Dr. Mary Dellenbaugh-Losse is an urban researcher, consultant, and author with a concentration on integrated post-industrial urban development, specifically: culture and creative industries, real estate market dynamics, intermediate and adaptive reuse of vacant buildings, bottom-up urban development, and urban commons. She has also published widely about the political, symbolic, and normative aspects of architecture and urban planning.

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Blog

Reactivating Vacant Buildings – Blog post 2 published!

Categories: Integrated Urban Development · Shrinking Cities · VacancyLeave a comment

I have more results coming out! The second and final blog post for the Reactivating Vacant Buildings project, which discusses the projects that we visited in the US, has been published. Many, many thanks to our generous hosts in Detroit and Cleveland for sharing their projects with us. You can read the post on the GMF’s website here: http://www.gmfus.org/blog/2019/05/16/reactivating-vacant-buildings-approaches-united-states And if you missed the first blog post about three case studies in Germany, you can check that out again here: http://www.gmfus.org/blog/2018/12/05/reactivating-vacant-buildings-three-approaches-germany

Reactivating Vacant Buildings – Blog post 1 published!

Categories: Integrated Urban Development · Shrinking Cities · VacancyLeave a comment

Hey all, I have been working hard all winter, which means I am going to have a number of results to share with you over the coming months. First stop: the first blog post for the Reactivating Vacant Buildings project, which discusses the projects that we visited in Germany, has been published. Many, many thanks to our generous hosts in Bremen, Chemnitz & Halle (Saale) for sharing their projects with us. You can read the post on the GMF’s website here: http://www.gmfus.org/blog/2018/12/05/reactivating-vacant-buildings-three-approaches-germany

Final kickstarter update: Success!

Categories: Urban CommonsLeave a comment

With the help of 56 backers, we were able to raise a total of 3,712€, which means that the Urban Commons Cookbook will be a reality! If you missed your chance to lock in a copy now, you can still get one in the fall. We’ll make it available through the project website (www.urbancommonscookbook.com), here, and through our partner websites. Stay tuned! And thanks to all of you who backed us – it really means a lot!

Urban commons in the Planologie podcast (in German)

Categories: Housing Markets · Urban CommonsLeave a comment

One of the authors in our book, Tobias Bernet, was recently interviewed in the Planologie podcast, a German-language podcast from two urban and regional planning students at the TU Berlin. In this episode, they discuss self-organized housing as a form of commons. Follow this link to listen to the entire podcast: https://planologie-podcast.de/2017/06/08/pln001-commons-in-der-stadt/

New Project: The Urban Commons Cookbook

Categories: Project · Publications · Urban Commons2 Comments

I’m excited to announce that I am working on a new book, The Urban Commons Cookbook, which will gather urban commoners’ experiences and create a practical handbook which gathers real-world insights, usable tips, and tested methods for creating and maintaining commons which can inform actors from the civil society and politics alike. We’ll be launching a Kickstarter in mid-February – stay tuned! You can read the full exposé here.

The slow death of affordable housing: A primer on Berlin’s housing market in three acts. Act 3: The fate of renting and owning, today & tomorrow

Categories: Berlin · Gentrification · Housing Markets · Integrated Urban DevelopmentLeave a comment

Today’s post is the third and final chapter in my three-part series about the development of Berlin’s housing market from the city’s division to today. To get some background for today’s episode, housing in the reunified city, you should check out episode one and two, housing in the divided city and housing the reunified city!

The slow death of affordable housing: A primer on Berlin’s housing market in three acts. Act 2: Housing in the reunified city

Categories: Berlin · Gentrification · Housing Markets · Integrated Urban Development1 Comment

This is the second chapter in my three-part series about the development of Berlin’s housing market from the city’s division to today. To get some background for today’s episode, housing in the reunified city, you should check out episode one, housing in the divided city.

Longing for ornament (and authenticity) in Berlin-Mitte

Categories: Berlin · Cultural Heritage · IdentityLeave a comment

So two weeks ago, I wrote this article about the conflicted stance towards ornamentation in architecture in Berlin. An illustrative example of this is the city palace reconstruction that is currently underway. Nothing says “conflicted history” more than a reconstructed palace, unless it’s a reconstructed palace with three facades of historical reconstruction and this on the massively visible side towards the central tourist area. Anyone, resident or visitor, that walks from Alexanderplatz towards Berlin’s highest building, the TV tower, will get a full view of this facade. I personally see a striking (and sort of scary) resemblance to the strict…

Longing for ornament: Symbolism and architecture in post-Wall Berlin

Categories: Berlin · Cultural Heritage · Identity2 Comments

I’ve begun work on an expanded and updated version of my dissertation, which means I’m going back through my work on symbolism, politics, and architecture. In doing so, I stumbled over some notes I made for an article about contemporary German architecture’s timid approach to symbolism and ornament, which I’ve decided to develop here. Have a look!

New video statement about urban commons

Categories: Conference · Interview · Participation · Urban CommonsLeave a comment

Back in January, I took part in the Urban Change Talk about Urban Commons. As part of that event, I also gave a very short video statement in which I talk about what makes urban commons different from other commons types, and what effects multilevel governance and market forces can have on them. Watch the whole video (about 3 minutes long) here.

Can administrative restructuring increase regional growth?

Categories: Creative Industries · Integrated Urban Development · Participation · Shrinking Cities · Urban Commons4 Comments

What do Bremen and Bologna have in common? They both used administrative restructuring to address their citizens’ needs and desires and boost civil society’s involvement in urban development – with great results! In this post, I explore administrative restructuring’s potentials for growth in peripheral and rural areas.

New forthcoming book: “Urban Development through Culture”

Categories: Culture · Integrated Urban Development · News · Publications2 Comments

My first full-length work since my dissertation will be coming out in German this summer. I was asked to write a book for laypersons about urban development through culture by the state central office for political education in Thuringia. We’re just in the final throes of editing now. Expected release date sometime late summer!

URBACT application approved!

Categories: Cultural Heritage · Culture · Integrated Urban Development · News · URBACT · Urban Commons2 Comments

I’m thrilled to announce that, after a long and detailed application process, I’ve been validated as a lead expert for the EU program URBACT, which deals with integrated urban development in Europe! I’ve been validated for the design and delivery of transnational exchange and learning activities, as well as thematic expertise in integrated urban renewal (i.e. Commons, Heritage, Branding) and arts and culture (i.e. Creative Industries). For more information, please check out my expert profile at http://urbact.eu/dellenbaugh.

Labor market conference documentation now available

Categories: Conference · News · PublicationsLeave a comment

The documentation of the two conferences that I moderated workshops at in June 2015 (“Successful Approaches for Combatting Unemployment in Europe – BerlinWorks as a Starting Point”) and December 2015 (“Work 4.0 – made in Berlin”) are now available for download in German & English on the Senate Department for Labour, Integration & Women’s Issues website.

New course in the coming winter semester

Categories: News · TeachingLeave a comment

I’m pleased to announce that I will be offering not only “Berlin’s Urban Development from Cölln to Capital: People, Politics, Places” at the Freie Universität again this coming winter semester, but I will also be offering a new course “Housing Choice & Urban Development,” which deals with the social, architectural and political push- and pull-factors behind housing choice and the effects on urban development, at the Hochschule für Technik und Wirtschaft.