BUSUnited (2025-2028) LIFE programme

Denomination: BUILD UP Skills United

Project: Belonging to the LIFE Programme, Clean Energy Transition sub-programme (LIFE-2024-CET-BUILDSKILLS)

Identification of the project: 101216019.

Duration: 30 months, from Octobre 2024 to March 2027.

Budget: 1,975,422.39 €

Coordinator of the project: Technological University of the Shannon: Midlands Midwest -TUS- (Ireland).

Partners: 

• Spain: Fundación Laboral de la Construcción and Instituto Valenciano de la Edificacion (IVE)
• Belgium: Conseil des Architectes d'Europe (ACE-CAE) 
• Germany: Dr. Jakob Energy Research GMBH & CO. KG (JER)
• Bulgaria: Fondatsiya tsentar za energiyna efektivnost (ENEFFECT)
• Slovenia: Inovacijsko-razvojni institut Univerze v Ljubljani
• Hungary: Geonardo kornyezetvedelmi terinformatikai es regionalis projektfejleszto korlatolt Felelossegu tarsasag
• Italy: International iniziative for a sustainable built environment Italia Research And Development Srl  (IISBE ITALIA R&D) and Green Building Council Italy (GBC Italia)
• Republic of North Macedonia: Ss. Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje (UKIM)
• The Netherlands: Stichting Centraal Register Techniek (CRT)
• Romania: Asociatia Cluster Pentru Promovarea Cladirilor cu consum ee Energie aproape egal cu zero Pro Nzeb (PRO-NZEB).

Website: coming soon.

Redes sociales: coming soon.

BUSUnited aims to seed, grow and strengthen a European community of practitioners with proven experience in developing and promoting sustainable energy skills for building professionals across EU Member States and LIFE-associated countries.

The project builds on the legacy of the BUILD UP Skills initiative and goes further, complementing the Large-Scale Partnerships: Pact for Skills and the Renewable Energy Skills Partnerships.

A Community of Practice (CoP) is a group of people who “share a concern or a passion for something they do and learn how to do it better as they interact regularly”. This concept was introduced by Jean Lave and Etienne Wenger in their 1991 book Situated Learning. BUSUnited brings this idea to life for the building sector. 

Expected Results

• Seven Communities of Practice (CoPs): tackling key topics such as sectoral skills needs, skills recognition, innovative training methods, demand-side mechanisms, national skills roll-outs, funding sources, and EU synergies.
• BUSUnited Platform: a central hub where CoPs connect, share knowledge, and access tools and resources.
• Capacity building: aligning each CoP with national upskilling roadmaps through workshops, twinning activities, peer-to-peer exchanges and “train-the-trainer” programmes.
• Skills services and best practices promoting innovative approaches from across Europe.
• Stakeholder engagement: highlighting and strengthening the pivotal role of construction sector stakeholders.

Why BUSUnited matters

More than 100 projects already form part of the BUILD UP Skills initiative, involving a diverse range of organisations, clusters, and umbrella groups. Alongside Erasmus+ projects and large partnerships such as the Construction Blueprint, the Pact for Skills and Large-Scale Skills Partnerships, this has created a rich but complex landscape of initiatives and actors.

Many of these projects face similar challenges. This makes it essential to take a coordinated and collaborative approach, bringing together key players, pooling expertise and amplifying impact. BUSUnited was designed to do exactly that — uniting efforts, sharing knowledge, and ensuring the building sector can meet the growing demand for sustainable energy skills.

Co-funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or CINEA. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.