Michael LaFond, Giulia Carones, Alex Valder & others
id22: Institute for Creative Sustainability
2024
🏢 Context and Publication The eBook titled "Cooperative Social-Ecological Housing" was published in 2024 by id22: Institute for Creative Sustainability, based in Berlin, Germany. The institute is known for its focus on sustainable urban development and cooperative housing projects. The authors, a diverse team including Michael LaFond, Giulia Carones, and Alex Valder, are positioned as "activist-experts" with extensive experience in researching and working on cooperative housing initiatives. 🌍 Key Findings The book provides an in-depth analysis of how housing cooperatives in German-speaking countries can address pressing social and environmental issues. Among the key findings is the assertion that these cooperatives can effectively tackle crises such as climate change, housing affordability, and social inequality through innovative building and living approaches. 🏗️ Model Projects It features 12 model projects predominantly located in Berlin, showcasing various implementations of social-ecological cooperative housing. These projects range from the renovation of existing buildings to new construction, all aiming to provide affordable housing options while incorporating essential environmental features like energy efficiency and renewable energy sources. The projects also emphasize shared resources and a balance between individual living spaces and communal areas. 💡 Ownership Models and Community Engagement Alternative ownership models, such as community land trusts and the Mietshäuser Syndikat, are highlighted as strategies to maintain affordability and prevent speculation in housing. The book emphasizes the importance of participatory planning and self-governance, where residents are heavily involved in decision-making processes, fostering a strong sense of community. ⚠️ Challenges and Policy Recommendations Despite the promising models, the authors note significant challenges, including financing difficulties, the need to balance affordability with ecological features, and ensuring long-term community engagement. The book advocates for increased policy support and financing options to help scale up these cooperative housing models across Europe. 📚 Conclusion Overall, the eBook positions cooperative and community-led housing as innovative solutions to contemporary housing, social, and environmental challenges. It aims to inspire and provide practical knowledge for individuals and organizations interested in developing similar sustainable housing projects across Europe, emphasizing the need for supportive policies to enhance their impact.
This eBook titled "Cooperative Social-Ecological Housing" was published in 2024 by id22: Institute for Creative Sustainability in Berlin, Germany. It provides an in-depth look at cooperative and community-based housing projects in German-speaking countries, with a focus on combining social and ecological sustainability.
Key findings and context:
- The book examines how housing cooperatives can address multiple crises like climate change, housing affordability, and social inequality through innovative approaches to building and living.
- It showcases 12 model projects, mostly in Berlin but also in other German-speaking cities, that demonstrate different ways of implementing social-ecological cooperative housing. These range from renovations of old buildings to new construction projects.
- The projects highlighted aim to provide affordable housing while also incorporating environmental features like energy efficiency, renewable energy, shared resources, and reduced individual living space balanced by communal areas.
- Many projects use alternative ownership models like community land trusts or the Mietshäuser Syndikat to keep housing permanently affordable and non-speculative.
- Participatory planning and self-governance are common themes, with residents heavily involved in decision-making.
- Challenges noted include financing difficulties, balancing affordability with ecological features, and maintaining community engagement long-term.
- The book argues that cooperatives and community-led housing can be more innovative and responsive to social/environmental needs compared to conventional housing developers.
- It calls for more policy support and financing options to scale up these models.
- The eBook format allows for interactive features and links to additional resources.
The authors are a team from id22, including Michael LaFond, Giulia Carones, Alex Valder and others. They position themselves as "activist-experts" based in Berlin but looking to share lessons internationally. The book draws on their long experience working with and researching cooperative housing projects.
Overall, the book makes the case that cooperative, community-led housing models have significant potential to address housing, social, and environmental challenges in an integrated way, but require supportive policies and financing to scale up their impact. It aims to inspire and provide practical knowledge for others interested in developing similar projects.