Four villages from Olpe are fighting for the title Our village has a future!”

Four villages from Olpe are fighting for the title Our village has a future!”

The anticipation in the villages of the Olpe district is great, because from Monday, June 30th, they will be in the race for the title in the “Our Village has a Future” competition. Four villages from the region – Schönau-Altenwenden, Rehringhausen, Bilstein and Hülschotten – have qualified and can now hope for the expert commission’s assessments. Loud LocalPlus The commission will visit all four villages until July 10th and return again in the first week of September after the summer break to deepen its impressions.

How is it evaluated? The villages are examined based on a total of four criteria: from concept development to economic initiatives and infrastructure improvements to social and cultural life as well as the respectful treatment of building culture, nature and the environment. The overall impression of the villages is also taken into account in the rating. All participants then receive written feedback with tips for further development, which provides valuable support for many villages to further develop and grow.

A look at the awards ceremony

The big awards ceremony will take place in November 2025, where the villages will be awarded plaques, certificates and handsome prize money. There are also special prizes for special achievements and great projects for the best villages. Whoever ends up at the top can look forward to prize money of 3,500 euros, while the silver villages receive 2,500 euros and the bronze villages receive 1,000 euros. In this context, it should be mentioned that the state gold villages can even qualify for the federal competition in 2026 - a motivating perspective for the candidates.

In another competition dedicated to village life, which took place last Saturday in Salzkotten, 23 places were awarded prizes, such as: Heroes Repetal reported. Here, among others, the village of Helden received the bronze plaque and prize money of 500 euros. The only downside: The event gathered numerous people present in the “Sälzerhalle”, including representatives of the “Our Village” working group, all of whom made a committed contribution to the development of the rural community.

The role of rural regions

The topic of village development is not only important for the participants in the competition. In general, rural regions, such as those found in the Olpe district, offer a high quality of life. But active village communities are crucial for the shape and future of these villages. The Federal Minister for Food and Agriculture highlights that civic engagement and creative ideas are at the heart of development, especially for young people and families. However, the challenges should not be underestimated: declining population numbers can endanger local supplies and make the renovation of houses expensive.

This makes it all the more important that communities work together and find innovative solutions. Promoting local cooperative suppliers or digital offerings are just a few ways that rural regions can be boosted. Competitions such as “Our Village has a Future” play a key role in this by stimulating exchange and making the best concepts visible.

Overall, it is clear that rural development is a dynamic field and there are many actors who are working with a lot of passion to keep their villages alive and sustainable. The “Our Village has a Future” competition is just one building block in this large mosaic.