Co-PED investigates the potential of social and cultural centers
as catalysts for positive energy districts,
nurturing a just energy transition that includes local communities.

ABOUT CO-PED

Co-PED addresses the need for innovative financial and organisational models in energy communities, with a focus on Social and Cultural Centres (SCCs) as key actors of Positive Energy Districts (PEDs).

By helping Social and Cultural Centres in strengthening the role of local communities in the energy transition, Co-PED aims to enhance collaboration between energy producers and consumers, encourage community participation, and support democratic decision-making and social inclusion.

1.

Researching and developing community led positive energy districts by positioning Social and Cultural Centres (SCCs) as protagonists of the local energy transition with a focus on community participation and engagement.

By creating innovative financial, legal and organisational models we will support social and cultural centers in their economic models and foster the energy transition on the local level.

2.

Ensuring social inclusion and energy justice by empowering communities, especially marginalised groups, as actors in the energy transition to overcome energy poverty.

Supporting urban and rural collaboration to ensure a fair energy transition and equitable distribution of resources.

3.

Generating and sharing knowledge to support the establishment of new initiatives and help social and cultural centres in their pathway to an energy transition

Informing decision makers at local, national, and European levels to support community focused approaches for a local energy transition and enhance distributive and participatory justice.

OUR PARTNERS

Co-PED consists of a transdisciplinary consortium ranging from research partners over practical implementation to knowledge transfer and policy.

The project is coordinated by Trans Europe Halles (TEH), an international network of 170 community-led cultural centres in 40+ countries. The eight Urban Living Labs (ULLs) are centered around the TEH members La Friche la Belle de Mai (Marseille), Bakelit Multi Art Center (Budapest), BASIS Vinschgau Venosta (South Tyrol), Ifö Center (Bromölla), Die Bäckerei – Kulturbackstube (Innsbruck), and Green Kommon (Paris) as well as two projects on a neighbourhood scale Bartók District (Budapest) and Hart van Zuid (Rotterdam).

Research activities will be carried out by Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences (Netherlands), Research Institute of Sweden, RISE (Sweden), and Eutropian Association (Italy), with profound expertise in urban regeneration and development, cultural and creative industries as well as policy and legal research.

Zoom into the map to discover our partners!

URBAN LIVING LABS

The core of Co-PED is the applied research carried out in eight Urban Living Labs (ULLs).

These urban living labs are centered around a diverse set of pilot projects, in different urban, peri-urban as well as rural settings. The goal is to investigate practical and scalable solutions on how social and cultural centers with a strong focus on community engagement are able to function as catalysts for positive energy districts and a just energy transition that includes local communities.

Bakelit Multi Art Center (Hungary)

In Budapest’s industrial fringe, Bakelit is turning a former textile factory into a space where creativity meets energy transition — aiming to build a local energy community among neighbours facing rising costs.

Bartók District (Hungary)

In a buzzing creative neighbourhood of Budapest, the Bartók Quarter Lab aims to link solar energy generated on rooftops with ground-floor cultural spaces in condominium buildings — testing how energy communities can emerge in dense urban settings.

BASIS Vinschgau Venosta (Italy)

In the picturesque Alpine town of Silandro, BASIS has turned a former Fascist barracks into a buzzing hub for culture and innovation and is now building a local energy community in a region facing glacier loss, water scarcity, and rising energy needs, while strengthening collaboration between towns and rural areas.

Die Bäckerei (Austria)

In a former bakery turned cultural venue in Innsbruck, Die Bäckerei is bringing neighbours, schools, and shops into a local energy community — using storytelling, performances, and events to make the energy transition visible, tangible, and shared, like a loaf of bread.

Green Kommon (France)

Green Kommon is turning cultural spaces into neighbourhood energy hubs — installing rooftop solar, testing mobile energy kits, and creating France’s first Cultural Energy Fund to power a more democratic, accessible, and replicable transition.

Hart van Zuid (Netherlands)

Hart van Zuid is transforming Rotterdam South. Once an outdated shopping centre and transport hub, it’s becoming a vibrant centre for culture, recreation, and community — shaped with local residents and driven by the energy transition.

Ifö Center (Sweden)

A former ceramics factory turned 43,000m² cultural playground, Ifö Center brings together artists in a post-industrial corner of Sweden — now testing clean energy to boost autonomy and inspire independent hubs across Europe.

La Friche la Belle de Mai (France)

In Marseille’s Belle de Mai, La Friche is a 45,000m² cooperative turning its rooftop into a solar-powered leap toward energy autonomy — all from a former tobacco factory that’s now the city’s most iconic cultural engine.

RESEARCH, SOLUTIONS AND TOOLS

We are developing a practical and forward-looking framework to support research and innovation within Urban Living Labs (ULLs), with a particular emphasis on the role of Social and Cultural Centres (SCCs) in advancing local energy communities.

Cultural centres as catalysts for energy communities: Co-PED kicks off in Paris

Something important began in Saint-Ouen last week — and it wasn’t just the launch of a project. It was the start of a new collaboration between cultural spaces and future energy communities across Europe. Co-PED — Cultural Centres as Catalysts for Energy Communities — is a three-year European initiative that explores how social and cultural centres can become active players in the just energy transition. Rather than treating energy as a purely technical issue, Co-PED focuses on participation, place, and collective imagination.

NEWS

Keep up to date with the latest news and events about our project, and our partners.

Positive Energy Districts Transition Pathway

Co-PED is funded by the Driving Urban Transitions programme within the Positive Energy Districts Transition Pathway. The DUT Partnership boosts urban transitions through its three thematic priorities – the Transition Pathways. The Positive Energy Districts Transition Pathway (PED TP) aims to develop innovative solutions for planning, large-scale implementation, and replication of PEDs across Europe. PEDs are energy-efficient and energy-flexible urban areas that generate net zero emissions while managing renewable energy. The mission is to initialise 100 PEDs in Europe by 2025 and contribute to the Mission on Climate-neutral and Smart Cities with an innovation portfolio of PED solutions until 2030.