ENERGIE - Empowering New Energies and Resources in Greece Italy Area.

Funded by the Interreg Greece-Italy Programme 2021-2027, ENERGIE aims to reimagine territories and suburban areas as sustainable, creative and attractive places for the future through an inclusive and participatory approach. At the heart of this process are talented young international professionals under the age of 35, active in the fields of creativity, sustainability and innovation, who will work side by side with local communities to co-design new scenarios for regeneration.

These visions, inspired by the principles of the New European Bauhaus, will integrate environmental responsibility, aesthetic quality and social inclusion, ensuring that the proposals are not only ambitious but also rooted in the specific identities and needs of each territory. The project will take place in three municipalities committed to sustainable transition – Brindisi in Puglia, Matera in Basilicata and Aigialeia in western Greece – where participants will take part in collaborative laboratories, field research and creative workshops aimed at promoting dialogue, knowledge exchange and the construction of common visions.

The ultimate goal of ENERGIE is to deliver three co-designed regeneration projects that will serve as strategic roadmaps for future implementations. These proposals will demonstrate how collaborative design can shape sustainable, resilient and inclusive territorial transformations. By testing a replicable model of creative regeneration, ENERGIE aims to combat depopulation, strengthen local economies and generate new opportunities for cultural and social innovation in vulnerable areas, paving the way for a more inclusive and forward-looking Europe.

Duration: May 2025 to May 2027 (24 months)

Partners:

• ARTI – Regional Agency for Technology, Technology Transfer and Innovation (Lead Partner – Italy);
• Brindisi & C. ETS (Italy);
• Municipality of Brindisi (Italy);
• Matera Basilicata 2019 Foundation (Italy);
• Regional Development Fund of Region of Western Greece (Greece);
• Municipality of Aigialeia (Greece)

Total budget: €1,945,240.40 – EU co-financing (ERDF): €1,458,930.30

General objective

To strengthen the capacity of territories to attract and retain talent and to retrain local workers in order to promote the sustainable regeneration of declining industrial areas, encouraging the development of innovation and sustainability hubs that can be replicated in other European contexts.

Specific objectives:

• To redevelop degraded urban areas through innovative and participatory solutions.
• To enhance local and international skills through a co-design approach.
• To promote the transition to a green and blue economy through training and professional retraining.
• To combat youth migration and strengthen territorial cohesion.

Main activities:

• Development of a Joint Action Plan aimed at defining strategies to involve young international talent in the regeneration of three pilot areas (Brindisi, Matera, Aigialeia)
• Analysis of the skills needed for the success of regeneration projects, carried out by collecting data on current skills and emerging needs in order to identify training gaps
• International scouting of nine talented individuals under the age of 35 who are experts in architecture, design, engineering, sustainability and creativity, who will work with local communities to co-design sustainable urban regeneration projects in the areas of Brindisi, Matera and Aigialeia and support the retraining of the workforce for the green, blue and digital transitions
• Design of a cross-border hub for the professional retraining of workers from companies in crisis in the identified areas, in line with the principles of the New European Bauhaus.

For further information, please visit: https://www.greece-italy.eu/project/energie-empowering-new-energies-and-resources-in-greece-italy-area/www.greece-italy.eu