Symposium: Ukraine’s housing recovery forum - rebuilding a place to call home
On Wednesday February 15th 2023, PBL organized 'Ukraine’s housing recovery forum - rebuilding a place to call home’. The aim of the event was ‘sharing knowledge for action’. Why talking about recovery while the war is ongoing? “Recovery requires long-term visioning and the need to guide investment in a planned and coordinated way. With that, one cannot start soon enough”, says Professor Edwin Buitelaar, researcher on urban development at PBL and coordinator of the symposium. “In addition, thinking about the future provides hope and reinforces perseverance in these difficult times. As an organization on the science-policy interface in a country with a strong housing and spatial planning tradition, PBL is a fitting host for such an event.”
The forum was organized in close cooperation with Ukrainian (and other) partners, most notably Ukraine Netherlands Urban Network (UNUN) and New Housing Policy Ukraine. The event hosted high-level researchers on housing and decision-makers, such as the Ukrainian deputy minister responsible for the recovery, the heads of city development of Lviv and Kherson, the European Commission, the European Investment Bank, the IMF, the Dutch ambassador based in Kiev, the Ukrainian ambassador based in The Hague, and many others.
Over 400 participants subscribed for the occasion, either on site or online. The forum allowed for key stakeholders to share knowledge, ideas, European best practices, and for building connections and networks they will most certainly turn out to be pivotal to build better homes and cities once this catastrophic war is over.
Programme
| Description | Speakers | |
|---|---|---|
| Introduction | Welcome by host of the event | André van Lammeren, deputy PBL director |
| Introduction of Ukraine Netherlands Urban Network (UNUN) | Oleksandra Tkachenko (UNUN and KuiperCompagnons) | |
| Opening address Ukraine’s homes and neighbourhoods hopes for the future – housing in the recovery plan | Oleksandra Azarkhina, Deputy Minister for Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development of Ukraine | |
| The European involvement in Ukraine’s recovery | Krzysztof Gierulski, European Commission | |
| Ukraine's challenges ahead | Informing Housing and Urban Policy challenges | Galyna Sukhomud, New Housing Policy Ukraine |
| View of local situation | Taras Kubay, Director of the Urban Development Department of Lviv City Council | |
| Learning from experience – the affordable housing pilot | Konrad Clos, Affordable Housing Program, International Organisation for Migration | |
| Securing affordable homes | Europe has the tools for recovery in its hands | Julie Lawson, author of #Housing2030 and adjunct professor, Centre for Urban Research, RMIT University |
| Providing land and securing investments for affordable housing | Michaela Kauer, City of Vienna | |
| Refining new policies for the diversity of social needs and housing fund typologies —affordability for different groups | Anastasia Bobrova, CEDOS thinktank | |
| Creating liveable neighbourhoods | Designing the future. Towards affordable, sustainable and inclusive places | Francesco Veenstra, Chief Government Architect, Board of Government Advisors (CRa), the Netherlands |
| Connecting investments in housing and infrastructure in Finland | Jarmo Linden, director Housing and Finance Development Centre ARA Finland | |
| Planning and land policy in Ukraine | Oleksandr Anisimov, New Housing Policy Ukraine | |
| Call to action | Towards a housing and recovery agenda | Sorcha Edwards, Housing Europe |
| Towards an investment agenda | Gzregorz Gajda, senior urban investment specialist European Investment Bank | |
| Dutch commitment to Ukraine's recovery | Jennes de Mol, Dutch ambassador to Ukraine | |
| The way forward | Maksym Kononenko, Ukranian ambassador to the Netherlands | |
| Thank you | Thank you and invitation for follow-up | André van Lammeren, Deputy PBL director |
| Drinks and llight refreshments |