ABSTRACT
Germany has been experiencing an increasing housing shortage, especially in large cities, and the lack of accessible social housing is leading to an increasing number of homeless people, social inequalities and poverty. The Sustainable Development Goals 1, 10 and 11 particularly address an improvement in the housing situation. Tiny Houses have the potential to reduce inequalities by offering shelter to homeless people, providing an affordable alternative for people with low incomes, or reintegrating people into society. There is a lack of scientific debate on sustainability impacts and the reduction of inequalities. The study examines the extent to which Tiny Houses may serve as Bottom of the Pyramid (BOP) Innovations for the German market and whether they can help to reduce inequalities. Deductively derived principles for innovations in these markets were analysed by conducting expert interviews with relevant Tiny Houses stakeholders (an association, an NGO, a manufacturer and a blogger) in August 2019. Based on this, potentials and challenges have been derived and analysed within the scope of social, ecological and economic sustainability priorities using content analysis as proposed by Mayring. The results of the study point to a transferability of the underlying form of housing to the BOP principles and illustrate possible applicability. The possibility of reintegrating people into society through Tiny Houses should be highlighted in addition to the resulting implications and hypotheses.
