Uniting through building: Habitat for Humanity's volunteer effort in Romania

Dozens of corporate professionals from all around the world. Different backgrounds. Different experiences. But united for the same cause. To help build houses with families that deserve a new beginning.

Hundreds of corporate professionals from all around the world.
Different backgrounds.
Different experiences.
But united for the same cause.
To help build houses with families that deserve a new beginning.

Turning challenges into opportunities

“Having a safe and decent home is a dream come true,” shares Iasmina, a mother to a young baby. She, along with her partner Teodor, are preparing to move to their new house built with the help of Habitat for Humanity’s volunteers. Teodor works in two shifts at a waste sorting depot in Țuțora, Romania, maintaining machinery. 

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Before moving to their new home, the couple lived in cramped quarters with Teodor’s family. There was a small provisionally set up kitchen in the hall and the toilet and storage room were in the yard. The plaster on the walls would peel off due to the humidity in the house heated up by a small woodstove during freezing winters. “We can’t wait to have a clean and quiet place to move in to,” says Teodor.

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Iasmina and Teodor’s story is not unique. In fact, 21% of Romanians live in similar conditions - in dilapidated, moldy houses without basic amenities like toilets or showers inside, as per official statistics. Along with 18 other beneficiary families, they share tales of unsafe home environments, insufficient space for their children, and constant battles with mold on the walls. They also face the high costs of heating during the winter, a common challenge in such living conditions.

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But now, their lives are changing for the better. All thanks to the dedication of Habitat for Humanity’s volunteers.

Building homes, communities and hope

“What does it take to change someone’s life? Several dozen hands, hearts, and voices that come together to help,” says Roberto Patrascoiu, national director of Habitat for Humanity Romania, whose team is responsible for the organization, coordination and planning of all the volunteer events in Romania.

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In 2023, there have been 26 built events that gathered together over 700 volunteers from various corporate companies coming from Germany, the Netherlands, United Kingdom, Italy, Belgium, Sweden, Denmark, Ireland and Romania. In a total of 104 days they built five duplex houses and two quadruplex houses in three different cities - Cumpana, Tutora and Berceni. Additionally, they have partnered with the Association Hercules, to build a canteen for the Day Care Centre in Buftea (BufKids).

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The gift of giving

“With every nail, screw, tile that we use, we put a part of our soul and our good intentions,” reflects Claudia, one of this year’s volunteers.

Volunteers not only contribute to the lives of families but also experience immense personal growth. Greta, another volunteer, shares her renewed belief in hope, kindness, love, and the power of community. Her colleague, Stephen, agrees and shares his feelings: “The most significant outcome of my volunteering journey was the profound friendships that blossomed while working alongside people from all corners of the world, united by a shared purpose and the realization that we can achieve remarkable things when we collaborate. It was as if I had expanded my own family, and my sense of community grew even stronger.”

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On behalf of Habitat for Humanity, we would like to thank every single volunteer from our partner companies who participated in our build events in Romania this year. Your dedication and compassion has been instrumental to fulfilling the dreams of 18 families and enriching the lives of more than 150 children from the Day Care Centre.

The list of companies that participated in the volunteer build events in Romania in 2023 (in an alphabetical order):

ADP, Amazon, ArcelorMittal Construction, Arhivolta, Aquila, Auchan, Bento, Dedeman, Dr. Durr, GimmerstaWallpaper AB, Groupama, Grundfos, Henderson Group, Henkel, Hilti, LDS, Penny, PrimaTV, ProTV, Raiffeisen Bank, Rabobank, Rotary Germany, Saint-Gobain, Telus, Timken, UNSAR, VK Architects & Engineering, VKR Foundation & Velux, Wienerberger.

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Watch the video from the Hope Build 2023, Țuțora, Romania

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Uniting through building: Habitat for Humanity's volunteer effort in Romania
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Uniting through building: Habitat for Humanity's volunteer effort in Romania

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What is energy poverty?

Energy powers communities. Healthcare workers and teachers depend on energy to heal and educate their communities. Energy keeps homes warm in the winter and cool in the summer.

Energy powers communities. Healthcare workers and teachers depend on energy to heal and educate their communities. Energy keeps homes warm in the winter and cool in the summer. Moreover, it fuels agricultural and manufacturing production, generating food, revenue, and jobs.

Energy’s presence is not just essential—it’s lifesaving, acting as an engine for economic growth and social development. However, access to affordable, reliable, quality, safe, and environmentally sound energy services isn’t evenly distributed.

Energy poverty emerges when families either lack access to modern energy services or allocate a significant portion of their income to energy bills. Those experiencing energy poverty find themselves in a relentless cycle, unable to afford the energy essential for their health, well-being, education, and quality of life.

The Energy Efficiency Directive offered the European Union its inaugural common definition of “energy poverty.” This refers to a household’s inadequate access to vital energy services. These services, indispensable for a decent standard of living and health, include adequate heating, hot water, cooling, lighting, and the energy to power appliances. Several factors contribute to this deficiency, including affordability challenges, constrained disposable income, high energy costs, and residences with subpar energy efficiency.

Even in areas where energy seems plentiful, inefficiencies and elevated costs burden families. Over 50 million people in the European Union grapple with energy poverty. Its effects intensify during the summer and winter, when the demand and expenses for cooling and heating surge.

The repercussions of energy poverty can be severe, especially as global warming accelerates and climatic conditions become erratic. The extreme heat in Europe during the summer of 2022 resulted in the tragic loss of more than 61,000 lives. In the winter of the same year, approximately 9% of European Union inhabitants struggled to maintain warmth in their homes.

Improving residential energy efficiency in Central and Eastern Europe

Habitat for Humanity addresses energy poverty in many ways. One example is through our work partnering with families to improve residential energy efficiency across Central and Eastern Europe. Nearly half of the housing stock in the region consists of large-scale residential buildings constructed between 1960 and 1990 with little-to-no consideration for energy efficiency. These aging, inefficient buildings combined with the region’s rising energy costs force families to spend a high share of their income on utility bills.

“In Europe, you’ll find energy poverty everywhere,” says Besim Nebiu, Habitat’s director of housing programs and regional operations for Central and Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States. “In the winter months, your energy bill becomes your highest housing expense. Many families underheat their apartments and make compromises in their standard of living.”

Retrofitting old buildings can reduce energy consumption by 40-50%, which leads to direct savings and enables families to moderate the temperatures in their homes more affordably. Despite the advantages, building upgrades in the region require considerable investment and coordination among apartment owners.

Following mass privatization in the 1990s, residents became responsible for maintaining and managing their apartment blocks, a burden previously handled by the state. Without a proper system for upkeep, many buildings in the region fell into disrepair, including Mile’s 110-unit apartment complex in Skopje, North Macedonia.

Mile says his Yugoslavia-era building was a “horror situation” before partnering with Habitat. Pieces of the façade were falling, there was broken glass and the elevators had frequent outages. The building’s poor energy efficiency also left residents vulnerable to high energy costs.

Saving money and keeping warm in the winter

Mile rallied his neighbors to make a change. The municipality linked Mile to Habitat, who financed window replacements throughout the building by offering affordable loans to the apartment owners. “When the renovation of the façade and the windows were completed, we felt the effects through the heating bills. Our heating bills have been reduced by at least 30%,” Mile says.

For nearly 15 years, Habitat has been working in the region to empower and mobilize residents like Mile to make energy upgrades in their buildings. “We’re creating an ecosystem conducive of renovation at scale,” Besim explains. “We work with apartment owners, homeowner associations, municipalities, banks and financial institutions to bring about sustainable, mass renovation.”

In Europe, Habitat’s past and current energy-related projects span a dozen countries — Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Hungary, Lithuania, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Spain and Ukraine. This work has improved the energy efficiency of hundreds of buildings, helping thousands of homeowners save money and become more comfortable in their homes.

“Energy poverty is a housing issue”

Access to affordable and reliable energy is essential for meeting basic human needs, improving living standards and fostering sustainable and equitable communities. Besim says our expertise and thought leadership in the space puts us in a position to drive more people out of energy poverty.

“Energy poverty is not an energy issue; it’s a housing issue and a social issue. We know how impactful it can be to have access to affordable energy services. We’re well positioned to continue bringing actors together and making affordable renovations available to homeowners,” Besim says.

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What is energy poverty?

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Europe Housing Day

The first edition of the Europe Housing Day will take place on November 14, at Thon Hotel EU in Brussels.

 

 

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Europe Housing Day

Build better lives

On the 29th August 2023, ahead of the second EPBD trilogue under the Spanish Council Presidency, 67 civil society organisations, social, health and environmental NGOs, trade unions and youth movements across Europe have signed onto a joint statement calling on their elected representatives to deliver an ambitious and socially just EU Buildings Directive (EPBD) before the end of the year.

On the 29th August 2023, ahead of the second EPBD trilogue under the Spanish Council Presidency, 67 civil society organisations, social, health and environmental NGOs, trade unions and youth movements across Europe have signed onto a joint statement calling on their elected representatives to deliver an ambitious and socially just EU Buildings Directive (EPBD) before the end of the year.

The ‘trilemma’ of rising energy costs, a cost of living crisis and a climate emergency have arrived at our front doors, with millions of households having to choose between eating or heating. Making our homes and buildings energy efficient and renewable-based is the answer to these issues as it can help reduce our dependence on dangerous, expensive and volatile fossil fuels, help shield people from energy poverty, and improve air quality while also combatting the climate crisis.

This starts with a strong EU policy framework, along with investments and resources that can be directed towards activating the relevant actors on the ground who can make the transition in our buildings a reality. Creating more energy efficient homes saves us energy and money, protecting the right to a comfortable and healthy living environment for all.

You can read the joint statement here.

 

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Build better lives
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