Innovations in rural areas: connecting town and country!

Innovations in rural areas: connecting town and country!

In Germany there is an increasingly noticeable divide between urban and rural areas. The lack of interest in the realities of each other's lives as well as deeply rooted prejudices make exchange difficult. Futurologists hope that the development potential of rural areas is far from being fully exhausted, especially in comparison to urban areas. However, factors such as innovation, which are usually viewed from an urban perspective, could significantly change the dynamic. As Nordkurier reports, there is an increasingly intensive exchange between scientists and practitioners in order to shed light on these potentials.

The Leibniz Institute for Spatial Social Research recently invited practitioners from North Frisia and Ludwigslust-Parchim to talk together about ways to identify innovations in rural regions. An important goal: to clarify the necessary prerequisites for a successful innovation process in rural areas. It became clear that financial resources are often the biggest obstacle, as many rural communities do not have the necessary financial resources. Volunteer local politicians are often overloaded with urgent tasks and encounter difficulties in obtaining the necessary funding. This can cause worry and uncertainty and slow down projects.

Innovations and value creation in rural areas

In a further step, the Federal Agency for Civic Education emphasizes the relevance of innovative approaches. Innovation is defined not only as the introduction of new products or processes, but also as an interactive and systematic approach that transfers creative ideas into different contexts. However, in rural areas there is often a lack of a denser concentration of innovative actors and supporting structures. Despite these challenges, rural businesses can still be innovative based on practical experience.

However, such an innovation system requires close cooperation between companies, universities and research institutions. Regions like Western Pomerania show that innovative value creation is also possible in rural areas, for example through the high-quality processing of plant-based raw materials. Digitalization also plays a crucial role because it offers opportunities to develop alternative living and working models that are important for rural professions.

Overall social context and new perspectives

A discussion about the challenges of the urban-rural dichotomy led to an online workshop by the Federal Institute for Building, Urban and Spatial Research (BBSR). In this context, new approaches were presented to redefine the boundaries between urban and rural areas, including using remote sensing data. Among other things, the diversity of rural areas, which should be viewed pluralistically, was discussed. This makes it clear that dealing with rural structures and their potential is of great importance in order to promote value creation and innovative strength there.

In order to make rural regions more attractive places, it is necessary to develop an awareness of the opportunities and potential. The Develup Future Center in the Ludwigslust-Parchim district serves as a contact point for innovative projects and is intended to network actors with one another, while the Eiderstedt project house aims to bundle ideas. Overall, good ideas are heavily dependent on cooperation with the local administration, which must be included in innovation processes in order to act flexibly and adaptably.

In the future, the right steps and overcoming innovation blockages will be necessary to ensure a prosperous future for rural areas. In this way, the divide between urban and rural areas could develop into a stronger connection that leverages both creative and technical advances. The key to success lies in shared dialogue and the willingness to try new things.