Regional integration

Increasing resource and raw material efficiency and turning by-products and waste streams into high-quality bio-based materials can strengthen bioeconomic value creation in rural areas. As part of the program “Initiativen zur Weiterentwicklung der Leitregion Nachhaltige Bioökonomie Baden-Württemberg” (Initiatives to further develop Baden-Württemberg as a leading region for sustainable bioeconomy), Baden-Württemberg’s Ministry of Food, Rural Affairs and Consumer Protection is funding the “RE2combine” project, among others.

Its goal is to develop and expand regional bio-based value chains and networks in the Karlsruhe TechnologyRegion. The focus is on the food, wood and paper, and bioenergy industries. Relevant stakeholders from industry, academia, and administrations are provided with information, connected with each other in networks, and supported in realizing collaborative projects up to pilot studies.

As a subcontractor, Fraunhofer ISI provides professional, conceptual and methodological support to the team at Karlsruhe TechnologyRegion GmbH. The researchers analyze value chains, conduct workshops and organize networking events. A forum is planned to present innovations from the bioeconomy, and support is offered for demonstration and pilot projects. The final documentation and communication of the project’s results are intended to raise awareness for the bioeconomy, particularly among the target groups.

The search for local solutions to the heating transition that are reliable, effective and socially acceptable in the long term is one of the biggest challenges facing the housing sector. When carrying out energy-related renovations and expanding heat supply in neighborhoods, decisions are often made that are problematic because they do not sufficiently take into account the differing, sometimes conflicting needs of tenants and the housing industry.

Together with housing associations in Karlsruhe, Leipzig and Bochum that are affiliated with the project, the WÄRME4ALLE (heat4all) project aims to develop a transparent and participatory planning process that is in line with a resilient and socially acceptable heating transition. This could be transferred to other neighborhoods in Germany in the future.

The participatory approach brings local stakeholders together in networks, enables knowledge sharing and self-empowerment, and involves tenants in decision-making processes at an early stage. This fosters acceptance of the heating transition, accelerates its implementation and enables tenants to understand their own influence on operating costs and CO₂ emissions, and to contribute actively to climate protection through usage behavior appropriate to specific buildings. 

In the C2CBridge project, Fraunhofer ISI is working on attractive alternatives to private cars for transporting people between rural and urban areas together with numerous partners within the KarIsruhe Mobility High Performance Center. The focus is on autonomous on-demand taxis with smart mobility hubs. The aim is to explore how these autonomous, shared taxis can provide a cost-effective, efficient service that meets demand in rural areas.

The first step is to develop a concept for this new mobility service including individual elements, such as vehicles and transfer points. In the context of multi-modal mobility, a major focus is on exploring how mobility hubs should be designed for transferring between on-demand taxis and other means of transport. Subsequently, demonstrators will be developed. The aim is to visualize and validate the developed mobility system by converting vehicles and setting up a transfer station and digital twins.

The C2CBridge project is embedded in the German Center for Future Mobility (DZM), which has established a nationwide research network with four locations in Hamburg, Annaberg-Buchholz, Minden and Karlsruhe, and which pools expertise in mobility research and connects regions. The following organizations are involved: Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, the FZI Research Center for Information Technology, Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences, Baden-Württemberg’s Institute for Sustainable Mobility and the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft with its institutes ISI, ICT and IOSB.

Researchers from Fraunhofer ISI together with GICON®-Großmann Ingenieur Consult GmbH have been supporting more than 150 cultural institutions in the Saxon cities of Leipzig and Dresden on their way to becoming climate-neutral since 2021.

To start with, a web-based tool, the only one of its kind in Germany, was developed in collaboration with the participating cultural institutions. This “E-Tool Kultur” is based on a customized concept for assessing the cultural sector’s carbon footprint. It enables the institutions to generate their own carbon footprints and gain transparency regarding relevant emission sources, and was designed to be user-friendly, so that it enjoys a high degree of acceptance among those responsible in the institutions.

The project phase that has just commenced is about planning its implementation. Working together with Leipzig’s cultural institutions, concrete, feasible and effective climate protection measures are identified, evaluated, and made ready for implementation, taking into account operating procedures, resources and general framework conditions. The climate protection network of Leipzig’s independent cultural institutions will continue its work in parallel; this focuses on networking, sharing information and practical solutions. 

Fraunhofer ISI is actively involved in establishing the “HoT - House of Transfer”, which is intended to be a central point of contact for all stakeholders from the chemicals, bioeconomy, plastics and hydrogen sectors in Central Germany’s mining regions. The aim is to support industry here in implementing the energy transition and achieving climate targets. This means developing new technologies, realigning value chains, expanding infrastructures and safeguarding existing energy and raw material networks. The House of Transfer provides support through targeted knowledge transfer that lowers the economic risks for stakeholders.

The interdisciplinary project, which supports structural change in Central German industries, aims to establish a framework for comprehensive technology transfer for the region’s industries and to pass on knowledge about new technologies, processes and other market developments. Particular importance is attached to bridging the gap between research, industry and politics by presenting fact-based knowledge and developing recommendations for action, 

Coordinated by Fraunhofer IWES, the project brings together the following partners: BioEconomy e.V., Fraunhofer IKTS, Fraunhofer ISI, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg and Polykum e.V. 

A consortium from research and industry are developing and testing digital solutions for growing, processing and marketing fruit and fruit produce in the Mitteldeutsche Innovationsregion Obstbau (MIRO) project (Central German Innovation Region for Fruit Growing). In the research on “Futures for the Innovation Region Central Germany”, Fraunhofer ISI is contributing its expertise in scientific futures studies and supporting the transformation in fruit growing in Central Germany as a moderating and participating research partner. Our contribution is structured into three interrelated modules that link participation, data collection and how to collectively shape the future.

• Module 1: We created a simple introduction to future issues of regional fruit growing with the “Future Cubes” game that was specially developed for MIRO. Provocative statements challenge the participants to engage in discussions that help to spotlight criticisms and unleash new ideas. The game functions as a participatory format and a data collection tool at the same time.
• Module 2: Based on the data collected, we developed four best-case scenarios for 2035 with stakeholders from Central Germany’s fruit-growing network in a collaborative participatory process that spanned one year. These “futures” are not forecasts, but rather deliberately exaggerated yet realizable visions of the future. They help to make different ideas visible and can be used as a common basis for discussing the next steps.
• Module 3: Based on these future scenarios, we derived recommendations for adaptation measures grouped by the time horizons involved. In the third module, we bring together stakeholders from politics, industry, academia and society to share information. The goal is to discuss and sort out which approaches from the envisioned futures are viable and how they can be pursued practically. Alongside this, we are developing an interactive way of exploring the scenarios that offers an additional, simple entry point to the debate.