Some 15.4 % of the EU population reported that they live in dwellings with a leaking roof, damp walls, floors or foundations, rot in the window frames or the floor. And some 8.7 % are unable to keep their home warm enough.

Additive manufacturing, or 3D printing, is a major part of the fourth industrial revolution and it will transform the construction sector, according to Zoubeir Lafhaj , an expert in the future of construction, from the graduate engineering school École Centrale de Lille, in France.

Spain is known as a land of sun and heat. But even here there are regions that have to face icy winter temperatures. In Valladolid , in the north of the country, many of the almost 300,000 inhabitants are in poorly isolated buildings built in the 1960s.

From 21 to 25  May the EU Green Week is exploring ways to accelerate sustainable urban transformation.

The green building phenomenon in Latin America has taken off. Bio-based aggregates have started penetrating the construction sector’s market, and the development of eco-friendly renewable products has increased the use of bio-based polymers in the construction industry, as a recent study shows.

Local governments in Europe are notoriously risk averse, city council officials and industry leaders won’t hesitate to tell you.

Bristol is at the forefront of high-tech innovation in the UK, named European green capital in 2015. But it is also the second least affordable major British city housing-wise only after London.

When temperatures are low, the temptation to take long, scalding showers and turn electric heaters to the maximum is high. And not knowing how much energy we spend, when we unthinkingly do these activities, makes it difficult for us to decrease our consumption.

Home sweet home. Houses are supposed to be our nest, a shelter from the world outside. But how healthy are European homes? Nowadays most of our time is spent indoors, often at home, one reason being the current shift to “desk jobs”.

Researchers in the US have developed bio-based air filters that they claim can capture toxic chemicals that current filters can’t.

As air pollution is largely considered to be an outdoor problem, people are little aware of indoor contaminants . The World Health Organisation estimated that each year 4.3 million people die of exposure to household pollutants.

Maintenance represents the bulk of the costs occurring in a building’s life.

A relatively recent interest in hemp as a building material responds to a global trend that encourages the development of bio-based products and the reduction of carbon emissions.

Hemp is getting more attention for its multiple uses in sustainable building . In the US, former Asheville mayor Russ Martin and his wife Karon Korp, built the first hemp house in 2010 using crop imported from the UK .

From the frosty reaches of Umeå in eastern Sweden to the rolling hills of San Sebastian in Spain’s Basque Country, European cities have one refrain on their minds as the cold sets in: winter is coming and homes must be heated in a way that allows the EU to reach its goal of reducing energy consumption by 20% by the year 2020 .

Less than three years ago, the so called “ Lavatrici ” district in Genoa (literally, “washing machines” in Italian) was in poor shape: infiltration, heat dispersion, energy waste.

Energy consumption in the construction sector is a key issue in the fight against climate change. It is often approached when planning new buildings, but there is little tendency to renovate the existing stock .

Only when they are accepted, or better even embraced by the people, they can be implemented swiftly without any  major delays.

As Turkey continues its economic development, the number of buildings is set to rise. This places an enormous burden on power supply systems and has already led to power outages and energy price increases.

One of the main contributors of CO 2 emissions are the homes we live in. In the EU, buildings are responsible for 36% of CO 2 emissions and 40% of energy consumption.