Floating University Berlin

What Floating University Berlin does

Floating University Berlin (legally FLOATING E.V.) is a German registered non-profit association operating a single-site natureculture learning site and urban practice at the rainwater retention basin of the former Berlin Tempelhof Airport since 2018. The organization delivers a portfolio of free, community-based programs including Living Infrastructure (its 8-year umbrella initiative), Space for Practice (weekly Monday hands-on sessions), KidsUni (children's environmental education), Learnscapes, Hidden Threads (neighborhood program), and open-call initiatives such as Sensing Loss and the Creative Europe-funded SIT-PLU. It operates seasonally (May–October) with public open hours on Thursdays and Sundays, and offers guided tours by appointment.

The organization has no proprietary technology platform — its digital footprint consists of a website, newsletter, and social channels (Instagram, Facebook). Distribution of its educational offerings runs partly through partner institutions including VHS (adult education), Kieznaturkarte (community nature map), and a multi-year partner network (2018–2025). Its physical site at the Tempelhof rainwater basin is the core, irreplaceable asset around which all programming is organized.

Commercially, the entity is a donation- and grant-supported nonprofit with no pricing model: access is free, services are not sold, and voluntary contributions are accepted via PayPal. Revenue, if any, is not disclosed. The organization is privately held in the legal sense (E.V. structure), is not venture-backed, and operates with a 9-person core team. Customer segments are non-paying — general public visitors, families, neighborhood residents, and adult learners — making the entity functionally a cultural/educational civic institution rather than a commercial enterprise.

Name

Floating University Berlin

Legal name

FLOATING E.V.

Website

https://floatinguniversity.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Floating University Berlin (FLOATING E.V.) is a Berlin-based nonprofit running a free, seasonal natureculture learning site and urban practice at the former Tempelhof Airport rainwater basin since 2018. It serves the general public, families, and local residents through community programs, environmental education, and Creative Europe-funded cultural projects.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Berlin

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Support: Accepts public donations via PayPal. Operates as a nonprofit association (Floating E.V.) without commercial revenue model.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Floating University Berlin operates a free, seasonal natureculture learning site at the rainwater retention basin of the former Berlin Tempelhof Airport, offering the public weekly open access (May-October), guided tours by appointment, structured educational programmes (Living Infrastructure, Space for Practice, KidsUni, Learnscapes, Hidden Threads, Sensing Loss), adult-education courses via VHS partnership, and community-based neighbourhood initiatives. The offering is delivered at no cost and is sustained through donations, grants (including Creative Europe funding for SIT-PLU), and partner support rather than commercial transactions.

Product overview

Floating University Berlin is a natureculture learning site and urban practice initiative operating at the rainwater retention basin of the former Tempelhof Airport since 2018. Rather than a commercial product, it offers a portfolio of educational programs, community initiatives, and cultural projects. The core programs include Living Infrastructure (the overarching 8-year initiative), Space for Practice (weekly hands-on sessions), KidsUni (youth education), Learnscapes (learning landscapes), Hidden Threads (neighbourhood program), and specialized initiatives like BiberAmt (beaver agency), Sensing Loss, and SIT-PLU (Creative Europe Project). The site operates seasonally (May-October) with Open Thursdays and Sundays for public access, alongside guided tours, VHS courses, and a digital repository of publications.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• LIVING INFRASTRUCTURE: Core program focusing on living infrastructure practices at the site.
• KidsUni
• Learnscapes
• BiberAmt
• Hidden Threads
• Sensing Loss

Products and services

• Living Infrastructure A multi-year umbrella programme focused on urban ecological practice and natureculture learning at the Tempelhof Airport rainwater retention basin. Delivered free to the general public and community.
• Space for Practice Weekly hands-on practice sessions held on Monday mornings (9-11 am), focusing on direct urban ecological practice activities at the site. Free participation.
• KidsUni Educational programme for young explorers and families focused on urban ecology and natureculture learning at the site. Free participation.
• Learnscapes Annual learning landscape programme with yearly editions including "Academic Beach" and other ecological education activities at the site.
• Hidden Threads Neighbourhood programme exploring creative and cultural connections within the Tempelhof/Kreuzberg local community. Free participation.
• Sensing Loss Open-call programme focused on ecological sensing and awareness of environmental loss at the rainwater retention basin. Free participation.
• Situated Creative Practices for the Pluriverse (SIT-PLU) Creative Europe-funded project exploring situated creative practices for cultural diversity and pluriverse thinking, implemented in partnership with other European organisations.
• BiberAmt — Agency for a Beavered Berlin Programme dedicated to beaver conservation and urban wetland management in Berlin. Free public engagement.
• Open Thursdays Weekly public open-access sessions held Thursdays from 6-9pm during the seasonal open period (May-October). Free admission; no registration required.
• VHS Courses (Volkshochschule Tours and Workshops) Adult-education courses, tours, and workshops delivered in cooperation with the Volkshochschule (VHS) at the Floating University site.
• Guided Tours Guided tours of the Floating University site and rainwater retention basin, available to groups and educational visits by appointment via an online tour request form.
• Repository Digital archive of discoveries, publications, and research outputs including The School of Feral Grounds, Floating Minesweeper, The Basin as Hydrocommons, and graphic recordings from on-site programmes.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• KieznaturkarteminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner link to Kieznaturkarte (Neighborhood Nature Map) on floating-berlin.org. Cross-linking between community nature resources for Berlin Kreuzberg-Xhain area.
• VHS (Volkshochschule)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCooperation for VHS courses, tours and workshops. Educational programming partnerships bringing adult education courses to the site.
• Creative Europe (SIT-PLU)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEuropean Creative programme 'Situated Creative Practices for the Pluriverse' (SIT-PLU). Funded by Creative Europe. Multi-year artistic and cultural collaboration.
• Partners 2018-2025coreOthersMulti-year partner programme spanning 2018-2025. Full partner list available at floating-berlin.org/association/partners/. Includes various organisations supporting urban practice and natureculture learning site.
• Instagram and FacebookminorOthersSocial media presence on Instagram (@floatinguniversity) and Facebook (@floatinguniversity). Used for community engagement and programme promotion.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Prinzessinnengarten: Berlin-based community-led urban garden with educational programming and volunteer activation; shares the same nonprofit, free-access, neighborhood-engagement model anchored in a distinctive urban-ecological site.
• ICI Berlin: Berlin nonprofit for cultural inquiry and public programming; peer as a small, mission-driven Berlin institution hosting free public learning events via grants and partnerships.

Broad incumbents

• Haus der Kulturen der Welt (HKW): Berlin institution producing interdisciplinary cultural and educational programs with public access; comparable as a Berlin nonprofit combining programming, exhibitions and public learning without a traditional classroom model.
• Stiftung Bauhaus Dessau: Established foundation operating educational/cultural programs at a heritage site; broad comparable as a long-running nonprofit institution combining public programming, pedagogy, and architectural/ecological themes.
• Eden Project: Cornwall, UK destination combining botanical/ecological displays with educational programming and ticketed programming; comparable as a large-scale nature-and-learning site, though commercial and destination-scale vs. Floating's free, intimate site.
• NYC High Line: Urban reuse / ecology nonprofit operating programming on a unique linear public space; relevant comparable for activating a singular urban infrastructure site with education, community and stewardship programs.

Others

• Urbane Praxis / Werkbund (urban-practice network): German urban-practice network (Werkbund / Wir bauen Stadt) advancing community-led urban development and education; adjacent peer for shared urban-practice methodology and discourse community.

Regional players

• Tempelhof Projekt GmbH: Manages Berlin's Tempelhof Field, the same broader municipal site where Floating operates its retention basin; adjacent/strategically related as the surrounding park operator governing access and context.

Emerging players

• Brooklyn Grange Farm: Urban farming operation with strong educational programming and public events; overlap on urban-ecology education and community programming, though more commercially oriented.
• Floating Farm Rotterdam: Floating dairy and urban-agriculture project; partial overlap on the 'floating/water' urban-ecology thematic frame and educational/visibility dimension, though production-focused.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xinstagram.com/floatinguniversity
• Facebookfacebook.com/floatinguniversity
• Instagraminstagram.com/floatinguniversity
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/floating-university-berlin

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Floating University Berlin