A region in transition: In northern Germany, the cities of Heide, Rendsburg, Neumünster and Kiel and their surrounding municipalities are currently initiating a comprehensive transformation process with the "Clean Energy Valley" initiative, which aims to make the region a leading location for the processing of renewable energies in Europe. This is creating new opportunities, but also challenges for the ecological and social organisation of the region. This is where the project "KoReGio100 - Co-creative, resilient urban-rural regions: jointly understanding, integrating and managing socio-ecological transformation processes in energy regions", funded by the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR), comes in.
KoReGio100 is establishing an innovative real-world laboratory in Clean Energy Valley to promote the development and long-term establishment of a "co-creative region" as a new form of governance. The aim is to involve civil society and business more actively in regional development processes, thereby saving resources in the long term and developing more sustainable solutions. This is based on analysing regional ecological boundaries, building social innovation capacity and developing formats for conflict resolution. The focus of the Social Innovation Capacity sub-project at HU Berlin is on the question of how different actors can work together better. This issue is not only being investigated scientifically, but also developed, tested and - if possible - permanently anchored in a real-world laboratory together with stakeholders in Schleswig-Holstein.
The tools, approaches and experiences developed by KoReGio100 in Clean Energy Valley are important for urban-rural regions throughout Germany and beyond. They provide a clear framework for how complex transformation processes can be co-creatively designed and managed. KoReGio100 is aimed at local and regional politicians, companies, civil society players and researchers. KoReGio100 is headed by Dr Katrin Martens (Humboldt-Universit?t zu Berlin) and Dr Meike Fienitz (Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research, ZALF). In addition to ZALF and Humboldt-Universit?t zu Berlin, the project partners also include Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg. The five-year project is being funded as part of the BMFTR's Social-Ecological Research (S?F) funding programme.
Contact
Dr Katrin Martens (HU Berlin)
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Dr Meike Fienitz (ZALF)
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