DIESE eG is a Berlin-based housing cooperative focused on protecting tenants and existing neighborhood structures in the face of speculative real-estate pressure. It was founded by Berlin residents whose buildings in Milieuschutz areas were threatened by speculative acquisition, and it positions itself as a cooperative tool for turning privately owned housing into community-owned housing while keeping homes affordable and permanently available to people with limited access to the open housing market.124
The cooperative’s core activities are tied to the acquisition and long-term stewardship of residential buildings, especially in inner-city Berlin. According to its own description, DIESE eG aims to influence sales processes so residents are not displaced from their neighborhoods, and it supports stronger use of public pre-emption rights, long-term public funding, and non-profit housing models as ways to counter market speculation.4 The organisation also links housing to broader social and ecological goals, stating that new housing should not come at the expense of environmental sustainability and that housing policy is part of Berlin’s social-ecological transformation.4
In practical terms, DIESE eG is a local, Berlin-specific cooperative rather than a national provider, although its arguments are relevant to wider debates on tenant protection, cooperative housing, and affordable housing finance in Germany.123 It works at the intersection of tenant protection, community ownership, and affordable housing delivery, with a clear emphasis on preserving existing households and creating permanently non-speculative housing.234