Abstract

The urgently needed reorientation of our production methods and lifestyles in a sustainable, i.e. future-proof direction encounters manifold adversities. One of the deficits is that enormous amounts of money are spent daily for ultimately destructive purposes, while only "peanuts" are left over, for example, for concrete Local Agenda 21 projects. With the project agency Zukunftsfähiges Berlin (Sustainable Berlin), based at the IZT, a successful attempt was made in 1999 to contribute to the satisfaction of this need, as can be seen in this interim report. With a volume of almost one million DM available for three years, practical projects and activities are directly financially supported by the project agency. In the meantime, halfway through the term, more than twenty projects have received start-up funding of between DM 5,000 and DM 60,000. With these relatively small grants, however, many meaningful and concrete things could be realised and also a greater awareness about steps towards sustainability could be created. The funded projects are assigned to five fields of action: Ecological Management, Urban Development/Building/Housing/Environmentally Friendly Mobility, Living Environments/Education/Culture/Youth, One World/Development Cooperation and Cross-Field of Action Projects. In addition to an overview of the activities of the project agency, the report focuses on brief descriptions of the 21 projects. In addition, initial assessments of the project agency are formulated and, for example, typical deficits in the application process are pointed out. After the report on the public relations activities, the perspectives of LA 21 are discussed. The appendix contains documents from the project agency (e.g. award criteria) as well as internet addresses and best practice examples on the topic.

Authors

Göll, Edgar; Fay, Cordula; Kreibich, Rolf; Nolte, Roland; Schwanz, Georg

Fields of research

Education and Digital Media, Technology Assessment and Participation