In order to be able to respond to predicted demographic, economic or socio-cultural challenges, the Salzland district must develop into a forward-looking region in cooperation with representatives from politics, business, science and society.
In recent years, important regional factors for the future have been assessed in terms of their significance for the district. The region's development potential that became apparent in the process was identified in a multi-stage procedure and compiled in the Salzlandkreis 2030 Future Strategy. This document forms the future framework for action for design processes and provides impetus for regional cooperation.
The "Smart Cities 2021 Model Projects" funding programme of the Federal Ministry of the Interior, Building and Community
Under the guiding theme "Together out of the crisis: Space for the future", the German government is now in its third season of funding the digital modernisation of municipalities as part of smart city model projects. With the help of digitalisation and innovative technologies, municipalities should be able to actively shape and develop their living and working spaces in a future-oriented and sustainable way.
The requirements of the funding programme are based on the guidelines of the "Smart City Charter", which were formulated by representatives of the federal government, federal states, municipalities, science and civil society, among others:
- Digital transformation needs goals, strategies and structures
- Digital transformation needs transparency, participation and co-design
- Digital transformation requires infrastructure, data and services
- Digital transformation requires resources, expertise and cooperation
Municipalities should continue to be liveable, diverse, innovative, transparent and participatory in the future, for example. Municipal infrastructures in terms of energy, buildings, transport, water and wastewater, as well as socio-cultural areas of life, should be better and better connected using suitable smart technologies.
With its resolution on the Salzlandkreis 2030 future strategy, the district council has taken an important first step towards the future. With the motto "Smart.Region Salzlandkreis: Active. Together. Connected.", which has been successfully established in the Salzlandkreis since 2016, the Salzlandkreis has now submitted its application for the 2021 funding programme! The application aims to develop a digital strategy necessary for actively shaping the digital social transformation, make initial investments to start the development process, and provide funds for intensive discussion of the topics of participation and cooperation (active), mobility and transport (together), and self-organisation and knowledge transfer in a holistically conceived region (connected).