S

Socialisation is a process by which private companies or owners are forced to hand over their property and means of production to society. This is possible in order to democratise control over essential resources and services and ensure that they are used in the public interest and not just to maximise profits for a few. Socialisation is linked to economic democracy as it basically aims to reduce the power and influence of large, private sector actors while increasing the participation of the population in economic decision-making. Democratic participation, as well as a more sustainable use of socialised goods and companies, is not necessarily guaranteed. It must be fought for, structurally anchored and practised and learnt by the reference groups of the respective object (e.g. expropriating tenants at Deutsche Wohnen & Co.).

Praxisbeispiele:

Deutsche Wohnen & Co. enteignen (DWE)

DWE is a Berlin-based initiative that aims to expropriate large private housing companies such as Deutsche Wohnen and transfer their flats to non-profit public ownership. The movement emerged from existing tenant initiatives and growing dissatisfaction with rising rents and a lack of affordable housing. The aim of socialisation is to stabilise the housing market and ensure affordable housing in the long term. The DWE's council model gives citizens a say in controlling a significant part of their lives.

VW steht für Verkehrswende

This initiative aims to put the Volkswagen Group at the service of the public transport transition. The idea is to socialise VW in order to switch production to sustainable mobility solutions and thus make a significant contribution to combating climate change. A socialisation of VW would place the production of vehicles and mobility services under public control, ideally ensuring that they are developed in the interests of the environment and the population, rather than serving the profit interests of the company.

RWE & Co. Enteignen

The campaign is calling for the energy company RWE to be socialised in order to drive forward the energy transition. RWE is one of the largest electricity producers in Germany and operates numerous coal-fired power plants. The socialisation is intended to reduce RWE's influence on energy policy and accelerate the transition to renewable energies. The transfer to public ownership is intended to democratise control over energy production and supply and ensure that this is in line with climate targets and the needs of society.