26 Jun More than a roof – Nettelbeckplatz wins a European Responsible Housing Award

The European Responsible Housing Awards ceremony was held on the 6th of June as part of the International Social Housing Festival 2019. This third edition of the Responsible Housing Awards saw a record-breaking number of 87 submissions (an increase of 29% compared to 2016)  across five categories from 16 countries.

The second category “More than a roof- supporting communities of equal opportunities”, means ensuring decent, affordable housing (and which will remain so in the future), this being key to avoiding social and spatial segregation and promoting social cohesion in neighbourhoods. This year, the award went to DREEAM project partner Berliner Bau- und Wohnungsgenossenschaft von 1892 eG for their project “Nettelbeckplatz –  An experimental way of renewal a cooperative housing estate in Berlin”.

Dirk Lönnecker, member of the Board, highlights the essential elements that made this project possible:

“The title of the category “More than a roof” is the key theme of housing cooperatives. As democratic members’ organizations, they combine sustainable building, social and cultural aims.Although economic reasons play an important role to save building costs and to make affordable housing possible, non-financial benefits like a strong local community, egalitarian living standards and multi-generational solidarity are also important guidelines. Furthermore the success of the project was the result of a “co-operative/ co-working” process between all partners: research teams, architects, welfare organizations – in close interaction with the residents, neighbourhood committees and the interdisciplinary staff of the “1892”.”