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To tackle the sustainable global goals, especially reducing the CO2 emission (SDG 13) and transition towards sustainable cities (SDG 11, Target 11.6) there are many different initiatives around the world that build more environment friendly housing. For example, the EU has a goal that all buildings should operate at net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. Passive houses and passive plus buildings are important initiatives in this direction. The public’s perspectives, engagement, and willingness to live and adopt within an urban eco-village are essential for these concepts to take place. 

The suggested paper presents an urban eco-village in Sweden. This eco-village consists of two multi story buildings constructed out of wood with total of 30 apartments that are near the center of a medium-sized city. The sustainability vision of the project includes several innovative ideas, such as electric car-pools, gardening on balconies, passive house design, and sustainable construction materials. The project was delayed due to the Corona crisis; the moving-in date is planned for April 2021. 

The paper is based on individual interviews that focus on environmental willingness and engagement. The householders’ motives for deciding to move into the village and their expectation on living in the eco-village were also studied. The initial interviews were carried out in November 2019, with 41 respondents from households who declared their interest in moving into the eco-village. The interviews covered the following areas; energy, transport, occupancy, and motives for living in the eco-village. The follow up interviews with persons moving in will be carried out in March 2021. These interviews will study the influence of COVID-19 on willingness to participate in environmentally sustainable programs, for example using the car-pool. 

The results of the initial interview show that halve of households (21) feel positively about the car-pool system, while the other households are hesitating or not interested.  Similarly, the big majority of households (28) are willing to use shared laundry facilities, while only 13 households prefer to have their own laundry machines. The results also show that the two main reasons that people want to move to the eco-village are to reduce their own environmental impact and the location of the eco-village. 

The upcoming interviews will assess the question if challenges due to the pandemic (such as social distancing) can be in conflict with some aspects of a sustainable lifestyle (e.g. lack of access to a personal car and washing machine). Furthermore, traditional eco-villages are often characterized by detachment from mainstream.  The urban eco-village studied is more integrated with mainstream and therefore has more potential for propagating its ideas due to high visibility and links to the larger social setting.