On September 12, 2025, Santiago de Compostela hosted the launch event of the European project Life Timber for all, under the title “Mixed Wood-Concrete Structures: Promotion of Sustainable and Industrialized Construction in Galicia”. The conference, which was held at the Training Centre of the Construction Labour Foundation, marked the official start of a pioneering project aimed at the decarbonisation of the construction sector, with the contribution of the European Union’s LIFE programme.

Life Timber for all is a 49-month initiative that kicked off on 1 September 2025, with the aim of transforming the construction sector, which is responsible for a third of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The project seeks a balance between the use of concrete and wood, harmonizing both materials to store carbon in the long term and significantly reduce GHG emissions associated with concrete and steel.
The launch day offered a comprehensive overview of the objectives and activities of the Life Timber for all project, as well as the efforts prior to sustainable construction with wood, showing the results of the Life Wood for future project.

The programme included a series of presentations and panel discussions by the project consortium, which is made up of 10 partners, including universities, technology centres, companies in the wood and concrete industry, a forestry agency and sectoral clusters, guaranteeing the expertise and resources necessary to achieve its ambitious objectives. Nominally they are: the Structural Wood Engineering Platform (PEMADE) of the University of Santiago de Compostela (Project Coordinator), the companies of the Rodiñas and Xilonor Group, the University of Granada, the Galician Agency for the Forestry Industry XERA, the Galicia Constrúe Foundation, the Galician Wood and Design Cluster of Galicia, the Institute of Construction Technology of Catalonia – ITeC, the Institute of Advanced Architecture of Catalonia and 3edata.

During the afternoon, visits were made to works with mixed floors at the Proton Therapy Center in Santiago de Compostela and the Pazo do Piñeiro in Ares, A Coruña.

Life Timber for all will focus on the development of a family of structural systems composed of wood and concrete, which will integrate low-carbon concrete made from biomass ash and local wood certified by sustainable forest management. These systems will not only seek to reduce GHG emissions by 50% compared to precast concrete structures, but also to store carbon in the long term. In addition, certifications, a digital product passport (DPP) for material traceability and a carbon credit system will be developed, applying the principles of the New European Bauhaus (NEB) for inclusive, sustainable and aesthetic construction.

Manuel Guaita, Director of PEMADE-USC and coordinator of the project, highlighted: “This event marks a crucial milestone for the sector. With Life Timber for all, we are not only creating innovative solutions, but we are laying the foundations for sustainable construction and local wood to reach the whole of society, overcoming existing barriers and promoting an environmental impact.”