MITTE-FEST

On both days, the festival will offer free expert tours of the Parochial Church and its surroundings, exhibitions on the centre, live music and, on Saturday afternoon, tea dances, theatre, inexpensive snacks, evening lectures and discussions. Twelve civic associations that have been committed to the Mitte district for many years are co-organisers of the festival and will be available to answer questions from interested parties on both days.

Dr Benedikt Goebel, Deputy Chairman of the Mitte Berlin Foundation: "When we talk about the centre of Berlin, we don't mean Unter den Linden or Alexanderplatz, nor Spittelmarkt or Hackescher Markt - but the area in between, which is surrounded by the Spree Canal and the city railway: One of Berlin's 880 square kilometres, the most important, the heart of the city. This urban space is above all the result of the urban planning policies of the two German dictatorships of the 20th century. The 21st century faces the task of turning Berlin's former historic centre back into the heart of the city."

Since it was founded in 2022, the Mitte Berlin Foundation has been committed to a lively and mixed neighbourhood in the heart of the city. It advocates that future city centre districts should consist of blocks of houses divided into plots with harmonious, contemporary new buildings with a 30 per cent share of social housing.

On the occasion of the MITTE-FEST, the citizens' associations publish the "Berlin Declaration on Urban Development", which demands that new city neighbourhoods must not only be pedestrian-friendly and climate-friendly, but should also accommodate people from all over the world who can meet openly in them - regardless of their origin, religion and financial means.