Last Thursday, as part of the BMBF-funded project 'Urban-Rural Assembly' (URA) led by the Habitat Unit, the first multiple-actor workshop took place in Nordhausen, Thuringia. The workshop marked the initiation of a strategic planning process that will be implemented this year and carried out by Sino-German scientists of the URA project. This is a collaborative process in cooperation with representatives from political, administrative, and civil society in Nordhausen, as well as the Berlin-based planning office Urban Catalyst GmbH and IBA Thüringen GmbH. The expert workshop aimed to identify and discuss the potential for sustainable socio-ecological and climate-friendly development within the wider region of Nordhausen. Representatives from the region collaborated on the topics of energy, resources, and everyday landscapes, of which the results were compiled on a model of the region.

The Sino-German project URA is funded by the BMBF for six years. It focuses on the interdisciplinary investigation of urban-rural linkages and material flows in the regions of Huangyan-Taizhou in China and Nordhausen in Thuringia. Besides more multi-disciplinary and holistic approaches to research on urban-rural linkages, the project aims to develop and mainstream new planning and governance tools that promote integrated development between urban and rural areas.

Photography: Jörg Gläscher