Europan competition for professionals and students - NVTL

Europan competition for professionals and students

Thu 13 April 2023

Europan 17 Living Cities The Brussels site of the “Europan 17“ architecture competition will be a flagship project of the New European Bauhaus initiative. 51 European sites where selected this year, one of which is the Jubilee Park in Brussels (Parc du Cinquantenaire).

Europan is a competition open to professionals and students (master) of architecture, landscape and urban design under the age of 40 years. It is a thematic competition of ideas / projects, followed by processes of implementations. Europan is also a tool for European cities and urban actors to find and develop innovative strategies for their sites in transformation. This 17th edition of the Europan competition, “Living Cities /2” continues the reflection on the profound change in the manner of envisioning projects in a context of ecological transition. If you are an architect, landscape architect or urbanist under age of 40, you are invited to participate to the important discussion of the evolution of the European city. More details on the competition rules. Imagine a second life for Brussels’ Jubilee Park (Parc du Cinquantenaire), with Europan 17 “Living Cities”.

Apply for the competition for projects of ideas at the urban, landscape and architectural scale, this is an unique opportunity to contribute with your ideas: How can the Jubilee Park become an inspiring place according to the vision of the New European Bauhaus principles (Sustainable, Together, Beautiful) and criteria (participatory process, Multi-level engagement, Transdisciplinary approach) ? How can the Jubilee Park become a gathering space adapted to issues related to climate changes ? Is an intervention in the parameter of the tunnel opening an opportunity to present achievements of Commission´s in an accessible and tangible way to the public? The Jubilee Park is a 34-hectare green space in the heart of Brussels, the capital of Europe, which is home to several museums, scientific institutions and emblematic buildings. The competition is organized by EUROPAN Belgium in coordination with Horizon 50-200 ASBL. Further actors involved are European Commission (Office for Infrastructure and Logistics Brussels and the New European Bauhaus) and Brussels Capital Region.

Scales XL/L

Team representative Architect, urbanist and landscape architect
Location Brussels, Belgium
Population 1 200 000 inhabitants
Reflection site 93 ha – Project site 14 ha
Site proposed by asbl Horizon 50-200
Actors involved sbl Horizon 50-200, European Commission, Brussels Capital Region
Owner(s) of the site Belgian Federal State
Commission after competition Feasibility study.

MORE INFORMATION

Inhabited milieu’s challenges

THREE SYMBOLIC AMBITIONS
• The Belgium bicentennial anniversary in 2030 is inspiring the vision of the Jubilee Park as the new creative area embodying the presence of Europe in Brussels as well in its structural shape, as in the public uses of its build and unbuild spaces.
• The masterplan elaborated by the ASBL HORIZON 50/200 identifies as one out of 5 projects a landscape and architectural intervention to “reinforce the links between the City, the Parc and the European institu-tions” in the historic axes and in the parameter of the tunnel opening “Trémie Kennedy”. The idea would be to make EU institutions´ and Commission´s achievements more accessible and tangible to the public in this parameter.
• The “Europan 17“ competition is a flagship project of the Commission´s “New European Bauhaus” initia-tive. The initiative aims at a positive and tangible, culture-oriented, people-centred and inclusive experience. The Redevelopment of the Cinquantenaire Parc is integral part of the new urban vision of the European Quarter of the Brussels Capital Region and the City of Brussels which is a NEB reference project. The Eu-ropean Commission is contributing to the transformation of the quarter and working towards the delivery of NEB initiatives also as part of its own real estate strategy and its responsibility as an important actor in the European quarter in Brussels.
MONUMENTS AND NATURE FRAGILISED BY UNDERGROUND INFRASTRUCTURES
The Jubilee Park “Parc du Cinquantenaire” was created around 150 years ago, to celebrate Belgium’s fif-tieth anniversary. Initially conceived to represent the political and economic power of the Belgian State, its context has considerably changed since its creation, with the evolution of mobility paradigms and the gra-dual development of the European institutions on the edges of the park. In the last 50 years, the park has suffered several transformations, due to an incredibly dense underground infrastructure, including the creation of an automobile tunnel, overhanging a metro tunnel, which cuts the park in two at its central axis. The park is also suffering from the new constraints (heavy rainfall and drought) imposed by climate change.

More information on https://www.europan-europe.eu/en/session/europan-17/site/brussels-be