Sustainable communities: SmartLIFE

Sustainable communities: SmartLIFE

The project SmatLIFE, an Interreg IIIB Project aimed at promoting the development of sustainable communities, has now entered its second year. SmartLIFE is a partnership between three EU Regions – UK, Germany and Sweden – delivering solutions to some of the common problems faced in European growth areas.

Bodies working together in SmartLIFE include central government agencies,local authorities charged with spatial planning in the partner countries, local training providers and private bodies such as developers and building systems suppliers. An innovative pilot project led by Cambridgeshire County Council,SmartLIFE's partners are in the cities of Hamburg (Germany) and Malmö(Sweden). Each city faces very similar growth related challenges. The project's main aims address three challenges of housing delivery in growth areas:

• 1.

  affordability;

• 2.

  sustainability/energy efficiency; and

• 3.

  skills/capacity shortages in the construction industry.

Partners work closely, sharing expertise and overcoming obstacles to innovative sustainable construction.

The fundamental aim of SmartLIFE is to facilitate the deliver of sustainable growth. Each SmartLIFE region is facing a growth related challenge.

It is clear that each city/region has a different agenda when it comes to growth. Cambridgeshire's recent growth pressures are partly structural resulting from the growth in its high-tech/biotech sector. Designation as one of four key growth areas by the UK Government has added to the need for action in response. Malmö's approach too is in part a response to economic pressure, since the opening of the Öresund Bridge growth pressure has increased; the bridge connects Sweden to Denmark. An increasing number of Danes have started moving from the Danish side of the Sound to Skåne. In 2003, 1,600 moved directly from Copenhagen to Malmö and this is expected to increase. So, whereas Cambridge and Malmö are reactive, Hamburg is proactively seeking growth policies, trying to reverse the trend of negative growth and pessimistic population forecasts.

Although there are different agendas in terms of growth, the partner countries share similarities in dealing with the issues surrounding increased growth. For example, increased growth goes hand-in-hand with an increased pressure on land, resources, populations, the economy and housing. The SmartLIFE partner areas all share a deficit in affordable and suitable housing for the needs of population. Each region also has a strong desire to encourage sustainability as the way forward to manage growth. Further details are available at: www.smartlife-project.net.