CANVAS

Across Europe, communities face infrastructural decay, unequal access to public amenities and safety concerns related to inadequate lighting and hazardous spatial conditions. Urban furniture, such as benches, lighting and other public-space fixtures, is still often treated as a purely functional product, with limited consideration of local needs, climate adaptation or cultural context.

Guided by New European Bauhaus principles, CANVAS aims to strengthen local identity, inclusion and resilience through five implementation themes: safety and comfort; art and cultural identity; environmental performance; inclusion; and social interaction and multifunctionality. Through collaboration between municipalities, NGOs, creative and business actors, and research and innovation partners, the project will develop 21 implemented solutions and 7 resilient, low-maintenance design models.

Across eight pilot sites in Ajdovščina, Izmir, Longford County, Reșița, Reykjavík, Upper Austria, Wolin and Wroclaw, CANVAS will prototype and demonstrate inclusive and sustainable urban furniture solutions. These will improve comfort, safety and year-round accessibility while integrating nature-based solutions, circular materials, local heritage and modular features that respond to diverse users and contexts.

The pilots will act as living canvases for co-creation, testing innovative public procurement approaches and combining permanent interventions with temporary prototypes and tactical urbanism. Artistic and heritage-sensitive design will contribute to cultural vitality, social cohesion and local economies, while digital tools will support co-design and decision-making.

CANVAS will translate lessons from the pilots into an actionable framework and toolkit for municipalities and other stakeholders, covering co-creation, public procurement, sustainable materials, climate adaptation and long-term maintenance. Monitoring, replication roadmaps, open design guidance and CANVAS on Tour will support wider uptake and new partnerships.

By combining design excellence, community participation and evidence-based assessment, CANVAS aims to establish a European benchmark for urban furniture that transforms shared spaces into more vibrant, equitable and climate-resilient places.