Adapting the Athens experience to Budapest’s needs

Budapest District XVIII is designing cooler and more resilient neighborhoods through Cooling Havens.

Budapest District XVIII, as part of the Cooling Havens European climate-adaptation knowledge transfer, is preparing a housing-estate pilot that gives a local, measurable and community response to urban heatwaves. The essence of the project is not the simple adoption of an Athens solution, but its application tailored to local conditions: on the Havanna housing estate, from an underused public area, a multifunctional, cooler, greener and more community-oriented urban space may be created.

In this process, District XVIII does not take over one-to-one, but adapts. The planned intervention is pilot-like: on a smaller scale, in a controlled way, it would test how nature-based urban development, water management, measurement-based decision-making and residential participation can be connected in a densely populated Budapest housing-estate environment.

Sofia at a Glance

Situated at the foot of Vitosha Mountain, Sofia has been a vital city ever since the Thracian and Roman age and an important European center between the East and West. The historic  legacy, ranging from the Late Antiquity remains in the heart of the city to Neoclassical and Socialist Modernism buildings, is blended with new architecture featuring the 21st century trends

Sofia is the capital city, economic and cultural heart of Bulgaria and a dynamic IT industry and tech startups hub in Southeast Europe. It is the most populous city in the country with  1.2 million inhabitants and is still growing. However, the densification and expansion of the built-up area tends to leave less place for nature within the living environment of citizens and thus the continuing urban growth is posing environmental challenges, exacerbated by the warming trends of climate change.

Discover Athens through water

Within the framework of Work Package 6 (WP6 – The Athens Water School), Dipylon Society designs and implements action D 6.2.3 – Workshops & Tours. Under the title “Discover Athens through water”, Dipylon, in collaboration with Impact Hub Athens, conducted four educational city tours during the months of May and June, in the areas of Metaxourgeio, Exarcheia, Ano Patisia, and Ampelokipoi

Cooling Havens Presented at the XENOS – Foreign Ecologies Exhibition in Hamburg.

The Cooling Havens project was presented as part of the XENOS – Foreign Ecologies exhibition, which took place in Hamburg, Germany, from 25 to 31 May 2026, as part of the Hamburger Architektursommer 2026 (Hamburg Architecture Summer 2026).

Building a European Network of Climate-Resilient Cities

Within the framework of the European Urban Initiative (EUI) project Cooling Havens, the Work Plan for Transfer Partners (WP8) represents one of the project’s most strategic and forward-looking components. While the core interventions of the project are implemented in Athens, this work plan expands the project’s impact across Europe through structured cooperation with the Transfer Partners: the City of Roeselare (Belgium), Budapest’s 18th District (Hungary), and the Municipality of Sofia (Bulgaria).

Mid-Term Event Copenhagen (21–22 April 2026)

The European Urban Initiative (EUI) Mid-Term Event for Call 2 projects took place in Copenhagen on 21–22 April 2026, with the aim of reviewing implementation progress to date, enabling experience-sharing among participating cities, and strengthening cooperation between partners. The event was hosted at H15 MAD & KULTUR i KØDBYEN, in an area that reflects the contemporary urban regeneration of the Danish capital.

Two-day knowledge exchange on nature-based solutions in Athens (21–22 January 2026)

The two-day working meeting of the European Urban Initiative project Cooling Havens concluded on a positive note, with meaningful discussions and practical takeaways. The project is implemented by the Municipality of Athens as Lead Partner and aims to promote nature-based solutions for cooling and flood protection, making smart use of water and green infrastructure, strengthening the city’s ability to work with nature, fostering a new culture of collaboration, and supporting participatory planning grounded in scientific evidence.

Cooling Havens and the revival of the city’s lost connection to water

The Cooling Havens: Water-Powered Neighborhood Cooling and Engagement Stations project is an innovative initiative that places water at the center of efforts to create cooler, more sustainable, and climate-resilient public spaces across Athens.