site.btaBulgarian Project Concrete to Culture Wins 2nd Place at New European Bauhaus Fest

The Collective Foundation's project entitled The Park or Concrete to Culture won an award at this year's New European Bauhaus (NEB) Festival in Brussels on Friday. The Bulgarian project was the runner-up in Strand A: New European Bauhaus Champions, in the Regaining a Sense of Belonging category.

The New European Bauhaus Awards were presented for the fourth time as part of the second New European Bauhaus Festival.

Gergana Ilieva, the architect and project manager behind Concrete to Culture, received the award from Elisa Ferreira, the European Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms.

The Collective Foundation's project, which was selected from more than 5,000 applications, transforms part of Business Park Sofia into an active shared space for the local community. As part of the project, the space on the roof of the parking building in the Business Park and all vacant premises on the ground floor have been used and developed, Ilieva told BTA.

The NEB is an initiative launched by the European Commission to translate the European Green Deal into tangible change on the ground that improves citizens' daily lives. The New European Bauhaus was announced by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in her inaugural State of the Union address to the European Parliament in 2020. The initiative aims to link creativity and technology to create a new living environment in tune with the main principles of the green transition: sustainability - zero pollution and circularity; inclusion - ensuring access and inclusion of all members of society; aesthetics - seeking style beyond functionality, drawing inspiration from art and culture.

The New European Bauhaus Festival 2024 is taking place from April 9 to 13 at Parc du Cinquantenaire and the Arts & History Museum in Brussels.

BTA is a media partner of the event.