The first year of the LIFE ReHABITA project has passed. What has been achieved so far and where are we at the moment?
With the beginning of September, we have passed the first year mark of the LIFE ReHABITA project. Here we bring an overview of activities implemented, documents produced and milestones achieved.
The ReHABITA Office has been established in Gospić, Croatia, as of January 1, 2024, located at Budačka 55, within the City Administrative Department. Led by Ivana Grgurić, the office aims to alleviate energy poverty in the municipality.
The primary goal of the ReHABITA Office is to raise awareness and provide expert assistance to citizens struggling with energy poverty. Key activities include:
- Regular workshops and one-on-one meetings will be organized to educate citizens about energy efficiency and provide practical advice.
- The office will offer brochures, handbooks, and energy packages to help improve home energy conditions.
- Information gathered from community interactions will help prioritize and identify energy-poor households.
- The office will stay updated on relevant legislation and funding opportunities for energy efficiency projects.
- Acting as a “One-Stop-Shop,” the office will simplify the process of home energy renovations by providing technical, financial, and legal support.
The ReHABITA Office will work closely with various organizations, including civil society groups, SMEs, and local governments, to foster knowledge exchange and strengthen efforts against energy poverty. Regular meetings and targeted workshops will enhance the capabilities of all involved in assisting vulnerable citizens.
During January and February DOOR has worked on the handbook which is supposed to showcase technical partners and the employees of the ReHABITA offices available resources to use to intensify the engagement of energy vulnerable citizens or citizens who are at risk of energy poverty in energy renovation processes.
Project’s pilot sites are distinguished by their local conditions and so are the resources of technical partners and municipalities. This handbook acknowledges this complexity and, accordingly, does not offer a step-by-step approach to increase the engagement of citizens in energy renovations that would be equally applicable to all partners. Specific national and local conditions, available resources and needs of the technical partners and municipalities present serious challenges and quite possibly prevent any uniform strategy that can be easily replicated in all pilot countries. Taking this into account, the handbook offers recommendations of activities coupled with examples of good practice and leaves project partners to shape their strategy of engagement relative to their own needs and resources.
From February to March, all municipalities, with the help from technical partners, have conducted surveys in their pilot sites. The data gathered through survey was analysed by DOOR and reported in the document Energy poverty assessment of the municipalities.
This explorative quantitative research aimed to estimate the scope and intensity of energy poverty of the population living within the administrative areas of the five pilot sites established within the project LIFE ReHABITA. This research aimed to conduct a local-level energy poverty assessment through baseline characterisation of energy poverty and housing conditions in all participating municipalities. The purpose of this task was to contribute to the overall understanding of energy poverty and, thus, energy poverty alleviation efforts within these areas through greater levels of participation of vulnerable populations in project activities and in the subsequent energy renovations of their respective dwellings and households.
To carry out this task, a questionnaire has been developed by the lead beneficiary of the task (DOOR) and disseminated to technical partners at the project pilot sites. The technical partners translated the questionnaire into their respective national languages. To estimate the local intensity and scope of energy poverty in these areas, the questionnaire included a wide variety of questions that could be broadly grouped into the following four themes: residential building & housing conditions; energy poverty & energy efficiency of households; health & wellbeing; and general information. The survey was administered through the EUSurvey platform and via the CAPI technique (Computerassisted personal interviewing) by the staff of the local ReHABITA offices.
The analysis of collected responses to the questionnaire confirms highly divergent situations and factors of energy poverty between project municipalities. Data suggest that all pilot sites are in great risk of energy poverty and reinstate a great need for informative campaigns on energy poverty, energy renovation and energy efficiency.
Check out the results and analyis in the report.
The first semi-annual meeting of partners and key stakeholders was held in the city of Gospić on March 25, 2024. Key stakeholders of the project participated, including the Red Cross Gospić, Komunalac Gospić, and representatives of city administrative departments, with the support of Radio Gospić. DOOR presented the ReHabita project – “Addressing local energy poverty through the establishment of energy renovation offices” and the key activities that DOOR and city of Gospić will implement in the pilot area of the city of Gospić and its surroundings. DOOR also conducted training and developed a plan to carry out a survey among citizens about their energy habits.
When it comes to renovating apartments why occupy vulnerable families, an additional difficulty arises due to the sensitive socio-economic situation of these individuals. This situation creates constraints that can significantly hinder the development of renovation projects. Knowledge on how to handle such situations is crucial for the success of such complex projects. Both technical staff and social services staff have the fundamental mission of advising and ensuring the implementation of a good project while limiting its impact on the residents. This requires a continuous approach to residents, implemented through a participatory methodology throughout the entire process.
For these purposes, Eurovertice developed a method of implementation and approach to renovating buildings affected by severe socio-economic vulnerability in the document written in the form of Guidelines.
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