Quality of life and experience – our society is shaped by people and culture that focus on intergenerational sustainability
A liveable city is characterised by various factors that influence the general well-being and satisfaction of the people who live there:
A good infrastructure, diverse economy with good job and educational opportunities, sufficient availability of affordable and quality housing, an extensive cultural offer, sufficient leisure and recreational opportunities, and good environmental quality and safety.
So-called neighbourhoods enjoy great popularity and are referred to as the modern village of yesteryear (Source: https://www.bfw-newsroom.de/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Quartierstudie-2022-DC-Developments-komprimiert.pdf). The concept behind it: a diversity of residents, social togetherness, accessibility within walking distance, a coherent cycle of regional products as well as peace and nature.
The Quartier Study 2022 shows that the city of Berlin is in first place, followed by Düsseldorf and Frankfurt am Main among the top eight cities in Germany. Big city anonymity was yesterday. Today, the desire for community and a marketplace in the middle of the action, as it used to be, prevails. Multi-generational offers are also very popular. In order to feel comfortable, especially in public spaces, the climate must of course be right. In many cities, shady places and places to cool down are rare and communal places to meet and stay are then avoided.
“Viennese Shadow” promotes social togetherness
The effects of global warming are clearly noticeable, temperatures are rising. With shade elements that are compatible with the cityscape, cool and shady places ensure the attractiveness of being able to visit a meeting place even on very warm days and promote social interaction (source: https://www.wien.gv.at/stadtentwicklung/architektur/oeffentlicher-raum/wiener-schatten.html).
Harmony and a feel-good atmosphere are the basis for social cohesion and promote the feeling of solidarity. This makes society as a whole more stable, peaceful, just and our democracy more resilient! But what makes a city particularly harmonious and thus more liveable than other cities? How can companies in particular work proactively for their city and region, far beyond the company environment, in order to make it more attractive to, for example, skilled workers and young families?
Still a challenge: the shortage of workers
The shortage of labour continues to be a current problem in many sectors and regions. There are more vacancies than qualified applicants, leading to bottlenecks and challenges. To address labour shortages, improved workplace attractiveness, flexible working models and the promotion of **work-life integration as well as investment in education and training are essential.
Employers, however, can get involved far beyond their company environment by assuming their social responsibility and contributing to a positive development of their city to make it more attractive for skilled workers and young professionals as well. In cooperation with e.g. business development, the districts, municipalities and tourism, the question should be asked “How can we make our region, town, village even more attractive and how can we get a professional partner agency specialised in content and experiential communication on board for a cool idea, conception, planning and implementation of possible measures and campaigns?
Classic sponsoring vs. value-based partnership
Companies have to rethink! Away from classical sponsoring and the goal of pure economic growth. The goal must be a value-oriented partnership in order to live one’s own corporate values, to strengthen the trust and loyalty of customers and to improve the relationship with society. Through this kind of cooperation, companies can make a possible contribution to our coexistence and can specifically take on social, ecological or ethical challenges to bring about sustainable changes and enrich the cultural as well as social life in the city. A value-oriented partnership characterised by a sense of purpose promotes both parties in the long term!
Thus, the cooperation with the district, the city, the municipality or other organisations, institutions or companies pays off on the regional or municipal development processes in order to develop a common communication space and to implement a resilient togetherness.
Inner city revitalisation for more experience, communication and integration space: I feel good
A vibrant city centre attracts both locals and tourists. Shops, businesses and restaurants benefit from an increased flow of customers, which has a positive impact on the economy, but most importantly, it noticeably increases overall urban well-being.
Places are created for people of different backgrounds and interests, creating communities. Cultural and sporting events such as concerts, festivals or exhibitions offer lasting experiences that connect people.
Unfortunately, funds for cultural and sporting purposes are often scarce, which is why this is also an opportunity for companies to support and participate in the municipal cultural and sporting scene through a value-oriented partnership!
Seeing vacancies as an opportunity – using unusual ideas to make neighbourhoods fit for the future
The cityscape suffers from vacancies and demolition is often seen as the solution (for the time being), but this does not have to be the case! With the help of innovative ideas and the development of targeted utilisation concepts, vacant spaces are given a second chance, become part of history and can become crowd pullers.
The opening of so-called pop-up stores also declares war on vacancies. This is a targeted measure to revitalise the city centre through individual and special shop concepts and the opportunity to enable potential retailers, but also, for example, artists or creative craftsmen to open their own shop.
The city of Wittlich in Rhineland-Palatinate launched the ALWIN project (Active Vacancy Management Wittlich City Centre), a community initiative, in 2016 and has since been promoting innovative and sustainable shop concepts from various sectors such as retail, crafts, creative industries and gastronomy. The project supports young entrepreneurs who can make a name for themselves on the market with the help of low-cost shop spaces, and as a result the vacancy rate has fallen noticeably from around 13 per cent to just over 2 per cent (source: Erfolgreich gegen Leerstand in Wittlich. Gemeinschaftsinitiative alwin belebt Innenstadt).
*Photo: POMMEREL Live-Marketing. Series of events for the Herbartgang advertising association in Oldenburg with the aim of making the Herbartgang interesting and attracting passers-by to find out about shopping opportunities and increase traffic to this small street.
**Work-life integration means a flexible and lively coexistence of work and private life.