Project unites construction titans to revolutionize shared housing

Delbo is an initiative to increase the construction of shared housing in Sweden. To share accommodation means that three or more people (who are not related) live together. Several key players in the construction sector recently gathered for a policy workshop to discuss and propose regulatory changes to facilitate this type of housing.

"A major obstacle today is that there are many regulations, norms, practices, and structures that make it difficult to build shared housing," explains Sara Ilstedt , professor at the Department of Engineering Design, who is leading the project.

Behind the project is Green Leap, a group of design researchers at the ITM School, KTH working on using design methods to find sustainable solutions to societal challenges. Previous research by the group shows that shared housing not only alleviates the housing shortage but also reduces a building's climate impact by up to a third.

The first workshop brought together over 20 participants from different parts of the construction sector, including politicians, building permit officers, architects, NGOs, real estate companies, researchers, and tenants' associations.

“These are people and functions that usually do not meet - they come into different parts of the construction process, but now they had the opportunity to meet, which was appreciated. There is a lot of knowledge and good examples. Still, this knowledge does not usually reach administrators in municipalities and county administrative boards,” says Martin Sjöman , process manager for the policy workshops.

"This was the first workshop of three, so now we will analyze the material and plan the next session, which will be more about creating a concrete action plan for the future.”

Text: Anna Gullers

Green Leap and Delbo

Green Leap  is a group of design researchers at the ITM School, KTH, who have been working for many years on design methods to accelerate sustainable transition. Research is increasingly about supporting private and public actors in managing complex socio-technical system changes. The Delbo project is funded by the Swedish Energy Agency and led by Professor Sara Ilstedt. Martin Sjöman  and Julian Gasson  are also participating.