Common Building and Living

The issues of construction and housing are in many ways important for a social transformation to a democratic, just and sustainable society. On the one hand, access to affordable housing is a human right that is threatened by real estate speculation and the focus of housing construction on capital appreciation. On the other hand, a large proportion of raw material and energy flows into this sector. It is therefore also an important starting point for a change in these areas. Interest in self-managed housing has soared in recent years, also within Austria, and many new projects have emerged. In other countries a long tradition has already produced appropriate legal and financial models. For people who want to launch such projects it is important to be able to build environmentally friendly and also cheaply. The Mietshäuser Syndikat (Tenements Syndicate) explains how homes can be withdrawn from the market in the long run. The project Green Skills provides expertise on resource-and money-saving technologies for a self-build.