The new Zentrum für zukunftsorientertes Bauen (ZzB) was inaugurated in Hamburg on the 16th of November. It is the second of three planned SmartLIFE centres to open, with only SmartLIFE Cambridge still to be officially inaugurated.
David Arkell of SmartLIFE Cambridge said that it was a day to be proud of the progress the project has showed so far. He also made a point that global warming and many issues concerning climate change are happening now and SmartLIFE has a part to play in addressing them. This poses many challenges, but also great opportunities, he noted.
The Hamburg centre has a focus on refurbishment and will further develop and enhance competence and methods within the field of sustainable refurbishment of existing constructions. It will also serve as a hub for education and networking in the field of sustainable construction.
Several speakers from regional government and educational facilities in and around Hamburg appreciated the integrated approach to sustainable construction that the centre exemplifies, by incorporating all levels of expertise, from craftsmanship apprentices to architects.
Cordula Vieth from the City of Hamburg expressed hope that the approach and know-how developed in the centre would be exported to other fields and said that sustainability needs to be taught from Kindergarten and upwards.
Henrik Josephson from the North Sea Programme Secretariat congratulated the project on another step forward and noted that it is in projects like the SmartLIFE that the work and potential of the EU and the North Sea Programme becomes tangible and concrete, in many ways.
He concluded that projects like SmartLIFE, which realise the strategic and transnational aims of the programme, are well prepared for the new programme period, where these issues will grow even more in importance.
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