CHOICE Project Opening Conference
On the 30th of March, partners, researchers, practitioners and guests gathered in Cloughjordan, Ireland, for the Opening Conference of CHOICE, the Community-Led Housing for Inclusion, Climate, and Equity project, funded by the EU’s CERV program.
Participants came together to set the scene for the two years of work ahead: mapping the European housing crisis, situating CHOICE within ongoing EU-level policy debates, and establishing a shared foundation of principles and purpose across the consortium. The emphasis was not only on introductions, but on building the relationships and common direction that will carry the project forward.
The program opened with partners formally introduced the CHOICE vision and work program: its objectives, structure and timeline, and the core principles: inclusivity, affordability, sustainability, and a meaningful rural and urban focus that will guide the work ahead.
This was followed by small break-out groups, where themes exploring the affordability, access and sustainability dimensions of the European housing crisis and the current policy landscape were explored. Some topics discussed included “advocacy opportunities”, “tourism and immigration”, “natural building strategies”, and how “design impulses diversification”.
Afterwards, a coffee marketplace gave consortium members, IERI participants and guests the chance to talk with partner organisations and connect informally, and explore alliance opportunities from across the room. Once the group returned together, the ideas that surfaced in the coffee marketplace were woven together in a short collective harvest.
After lunch, participants stepped outside for a tour of Cloughjordan, a chance to ground the day’s conversations in place, practice and lived experience. The ecovillage itself made a quiet but powerful argument for everything CHOICE is working toward.
The afternoon closed with parallel sessions: a full consortium meeting covering partner introductions, planned events and activities, and how CHOICE will be integrated into each partner organisation’s work over the coming two years.
Overall the opening conference offered a strong and hopeful start, a shared sense of what is at stake and what becomes possible when the right people and organisations commit to working together. GEN Europe looks forward to everything that comes next over the next two years.
Photos by Beatriz Martins Arruda
