Manufacturing and selling big items requires big spaces as factories and large showrooms. During the prosperity years of manufacturing sector in Europe, wood industry dependent cities have witnessed a pop-up of such buildings along the main road axis and suburbs, strongly making urban development. Nowadays the rapid transformation of these sectors led to the abandon of most of these, leaving a giant urban footprint that is a serious challenge to cities that have inherited it and a warning to others.

Wood FootPrint, under the banner of URBACT, aims to respond to the challenge to reactivate the economies of participant cities, whose main economic activity is the furniture industry and have suffered as a consequence of the economic crisis and the impact of globalisation.
One of the main benefits of the programme "Wood FootPrint" is to offer different tools and policies that will strengthen the furniture sector, but at the same time offer economic diversification by sharing successful methods in sustainable sectors.

The project partners include 10 partners from 9 EU countries.

A core USER idea is that the design of urban public spaces and the main goals of urban planning are challenged by rapid changes in how cities are used. New trends in how public spaces are used, what the new users’ needs are, increasing malfunctions and conflicts among uses, etc., are challenging the way the city is usually “produced”, designed and managed.

The aim of USEAct is to define ways to achieve opportunities for people and businesses to settle in existing locations without consumption of further land, thanks to new planning and partnership approaches.

The goal of this project is to understand and explore the role of urban markets as key drivers of change in terms of local economic development, regeneration and sustainable living.

REviving high-rise Blocks for cohesive and green neighborhoods. The main objective addressed by RE-Block is to foster efficient regeneration of these neighborhoods, making them more attractive and improving their environmental quality, whilst creating an integrated tailor-made approach to combat poverty.

Developing low-carbon and resource-efficient urban food systems, by focusing on three areas: growing, delivering and enjoying food.

Involving parents in the prevention of early school leaving

Promoting employability of young people in a changing labour market, with special focus on enterprising skills and attitudes.

A European Network of Local Partnerships for the Advancement of Youth Employment and Opportunity

Improve the university-city nexus. By applying to the URBACT programme, they want to learn from each other's experiences and practices, and move forward as successful and inclusive knowledge cities to realise Europe's 2020 strategy.