By Juliane Marie Neiiendam, Vice President of the Civil Society Organisations’ Group

In the face of climate change, urban inequality and a growing housing crisis, the future of living in Europe must be re-imagined – to be affordable, green and inclusive. The European Union now has a unique opportunity to set a global standard for sustainable, equitable housing models, and inspiration can be drawn from pioneering countries like Denmark.

In Denmark, thanks to bold public policies, 20% of all housing is non-profit and managed by democratic housing associations. Copenhagen, for example, combines affordability with green standards in its city planning, using architecture not just to build homes, but also to create resilient, mixed communities.

Yet Europe’s housing future cannot simply be about buildings. It must also be about people, and especially women. Women are disproportionately affected by housing insecurity: they constitute nearly 85% of all one-parent families in the EU. Among these, 48% of lone mothers are at risk of poverty or social exclusion, as stated in the report on Poverty, gender and lone parents in the EU, issued by the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE).

Future housing strategies must incorporate gender-sensitive design, prioritise safety, accessibility and community spaces, and ensure women have leadership roles in shaping urban policies.

EESC work on affordable housing

The Danish Presidency asked the EESC to gather civil society’s input for the European Affordable Housing Plan. The EESC marked the beginning of the Danish Presidency with a conference entitled ‘Building green and inclusive – Making our communities future-proof’, in Copenhagen on 2 July. Since then, the EESC has published two opinions on the subject: Affordable Housing: Cohesion policy, Urban agenda and civil society and For a European Affordable Housing Plan – the contribution of civil society. At the EESC plenary session in September, Dan Jørgensen, the Danish Commissioner for Energy and Housing, said that housing represented a major challenge but also an opportunity to make a real, positive and lasting difference to the lives of millions of citizens across Europe.

Our three key messages are:

• affordability must be protected as a right, not left to market forces;
• sustainability must be built in from the outset – through circular construction, renewable energy and smart design; and
• inclusion, especially gender inclusion, must be a foundational principle, not an afterthought.

Housing is more than shelter: it is dignity, security and opportunity. If the EU truly wants to lead the future of living, it must dare to build cities where affordability, green living and inclusivity are not dreams but daily realities.