#37 HouseEurope! Significance for Vienna and Austria

Episode #37 once again focuses on HouseEurope!—an initiative that firmly advocates for a transition in the construction sector. This episode turns its attention to Vienna and Austria, exploring how the initiative is perceived there.

As part of the event “Power to Renovation,” which took place in June 2025 at the Architekturzentrum Wien (Az W), Lene Benz (Az W) speaks with Christine Dornaus (BIG), Magdalena Lang (IG Architektur), Nicole Büchl (wohnfonds_wien), Daniel Fügenschuh (Federal Chamber of Civil Engineers), and Verena Konrad (HouseEurope!, vai) about the goals of the initiative and its potential impacts in Vienna and Austria.

HouseEurope! is a parliamentary citizens’ initiative at the European level. Its aim is to reduce the demolition of buildings and instead promote renovation, reuse, and transformation. The initiative is based on the conviction that the existing building stock is not only an ecological resource, but also a cultural and social one.

This episode is part of a mini-series on the HouseEurope! initiative, curated by Madlyn Miessgang and Verena Konrad, with support from the Architekturzentrum Wien (Az W). All information about HouseEurope!, as well as the opportunity to sign the initiative, can be found at: https://www.houseeurope.eu

Lene Benz is a cultural sociologist and urban researcher. She works collaboratively at the intersection of urban discourse, curatorial practice, and cultural production in Vienna, Hamburg, and Berlin. Since 2018, she has curated and coordinated the public program at the Architecture Center Vienna (Architekturzentrum Wien), which addresses international and local topics in architecture and urban planning, including the annual film festival Architektur.Film.Sommer. She is co-curator of the Architekturzentrum Wien exhibition Built Dreams – The Future of the Single-Family Home, which is currently touring Austria. In addition, Lene Benz works as a moderator, university lecturer, and performer.

Nicole Büchl studied architecture at TU Wien. During her studies, she gained practical experience in planning and site supervision for several architecture firms, and after graduating she continued this work with various planning offices. In parallel, she worked as a journalist for two Austrian architecture magazines. In 2004, Nicole Büchl joined wohnfonds_wien, where she worked in the fields of subsidized housing refurbishment and corporate communications. In recent years, she was responsible for establishing Hauskunft – the Service Center for Housing Refurbishment – and now serves as Head of the Refurbishment Department.

Christine Dornaus has been part of the management board of the Austrian Federal Real Estate Company (Bundesimmobiliengesellschaft) since October 2024. Prior to this, the PhD economist held senior management positions for more than twenty years at Wiener Städtische Versicherung AG, serving as a member of the executive board since 2009. At the beginning of her career, she spent ten years in banking, including at Chase Manhattan Bank in São Paulo, Brazil.

Daniel Fügenschuh is an architect and runs an architecture office in Innsbruck. Since 2022, he has been President of the Federal Chamber of Civil Engineers (Bundeskammer der Ziviltechniker:innen), representing Austrian architects and consulting engineers. He also represents the profession internationally as a council member of the Architects’ Council of Europe (ACE) and as a board member of the International Union of Architects (UIA).

Verena Konrad is an art historian specializing in the history of architecture and design, as well as a curator, author, and cultural manager. Since 2013, she has headed the Vorarlberg Architecture Institute as a cultural and educational organization dedicated to architecture and building culture. She represents the European initiative HouseEurope! in Austria.

Magdalena Lang studied architecture at TU Graz and gained international experience in 2009 during a study stay at the École Nationale Supérieure d’Architecture in Montpellier. Since 2010, she has been involved in the realization of numerous educational and healthcare buildings in South Africa, Tanzania, and Kenya with the association Mojo Fullscale Studio. Together with Arch. DI Gernot Kupfer, she has led MAS_Mojo Architectural Studio in Graz since 2012. Since 2020, she has also been active on the board of IG Architektur and has served as its chair since 2022.

Podcast credits
Episode #36
Concept and hosting: Madlyn Miessgang, Verena Konrad
Recording, audio, and editing: Lisa-Marie Kramer, Madlyn Miessgang, Nico Schleicher; audio material provided by the Architekturzentrum Wien (Az W)

ZUKUNFT STADT Podcast – Production:
Lukas Bast, Larissa Benk, Lisa-Marie Kramer, Lena Hohenkamp, Madlyn Miessgang, and Nico Schleicher

Intro music: Jakob Kotal

The podcast ZUKUNFT STADT is a project of the Faculty of Architecture and Spatial Planning at TU Wien. It is produced through a collaboration between the future.lab and the Department of Local Spatial Planning at TU Wien.