Chapter 9 - Beyond England: Origins and Evolution of the Community Land Trust Movement in Europe - Geert De Pauw and Joaquin de Santos (Read by Michael A. LaFond)

Since the formation of the Brussels Community Land Trust in 2010, interest in the model has been steadily growing throughout Europe. The chapter takes stock of the current state of the European CLT movement, examining CLT developments in Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Spain, Portugal, and central and eastern Europe. Although the focus is on Europe, recent developments in Scotland and Ireland are included as well. The chapter concludes with a description of SHICC (Sustainable Housing for Inclusive and Cohesive Cities), a cross-national collaboration funded by the European Union to further CLT development.

What is On Common Ground?

ON COMMON GROUND is a collection of original essays, written by 42 scholars and practitioners from a dozen countries, tracing the growth and diversification of the international community land trust movement.

A community land trust (CLT) is a transformative strategy of community-led development on community-owned land that has taken root in the Global North and is now spreading to the Global South. CLTs produce and preserve affordably priced homes, community gardens, retail spaces, and a variety of neighborhood facilities – all developed under the guidance of the people who live nearby; all managed to remain permanently affordable for people of modest means.