CoHousing Good practice of community-driven and self-organised housing across Europe

Dr. Christiane Droste Cardiff, CCH/WCC conference, 25 July 2015

Competition Urban Living, Berlin 2014© SenStadtUm Berlin / Baupiloten BDA, Berlin

CoHousing: What are we talking about? What is its contribution to coping with social and demographic change? What is its contribution to the equality of women and men in everyday life?

2 © id22 2012, CoHousing Cultures

How to define CoHousing?

Suggestion for a definition: “CoHousing includes intentional, inclusive communities with varying degrees of resident participation in planning and managing the apartments or homes, common spaces and infrastructures, gardens etc. It is a non-speculative form of collaborative ownership”.

great variety of organisational frameworks ,

great variety of property / conditions of tenancy,

within Europe often institutional differences within the seemingly same structure (eg. cooperatives)

Aspects linking the different forms of CoHousing

participation, elements of parlamentary /

representative collective organisation

convivial elements,

communal elements,

joint representation in the

neighbourhood or the political realm,

and ...

CoHousing Cultures Manifest: #3 More support for inititatives that promote social inclusion and gender equality, notably for low income groups und immigrants in community driven housing projects

Images and manifesto © Stattbau Berlin (Workspace) / Dr. Michael LaFond, 2013, Presentation “Stadt der Zukunft – Stadt der Vielfalt”

The Swedish example

Great diversity of models and architecture.

A large number of mainly middle class projects.

Proven demand by a much wider societal range.

From traditional milieus to dedicated innovators.

Just better housing than what the market provides.

Housing and social change – the housing and urban political projects.

The solution to cope with demographic change?

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(2,000 homes, 0.4 % of stock in Sweden)

Diagramme © Dirk Urban Vestbrö, 2014

Stockholm Fjärdknappen (1987-1993) CoPlanning/-housing for the second half of life

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Rented out by a public housing company, self-managed by the tenants association.

43 flats

50% of tenants aged 70+, 78% women.

How to help each other cross-generational to achieve a better life and reduce dependency of social services?

Can family and workplace relationships in old age be replaced with CoHousing?

Flexibility of flats when ‘nests get empty’?

The ground floor of Färdknäppen includes a large entrance area (1), a common kitchen (2), dining room (3), living room with library, internet PC and sewing corner (4), weaving room (5), laundry room (6) and a hobby/carpentry room (7).

All illustrations © website Fjärdknäppen

Brussels L‘Espoir (2004-2010) Immigrant emancipation

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Established within local “neighbourhood contracts programme”

With and for migrant population

Giving incentives for integration

Explore individual and collective

Public social housing and job-creation subsidies linked into an integrated project

Providing homes for families, enhan-cing the women’s conditions of life

A success in experimental housing

Roots of the Brussels CLT project

All images © DePauw 2013

Milan Ostello Olinda Housing + hostel for people with social and mental disabilities

Property of the city, conversion of an old psychatric clinic.

250 units for 25 building groups.

Managed by social cooperative La Fabrica Olinda.

Mentally ill people find an enabling environment, a home and a job.

Guests are welcome and welcome the partnership.

8 Source: http://www.graficisenzafrontiere.net/portfolio-items/ostello-olinda/

Source: Id22/ CoHousing Cultures

Vienna [ro*sa] Donaustadt association + private builder / women‘s project (2009)

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Decisions made by the women’s association (men excluded from decision making + property)

Men and children welcome to live here

Cross generational concept

CoHousing / gender planning incorporated in Vienna urban housing policy

Increasing demand: one of three [ro*sa] women’s housing projects

Sources: id22; http://www.frauenwohnprojekt.org/wohnungstypen-und-gemeinschaftseinrichtungen

Munich Women‘s Housing Cooperative Mixed financing model

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‘Women Housing’ association founded in 1998

2005 project Messestadt Riem

Financing concept and planning based on three income levels and public funding offers

Cross generational concept

Shared space + sharing society

Own field on municipal cemetery

Increasing demand: two follow-up projects

Illustrations © FrauenWohnen; source housing design: http://www.2010.bda-preis-bayern.de/2010/img/71.pdf

Do gender sensitive urban governance structures advocate gender diversity in housing?

A Berlin PPP gender mainstreaming pilot project

Berlin 1892 Housing cooperative pilot project participation, gender equality and diversity

© UrbanPlus 2012

German, Austrian and Switzerland good practice on migrant integration knowledege transfer to the pilot projcets working on this field + other projects

I Conceptualisation , selection of partners + Kick-Off WS February –June 2008

III procject integrating workshop

IV PUBLIC CONFERENCE Cooperative housing as a self-determined form of housing and living:

innovation through gender sensitive practice and reflection of international good practice

Project I Re-designing a courtyard

Project III gender sensitive marketing + building

Project II Intercultural communication

Project IV adaptation of stock to needs of ageing population

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• establishing a steering committee • building professional gender

knowledge • analysis of space and target groups • work in field of action

steering model of the project

© UrbanPlus 2012

Kick-off-workshop

negotiation + setting of objectives

On site visit

target group analysis „inahbitants“

workshop II – intercultural communication

Preparing the local action

„neighbourhood action day"

creating a hamam and/or laundry café

evaluation of the process 2010 + 2011

field of action intercultural communication

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Berlin 1892 Housing cooperative pilot project participation, gender equality and diversity

target groups: senior native german members , families with different immigration background, kids and youngsters

Bildquellen 1892 eG: gender+ / 1892 eG/Boek

from laundry to hamam?

Laundry café ?

field of action intercultural communication Berlin 1892 Housing cooperative

All images © 1892 eG, 2012

Mainstreaming CoHousing: what can/should the state / municipalities do?

Provide framework rules

Develop adequate governance models

Provide equal opportunities for CoHousing projects in housing policies

Provide conditional land at fixed price and financial support

Support independent networking and information

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Land Not only buying, but also lease, and other models

Rent-buy models for associations

Community land trusts

Money Mix finance models

Crowd funding and other

Participation Concept, planning and social engagement

from muscle mortgage to financial participation

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Instruments to Promote CoHousing

Source illustration: http://www.communitylandtrusts.org.uk/

Learning from across the board

Local, national and international knowlegde exchange

Lobbying and mutual support in networks

Local support structures (agencies, umbrella organisations)

Financing models

Instruments to Promote CoHousing

Id22 (2012) CoHousing Cultures. Berlin: Jovis-Verlag

Id22/Trias Foundation (2011) experiment city europe . Hattingen: Stiftung Trias.

Tummers, L. (ed.) (2015) Taking apart co-housing: towards a long-term perspective of self-managed collaborative housing initiatives. London: Routledge.

Droste, C. / Hucke, J. / Krönert, S. (2012) rAdvocating diversity in housing cooperatives – Quality assurance through Gender Mainstreaming http://www.stadtentwicklung.berlin.de/soziale_stadt/gender_mainstreaming/de/projekte/genossenschaftliches_wohnen.shtml

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Droste@urban-plus.eu