On January 23, 2025, EUROCROWD participated in the book presentation Cities & Communities Across Europe: Governance Design for a Sustainable Future, organized by the European Campus of City-Universities and the Delegation of the Castilla y León Region at the European Union. The event, hosted at the Permanent Representation of Spain to the EU in Brussels, explored innovative approaches to urban sustainability, governance, and civic engagement.
The discussions highlighted challenges and opportunities in financing sustainable solutions, fostering civic participation, and aligning governance frameworks with climate and social objectives. Several areas presented strong potential for crowdfunding:
1. Financing Sustainable Housing and Regional Development
With Europe facing a housing shortage, innovative funding mechanisms are needed to align urban policies with climate objectives while ensuring affordability and quality. The discussion highlighted an actual funding deficit that can be addressed by private markets. EUROCROWD has long advocated for alternative finance solutions in regional development and continues to support municipalities and housing cooperatives in leveraging crowdfunding models and we know that crowdfunding can serve as a bridge between local governments, civic associations, and private investors to support community-led housing initiatives.
2. Supporting Community Energy Initiatives
Energy communities offer decentralized solutions for renewable energy generation, reducing carbon footprints and enhancing local resilience. Often funding for smaller energy communities is difficult to find. EUROCROWD has helped multiple time to evaluate crowdfunding campaigns in renewable energy and many professional crowdfunding platforms from have developed strong expertise for integrating crowdfunding in energy transition strategies. Crowdfunding allows citizens to directly invest in local energy projects, enabling broader public participation and funding for sustainable energy solutions.
3. Public-Private Partnerships for Green Infrastructure
Urban sustainability depends on ecological restoration, integrated governance frameworks, and community engagement. Collaboration between municipalities, private investors, and local communities to finance green spaces, sustainable urban infrastructure, and environmental projects need more attention and can lead to positive impact for all participants. EUROCROWD and our members have repeatedly provided guidance on public-private crowdfunding models, ensuring that local governments have sufficient knowledge to effectively mobilize citizen investment for green projects.
4. Strengthening Cross-Border Collaboration through Crowdfunding
Regional differences in governance, priorities, and access to funding hinder cross-border cooperation on top of administrative burdens often prevailant. Overcoming cross-border funding has been the core of the legal argument for the European law on crowdfunding, which under the European Crowdfunding Service Provider Regulation today offers a scalable and inclusive financing tool for cross-border projects, research collaborations, and community-driven sustainability initiatives. EUROCROWD has actively helped shape that regulation and supported EU-funded research projects that explore crowdfunding’s role in transnational cooperation and policy alignment.
Opportunities for Crowdfunding
EUROCROWD has continuously worked with its network to professionalise, scale and integrate crowdfunding into sustainable urban initiatives and is a proud official partner of the New European Bauhaus. Our joined work in engaging with EU institutions to promote crowdfunding as a recognized financing tool for sustainable development has created a professional financing mechanism that can address a significant part of the focal areas of urban development. We are ready to support you with our :
- Capacity-building programs: Training local governments, civic groups, and stakeholders on crowdfunding implementation for sustainability.
- Market insights and best practices: Supporting municipalities, SMEs, and research institutions in designing effective crowdfunding campaigns.
The book Cities & Communities Across Europe: Governance Design for a Sustainable Future reinforces the need for further collaboration between policymakers, researchers, and finance experts to drive impactful urban transformation. As we continue our efforts, EUROCROWD remains committed to strengthening the role of crowdfunding in sustainable cities and communities.
