How do new forms of housing begin? Who is initiating the process? One path we explore is activism as a driver of new housing models and projects, where grassroot protests and criticism lead to new ideas. For example, the Hellmutstraße housing began as a protest against the demolition of homes for 250 people to make way for a new telecommunications centre in the middle of Zurich. This specific protest led to a political shift, opening the door to the interim use of vacant buildings and ultimately to the founding of the Wogeno cooperative. An architectural competition then defined the final built project as the cooperatives first house in 1990.