A recent New European Bauhaus webinar placed strong emphasis on the reuse, renovation and repurposing of existing buildings as a key pathway for decarbonising Europe’s building sector. Throughout the discussion, speakers underlined that better use of the existing building stock can simultaneously reduce whole-life carbon emissions, limit resource consumption and contribute to addressing Europe’s housing challenges.

The event reflected a growing consensus among policymakers, cities and financial actors that the future of sustainable construction will increasingly rely on extending the lifespan of existing buildings rather than focusing exclusively on new construction. Several examples presented during the webinar illustrated how local authorities and urban projects across Europe are already experimenting with innovative renovation and adaptive reuse strategies.

During the webinar, the European Commission’s DG Environment presented ongoing work developed under the Level(s) framework, including the staff working document published in March entitled “Support Lifecycle Approaches to Decarbonize European Buildings.” The document provides a comprehensive overview of how a whole-life-cycle approach can support the decarbonisation of Europe’s building stock while highlighting the critical importance of better use of existing buildings.

One particularly striking finding presented during the event is that approximately 18% of emissions linked to the European building stock originate from new construction activities, despite new buildings representing only around 1% of the total building stock each year. This reinforces the argument that renovation and repurposing policies may deliver faster and more cost-effective climate benefits than relying solely on new construction.

The Commission also outlined several policy measures currently under consideration, including the integration of life-cycle thinking into building legislation and strategies, the introduction of performance-based requirements such as whole-life carbon assessments under the revised Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD), the use of pre-demolition audits, and the simplification of administrative procedures for renovation and repurposing projects.

An additional perspective was offered by Karteria Partners, which analysed the issue through the lens of financial market dynamics. According to the presentation, real estate investment models have traditionally favoured demolition and new construction over reuse. However, changing market conditions may progressively alter this trend. With higher interest rates likely to persist and “value-add” investment strategies becoming increasingly important, more institutional capital is expected to flow towards the improvement and repositioning of existing assets.

Overall, the webinar demonstrated that the debate on sustainable buildings is evolving beyond operational energy efficiency alone and increasingly embracing whole-life carbon considerations, circularity and resource efficiency. For the wood and construction sectors, these developments are likely to shape future European policy discussions on renovation, low-carbon materials and the broader transition towards a more circular built environment.