CoP 15 Knowledge Exchange Webinar: Affordable Housing and Social Cohesion Key Challenges and Best Practices

Representatives from Berlin, Bari, Basque Country, City of Melbourne, Region of Valencia and Singapore recently came together for the first ‘Urban Planning – Affordable Housing and Social Cohesion’ Community of Practice (CoP) knowledge exchange webinar. Through shared experiences, participants highlighted the challenges their cities and regions face, including demographic shifts, private sector involvement, financing, and climate change—and the strategies to address them.

Berlin: Scaling supply while supporting people in irregular housing

Christian Junge from the Senate Department for Urban Development, Building and Housing in Berlin opened with an overview of the drivers and challenges related to the city’s affordability crisis, including the realities of 73,000 people living in irregular housing and rising rents of approximately 80% over the past 10 years. Berlin’s response centers on an ambitious supply target: building 222,000 new homes by 2040. Strategies include public-private partnerships and expanding the role of state-owned housing companies, aiming to increase long-term affordability while responding to those most at risk.

Melbourne: Neighborhood models for cohesion in a dense, young city

Sophie Jordan from the City of Melbourne’s City Strategy Department with a focus on affordable housing described how high density and a young population shape housing needs—along with a major gap in social housing provision. She noted a target to more than double the number of homes in the next 25 years and also noted the drivers of decreasing social cohesion, including economic inequality and increased social isolation. Anthea Spinks, Director of Community Development, emphasized a neighborhood model to strengthen social cohesion through community-focused design and renewal.

Bari: Affordable housing through adaptive reuse and proximity planning

Alessandro Cariello, Architect and Urban Designer from Bari shared the overarching principles for Bari to be an attractive and liveable city by deploying strategies grounded in adaptive reuse, civic participation, public space, spatial equity, proximity, and climate change and ecological transition. By pairing regeneration with a proximity-based concept (including the “15-minute city” idea of reachable services), the city is working to make housing more affordable while strengthening public space and connectivity.

Singapore: Public housing management, inclusive design, and climate resilience

Ren Ai Lim from the Centre for Liveable cities in Singapore presented Singapore’s public housing system and estate management strategies. Key elements included Build to Order approaches and estate governance via Town Councils. Singapore’s approach to upgrading programmes focus on the flat, block/precinct and estate levels. Ren Ai also highlighted inclusive design guidelines, such as dementia-friendly neighborhoods and broader climate adaptation programs—showing how housing policy can support inclusion, long-term wellbeing, and resilience.

Region of Valencia: Digital tools, grant programmes and flood resilience

Vicente Andrada Garcia from the Building Rehabilitation and Urban Interventions Department and Manuel Ozores Pastor from the Public Housing Development Section in the Region of Valencia outlined key challenges linked to rapid population growth, high urban density, and increasing climate impacts.. They also discussed best practice examples related to large-scale renovation, increasing affordable housing stock, and climate resilience, including a floodable park project designed to manage water while improving public life.

Basque Country: Increasing public housing stock and industrialized construction

Marta Epelde Merino of the BUILD:INN Basque Construction Cluster from the Basque Country concluded with some shared challenges related to aging populations and single-person homes. She shared a construction roadmap targeting 75% industrialized construction by 2036, alongside plans to expand social housing. With collaboration being a key pillar of the strategic framework, a collaborative hub has been established to drive innovation and also include certification and training.

What happens next

Next steps will include continued peer exchange among participating cities, further refinement of the practical solutions discussed during the webinar, and preparation for upcoming IURC study visits. These future in-person collaboration opportunities will allow delegates to build on the discussions and advance shared approaches to affordable housing and social cohesion.