Quality of life in old age - think tank for good ageing in rural areas

In old age, health restrictions often occur that can make everyday life considerably more difficult. Physical ailments such as joint pain, deteriorating eyesight or hearing problems impair people's independence and often lead to social isolation. Loneliness and depression are a burden for many older people. In future, older people from the district of Spree-Neisse, the city of Cottbus and the German-Polish border region will be able to improve their situation at the new practical research centre of the Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus-Senftenberg (BTU).

Researchers from BTU and the Catholic University of Applied Social Sciences Berlin as well as experts from the Heinersdorf practical research centre are supporting the people in the project. The focus is on linking social and ecological sustainability with the quality of life in old age and shaping demographic change in a structurally weak region. The aim of those involved is to involve people in the change process and to find out how older people can be actively involved in shaping the change.

The Cottbus Practice Research Centre is launching the event "Shaping good ageing (together)". The aim is to bring science, civil society and practitioners in the region closer together. The exchange at the market of opportunities, with cool drinks and inspiring conversations is at the centre of the event.

Time: Tuesday, 9 September 2025, 3.30 pm to 7 pm
Location: Foyer in starting block B2, Siemens-Halske-Ring 2, Cottbus
Participation is free of charge. All interested parties are welcome.

About the AlterPerimentale transfer initiative

The practical research centre is part of the cross-university transfer initiative AlterPerimentale: Socio-technical innovations and socio-spatial experiments to improve the quality of life of older people in the German-Polish border region (Alter-Peripherie-Experiment). The initiative is a cooperation between the BTU'sSocial Services for Structurally Weak Regions and Regional Planning departments, the Social Work in the Digitalised Society chair at the Catholic University of Applied Sciences Berlin and the Heinersdorf Practice Research Centre. AlterPerimentale addresses the challenges of demographic change in the areas of services of general interest, health and care at regional level in order to enable a good life in old age in rural areas. It is initially being funded by the BMBF for three years (2023-2026) as part of the Transfer Spaces for the Future of the Regions (T!Raum) funding line and may receive funding for a further six years for continuation.

The transfer area of the entire initiative comprises the districts of Oder-Spree, Spree-Neisse and Görlitz as well as the independent city of Cottbus/Chóśebuz. The initiative was created through the civic engagement of the Heinersdorf practical research centre in the Oder-Spree district, which has been experimenting with the model of a practical research centre in rural areas since 2020. In addition, the Heinersdorf practical research centre acts as a source of ideas and a laboratory for the new practical research centres that have now been established as part of the initiative at the BTU in Cottbus and in cooperation with the Zittau-Görlitz University of Applied Sciences in the district of Görlitz.