Wood Policy and Innovation Workshop 2024

Date: November 7, 2024, 9:00-17:00 CET
Venue: Representation of the Free State of Bavaria to the European Union, Rue Wiertz 77, 1000 Brussels, Belgium

Why a European policy event about wood?

The workshop showcases the latest state-of-the-art in building design with wood and how the public sector can support more biobased construction to combat climate change. It is targeted at Members of the European Parliament, EC staff and experts, national and regional policy makers, advocacy organisations and the R&I community. The event offers a platform for policy discussion, results sharing and networking with the relevant policy alliances, EU-funded projects and the New European Bauhaus (NEB) community. Around 100-150 participants are expected to attend. 

The full-day event will highlight the important role of the wood sector for the European Green Deal, Europe’s ambitious policy goal towards becoming the first climate-neutral continent. The wood sector is deeply connected to rural regions, forest ecosystems, SMEs and represents a combined direct and indirect economic weight of 17.5 million jobs, €1,114 billion and 7% of GDP (FHP study 2023). Relying on proven, established technologies that are essential for decarbonisation and climate adaptation, the sector is a key player for combatting climate change and transforming Europe into a both resource efficient and resilient competitive economy. 

Fully aligned with the New European Bauhaus principles, building and renovation with wood brings together beautiful architectural design, sustainable use of materials, and inclusive renewal of neighbourhoods.

A higher use of biobased materials in the construction sector, notably wood and wood-based products, will be an essential lever for decarbonising the built environment and activating rural economies through circular solutions and cascading use of materials.  

  • Forests/trees sequester carbon into durable wood material, which is engineered into long-lived products (for use in construction, furniture, flooring, windows, etc) and can then store carbon in buildings for decades up to centuries. These can save significant carbon emissions compared to energy-intensive building materials.  
  • By upscaling the market for wood construction, cities can be turned into large-scale carbon sinks, and the entire forest-construction chain can establish a significant carbon pump to extract GHG from the atmosphere, while benefitting regional employment, a sustainable construction sector, more climate resilient landscapes, and biodiversity. 

Benefits for participants

  • Learn about the wood sector’s innovative opportunities.
  • Discuss the policy perspectives under the new EU Parliament and encourage effective wood policy coordination.
  • Highlight how regions and urban centres are proactive in addressing the key climate challenges.
  • Advocate for the future needs to create a beautiful, sustainable and inclusive society through co-creation in R&I and education.
  • Network and exchange with EU and national stakeholders on this open platform.

Workshop programme – first outline

Morning session: EU policy perspectives | 9:00 – 13:00

Three keynotes by high profile speakers 

  • Climate neutral/positive building
  • Design excellence in wood architecture
  • Cities fostering building with wood


Two panel discussions with policy makers, industry and experts

  • Wood industries offering solutions for sustainable, resource efficient building
  • Public and private actors as drivers for the green and digital transition


Networking lunch break | 13:00 – 14:00

Afternoon sessions: Discussion fora & workshops | 14:00 – 17:00

Four parallel sessions in two parallel blocks (1:15h each)

  • Session A – Governance & Policy: success stories of public support tools & initiatives
  • Session B – Innovative building products for resource efficient, circular construction
  • Session C – New European Bauhaus Academy: Up- and re-skilling the sector workforce
  • Session D – Reuse, Reclaim, Recycle : circularity approaches to reduce waste

Note: The speakers and detailed programme will be announced soon. Follow this page for continuous updates.

Co-organisers & host institutions

  • Wood4Bauhaus Alliance is the coalition of the main EU wood sector umbrella organisations CEI-Bois, EPF, EOS and EFBWW, together with the InnovaWood network and the InnoRenew CoE, connecting research, industry and trade unions with the New European Bauhaus (NEB) initiative. The Alliance engages an open dialogue with all interested stakeholders to maximise the use of nature-based materials and sustainable building systems. The main objective is to raise awareness, strengthen policy dialogue and foster innovation in long-lived engineered wood products and hybrid, circular-by-design building solutions. The Alliance is chaired by InnovaWood. | wood4bauhaus.eu
  • Bioregions Facility is a knowledge-led platform dedicated to accelerating the development of sustainable and integrative forest-based circular bioeconomy. Bioregions members are Basque Country, Catalonia and North Rhine-Westphalia. The European Forest Institute (EFI) coordinates the Bioregions Facility. | bioregions.efi.int/bioregions
  • WoodPoP – European Wood Policy Platform is an innovative policy dialogue platform which brings together all relevant actors to advance the sustainable use of wood. It is a dedicated forum for multilateral policy, knowledge and experience exchange between public and private actors from the wood sector for developing policy solutions at national and regional level. WoodPoP develops wood-related policy solutions, measures and recommendations to strengthen the wood-based circular bioeconomy. With 27 participating European countries, it is hosted by the International Union of Forest Research Organizations (IUFRO) and supported by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Regions and Water Management of Austria. | woodpop.eu
  • Holzcluster Steiermark is the innovation driver and networking partner to support companies in the forest-based sector of the Styria region in Austria. With its 170 cluster partners, the interdisciplinary team connects, advises, develops, and promotes the regional innovation ecosystem, connecting science, business and policy in the cluster. Holzcluster supports the communication of this policy workshop. | holzcluster-steiermark.at
  • EU projects: The event and in particular the parallel sessions will be co-organised together with the Horizon Europe project consortia NEBA Alliance, EcoReFibre, INGUMA, and AEGIR.

Contact & Registration

Wood4Bauhaus c/o InnovaWood asbl
Uwe Kies | uwe.kies@innovawood.eu | +32 472 62 60 43 

Bioregions Facility c/o European Forest Institute
Siebe Briers | Siebe.Briers@efi.int | +34 678 30 89 84 

Note: You can pre-register for the event by submitting your contact information in the registration form. The organisers will confirm your registration by e-mail in due course, provided the sufficient number of available seats for participants.

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Last page update
June 11, 2024