for combating climate change and, at the same time, essential opportunities as building blocks of the bioeconomy. The EU Missions should also address redefining our society’s relationship with the living environment / nature, notably by transforming our extractive economic model to a circular, regenerative model of the built environment. • In the ‘Cancer’ Mission’s current priorities, there is no apparent direct link with the forest-based sector. However, research provides evidence how building design and the choice of biomaterials (like wood) can create advantages for healthy indoor environments, e.g. in homes, schools, hospitals, public spaces. Spending NEB support letter 7 Dec 2023 | page 7 / 22 time in nature has healing properties, e.g. Shirin yoku (Japanese ‘forest bathing’), outdoor activities, nature-based tourism. Green infrastructure (forests/ parks/ trees) is a decisive factor for public health and local climate resilience in cities. The design of the built environment will play an even higher role in public health and disease prevention in the future. In conclusion, sustainable building and renovation with biobased solutions and linked to urban-rural development, including the forest-based sector, is not yet well anchored in a systemic manner within the five EU Missions. The long-neglected sustainability issue of buildings and their benefits for citizens needs to be addressed through more R&I and cocreation with all related domains in the built and living environment, e.g. architecture, urban planning, construction, citizen participation. Key topics to be considered for societal transformation and climate resilience that are not yet explicitly addressed in the Missions include: building materials, biobased construction, decarbonisation, carbon storage, circular bioeconomy, forest-based value chains, digitalisation, NBS, crafts, cultural heritage, cocreation. This must take an entire life cycle perspective, from material origin and processing, to building erection, operation, demolition and end-of-life. All Missions should develop closer linkages with the Circular Bioeconomy, including land use, ecosystems and nature restoration, biomaterial streams, industrial value chains, and related social sciences addressing transformation. 2. Transformation perspectives of NEB for the forest-based sector A NEB Mission was first considered in the independent expert Horizon Europe-NEB NEXUS report 8 in 2022, the NEB Progress Report 9 and then proposed by the EC in July 2023 10 . The initial NEB Mission working paper 11 from September 2023 outlines possible objectives and concepts on how the NEB can be designed to complement and synergise with the existing five EU Missions. In November 2023, it was 8 Schellnhuber HJ, Widera B, Kutnar A, et al., 2022. Horizon Europe-New European Bauhaus Nexus report. EC DG R&I & JRC. 60 pages. 9 EC, January 16, 2023. New European Bauhaus Progress Report. COM (2023) 24 final. 10 EC JRC NEB, July 19, 2023. New European Bauhaus: Horizon Europe EU Mission in the pipeline. 11 EC JRC NEB, September 25, 2023. First reflections on building blocks for the design on a possible EU Mission on the New European Bauhaus. NEB support letter 7 Dec 2023 | page 8 / 22 announced that instead of a new Mission, the NEB could become a Pillar 2 destination with an initial budget of €20 million for five calls for projects. The topics include transforming neighbourhoods, regenerative design, leveraging new bio-based materials, the impact of the built environment on social relations, and governance models for the co-design of neighbourhoods. From 2023 on, the NEB could then evolve into a novel instrument complementary to existing EU programmes 12 . The W4B Alliance wishes to underline that the forest-based value chain represents a prime example, where the NEB’s holistic approach must be achieved and where promising initial steps and best practices can be demonstrated. It requires much more dedicated support from EU and national policies, regulatory frameworks and R&I programmes, to connect the various domains and actors involved in the right way. This can be achieved by a novel instrument fully dedicated to the NEB approach. In the following section, we provide perspectives and evidence for R&I needs in biobased value chains and solutions, which can be supported through NEB in response to the proposed Specific Objectives. Our statements recall partly W4B’s policy recommendations and research needs to the NEB 13 and extend these with further, updated inputs from W4B experts and member organisations. Specific Objective 1: Make Europe's construction ecosystem the world leader in circular and regenerative approaches, delivering key knowledge, technologies, skills, and business models, and jobs for a fair green transition and EU’s strategic autonomy. 1.1 BUILDING WITH BIOBASED MATERIALS can become a major lever for climate restoration. Managed forest ecosystems supply wood building materials that embody carbon, which can then be stored and used for a long time in the built environment, and substitute energy-intensive materials. Cities can in fact become large-scale carbon sinks and material banks, and the entire forest-construction chain can thus become a significant carbon pump. The NEB should elaborate a clear, measurable target for scaling biobased materials in the European construction sector. The target will mobilise all concerned market actors, researchers, and other stakeholders for the purpose of aligning R&I efforts and mainstreaming climate-positive products. It should be defined through wide consultation and be based on existing objectives formulated for the sector, such as the FTP SIRA Vision Target 8 “Renewable building materials 12 Science Business, Nov 28, 2023. No more New European Bauhaus Mission. 13 Wood4Bauhaus policy recommendations, June 2022. NEB support letter 7 Dec 2023 | page 9 / 22 for healthier living: Biobased, renewable construction in Europe has tripled its market share until 2050. Increased value will come from new products and services, as well as more widespread use of energy-saving, modular and flexible building structures and functional furniture.” 14 This target recognizes that raw material should be used efficiently while attaining highest performance of products, it can be monitored through public trade statistics, and it can be used to encourage market uptake, e.g., through green public procurement. In line with the target, a holistic socio-technological innovation roadmap needs to be co-designed together with the forest-based sector. Two key elements are, first, the Circular Economy approach, allowing to extend the life-time of building products (considering a building lifetime of 50+ years), and second, the digital transformation with Industry 4.0 and 5.0 technologies, to integrate and upscale the entire value chain, and ensure monitoring of sustainability (traceability of material origin, efficient use, LCA). This systems view must be developed and deployed on all levels: from buildings and neighbourhoods to entire cities and landscapes. A novel NEB instrument is the right approach to foster this target and the holistic technology innovation roadmap of the biobased construction sector. 1.2 INTEGRATING the entire construction ecosystem: To address the longneglected sustainability issue of the built environment, decarbonisation with biobased solutions must be understood and taken up by all other involved actors, including city governments, urban and regional planners, construction companies, architects, engineers, designers, real estate and financial actors, cultural heritage and social actors, creative industries, among others. Progressive examples of NEB’s integrative power to mobilise R&I communities in the built environment can be found in the first round of funded actions supporting the NEB: the NEB lighthouses and support projects 15 , flagship communities and demonstration projects 16 , NEB regional initiatives 17 , the Built4People coprogrammed partnership local actions and the EIT citizens engagement projects 18 . The NEB’s push for co-design and exploitation can be broadly expanded and upscale this integration. In line with this, the Wood4Bauhaus Alliance will mobilise 14 Forest-based Sector Technology Platform (FTP). Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SIRA) 2030. 15 NEB-STAR, NEBourhoods, DESIRE, EYES HEARTS HANDS Urban Revolution, Bauhaus of the Seas Sails, Cultuurcampus, CRAFT, digiNEB 16 European Urban Initiative, Affordable Housing Ini, SHAPE-EU, Supershine, SUPER-i, ProLight, drOP 17 Nordic Bauhaus, Bauhaus of the Mountains, NEB Goes South 18 NEBULA, EIT Citizen Engagement projects NEB support letter 7 Dec 2023 | page 16 / 22 and decision makers of involved industries, innovators, regulators and educators (Specific Objective 1); • The FACILITATOR of the people-centred approach, to ground EU policies and the Missions goals in the reality of local citizens in rural and urban communities and neighbourhoods; fostering social sciences-led research and governance (Specific Objective 2); • The FUNDING BOOSTER of EU programmes and innovative financing, to align and to develop synergies of different instruments and funding streams; and to upscale R&I and market uptake through novel partnership and funding models with public and private actors (Specific Objective 3). The NEB instrument can thus guide the main, overarching and interconnected transformational change needed to address the biggest challenge of our times: to rethink and redesign the built and living environment in a sustainable, circular model in response to the escalating climate crisis. Signatories | W4B Alliance Members Organisations Persons InnovaWood, EU network for wood research, innovation & education, Belgium Dr. Uwe Kies Secretary General InnoRenew CoE & University of Primorska, Slovenia Prof. Dr. Andreja Kutnar Director CEI-Bois European Confederation of Woodworking Industries, Belgium Paul Brannen Head of Public Affairs, Former MEP EPF European Panel Federation, Belgium Clive Pinnington Managing Director EOS European Organisation of the Sawmill Industry, Belgium Silvia Melegari Secretary General EFBWW European Federation of Building and Woodworkers, Belgium Tom Deleu Secretary General NEB support letter 7 Dec 2023 | page 17 / 22 Signatories | Supporters from representative organisations Organisations (alphabetical) Persons Universities (academic & technical) Aalto University, Department of Bioproducts and Biosystems, Finland Prof. Matti Kuittinen, Professor of Sustainable Construction Prof. Mark Hughes, Head of Wood Material Technology group BOKU - University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences Institute of Wood Technology and Renewable Materials, Tulln, Austria Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Gindl-Altmutter, Head of Institute Prof. Dipl.-Ing. Dr. Johannes Konnerth, Deputy Head BOKU Institute of Forest, Environmental and Natural Resource Policy, Vienna, AT Dr. Gerhard Weiß, Head of Office BOKU Centre for Bioeconomy, Vienna, Austria Dipl. Ing. Dr. Martin Greimel, Head of the Centre, EBU speaker 2023-24 European Bioeconomy University EHU - Universidad del País Vasco, Bilbao, Bizkaia, Spain Josemi Rico, Timber Structures Master ENSTIB - École Nationale Supérieure des Technologies et Industries du Bois, France Arnaud Besserer, Assistant professor ESB - Ecole Supérieure du Bois, Nantes, France Dr. Mark Irle, Research Director, Former President of InnovaWood HNEE - Eberswalde University for Sustainable Development, Faculty of Wood Engineering, Germany Prof. Dr.-Ing. Alexander Pfriem, Professor of Wood Chemistry and Physics IAAC - Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia, Barcelona, Spain Daniel Ibañez, CEO iBHolz - Technische Universität Braunschweig, Institut für Baukonstruktion und Holzbau, Braunschweig, Germany Prof. Dr.-Ing. Sieder Mike, Institutsleiter KKI - Latvian State Institute of Wood Chemistry, Riga, Latvia Dr. Bruno Andersons, Head of Wood Biodegradation and Protection Laboratory LNU - Linnaeus University, Department of Forestry and Wood Technology, Sweden Prof. Thomas Bader, Head of Departement LUAS - Lapland University of Applied Science, Rovaniemi, Finland Jussi Soppela, Principal lecturer NEB support letter 7 Dec 2023 | page 18 / 22 Organisations (alphabetical) Persons RUB - Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Bochum, Germany Prof. Dr.-Ing. Annette Hafner, Chair of Resource Efficient Building SGGW - Warsaw University of Wood Sciences, Faculty of Wood Technology, PL Dr. Marcin Zbiec, Adiunct Faculty of Wood Technology SLU-SBT - Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences – Dep. of Forest Biomaterials and Technology, Uppsala, SE Prof. Stergios Adamopoulos, Wood Science TalTech - Tallinn University of Technology, Department of Materials and Environmental Technology, Estonia PhD Alar Kuusik, Senior Researcher and Lecturer TU Berlin – Technical University of Berlin, Institute of Architecture & Bauhaus Earth gGmbH, Berlin, Germany Prof. Dr. Philipp Misselwitz, Chair of Habitat Unit TUM.wood - Technical University of Munich Wood in Research and Teaching, München, Germany Prof. Dr. Philipp Benz, Professor Fungal Biotechnology in Wood Science Prof. Dipl.-Ing. Stephan Birk, Chair of Architecture and Timber Construction Prof. Dr. Ferdinand Ludwig, Prof. for Green Technologies in Landscape Architecture Prof. Dr. Kathrin Dörfler, Professorship for Digital Fabrication Dr. Sandra Schuster, Director TUM.wood Prof. Dr.-Ing. Stefan Winter, Ordinarius, Chair of Timber Structures and Building Construction UEF - University of Eastern Finland, Faculty of Science, Forestry and Technology, Joensuu, Finland Prof. Henrik Heräjärvi, Professor of wood products technology UGent-Woodlab - Ghent University, Laboratory of Wood Technology, Gent, Belgium Prof. Dr. Joris Van Acker, Professor, Head of the Laboratory UNFU - Ukrainian National Forestry University, Dep. of Technology of Wooden Articles, Lviv, Ukraine Prof. Dr. Orest Antonovych Kiyko, Professor, Head of Department Université Clermont Auvergne - Institut Pascal, Clermont-Ferrand, France Nicolas Sauvat, Researcher NEB support letter 7 Dec 2023 | page 19 / 22 Organisations (alphabetical) Persons University of Montpellier, Laboratory of Mechanics and Civil Engineering, France Cédric Montero, Assistant Professor UPCT - Technical University of Cartagena, Cartagena, Spain María Victoria Bueno Delgado, Profesor Titular UPR - University of Primorska, Koper, Slovenia Prof. Dr. Klavdija Kutnar, Rector Yale - Yale School of Architecture, New Haven, USA Alan Organschi, Director of the Building Lab Research & Technology Organisations AIDIMME - Furniture, Wood, Packaging and Metal-Mecanic Technology Institute, Paterna (Valencia), Spain Vicente Sales-Vivo, Deputy Director Amparo Roca de Togores López, R&D Manager EU projects CESEFOR - Castilla y León Forest and Wood industries Services Center Foundation, Soria, Spain Pablo Sabín Galán, Director CHIMAR HELLAS, Greece Dr. Eleftheria Athanasiadou, R&D Support and IP Protection Manager CNR-IBE - National Research Council of Italy, Institute for Bioeconomy, Italy Dr. Giorgio Matteucci, Director CTFC - Forest Science and Technology Centre of Catalonia, Solsona, Spain PhD Pau Brunet Navarro, Project manager COSMOB – Consorzio del mobile S.p.A., Italy Alessio Gnaccarini, General Director Holzforschung Austria - Österreichische Gesellschaft für Holzforschung, Vienna, AT Dr. Gerhard Grüll, Deputy Director LUKE - Natural Resources Institute Finland, Helsinki, Finland Dr. Johanna Buchert, President and CEO Prof. Antti Asikainen, Research Director NIBIO - Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research, Ås, Norway Dr. Erik Larnøy, Head of Department, President of InnovaWood NTI - Norwegian Institute of Wood Technology, Oslo, Norway Dr. Audun Øvrum, Managing Director OMTRE AS, Hønefoss, Norway PhD Kristine Nore, Research and Innovation Manager RISE - Research Institutes of Sweden, Sweden PhD Marlene A. Johansson, Senior Researcher NEB support letter 7 Dec 2023 | page 20 / 22 Organisations (alphabetical) Persons TECNALIA - Tecnalia Research & Innovation Foundation, Donostia, Spain Dr. Javier Garcia Jaca, Project Director, Member of InnovaWood Executive Board Wood.be - Belgian Institute for Wood Technology, Brussels, Belgium Chris De Roock, General Manager WoodKplus - Institute of Wood Technology and Renewable Materials, Linz, Austria Dipl.-Ing. Boris Hultsch, General Manager Research networks FTP - Forest-Based Sector Technology Platform, Brussels, Belgium Johan Elvnert, Secretary General GDR-Bois - GDR 3544 Institut Pascal, Clermont-Ferrand, France Dr. Eric Badel, MECA team leader, Head of the GDR 3544 “Wood Sciences” VET, Professional schools CEIPES - International Centre for the Promotion of Education and Development, Palermo, Italy Alessia Di Francesca, Vice Director CIPFP - CIPFP Catarroja - Generalitat Valenciana, Valencia, Spain Cecilia Amo Cardona, Manager Woodwize - Belgian Competence and Training Centre for the woodworking and furniture sector, Brussels, Belgium Jeroen Doom, Managing Director Industry Bouygues Construction, France Bruno Linéatte, Directeur R&D Innovation Modes Constructifs Bâtiment Finsa Spain, Santiago de Compostela, Spain Manuel Lobo, Building Engineer Garnica, La Rioja, Spain Juan Albiñana Garciadihinx, Director of Research and Development Sonae Arauco S.A , Maia, Portugal Rui Correia, CEO Industry associations Puutuoteteollisuus ry - Federation of the Finnish Woodworking Industries, Finland Matti Mikkola, Managing Director NEB support letter 7 Dec 2023 | page 21 / 22 Organisations (alphabetical) Persons ACOMAT - Asociación de empresarios de comercio de madera, tableros, chapas y molduras, Madrid, Spain María Agulló Estévez, Manager ASBP - The Alliance for Sustainable Building Products, United Kingdom Simon Corbey, Director IWP - Irish Wood Producers Ltd, New Ross, Co. Wexford, Ireland Alex Kelly, Manager FEP - European Federation of the Parquet Industry, Brussels, Belgium Isabelle Brose, Managing Director Regional cluster organisations CLuBE - Bioeconomy and Environment Cluster of Western Macedonia, Greece PhD Yannis Fallas, Director Clust-ER Build - Associazione Clust-ER Edilizia e Construzioni, Bologna, Italy Silvia Rossi, Architect, Manager Clust-ER BUILD CMD - Cluster of Wood and Design of Galicia, A Coruña, Spain Ricardo González Iglesias, Manager HCS – Holzcluster Steiermark GmbH - Wood Cluster Styria, Graz, Austria Visnja Košćak, Project manager Hrvatski Drvni klaster - Croatian Wood Cluster, Zagreb, Croatia Ana Dijan, Project manager Italian Forest and Wood Cluster, Italy Prof. Dr. Davide Pettenella, President Transylvanian Furniture Cluster, Cluj-Napoca, Romania Ciprian Morcan, Cluster manager Tretorget AS, Elverum, Norway Ola Rostad, CEO Public authorities Oslo Region European Office, Brussels, Belgium Randi Johanne Hoseth, EU Advisor / Climate and Energy Regional Government of Catalonia, DG Forests, Barcelona, Spain Enric Vadell Guiral, Assistant Director XERA - Xunta de Galicia - Agency of Forest Industry, Santiago de Comp., Spain Mercedes Rois Díaz, Director Forest Innovation NEB support letter 7 Dec 2023 | page 22 / 22 The Wood4Bauhaus Alliance The European Commission’s New European Bauhaus calls for a creative, interdisciplinary, novel movement embedded in society to imagine a sustainable future together and to engage on a transformative path towards affordable and beautiful living spaces in urban and rural environments. A key step is the transformation of the building sector into a circular model that can also counteract the escalating climate crisis. This transformation requires prioritised research in the use of naturebased materials in buildings. The Wood4Bauhaus Alliance’s main objective is to shape a better and sustainable future with beautiful, healthy and inclusive living, working, and learning spaces as part of a sustainable, low carbon-built environment. Our platform shall foster an open, cross-disciplinary dialogue with all interested stakeholders and help share good practices related to the Circular Economy and Green Buildings. Our goal is to inspire as many actors as possible to co-create and develop contributions to the New European Bauhaus from European to regional and local level, all in the common interest to advance and exploit as much as possible nature-based materials, innovative building systems and smart solutions to mitigate climate harm and benefit European citizens. The Alliance will therefore: • Encourage research and innovation for novel and innovative uses of wood in the built environment, • Foster new collaborations and co-creation between different stakeholders across disciplines, sectors, and society, and • Facilitate knowledge sharing and skills development especially towards future generations. The Alliance comprises the following partners: InnovaWood is the European network for wood science, research, innovation and education with 60+ member organisations in 28 countries, including RTOs, universities, VET centres and cluster organisations, representing a large community invested in EU research around sustainable materials. The European Confederation of Woodworking Industries (CEI-Bois) is an umbrella organisation of 21 European and national organisations from 15 countries backing the interests of the entire wood sector. The European Panel Federation (EPF) represents 100,000 direct jobs and counts more than 5,000 wood-based panel manufacturing and furniture companies in 25 countries. The European Organisation of the Sawmill Industry (EOS) represents 35,000 sawmills in 12 countries. The European Federation of Building and Woodworkers (EFBWW) is the European Trade Union Federation grouping 76 national free trade unions from 34 countries with members in the building, building materials, woodworking, forestry and allied industries and trades. The InnoRenew CoE is a novel research centre in Slovenia focused on sustainable construction with renewable materials. It was founded in 2017 with support from Horizon 2020 Widespread-2-Teaming grant no. 739574. BASAJAUN , EcoReFibre and digiNEB.eu are EU consortia fostering sustainable building and Circular Economy solutions in the sector. They have received funding from the EU Horizon programmes under grant agreements no. 862942, 101057473, and 101083743. © 2023 Wood Sector Alliance for the New European Bauhaus Contact: [email protected] | Web: wood4bauhaus.eu