Habiter2030
Basic information
Project Title
Full project title
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Project Description
To innovate, projects must be extended beyond conventional boundaries. Since 2016, HABITER2030 is a unique platform to implement multidisciplinarity by bridging the gap between students, teachers, researchers, and those involved in the planning and construction and use of the built environment
The HABITER2030 team won the Solar Decathlon Europe 2019 international competition with innovative solutions to massively renovate houses from the industrial era
We now apply our approach to new project
Project Region
EU Programme or fund
Description of the project
Summary
To innovate, projects must be extended beyond conventional boundaries. For this reason, HABITER2030 was founded in 2016, a non-governmental association dedicated to promoting trans-disciplinary educational projects to improve the living environment.
Our Hauts-de-France region is home to high quality academic competences and an important industrial sector. With its north-western European neighbours, it faces real challenges related to industrial conversion and to environmental changes.
HABITER2030 is a unique platform to implement multidisciplinarity by bridging the gap between students, teachers, researchers, and those involved in the planning, construction and use of the living environment.
HABITER2030 fulfilled several functions:
Strategic: Organising and uniting to innovate.
Logistical: Resourcing to experiment and learn together
Educational: Sharing and transferring results
This approach enabled HABITER2030 to win the international Solar Decathlon Europe 2019 competition by bringing out innovative solutions for the massive renovation of industrial-age houses. We brought together 14 universities and research centres (architecture, design, engineering, economic and social sciences, construction), local authorities, companies, professional organisations, and social landlords. Our co-design method made it possible to include homeowners and tenants’ associations during workshops conducted by students.
Since the Solar Decathlon Europe 2019, the association has been engaged in disseminating the findings with the production of a public brochure, an exhibition, and a research project, applying the principles of our winning project to a real house.
Other actions are underway including further academic research, the transformation of a house by students and guidelines for companies and public authorities.
Habiter2030 has been awarded local, national, and international recognition at Lille World Capital of Design 2020 and Solar Decathlon Europe 2019.
Key objectives for sustainability
Created for the Solar Decathlon Europe 2019 competition, Habiter2030 status allows the association to last beyond. From the beginning, it was important that the elements of the method tested during the SDE2019 could be applied to other subjects than industrial era houses. Sustainability is applied to the associative structure supporting his approach as well as specific solutions searched.
Considering the SDE2019 Habiter2030 winning solution, there is first the choice to renovate the so called houses in the North of France « Maisons 1930 ». In fact they were built over a period of 100 years. Originally, the houses generally include two living rooms, two bedrooms, a cellar and convertible attic. Extensions were usually added in the heart of the block (kitchens, toilets…) more recently with no proper insulation.
This heritage of the industrial era represents approximately 700,000 houses in the Hauts-de-France region and more if we consider the North West Europe. They constitute 40% of housing in the Lille metropolitan area. They are a living trace of our history. Most inhabitants are attached to this heritage. Considering sustainability, the approach for renovating these houses was based on: saving energy, using low-tech solutions, giving priority to solar hot water, choosing eco-materials, recycling waste…
As an example, the Habiter2030 house is based on passive devices: insulation, optimization of the thermal inertia of the brick walls, the solar gain and the bioclimatic operation of a solarium. The interior temperature and humidity regulate themselves almost on their own.
Additional heating and ventilation are optimized. The inhabitants keep control of their level of comfort and their consumption, a device increased by more traditional methods such as thermal curtains, which allow modulating the heated spaces.
Key objectives for aesthetics and quality
For Habiter2030, the variety of disciplines is the beginning of the process. We believe it gives results on aesthetics and quality of experience criteria.
For example, considering the SDE2019 achieved solution, the presence of students in architecture was as important as the students in engineering schools or companionship workers (carpenters, masons, plumbers). Our winning approach to renovate houses was based on improving comfort and well-being,
These houses are often not very insulated and lose their heat especially by the roofs and by the recent extensions on garden side. These last leads to the very strong reduction or even the disappearance of gardens and courtyards, and condemns many ground floors to darkness and humidity. They are replaced by a bioclimatic solarium vertical extension incorporating the adjoining wet rooms in the original house. These interventions liberate the gardens.
Design of the greenhouse allows it use in all seasons, without winter cold and summer overheating. The assistance of new technologies makes it possible to further improve comfort and consumption.
The solarium offers a new high quality room. It is a thermal barrier throughout the year (reducing heat loss from the home) and an extension of the living room.
In addition, its inclination allows an efficient solar thermal generation in winter as in summer. Hot water produced can be stored. It is distributed by radiant panels installed on the ceiling, freeing the walls.
This eco-responsible construction allows passive heating and ventilation of the 1930 house. Air quality is improved and humidity problems are avoided.
In order to keep the decorative elements of the street facades, the insulation is posed inside. A new bow window, improves brightness. All others windows on the street are doubled and the original joinery preserved. Keeping the qualities of the heritage gives a very human dimension to the city.
Key objectives for inclusion
Inclusion is applied on the Habiter2030 approach itself. The multi actors cooperation allows to integrate intellectuals as well as manual students; academic as well as professionals and community actors.
Considering the SDE2019, the winning solution to renovate the houses was based in particular on making them more accessible.
1930s houses present a certain number of challenges. They are often poorly suited to people with low mobility or disabilities. Habiter2030 tackled the issue of the adaptation of this heritage to the greatest number and to all health or age conditions. The solarium can accommodate a lift, making the first floor accessible. Some vacant houses can be reconfigured to become collective facilities. The Habiter2030 model can help deploy more accessible houses based on already existing structures.
To be successful, a massive rehabilitation project cannot ignore strategies that extend beyond the household level. Faced with the costs represented by deep renovation, Habiter2030 imagine polling and sharing solutions. Several houses can be renovated jointly. The coordinated renovation of the blocks makes it possible to increase energy savings by optimizing costs and techniques, while by developing multi-purpose collective places to serve inhabitants.
The team use bio-based materials or locally recycled ones. For the interior of the street facades, we use a thick of lime-hemp heat corrector and clay plasters as a finish. The attic is insulated with wood wool.
To guarantee the best indoor air quality, the team use the most natural materials possible. We made these choices to use accessible and affordable and feasible techniques by the inhabitants themselves. One of the purposes was affordability.
Results in relation to category
Working together is at the heart of the Habiter2030 adventure!
Habiter2030 brings together various training and research establishments, communities, businesses and professional organizations to support interdisciplinary educational, training and research projects, responding in the creation of the build environment. Our topics are of general interest.
Considering the Solar Decathlon Europe 2019, the team was composed of 14 schools (architecture, Compagnons du Devoir et du Tour de France, engineers, political science, design…), 2 Public actors and local authorities, 4 Professional organizations or associations, 7 Planners and promoters, 4 private, industrial or commercial law companies, 12 institutions.
The Habiter2030 project brought together professionals and students who were invested together in research and pedagogy. Everyone was able to discover new practices and develop know-how off the beaten track. New working relationships are born, where empathy has replaced the hierarchy, where barriers were erased in favour of better designs.
The team succeeded in building a bottom-up strategy based on increased participation of all stakeholders, from residents to industrialists.
Bringing together the future architect, the engineer of tomorrow, the apprentice journeyman, the designer in the making, the one who will become a sociologist, political scientist, and marketing expert is already a first success.
Collectively existing practices were examined, retaining those that work, finding alternatives to others.
Different kinds of formats had to be found: workshops (during the week or the week end), seminars, moments with professional supports, official presentations…
Whatever the subjects, we can resume our approach in three steps:
- Organize and unite to innovate
- Experiment, test, learn together
- consolidate, share the results, transfer
How Citizens benefit
As said before, our method itself includes civil society in the association and in project. We are able, not only to have interdisciplinarity between students, but also working exchanges with professionals and communities.
Considering the SDE2019, several moments were dedicated to set up a dynamic of collective participation and exchanges with residents: « citizen cafés », exhibition (Habitarium in La Condition Publique), investigations, and creation of a game.
It was important because in our solution the inhabitants have to be active part of the renovation process. Then they need to be part of the reflexion upstream.
This encourages the transmission of information about the project and its challenges.
During and before the SDE competition, communication relied on Medias from local to European level. We participated in more than 20 events for professionals (Norbat…), community members (Salon Cap éco transition…), general users (Braderie de l’architecture, citizen cafés, brainstorming sessions…) and teachers.
To go further, we are in contact with the think tank « The shifters » and its north of France group of volunteers. We are at the initiative of a « Regional collective towards project management and grouped use in home energy renovation (owner-occupants) »
The idea has emerged to focus on the energy renovation of housing from owner-occupants formed in collectives and interact with the district/city. We believe that the initiatives of the citizens, at the level of a group of a few dwellings and in connection with their community, are a good level of intervention. Indeed, the use and production of energy for housing must be considered in connection with the infrastructure and public buildings located nearby as well as its immediate neighbours. If we want to see rapid changes, the actions undertaken must be collective and not just individual. Already several groups of citizens engaged in « transition towns » movements j
Innovative character
We believe that the collaboration of a diversity of actors lead to collective intelligence (participation, co-construction ...). Interdisciplinarity was/is necessary to achieve the Habiter2030 aims (particularly the active involvement of new generations). Adaptation and evolution of the organization and working methods of the partners themselves is part of the innovation as well as training and new continuing education stream.
Considering the SDE2019, with a strong unifying capacity, Habiter2030 has paved the way by bringing together students and supervisors from 14 Universities and research centers as well as industries, companies in the building sector, public actors and operators. This method allowed proving that it is possible to reach a passivhaus solution in the renovation of houses from the industrial era. The solution responds to the need for projects involving high social innovation approach, highlighting solidarity within the neighbourhoods and its multiple civic events.
“1930s” houses are generally privately owned, making large-scale full renovation more complicated. In addition, city stakeholders’ actions are often considered in the short term. They do not take into account societal changes which slow down the implementation of rehabilitation process over a longer period of time.
Since 2019, the Habiter2030 association has been looking to translate the methodology and apply it to several pilot tests in collaboration with public and private actors that can effectively deploy the model.
Habiter2030 is recognized as an association of general interest, is supported at regional and national levels (third industrial revolution mission of the Regional Council / CCI Hauts-de-France, Plan Habitat Durable-France). Habiter2030 has been the subject of recognition especially the POC Award Habiter by Lille Métropole World Capital of Design 2020.
Currently, we are asked to be part of new projects.
