As the summer is here, so are the news about the first edition of the Creative Danurban Competition! On the 16th of May, the first phase of the competition – submitting an Expression of interest – was closed. A total of 17 applicants submitted their proposals. The proposals are broad, showing the large scale of creativity of young Danubians who all show a big desire and want to offer their work to improve the quality of life in their urban localities.

The ideas range from large scale infrastructural projects supporting religious tourism to small scale interventions enhancing the well-being of children in residential neighbourhoods. Some ideas deal with saving the environment and active participation of individuals, while others are developing a whole business plan for the future.

The Creative Danurban Competition will get even more interesting after the evaluated participants proceed to the second stage to develop their creative ideas fully. We are looking forward to hearing from them!

 The aim of the workshop was to provide room for sharing ideas regarding culture and creative industries in present times and especially what will be the future of this activities in the Danube region and beyond.

It was also a wonderful opportunity to present the conclusions and decisions taken in the 9-th International Danube Conferences on Culture – “Staying strong together” in Ulm, Germany, 08-10 May 2022. With that occasion, Prof. Alexandru Marin, lead partner and project manager of RESTART_4Danube project, made a synthetic presentation of its essential contributions, emphasizing the innovative approach of the five city tandems designing and piloting specific Local Action Plans, and the important contribution of several Creative Service Hubs, developed at the level of municipalities from small and medium sized cities in the Danube region.

On 2 June 2022, projects CINEMA and RESTART_4Danube together with PA3 and PA8 as well as other policy makers organized an online workshop, in which they used an interactive design approach. The aim was to take a view into the mid- and long-term future of the Danube Region and explore what a livable city for the next generation would look like.

What: Projects CINEMA and RESTART_4Danube (both 3rd call DTP projects) both aim to foster (sustainable) urban regeneration through enhanced involvement of and collaboration with creative industries. The two projects have been cooperating closely since the beginning of the project implementation, most of their meetings we have also regularly publicized here in our former newsletter. Because of their focus points, their activities fit perfectly at the intersection of PA3 and PA8 activities.

The future is more than the linear continuation of the present. Therefore, we have used in this workshop an interactive design approach to take a view into the mid- and long-term future of the Danube Region. What would be the preferable or desirable future? In an interactive and co-creation workshop and divided in three groups, we looked at different aspects of the future time perspective of medium and small towns and cities in the Danube Region. Using an interactive collaboration board for the breakout sessions, participants were guided by a group coordinator through different questions to explore what a livable city for the next generation would look like, constructing our vision for the next 10 to 15 years about livable next generation cities.

What we hoped to have achieved through this workshop:

Most importantly, we strived at raising the visibility of our projects’ activities and results. The high number of interested parties showed that this goal was achieved. We engaged in a mutual communication on an important topic with policy level and facilitated policy-design at the level of the two projects.

RESTART_4Danube definitely got valuable input and feedback which will feed our project activities. During our final events in November 2022, we will present/discuss recommendations.

PA3 and PA8 also came together, exchanged on common topics and strengthened their synergies.

Follow the results and conclusion of this workshop on our project’s website(s):

CINEMA: https://dtp.interreg-danube.eu/cinema

RESTART_4Danube: https://dtp.interreg-danube.eu/restart-4danube

Your contact persons:

Dr. Clémentine Roth (clementine.roth@steinbeis-europa.de)

Grit Ackermann (grit.ackermann@gzs.si)

The main aim of COCO4CCI - a project with similar interests as RESTART_4Danube – was to connect the Culture and Creative Industry (CCI) with companies in advanced manufacturing (AVM). The goal was to build capacities for cross-sectoral cooperations and to foster innovation processes by bringing both worlds together in creating a transnational CCI collider network.  

At the end of March 2022, the project came to an end. In its final conference, the partnership once again came together to talk about experiences and learnings and invited experienced speakers from all over Europe to share their advices. The conference was guided by the question "How can we bring creative industries and non-creative industries closer together?"

The talks were recorded, summarized and published in a publication titled "Creative Collaborations for the Future“. The recording is now available on the project website: https://www.interreg-central.eu/Content.Node/COCO4CCI/Publication--Creative-collaborations-for-the-future.html

Feel free to download and share it!

From 12 – 14 April 2022, as we already predicted in the former newsletter, the consortium could finally meet in person and enjoy a full programme of interesting and informative project activities and events in Vratsa, Bulgaria, the home city of our partners CCI-Vratsa and Municipality of Vratsa. 

The trip started with a study visit on the first day and a visit to Ledenika Amusement Park, Ledenika cave and Vratsata pass as examples of good practices for green regeneration. Next day, the 1st City Summit took place, presenting the 5 project Local action plans (LAPs) – which will also be detailed in a coming section in this newsletter – as well as the Integrated Project of the Municipality of Vratsa for the development of tourism in the area and the historical route "On the route of Botev's detachment". Following this link below, you can find a summary of the trip published by the Municipality of Vratsa on their Facebook channel: https://www.facebook.com/obshtinavratsa.

The lead partner of RESTART_4Danube project, University Politehnica of Bucharest, organised on 18 May 2022 a training on “Urban Innovation Management” in the beautiful capital city of Romania. 

The aim of this activity was to provide information for new digital skills that are in line with the technological and industrial development of the cultural and creative industries, focusing on the adoption of digital and electronic skills and the acquisition of necessary skills. The event was organized in a hybrid format. Physically, 37 people were present, both project partners and external stakeholders.

The "Urban Innovation Management" training was structured in two distinct parts. In the first part, our colleagues from the Croatian Chamber of Commerce (CEC) made a presentation related to Finding goals for innovation and S3 through cluster initiative approach, and Cities, culture and creativity. In the second part of the training, Mr. Alexandru Marin discussed case studies and open dialogue, and a guest, the manager from IRECSON spoke about Administrative Survey Questions Regarding Number of Innovations, Innovation Effectiveness, and Innovation Management Capacity. 

After the training, the delegation visited the museum of the Cotroceni Palace in Bucharest and then, in the evening, had dinner at the "Carul cu Bere" restaurant in the recently revitalized Old city center of Bucharest. These are some of the most important objectives in Bucharest, they are beautiful must-sees full of history.

The RESTART_4Danube-project team from CUAS is looking forward to the visit the partners will make in Villach on the 22nd and 23rd of June 2022. We will be warmly welcoming our project partners at the Carinthia University of Applied Science, in the technology park Villach.

Here, the program will comprise a training on Creativity & Urban Governance and a city tour starting in the technology park Villach. There will be a great opportunity to increase one’s own network with international contacts and get direct impressions from several masterminds of entrepreneurship. In the next newsletter, we will tell you all about our exiting encounters!

Individual pictures: ©Zametter 2022

Villach has continuously gained in importance in recent years. The city is growing steadily and is a place with a high quality of life. Locals, guests and also businesses appreciate that. Art and culture, the creative industries in general, are taking a more and more important role in the life of the city. Because we want to show these aspects to the world, the project partners will be asked to attend a photo challenge during the city tour, entitled “Creative Urban Development”. From each stop, five pictures will be selected based on the criteria: originality, relevance, impact, sustainability and transferability. These will be implemented in a virtual gallery on the project website. So, stay tuned!

Finally, all project partners are invited to celebrate with CUAS the 25th years anniversary of the School of Management.

Kathrin Stainer-Hämmerle, Thomas Zametter & Kathrin Zupan

The Romanian LAP will support the Regional Innovation Strategies for Smart Specialisation (RIS3) priorities on the development of regional cultural & creative industries. The Local Municipal Council of Craiova and IPA Craiova cooperated with the cross-border centre for supporting creative industries in their town and the partners involved in the CreatWin project, thus integrating a cross-border dimension (Romania, Bulgaria).

The LAP has the goal of supporting physical and economic regeneration of urban areas and thereby focuses on physical infrastructure and regeneration of places.

The evolution of the LAP is running as planned. The Local Administration approved all the actions, and the Regional Operational Plan is financing them.

Our Croatian partners are very active in implementing their Local action plan (LAP)! Up to the present moment, they have already implemented and tested two of their planned actions:

Action 1: 3DITion workshop successfully implemented

The 3DITion workshop is one of two actions defined in Rijeka Local action plan, developed within the RESTART_4Danube project under the topic ‘Sustainable regeneration of industrial building’. The purpose of the workshop was to introduce modern 3D technology to entrepreneurs, future entrepreneurs, professors and students and how to use it in production process to facilitate innovation and creativity. The workshop took place on March 31, 2022 in Production park Torpedo (PP Torpedo) in Rijeka – a business incubator and expert center for additive and 3D technology, which is located in a recently refurbished industrial hall. A total of 30 participants were included into practical demonstrations of modeling, scanning and printing at high-end industrial equipment.

3DITion workshop was organized in collaboration with project partners City of Rijeka and Croatian Chamber of Economy, as well as with external stakeholder Rijeka Development Agency Porin, which is in charge for managing PP Torpedo. The first of two Rijeka LAP actions raised a great interest among targeted audience, enhancing the level of practical knowledge in 3D technology, entrepreneurial skills and innovation potential. Moreover, this pilot action, tending to become a regular PP Torpedo activity, is contributing to its sustainability by implementing new and useful programs, primarily for the industrial and academic sector.

Action 2: Children introduced to 3D technology in renewed Rijeka facilities

The educational workshop 3D RInovatoRI was implemented on April 13, 2022 in two refurbished and repurposed industrial buildings in Rijeka - Children’s House and Production park Torpedo, as the second action of Rijeka LAP. It was based on the conclusions collected in the Rijeka Policivil workshop on April 14, 2021. One of those conclusions clearly stated that the advanced technology needs to be introduced to children from an early age. In this regard, action 2 of Rijeka LAP focuses on bringing 3D technology closer to the youngsters, contributing to the new purpose and sustainability of renewed buildings.

As City of Rijeka already runs a program to develop entrepreneurial skills in children called ‘RInovatoRI’, the 3D workshop was designed as an integral part of it. The local Youth Center – a specialized institution for children’s educational and creative programs of the City of Rijeka – organized the workshop together with Rijeka City Library, which is responsible for the Children’s House, and Rijeka Development Agency Porin, which is responsible for managing the Production park Torpedo.

The purpose of the 3D RInovatoRI workshop was to introduce 3D technology to the 27 children aged 11-14 who attended the workshop in 2 main perspectives:

how the basic process of 3D printing and modeling is working was demonstrated by using common hobby 3D printer and equipment in Children’s House
how the industrial 3D scanning, modeling and printing is working in business was presented on high-end technology of Production park Torpedo.

Considering all benefits delivered by 3D RInovatoRI workshop, City of Rijeka decided that this workshop, after initial testing within RESTART_4Danube project LAP, will become permanent and integral part of educational program RInovatoRI. Every year all the participants (children aged 11-14) from RInovatoRI program will be able to benefit of 3D sessions, which will include basic education in 3D technology and visits to Production park Torpedo.

The Maribor tandem is working hard on the successful implementation of the LAP. While the third action which focuses on recommendations for the local strategy Smart City of Maribor will only start in July, the implementation of the first two pilot actions is already in full swing.

The core of the first pilot action is to create a common platform for actors of cultural and creative industries which will promote their work in a new and still underexplored manner. The application which is currently being developed will enable passengers on public transportation to access relevant information about cultural and creative events, actors, and other related contents during their commute. To ensure that the voices of the creative community are heard, the University of Maribor and the Municipality of Maribor are simultaneously running a series of co-creation events focusing on the contents, development and promotion of the app.

The first two events were organized in the form of workshops and took place on the 20th of April and 20th of May. Representatives from local museums, cultural associations, support organizations were among those who participated along with the main public transportation provider Marprom, a key stakeholder considering the specific LAP topic. During the first workshop in April participants engaged in a lively discussion, elaborated their points of view, and gave plenty of food for thought to the RESTART_4Danube partners developing the collaborative platform. During the second session in May participants received an update on the development of the application and were invited to participate in the third co-creation event which will be taking place on the 10th of June. Contrary to the first two workshops, this last event will be organized in the form of a small street fair in the Main Square in Maribor and will aim to promote the results of the first pilot action, the newly created mobile platform, and the work of the RESTART_4Danube project among the general public.

In January 2022, the Hungarian partners started the prepation of the implementation of the Local Action Plan. Within the first action, a mobile application will be developed by the end of the year in cooperation with CCI actors and students. The aim of the action is to develop a mobile application which focuses on how a heritage site can be rethought in Vas County.

Several brainstorming meetings took place in the past months with their main stakeholder: iASK – Institut of Advanced Studies Kőszeg. The mission of iASK is to bring together a critical  mass of intellectually open, courageous and knowledge-sharing practitioners. They renovated long-abandoned, historical buildings, in which nowdays educational activities, lectures, exhibitions are held and these have been home to libraries, conferences, workshops.

iASK is:

• a transdisciplinary research centre whose activities span the world of science from quantum physics to music and the arts;
• a venue for conferences, seminars, workshops and other for each year, mostly open to the general public, in person and online;
• a home to relevant and cutting-edge research through the interaction between senior and early-career researchers;
• a provider of policy recommendations for a wide range of public stakeholders;
• active in addressing present European historical, social and political issues with special attention to Central and Eastern Europe as well as the Balkans.

Currently, PBN is working on the development of the mobile application within Action I. They are cooperating with artists and researchers in creating the content and designing the application.

The Bulgarian Local Action Plan is a strategic document that is being developed to create conditions for the implementation of the concept of green spaces, such as an urban regeneration strategy and to develop ways to integrate this concept into training practices in the field of urbanism and landscape architecture. It concerns the improvement of the framework for a new model of urban regeneration involving the creative and cultural industries. The action plan aims to increase the green areas in the city of Vratsa and the use of natural resources as places for recreation, as a prerequisite for the development of the urban environment.

Based on these conclusions, the Municipality of Vratsa identified two main actions of the Bulgarian LAP:

• A campaign to raise awareness about the green urban spaces and historical heritage in the town;
• Organization of a city picnic in the area of "Hristo Botev" Sports Complex.

In March 2022, Goodspaces SteamWork has opened its doors as a coworking space on the site of an old steam carpentry in Karlsruhe. Covering around 3.000 square meters, there is so much to find here: companies and start-ups from different industries, next to plenty of regular networking events as well as public events from the areas of impact, art, culture and business. Furthermore, the combination of business with culture & creativity can be seen in the rooms and on the walls. 

What events can we look forward to at SteamWork?

SteamWork plans to host regular public events from the areas of impact, art, culture and business. This creative coworking space uses the Design Thinking method to shape its events, with the goal to connect people and inspire new projects. In this way, SteamWork aspires to enrich not only its own community, but also the general urban society.

Article inspired from: https://www.k3-karlsruhe.de/news/steamwork-karlsruhe-eroeffnet

The Prizma Foundation is a private non-profit organization established in 2011 with its headquarters located in the capital of the Slovenian Styria region - Maribor. Their main activities revolve around lifelong career development, strategic human resource management, and social economy and innovation. They are also one of the key stakeholders involved in the implementation phase of RESTART_4Danube local action plan by providing their unique point of view during the series of co-creation events organized by the Municipality of Maribor and the University of Maribor.

While the development of skills for the workforce of the future is central to their operations, the foundation also emphasises the transition towards a smarter, greener, more sustainable and competitive Podravje and Eastern Cohesion Region, especially under Objective 1 (Smarter EU) and Objective 4 (More social EU) of the Regional Development Program Podravje 2021 - 2027. In their work they strive to establish constructive cooperation with other stakeholders actively involved in regional development (MRA, ORA, RRS) as well as other key actors.

Some of the projects which are currently being implemented by The Prizma Foundation are:

• eDigiStars – Building of digital entrepreneurial capacities of the elderly through the innovative training system
• Fem4Forest – Forests in Women’s Hands
• SEED – School/Enterprise Experiences go Digital

The vision of the Prizma Foundation is to become a key partner in developing human potential and creating a supportive environment for employment and work. Their mission is to use innovative approaches to create opportunities for companies and organizations, discover and advance career prospects of individuals and contribute to the development of society as a whole.

Dear project partners,

We dearly invite you from 18-20 July 2022 to come visit us in Karlsruhe! We will visit many local CCIs, both policy makers and SMEs, get a speach from a representative of a start-up ecosystem for urban innovation, take a brewery tour to see how quality German beer is brewed. In between all these creative stops, we will enjoy the beauties of Karlsruhe, the first city to become an UNESCO Creative City of Media Arts in Germany.

Detailed information and pics taken during the trip will appear in our next newsletter, so don't forget to follow us!

Have a great summer, enjoy our newsletter and who knows?! Maybe you all can join at one event or the other, since now we can and will be extremely glad to meet you in person!

Stay tuned!