The city of Kapfenberg, which is also home to one of the three FH JOANNEUM sites, is the third largest city in Styria and is dominated by the iron and steel industry. While numerous attractiveness measures have already been implemented in the city center, the region is still characterized by working-class settlements from the 1950s and 1960s with buildings in need of renovation and social segregation. In the SMART City Kapfenberg project, several optimization potentials are to be exploited simultaneously through cooperative planning processes, the integration of renewable energies and the enhancement of the quality of stay in the affected areas.
The key to achieving these goals lies in the participation of all stakeholders. These range from successful entrepreneurs to economically and socially disadvantaged marginalized groups.
HOCHSCHWAB settlement festival
As a kick-off event for the consistently user-centered, participatory and social innovation process, all interested parties were invited to the Europahaus in the Hochschwab settlement on March 31 to present initial ideas and, above all, to collect the wishes and ideas of the residents.
An improvisation theater group provided for loosening up, which represented the catchphrase from the visitor circle around the energy turnaround for the approximately 120 present persons once completely differently.
