Harnessing large urban housing estates in former socialist countries as a resource for the future housing supply requires innovative and practicable strategies and concepts. What are the challenges to be overcome? How can the often mono-structural estates be altered, and how can spatial and cultural identities be reinforced? Which role does the community play in these former socialist neighborhoods? The contributors to this volume present perspectives from different disciplines, both in academia and practice. The exchange of international experiences creates the base for further debate and learning and provides insight into the multiplicity of challenges and approaches today.

Barbara Engel (Prof. Dr.) is a German architect and urban planner. She was awarded her PhD in 2004 and worked as a visiting professor at Kent State University in the US in 2007/2008. From 2008-2013 she was head of the department for the inner city at the City Planning Office in Dresden. Since 2013 she has been a professor of international urbanism at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology. Barbara Engel is a member of Design Committee in Halle and Nuremberg and of the Deutsche Akademie für Städtebau und Landesplanung (DASL).
Nikolas Rogge is a German architect whose work focuses on sustainable, human-centered design that pays homage to the specificity of place. His research spans across several disciplines with urbanism at their center. By looking at the genesis and transformation of open spaces within different cultural and planning contexts he investigates the impact of changing ideals on the urban form and living environments. He has led architecture and urban design projects in Germany, France, the U.S., and Indonesia. He is an assistant professor of international urbanism at the Karlsruhe Technical Institute (KIT), and holds a Diplom in architecture from Dresden University.