GBS 2025 – it’s a wrap!

For the 15th time Green.Building.Solutions. Summer University 2025 has come to an end on Saturday, August 2 - after three intense, inspiring and interdisciplinary weeks of learning, exchange and design. This year’s program gathered 60 students and professionals from 27 nations, making it once again a truly international and enriching experience. Since 2011 we have annually welcomed participants and established a network of 1.150 Alumni from 109 Nations by now!

On Monday, July 14, we kicked off GBS and the Alternative Economic and Monetary Systems (AEMS) Summer University, welcoming 103 participants from 48 nations together! The public opening ceremony “Democracy in a changing climate” on July 16, 2025 featured warm words of welcome by Gernot Stöglehner, Günther Jedliczka, Barbara Mayr, and Carina Kamptner and inspiring keynote speeches. Read full article here.

Our Highlights

Throughout the three weeks, we tackled the pressing challenges of climate change, urbanization and resource scarcity, guided by leading architects, engineers, planners and researchers. The results of the participants’ project work reflected the GBS spirit: applying academic knowledge to real-world problems through collaboration, exchange, and innovation.

We explored core themes such as socio-cultural urbanism, social sustainability, green architecture, building physics and alternative building materials. Specialized lectures introduced tools like OpenBIM, Honeybee, and AI-based comfort modeling. We visited the Light Lab at Danube University Krems, exploring daylight in architecture under the artificial sky! A special focus day was also dedicated to renewables: solar thermal, photovoltaics, heat pumps, and AI in urban climate analysis – followed by an excursion to the AIT Austrian Institute of Technology.

The final group presentations took place in the beautiful Kuppelsaal at TU Wien, where participants presented their project work concepts for the Westbahnhof area. Their proposals “West Slice Stories: Eco-Social, Carbon-Neutral and Climate-Adaptive Solutions for the area between Felberstraße and Westbahnhof„ addressed energy efficiency, circularity, social inclusion, and climate resilience – showing both technical depth and creative courage.

Alongside the academic content, we offered a social and cultural program. Highlights included a festive waltzing night, two catered sports evenings, a movie night together with AEMS at Votivkino, a walk through Sonnwendviertel with visits to Bike & Rails Passive House and later the Wien Museum, a social housing tour by Eugene Quinn, a panel discussion on “Financing the Green Transition” and the passathon bike tour exploring sustainable projects around Aspern Seestadt in Vienna by bike also visiting OeAD student housings’ GreenHouse and Popup dorms. These moments helped create a vibrant international community and made GBS 2025 an inspiring summer experience.

A Big Thank You!

We thank every student, speaker, tutor, partner, and sponsor who made GBS this year possible. Your contributions are helping shape a more sustainable, inclusive, and livable built environment.

Thanks to your support, GBS 2025 was again a unique learning journey & great success – filled with professional insights, cultural exchange, and lasting friendships.