Neighborhood and Community Migration Center Kotti e.V.

Kotti e.V. has been working in the area around Kottbusser Tor in Kreuzberg since 1986. Through its community work, the district centre aims to address socio-cultural processes, identify needs and develop appropriate services for local residents, while also helping them to network with each other. The association relies on a network of independent activities, cooperation and support, and follows the motto: have a say, get involved, help shape the future.

The design of the services is always coordinated with the actual target group to ensure that their needs are truly understood and met. The association also sees itself as a bridge between citizens and politics/administration and wants to give people the space to communicate their needs and concerns and thus make them more visible. To this end, Kotti e.V. also offers other initiatives a space to organise themselves, thereby promoting self-organisation. Another focus of its work is the creation of communicative and cultural offerings to promote greater understanding between population groups and generations. The family garden hosts mostly free art and cultural events, socio-political discussions, sports and exercise activities, and creative workshops.

KOTTImobil

The KOTTImobil project complements the community work carried out by the district centre, with a focus on education and recognition counselling. During the joint discussion, it became clear how opaque the procedures for the recognition and evaluation of foreign educational qualifications/professional qualifications and degrees are and how long this process can take, partly due to the rigid structures of the administration. As the process varies depending on the occupational group (regulated/unregulated), country of origin, university and federal state in Germany, it is particularly important that applicants are supported by advice centres such as KOTTImobil.

List of sources

Eberhart, Cathy (1995): Jane Addams (1860 – 1935) Social Work, Social Pedagogy and Reform Policy. Heidelberg: European University Press.

Engelke, Ernst/ Borrmann, Stefan/ Spatscheck, Christian (2018): Theories of Social Work.
Work. Freiburg im Breisgau: Lambertus-Verlag.

Kotti e.V. (n.d.): https://kotti-berlin.de/

Oelschlägel, Dieter (2001): Fundamentals of Community Work, in Hans-Uwe Otto/Hans Thiersch (eds.): Handbook of Social Work. Neuwied, Kriftel: Luchterhand.

Schüler, Anja (2004): Women's Movement and Social Reform. Stuttgart: Franz Steiner Verlag.

Stövesand, Sabine / Stoik, Christoph (2013): Handbook of Community Work. Traditions and Positions, Concepts and Methods. Opladen/Berlin/Toronto: Verlag Barbara Budrich.