In November 2024, The Action Lab, in partnership with Housing Justice For All, led a transformative learning delegation to Barcelona, Spain, bringing together over 60 tenants, organizers, and advocates. Participants joined international housing leaders at the 15th-anniversary conference of Plataforma de Afectados por la Hipoteca (PAH), a pioneering tenant advocacy organization. Together, they explored strategies to decommodify housing, strengthen tenant power, and address pressing global housing challenges.
The delegation tackled critical topics, including direct action, resisting authoritarianism, and innovative legal frameworks for tenant protections. Field trips to cooperative housing projects like La Borda and meetings with Catalan tenant unions showcased successful models of tenant-led initiatives. Delegates also participated in workshops and actions that highlighted Barcelona’s history of resistance and its innovative approaches to housing justice.
As part of the delegation, participants met with Ada Colau, former Mayor of Barcelona and co-founder of Plataforma de Afectados por la Hipoteca (PAH). Colau shared insights from her journey, transforming grassroots housing activism with the PAH into systemic change through Barcelona en Comú, the citizen platform that brought her to the mayoralty in 2015. Under her leadership, Barcelona pioneered bold policies to address housing inequality. Her reflections on bridging activism and governance offered invaluable lessons on integrating community-led movements with institutional strategies, equipping delegates with inspiration and practical approaches to advance housing justice in the United States.
This experience equipped delegates with practical tools and inspiration to combat corporate landlords, advocate for affordable housing policies, and shift power to tenants. Insights from the trip will inform U.S.-based campaigns and be shared widely through public report-backs, creative projects, and ongoing collaboration with global housing movements. By connecting with Barcelona’s dynamic housing justice initiatives, The Action Lab is fostering international solidarity and driving forward solutions to the housing crisis.
