It's mid-May and the thermometer in Berlin is already climbing above the 25-degree mark. It's hot and, like everywhere else in Berlin, nature is already battling the drought at Mehringplatz. In a HOWOGE building between Wilhelmstrasse and Friedrichstrasse, tenants have come together to support nature. With a watering sponsorship, a group of around ten women and men take over the daily watering and care of small areas of the green space - voluntarily in their free time, usually in the evenings. In the process, they get to know each other and have been growing together more and more as a tenant community since 2022.
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Watering sponsorships are a blessing for nature. And the neighborhood. A visit to the communal watering session at Mehringplatz in Kreuzberg.
HOWOGE supports the watering group financially and logistically. After it took over the residential complex in Berlin-Kreuzberg three years ago, the committed tenants, who have been organizing themselves in a tenant initiative for the property since 2019, received money for several watering carts as well as water hoses with adapters and garden tools. HOWOGE also provided two outside water taps and a lockable room to store the items.
Image: Together against the drought: Walied and Bela water as a team.
Co-initiator Martin Lochschmidt has lived in the house on Mehringplatz since 1999. Since he took over watering together with other tenants, support and a sense of community in the neighborhood have steadily increased. "The watering group is growing and changing. Anyone who sees what we do here wants to get involved," says Lochschmidt. Many people from the neighborhood come to help or donate money. Some bring tea and biscuits, people exchange ideas or meet at neighborhood festivals. Around 40 nations live here in the complex. Watering gets them talking.
Image: Bela in action – even the youngest help.
This is only emergency irrigation, explains Lochschmidt. Everything else cannot be done on a voluntary basis. "We are not gardeners," says the 56-year-old. This is also contractually agreed with HOWOGE. If sufficient irrigation is no longer guaranteed due to rainfall, then the water provided may only be used to water small bushes, new plantings and front gardens. This not only keeps water consumption within limits, but also leaves enough time for personal matters.
Image: Many tenants get to know each other (better) through watering: Insun (left) and Pua (right) support the group.
HOWOGE would like to support this cooperation even more in the future. With a so-called volunteer agreement, the landlord wants to work even more closely with its tenants and expand volunteer work - for good, neighborly coexistence and a livable living environment.