HAMBURG CITYLAB (DE)

The focus of this pilot is to engage people in a deprived area in the south of Hamburg by addressing families’ needs. The selected area of Eißendorf-Ost/Harburg is located in the centre of the district of Hamburg-Harburg, the southernmost district of Hamburg. Like several other neighbourhoods in the south of Hamburg, it suffers from socioeconomic marginalisation and is geographically isolated, being separated from the rest of the city by the river Elbe and connected to the centre of Hamburg by one light railway line only. The area is characterised by a mix of typical suburban social housing and a suburban centre with administrative and infrastructural functions. The area currently has a population of 18,000, almost 50 percent of whom are migrants. The unemployment rate is 9 percent, which is significantly higher than the average in Hamburg. Almost 75 percent of young people under the age of 18 are migrants; 30 percent of young people are growing up with only one parent; 40 percent are classified as poor; and 34 percent of young people have a family language other than German.

The community will be formed on the basis of a participatory process of urban renewal that has already engaged people in defining their needs in relation to their neighbourhood. The process has involved both citizens and institutions and has thus created a fluid community of several hundred families that can be reached via schools and other educational institutions. These families form the initial resource for building the Families_Share community in the south of Hamburg. With its unique characteristics, the Hamburg pilot case will also have a strong focus on intercultural needs. Up to 1,000 people can be reached through the ongoing participatory urban renewal process.

The local pilot will be coordinated by the URBANISTA team, which is already engaged in leading the participatory process for urban renewal in the pilot area.