ETC Bygg – Sweden

ETC Bygg is nominated for the 2024 Nordic Council Environment Prize.

ETC Bygg is a company that builds inclusive and climate-positive rental properties and affordable small homes. They have built two rental properties in Västerås and three in Växjö, with a larger construction project in Malmö to be completed in 2024/2025. 

The houses are so-called passive houses where heat is stored and recirculated. Climate-smart building materials like wood and straw are carefully selected, and new foundation materials are tested to minimise carbon footprints. The roofs have solar panels with battery storage to help residents be self-sufficient when it comes to energy. 

The rental apartments have their own greenhouses for balcony gardening, and the small homes come with shared garden plots outside. The construction company provides Bokashi bins for composting food waste into nutrient-rich soil and offers gardening advice to the residents. A sharing economy is encouraged and facilitated by offering a pool of electric cars, bikes for hire, and tools for communal use. 

The company is non-profit, and the business model of the real estate company and financing solution is facilitated by way of a form of crowd-funding, resulting in a holistic approach that addresses social, environmental, and economic sustainability simultaneously.

All drawings and knowledge bases are freely available on ETC Bygg’s website, allowing everyone to draw inspiration and learn from the company’s successes and challenges. Transparency and knowledge dissemination are important principles, and ETC Bygg’s inclusive model for sustainable construction could be applied and expanded to more places in the Nordic Region and beyond.