BTU receives a Centre for Structural Change and Regional Development

ZeStuR researches how economic and social structural change can succeed in Lusatia and other regions undergoing structural change - and how politics, business and civil society can successfully shape it. To this end, ZeStuR combines social sciences, economics and planning sciences, which work together in an interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary manner with local stakeholders.

The centre consists of five thematic areas and a cross-sectional project that links the participating scientific disciplines. The topics are orientated towards the challenges faced by regions undergoing structural change:

• Vitalising regional innovation systems: How can an economic structure that is more open to innovation be funded?
• Labour market transformation arena: What are the socio-structural effects of the changes in the labour market and how can problems such as the development of skilled workers be solved constructively?
• Social cohesion and participation: How can social cohesion, participation, in social life and the vibrancy of places be strengthened with the aim of maintaining and improving the regional quality of life?
• Shaped living environments: What contributions can spatial and Urban Planning make with their tools to constructively deal with collective affiliations in transition regions, including in the field of tension with transformation scepticism?
• Conflicts about democracy and migration: What are the prerequisites and design options for a democratic everyday culture, for the organisation of inclusive education and for the participation of immigrants in Lusatia?

The centrepiece of the collaboration with practice partners is the transfer platform. It bundles data and knowledge in an open repository, publishes policy briefs and organises various regular formats in which administration, politics, associations, companies, civil society and research work together on solutions. In addition, the "Zukunftsschmiede Lausitz" (Lusatia forge of the future) is an open forum for all interested parties.

"Structural change is often perceived as a cause of uncertainty in affected regions. Long-term and recurring change processes in particular lead to transformation fatigue, which then manifests itself in political reactance. The ZeStuR wants to understand this tension - between the great promises of change and sceptically assessed everyday experiences - and research approaches to successfully shape structural change," says Prof. Dr. Jan Schnellenbach, Professor of Economics at BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg and Coordinator of the Centre for Structural Change and Regional Development.

Prof. Dr Gesine Grande, President of BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg, emphasises: "With the ZeStuR project, we are strengthening the "Global Change and Transformation Processes" profile line at BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg and combining excellent research in the social sciences with solutions for the people in Lusatia. With ZeStuR, we are intensifying the cooperative research between seven chairs at BTU and the numerous players in the region, which is exemplary for coping with structural change."

Federal Research Minister Dorothee Bär emphasises: "The transition in the Lusatian mining area will bring major changes for the local people as a result of the phase-out of lignite-fired power generation. It is important to me that this change succeeds and that the existing opportunities are utilised. The research carried out by the Centre for Structural Change and Regional Development is now making an important contribution to this. It provides knowledge and guidance to strengthen cohesion and successfully shape change processes, and not just in Lusatia."