Applications open for the New European Bauhaus Prizes 2025 and the new NEB Boost for Small Municipalities

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission.

As of today, the Commission is opening applications for two awards celebrating innovation and creativity inspired by the New European Bauhaus (NEB):  the fifth edition of the New European Bauhaus Prizes and the new NEB Boost for Small Municipalities.

Awarding beautiful, sustainable, and inclusive projects, the NEB Prizes and the NEB Boost have different objectives and target audiences:

• The NEB Prizes will honour outstanding projects and ideas from individuals, teams, and organisations.
• The NEB Boost for Small Municipalities will support smaller local governments in implementing transformative projects with a strong community engagement.

Visionaries, creatives, and changemakers from across Europe and beyond are invited to submit innovative projects and ideas that reshape the way we live and interact with our environment.

President Ursula von der Leyen said: “Affordable housing solutions are one of the most urgent challenges of our time and this year’s edition of the New European Bauhaus Prizes shines a special spotlight on this pressing issue. But also on many other fields the New European Bauhaus shows the way forward. Through community engagement, through participation of citizens and the full creativity of local initiatives, the New European Bauhaus demonstrates that small but smart efforts can create meaningful, lasting change.”

Five years of sustainability, aesthetics and inclusion with the NEB Prizes

After over 5,000 applications received in total for the past editions, the New European Bauhaus Prizes will this year award 22 exemplary innovative projects and concepts that represent sustainability, aesthetics, and inclusiveness.

This year, the 2025 Prizes edition will have a special focus on housing: the NEB “Affordable housing prizes”. Four projects will be awarded under the strand “New European Bauhaus Champions” for completed projects in the EU contributing to the EU’s efforts to improve housing affordability and combine that commitment with the NEB values and principles.

The 2025 NEB Prizes will reward existing projects as well as concepts developed by young talents under four categories:

• Reconnecting with nature;
• Regaining a sense of belonging;
• Prioritising the places and people that need it the most;
• Shaping a circular industrial ecosystem and supporting life-cycle thinking.

In each of the four categories, two parallel competition strands are established:

• Strand A: “New European Bauhaus Champions” will be devoted to existing and completed projects with clear and positive results.
• Strand B: “New European Bauhaus Rising Stars” will be dedicated to concepts submitted by young talents aged 30 years old or younger. The concepts can be at different stages of development, from ideas with a clear plan to the prototype level.

The 2025 Prizes, supported by the cohesion policy, will be awarded to 22 winners and runners-up in total, who will receive a monetary prize up to €30,000, as well as a communication package to help them further develop and promote their projects and concepts.

A new NEB initiative to empower small municipalities

In parallel to the NEB Prizes, the Commission launched applications for the NEB Boost for Small Municipalities. This new initiative, supported by a pilot project of the European Parliament, will award 20 projects aligned with the NEB values and principles that demonstrate a strong community engagement and a sufficient level of maturity.

Targeting municipalities in rural areas or those with populations under 20,000 inhabitants, the NEB Boost seeks to acknowledge the critical role smaller communities play in the New European Bauhaus movement and in the ongoing transitions in a broader sense. Their involvement is fundamental to ensuring that the movement remains inclusive and accessible to all.

Eligible projects must focus on the built environment, including the construction, renovation, and adaptation of buildings and public spaces. These projects should prioritize circularity, carbon neutrality, cultural heritage preservation, affordable housing solutions, and the regeneration of rural or urban areas.

The 20 winners of the NEB Boost will each receive a €30,000 prize, along with a tailored communication package from the Commission to further amplify their achievements.

How to apply

Applications for the Prizes and the NEB Boost for Small Municipalities are open until 14 February 2025 at 19:00 CET. Applications for both should be submitted through the official New European Bauhaus Prizes platform.

All the details about the application process are included in the respective Guides to Applicants: the guide for the NEB Prizes, available in all EU languages as well as those of the Western Balkans and Ukraine, and the guide for the NEB Boost for Small Municipalities, available in all EU languages.

The 22 winners of the NEB Prizes and the 20 winners of the NEB Boost for Small Municipalities will be announced in an award ceremony in the European Parliament in autumn. Further information will be shared soon on the New European Bauhaus Prizes platform.

Background

The New European Bauhaus is an EU policy and funding initiative that makes the green transition in built environments enjoyable, attractive, and convenient for all. The initiative invites everyone to reshape our future and make it more sustainable, beautiful, and inclusive, promoting positive and inclusive experiences for all.  

Launched by President von der Leyen in her 2020 State of the Union address, the New European Bauhaus was co-designed with thousands of people and organisations across Europe and beyond.