The subproject explores intergenerational housing as a social practice of forward-looking communitisation. It examines how communal living can be interpreted as a concept for the future and translated into organisational practices. Socio-spatial conditions are analysed and social innovations identified in order to support sustainable forms of community and democratic everyday practices.

The subproject is dedicated to researching intergenerational forms of housing as models for sustainable communitisation and social innovation. A central question of the project is how forms of communal living can be interpreted as blueprints for the future and translated into explicit practices of organising intergenerational housing projects. The project investigates how such practices lay the basics for community building. Particular attention is paid to the social space conditions that influence intergenerational housing: How do urban, small-town and rural-village contexts affect the implementation and stabilisation of these models? Finally, the aim is to identify social innovations that can be stabilised and further developed in the sense of transformative research. The aim is to support mutual inspiration and reflection between communities in order to identify forms of communitarisation, including critical perspectives on social practices in terms of democratisation.

The project examines both intentional communities as they emerge in organised housing projects and non-intentional (caring) communities/neighbourhoods that develop informally and in everyday practice. These are understood as transformative approaches to social sustainability that can have an impact both at a local level and in a wider social context. Particular attention is paid to the role of age and gender as central categories of social inequality, especially in relation to care work and the need for long-term care.

Theoretically, the project draws on Axel Honneth's (1995) concept of "post-traditional community", which defines community not as spatially or traditionally fixed, but as intersubjectively shared values and practices. In addition, Tovi Fenster's (2004) model of "phases of spatial appropriation" is used, which describes "comfort", "belonging" and "commitment" as central dimensions of social appropriation of space. These theoretical approaches make it possible to analyse intergenerational housing as a transformative practice.

Methodologically, the project combines qualitative approaches such as expert interviews, problem-centred interviews and focus group discussions with participatory action research approaches. In an iterative process, the perspectives of residents and actors in intergenerational housing projects are collected, reflected upon and integrated into further research. The subproject makes a central contribution to research into community processes in contemporary societies by analysing sustainable housing and living models.

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^{Fenster, Tovi (2004): The Global City and the Holy City. Narratives on Knowledge, Planning and Diversity. Harlow/New York: Taylor & Francis Ltd.}

^{Honneth, A. (1995): The Struggle for Recognition. The Moral Grammar of Social Conflicts. Cambridge: Polity Press.}