Unity and Diversity: German and Asian Municipalities Conference in Hildesheim

‘Sustainable? Urban-Rural Relations in Times of Climate Change’ – this was the title of the fourth Partnership Conference for German and Asian Municipalities, held on 26 to 28 September 2023. Over 80 participants from Germany, Armenia, India, Indonesia, Mongolia, the Philippines and Vietnam accepted the invitation from the Hildesheim – Padang (Indonesia) city-to-city partnership and from the Service Agency Communities in One World to attend the event in the municipality of Hildesheim in Lower Saxony. All attendees were looking forward not only to expert discussions, but also to face-to-face meetings, as the third Asia conference had to be held virtually due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The city of Hildesheim, represented by its mayor, Beate König, and her colleagues, proved to be an excellent host, enabling participants to easily strike up conversations during the city tours on offer, or during their evening meal together at the Butchers’ Guild Hall on the day of arrival.

After a welcome speech by Beate König, mayor of the city of Hildesheim and by her counterpart, deputy mayor Ekos Albar from Padang, an introduction to the 16 partnerships present, and a look ahead at the conference agenda, the participants started into the programme of the partnership conference on 27 September 2023. The event focussed on climate resilience – an issue currently presenting numerous challenges to cities in Germany, Asia, and worldwide. International discussion, however, often continues to pay too little attention to municipalities in rural regions.

Dr Shritu Shrestha from the Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy and Michael Schmitz, Deputy Head of the European Office of the German County Association in Brussels, were invited to take part in a panel discussion. Ulziijargal Tsenrenpurev, founder of the Mongolian non-governmental organization Eco Mommy, was the third person on the panel, representing also the partnership between Baruth/Mark and her home town, Murun.

As the first speaker, she gave a report on her grassroots organization, which specifically targets mothers, and advocates for responsible use of resources and disposal of waste, as well as calling for a return to Mongolia’s nomadic culture – one which consumes very few resources. In her view, making mothers their target group carries huge potential for expanding their impact: if women become role models of a sustainable lifestyle, this impacts future generations, as well as the male population, she argues. Her Eco Mommy movement has 4,000 members, and has reached 45,000 families so far.

Representing the German counties in the European Union, Michael Schmitz picked up the theme of the panel discussion title, ‘Climate Resilience: Potentials and Challenges in Rural Areas’, pointing out that the latter are particularly severe for rural communities. Rural areas are particularly affected by the shortage of skilled workers, but a lack of financial resources also presents a problem when promoting climate-resilient development in these areas. On the potential side, he mentioned the collaborative efforts of people living in small communities, most of whom are well-connected and highly engaged. Referring back to the previous speaker, he made a plea for promoting the engagement of women in rural areas. Schmitz also professed to be a fan of the type of pragmatism that characterizes planning and administrative structures in large parts of Asia, and appealed to German bureaucrats to learn something from it. He suggested more frameworks would be necessary to enable learning from each other.

In her speech, Dr Shritu Shrestha offered an academic perspective on the issue. In her view, climate resilience for municipalities means becoming aware of vulnerabilities to the impacts of climate change and conducting a risk assessment. They would then need to formulate specific risk planning to prepare for the impacts of extreme weather events. She also advocated targeting women directly in climate projects, as they are often the ones who bear responsibility within family structures, and are also particularly vulnerable when extreme climate events occur. In her closing statement, she called for more local and international cooperation. The key, she argued, is to learn from one another, and not succumb to silo thinking. Know-how and experience from all areas of society must be brought together. Municipalities should also have a greater voice at international level.

Participants spent the afternoon of the first conference day in five separate workshops offered by the partnerships. These focussed on topics such as smart cities, waste management and climate resilience, but also on sharing approaches and success factors for effective partnership work. Some partnerships are still looking for new working priorities, and used the workshops for inspiration – others were able to complete projects, and share their experiences and their achievement of important milestones.

The Open Spaces on the morning of 28 September were equally interactive. Ideas and suggestions had been requested the previous day. More than ten Open Spaces came together. The providers either requested input – for example on funding opportunities or the topic of environmental democracy – presented their own ideas and project experiences, or used the opportunity for collegial consultation. The workshop on inter-cultural communication was particularly popular. Participants were also free to move between groups, taking advantage of the variety of discussion topics on offer.

The conference programme was rounded off by a Market Place. Participants had the opportunity to talk with Hildesheim representatives of development initiatives and projects, and also gather information on further financial and human resources available at stands staffed by Engagement Global and the Service Agency Communities in One World.

The closing words of the conference were given by Kurt-Michael Baudach, Head of Department at SKEW, as he addressed the representatives of all the municipalities and partnerships. He expressed his awe at the great diversity of the participating partnerships, and his pleasure at the great interest and commitment to work on common issues in, or despite, difficult times. He also thanked the city of Hildesheim for its hospitality, and all those involved in the background for their commitment.

Report: Julia Krakau