Ko Gradi Grad (“Who Builds the City”) is a Belgrade-based civic and research-oriented association that focuses on urban development, housing, and public participation in decisions about the city.2 It was launched in 2010 as an informal platform and became a registered citizens’ association in January 2016.12
Its core mission is to create space for dialogue on how cities are shaped, especially in response to urban development patterns marked by privatization, weak public oversight, and limited citizen participation.2 The organisation presents itself as a platform for open discussions on issues important to city development, and its work combines advocacy, facilitation, and collaborative research.2 A major part of its housing-related activity has been the development of the “Pametnija Zgrada” (“Smarter Building”) model, which began in 2012 and was later organized as a housing cooperative in 2019.3 According to the organisation, this line of work addresses housing through legal advocacy and direct action.3
Ko Gradi Grad’s geographic scope is primarily local, centered on Belgrade and the Serbian context, although its collaborations and projects connect it to broader regional and European housing discussions.248 The organisation has been linked to the European cooperative housing ecosystem through MOBA Housing and related cross-border work.47
In relation to affordable and sustainable housing, Ko Gradi Grad is notable for treating housing not only as a market issue but as a collective urban and social question.34 Its cooperative housing work is aimed at creating non-speculative, community-oriented housing models, which is relevant to affordable housing approaches and to more sustainable forms of urban living.34