New Ideas, Local Action: The 2025 Ignite NEB Series Kicks Off Across Europe

Every year, the EIT Community New European Bauhaus (NEB) is lighting a spark across Europe with a new edition of Ignite NEB – a vibrant event series where creativity, community engagement, and entrepreneurial spirit collide. This year, three local hosts in Copenhagen, Lisbon, and Vienna will each bring together changemakers, creatives, and citizens for immersive hackathon-style events aimed at shaping sustainable, inclusive, and beautiful futures.

At each event, participants co-create ideas rooted in local challenges and opportunities. The most promising outcomes will be invited to take the next step through the Grow NEB programme where ideas turn into prototypes, and prototypes become impactful community-led initiatives or viable startups.

Let’s take a closer look at the three events shaping the 2025 Ignite NEB series:

📍 Ignite NEB Copenhagen

Organised by: CIRKACPH
Location: Bispeengen neighbourhood, Copenhagen
Upcoming events:

• Pre-event 2: 10 September
• NEB Celebration: 26 September
• NEB Ideation: 4 October

Registration: cirkacph.com/neb-ignite-copenhagen-2025

Set in the vibrant Bispeengen area, Ignite NEB Copenhagen invites local entrepreneurs, creatives, and residents to build new community traditions, particularly for young women, and tackle urban challenges through a co-creation process. Organized as a series of four events, each with its own theme – from “new local traditions” to “urban space” and “entrepreneurship” – participants will develop ideas that address real community needs.

The main ideation day on October 4th will focus on transforming these ideas into tangible business or social initiatives that uplift local life.

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📍 Ignite NEB Lisbon: LX Circular

Organised by: Impact Hub Lisbon
Location: Impact Hub Lisbon, Penha de França
Upcoming events:

• Four online preparation sessions: 9, 16, 23 & 30 September
• Hackathon: 18 & 19 October

Register: Candidatura Hackathon LX Circular

Lisbon’s take on Ignite NEB is all about circularity. LX Circular brings together youth, artists, startups, citizens, and city officials to co-create sustainable solutions for real urban challenges. Following four online preparatory sessions in September, participants will gather for a two-day hackathon where circular economy meets creativity and community.

Hosted at the multicultural Impact Hub Lisbon, the event blends training, ideation, and celebration with workshops, performances, and artistic showcases woven into the process.

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📍 Ignite NEB Vienna: Living Danube Challenge

Organised by: Pulsaqua
Location: BOKU River Lab, Vienna
Upcoming events:

• Three preparatory webinars: 17 & 24 September and 1 October
• In-person event at BOKU River Lab: 10 & 11 October

Register: Living Danube Challenge

Along the banks of the Danube, changemakers will gather in Vienna for a nature-first hackathon focused on ecological restoration and citizen science. The Living Danube Challenge invites participants to tackle five real-life environmental challenges impacting the Danube River Basin.

With support from the DANUBE4All project, the event kicks off with three online sessions in September and culminates in an immersive two-day development sprint at BOKU River Lab. It’s a space where ideas, ecosystems, and communities come together merging hands-on science, social entrepreneurship, and art interventions to spark scalable solutions.

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Why Ignite?

At its core, the Ignite NEB series fuels local innovation by uniting diverse voices: from community activists and artists to entrepreneurs and scientists. Each event is more than just a brainstorming session; it’s a launchpad for impactful ideas grounded in the places and people they aim to serve. And with the possibility to continue through the Grow NEB programme, the journey doesn’t end at ideation – it begins there.

Whether you’re driven by sustainability, social innovation, or simply want to co-create a better future, Ignite NEB is your invitation to take part.