realitylab has been designing and facilitating social processes in housing and urban development for over 20 years. The focus is on creating neighbourhoods, the meaningful use of community facilities and shared resources (rooms, vehicles, gardens, tools, energy etc.) in social housing. realitylab also supports the development of cohousing projects, the establishment of sustainable resource communities (e.g. PEDs), and accompanies neighbourhood and urban developments that are based on participation, diversity, community and cooperation.
realitylab is the project coordinator in DUT project
and taking part in other DUT project as project partner:
Description of previous work with cities
realitylab draws on extensive experience from research projects on collaborative approaches to the decarbonisation of urban districts. Selected projects include:
PED StepWise: The project develops a step-by-step process that reflects the “messy” reality of the situation in existing neighbourhoods and the need to step “wisely” to develop a PED. Funded by the Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG) and DUT (2024 – 2026).
HeatCOOP: The project develops a prototype of an innovative organisation model for decarbonisation of heat supply in urban neighbourhoods based on heating cooperatives. Funded by the Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG) and DUT (2024 – 2026).
DieWärmePioniere: Database of resource communities in the domain of housing, energy, mobility and food at gemeinschaffen.com; Involvement of residents in several housing projects (e.g. Wiesen-Dialog, which was also winner of the Vienna Housing Prize). Funded by the Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG) (2022 – 2023).
ZuZugLeben: Development of an integrated renovation concept and zero-carbon solutions for an existing residential district for the Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB). Funded by the Austrian Climate and Energy Fund (2021 – 2024).
LieBeKlima: Quality assurance of cross-property greening for urban climate resilience and integration of energy related aspects in the "Am Kempelenpark" neighbourhood. Funded by the Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG) (2022 – 2022).
Citizens4PED: Holistic assessment and innovative stakeholder involvement process for identification of Positive-Energy-Districts in the framework of JPI Urban Europe. Funded by the Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG) and JPI Urban Europe (2022 – 2025).
Short profile of key staff members involved in the project
Dr. Gernot Tscherteu – CEO realitylab, (senior) social scientist, social interaction designer, Director of Media Architecture Institute, Co-founder of Initiative Gemeinsam Bauen Wohnen. Over 30 Years of experience in research and in launching cooperatives, associations and enterprises.
DI Petra Hendrich Bsc – founding partner realitylab, architect and sociologist, facilitator, mediator, studied architecture at the Vienna University of Technology and Shenzhen University; worked in architectural offices in Vienna, Rijeka and Shanghai. Studied sociology with a special interest in the city focus on participatory planning approaches, Founding member of WoGen - Wohnprojekte Genossenschaft (housing cooperative). Lecturer on the topic of social sustainability at the FH Campus Vienna.
Dr. Georg Wolfmayr – cultural anthropologist and social scientist, worked in different research projects in the fields of economy, housing and urban development, in particular on issues of the production of and access to housing, sustainable housing, urban competition, the negotiation of locality/globality and the social organisation of science.
see also our research projects at the FFG website
explore our research network:
https://blog.gemeinschaffen.com/2026/02/03/transformationen-forschung-bei-realitylab/