Germany's tiny geographic oddity. Five reasons for Bremen's success story. Bremen is supporting the cargo bike in business and trade with a wider range of initiatives. The British Airways (BA) subsidiary began as a call centre with a 30-strong workforce. But we still have too many cars being registered we still have too many cars.". The new soccer stadium has a world-beating solar installation on the stadium roof. In Bremen and Bremerhaven, the transformation to climate-friendly energy with hydrogen is starting. Like most of the initiatives in this book the impetus for change came from the bottom up via graassroots activism which then caused change at the top in legislation and planning. A year ago, hsag ON relocated to Bremen. Determined to bring down greenhouse gas emissions: Germany's minister for climate action, Robert Habeck, "In Wismar, the federal government wants to spend 600 million on saving a shipyard from insolvency, so it can build cruise ships. David Zhou first came to Bremen seven years ago. So, what does the future hold for a city already pushing the envelope? It's well worth exploring Bremen's 'natural' side. He's a bit like a teacher who isn't satisfied when his student gets a Bbecause he didn't do everything in his power to get top marks. Events and entertainment provide well-deserved respite from the daily grind, especially if you like food and music. Rolf Disch has been eagerly awaiting Robert Habeck's climate protection initiative for a very long time. Aircraft wings, Ariane rockets, Galileo satellites - Bremen is one of the top locations in the international aerospace industry. But with the right strategy, many problems can be avoided from the outset. ", 10 Bremen Companies in the Aviation and Aerospace Sector, The Commercial Cargo Bike is Here to Stay, Velo Lab: with new premises so it can keep pace with the boom in cargo bikes, Locational factors for companies: six convincing arguments for choosing Bremen, How Bremen's berseestadt (New Harbour District) is growing, The United Kingdom's Exit from the EU and The Effect on Customs, The Cargo Distribution Centre (GVZ) in Bremen: a logistics hub with a bright future, On the way to Europe's leading hydrogen region, From China to Bremen successfully with LED, How industry and the economy are benefiting from trade between Taiwan and Germany, Letters from Vietnam: Winter 2019 edition, A fairer cup of coffee: Bremerhaven businessmans remarkable one-world project, New incubator for space start-ups in Bremen, We love Bremen: 10 declarations of affection, Four entrepreneurs talk about what attracted them to Bremen, The magic of bicycles, flower stalls and book shops, Sigma Textil: how Muhammad-Farhan Aslam turned his father's business around, Flyline two decades of success in Bremen, Trademark protection in Germany and abroad what you need to know, Coffee in Bremen roasteries in Germanys coffee capital. Subscribe to Smart Cities Dive for top news, trends & analysis, The free newsletter covering the top industry headlines, ARCHIVES: This is legacy content from before Sustainable Cities Collective was relaunched as Smart Cities Dive in early 2017. For locals looking for more earthly pursuits, the surrounding Black Forest provides a welcome refuge. Pedestrian and bicycle paths form a highly-connected, efficient, green transportation network with every home within walking distance of a tram stop, and all schools, businesses, and shopping centers located within walking distance. In the shadows of the 13th-Century gothic tower, every morning (bar Sunday) the square bustles with local produce from 96 stallholders from the region. In comparison with other cities, Bremen offers more space and more opportunities to get some fresh air, clear your head and enjoy the weather. And why is Istanbul attracting investment of nearly US$ 2 billion from Silicon Valley? Renewable energy production is encouraged with tax credits from the federal government and subsidies from the regional utility. Freiburg's model district of Vauban was built on the site of a former French barracks, named after an architect who worked for the French Sun King, Louis XIV. Residents who do own vehicles can park in a community lot on the edge of the district, unsubsidized by the car-free households. Almost car-free: Freiburg's model district of Vauban. More on this and a little preview of 2022 in ourletter from Vietnam directly from Ho Chi Minh City. Coffee roasters such as Lloyd Caffee and Cross Coffee have helped to cement the image of Bremen as Germanys coffee capital. And with renewed targets at 50% less CO2 emissions by 2030 and 100% energy from renewable sources by 2050, Freiburg is continuing confidently towards an even greener tomorrow. Dark clouds are gathering for start-ups in Silicon Valley, according to our US expert, Tim Ole Jhnk. However, this too had no success. "In the beginning, there was a different mix of residents. This is nonsense!" We're doing it because we believe in it. | Mobile version. Contact It developed from a squatted community that did not want to be removed by developers, who took the future into their own hands. Several construction projects will reshape the city centre. As we rode alongside the fast-flowing Dreisam River, Philipp told me about a renaturation project thats designed to be an environmental tit-for-tat to compensate for the nearby train line expansion. Shops and offices are located on the ground floor of the apartment buildings, allowing residents easy access, on foot or bicycle, to their daily needs, so that "no supermarkets will be constructed on green meadows". Over the same period, the proportion of car drivers dropped from 39% to 21%. AI, machine learning, neural networks the topic of artificial intelligence is full of jargon. That's right: rivers. "People always describe it as paradise when cars are deprived of their dominance in a neighborhood. Freiburg native Konstantin Hoffmann remembers his childhood with this connection to nature fondly. From his balcony, Disch gazes down proudly on the 59 colorful wooden houses that make up Vauban's Solar Settlement his baby. These are areas that haven't been built on and that are used mainly for recreational purposes, such as parks, playgrounds and allotments. This robot's job doesn't start until the last member of staff leaves the store at the end of the working day: Roaming through the shelves, he helps physical stores to compete with online retailers. Some people lose their speech capacity because of an illness that makes them lose control over their muscles. Mayor Martin Horn was just shy of 34 when he was inaugurated at Town Hall in 2018. The cargo bike business is booming, as is the Bremen bike manufacturer Velo Lab. Reduction of CO2-equivalents per year: 2100 t. Reduction of sulphor-dioxide (SO2-) equivalents per year: 4 t. Saving of mineral resources per year: 1600 t. An award-winning pioneer Bremens Cargo Distribution Center (GVZ) was the first of its kind in Germany and is still one of the leading hubs domestically and internationally. You may also be interested in: What makes Germans so orderly? Local food is also supplied by farm shops, a farmers' market, a local winery and distillery, beekeeping, butchers, bakers and plant nursery. ", 2022 Deutsche Welle | We were at the Freiburg bike station, an imposing cylindrical building just behind the main train station. Travelling to Vietnam has recently become possible again. And, as so often, Freiburg is ahead of the game: It hopes to achieve this seven years earlier, in 2038. Vauban does now have some blocks of affordable student housing, but the majority of residents fit the pattern of well-heeled, well-educated, environmentally aware citizens. When I was a child, the kindergarten often took us into the nearest forest. These questions have been under investigation by the EU "ART Forum" project since March 2019. What is Economic Development? The new Silk Road is China's gigantic infrastructure project. Prosthetic extremities a speciality: GehProTec, the company run by Peter Wehmeyer and Birgit Greubel, manufactures around 400 tailor-made prosthetic arms and legs per year. We use cookies to improve our service for you. The best way to explore the city centre is by bike along the banks of the Weser river. "They destroyed an entire industry and thousands of jobs," says Disch. It already boasts a great many showcase projects: Freiburg's new city hall was one of the first in the world to be conceived as a zero-energy building, with 800 solar panels on the facade. Vauban's 5,500 residents live in close-knit cooperatives, private households or social housing developments that cover the suburb's 40 hectares. Since solar panels were fitted to the grandstand roofs in 1993, the stadium has generated 250,000 kilowatt-hours per year, powering the stadium and feeding any excess back into the local grid. 900 years young reads the bold slogan emblazoned on the side of the tram as it rattles through Freiburg im Breisgaus historical Old Town. As with so many of her fellow Freiburgers, climate protection is in Breyer's DNA. This number is expected to increase, according to the new Land Use Plan 2020, the writing of which was done by citizens forming 19 working groups to discuss potential construction areas and make recommendations to the city council. We provide some simple definitions to guide you. Disch declares. Bremen's berseestadt (New Harbour District) is one of the largest urban development projects in Europe. How is Turkey handling the coronavirus crisis? 42 building units are of the Passivhaus standard, consuming under 15 kWh/m2a. All housing adheres to Freiburgs low-energy building standard of 65 kWh/sq m, and the minimal energy that is brought in is generated locally from the wood-chip powered heating systems located in the neighbourhood. For the past 45 years, this small city has been a breeding ground for alternative thinking and sustainability (Credit: encrier/Getty Images), Many of these visitors were shown around by my guide for the day, Andrea Philipp from the sustainability agency Aiforia. Patients from all over Europe come to Bremen to receive help. Accessibility Statement | In Vauban, car ownership sits at around 172 cars per 1,000 residents, compared to 393 in greater Freiburg and 531 in the nearby industrial metropolis of Stuttgart. Waste levels have been reduced by almost 2/3 since 1988 with waste minimization, increased recycling (it is very easy to recycle everywhere), anaerobic digestion of organic waste and the residual waste burnt for energy. And that's why Bremen offers without doubt the best maritime experience. "I don't yet know how this is going to work economically, how it will pay for itself. And why has the Corona crisis hit Vietnam much harder in 2021 than in 2020? They also found that concrete should not be used, and that individual ventilation with heat recovery systems were not effective for reasons of cost and maintenance. Take-off for Bremen: what makes the city a hub for aerospace expertise, Letters from Silicon Valley July 2022 Hypergrowth is History, All the Answers under one Roof: Bremen's Business Service, the "Unternehmensservice", Bremen and Bremerhaven Projects Prioritising Hydrogen, Trademark Protection for Start-ups and SMEs, There is No Machine like This One in the World and It Comes from Bremen, Hydrogen-Powered Vehicles from Bremen why FAUN Has Chosen the Hanseatic City, Letters from Vietnam Winter 2021/2022, 12 Online Traders from Bremen that are Leaders in their Niche Market, "We're achieving Exceptional Growth in Bremen! With 1,800 hours of sunshine a year, this southwestern city is a big promoter of solar energy, in line with Habeck's plans. The archdiocese of Freiburg aims to be the first in Germany to reduce the church's CO2 emissions to zero. 40 years ago, just 15% of Freiburg's residents used bicycles as their main mode of transport. The city has an extensive pedestrianised zone and a tramway network together with feeder buses. You can find more information in our data protection declaration. Organic household waste is treated with an anaerobic digester. By 2001, it had 2,000 inhabitants and now is said to have 5,000 inhabitants with over 600 jobs. Social cohesion has even been considered. Setting up a business in Germany opens up a myriad of new opportunities. What effect will Brexit have on companies? "That puts us ahead of all other German cities. Small and medium sized European companies can profit from it - a new network will help them. - Rolf Disch (left). Trade and industry are Bremen's economic heavyweights. Large corporations such as Airbus, as well as small manufacturers, rely on additive manufacturing. The vast mountain range hosts walking tracks, community gardens, allotment gardens, BMX runs and tiny forest cabins belonging to kindergartens. They make the point that combined heat and power is the most efficient form of energy generation to be used wherever there are clusters of buildings, whether for business or residence. "We're one of the top ten cities in Germany in our commitment to climate protection," Breyer says. The aim of economic development is to help companies to get established in a particular location (municipality), to expand and to run their business. And is thus continuing a long tradition. Vauban is Freiburg times ten: even greener, even more ecological, even more bicycle-friendly. Investors and logistics specialists alike value the benefits it offers. An architect, Michael Gies, and a biologist, Jrg Lange, developed the idea of a people's forum to make sure that the people already living there had their views heard and could determine their future. The sky is not the limit. Extreme reactions to new corona virus cases, the triumphant march of meat alternatives and business opportunities for companies in the environment sector find out more in our Letter from China. For company co-owner Matthias Schmidt, the move has paid off: more than 100 employees will soon be working in the new offices in the Tabakquartier. So whether it's in our parks, forests and nature reserves, on our dykes, or by, on or even in the water there's plenty to explore in green Bremen. "The charismatic, environmentally conscious Black Forest metropolis can show many of us a few more tricks on how to live responsibly," it reports. Between the rooftop gardens, food-sharing pantries, organic waste anaerobic digesters, conflict-resolution workshops and co-op supermarkets, its impossible to list every social project the community runs, so instead Philipp told me about the one thing it doesnt have: cars. Today, Flyline employs around 400 people at Bremen airport. Streetcar number 3 goes right to the city center one every minute. Their larvae have high-quality protein. Importantly, the project is being monitored using lifecycle and regional material flow analysis with the GEMIS software. A closer look at the 15 largest German cities by population reveals figures that show how green Bremen really is. For the latest in smart city news, check out the new, By signing up to receive our newsletter, you agree to our, Incentive programs have lured thousands of remote workers from major metro areas to small cities, For his new smart desert city, billionaire Marc Lore eyes Nevada, Utah and Arizona, High-speed rail efforts in the US: a history, The top 10 US metro areas for construction starts, Smart City Maturity Prepares Cities for Technology-Enabled Future, How Small to Midsize Construction Companies Power Growth Through Digital Transformation, The latest developments in vehicle electrification, The Recycling Partnerships Polypropylene Recycling Coalition Celebrates Widely Recycled Upg, Industry Dive to be acquired by Informa PLC. So, if you dont want a neighbour who plays the guitar, you can say no, laughed Philipp. He takes out a petition in favor of PlusEnergy that he sent to Chancellor Angela Merkel 12 years ago: It garnered 4,500 signatures. Will we soon be driving Vietnamese cars? To the south of Bremerhaven, plans are taking shape for a new business and industrial park that will fulfil strict sustainability criteria. This is an infographic of the sectors, revenues and products involved. sign up for the weekly bbc.com features newsletter. In Austria, about 300 passive houses have been scientifically evaluated and the extra cost of making them zero energy was anything from no cost to an extra 14 per cent. The 16-storey high-rise looming overhead appears unremarkable, with its mixture of green- and aqua-panelled external balconies the only eye-catching elements. After one year, the Bremen-based satellite builder draws a positive balance - and wants to take an even bigger step across the Atlantic in the future. Changing the lawn mowing schedule from 12 times to only twice a year has "markedly revived the biodiversity in the meadows". To the west is Ochtum river, to the east is the Wmme, to the north the Lesum, and right through the centre runs the Weser. Bremen and Taiwan share a long-standing friendship. This is the first time that a complete urban neighbourhood has been analysed with respect to buildings, infrastructure, electricity supply, heat supply, water and waste, traffic and private consumption with a full life-cycle perspective and using regional data. "My sister was living in California at the time; once, when she was visiting, she made a note of how many steps she took to get to the supermarket, the stream, the elementary school. The Corona crisis has given the lighting manufacturer undreamt-of tailwind - and virtually swept his warehouse empty. Public energy and heat are generated by a highly efficient woodchip-powered combined heat and power generator connected to a district heating grid. "Nothing will be burned there anymore; no biomass, no pellets, no oil, no gas," Breyer explains. Bolt Mobility has vanished, leaving e-bikes, unanswered calls behind in several US cities, Artists Are Using AI To Imagine Cities Without Cars. It likes to describe itself as the environmental capital of Germany. Privacy Policy | We dont normally get to see Littelfuses products. Besides enjoying all the benefits of living in a major city, the people of Bremen also like the outdoors and not only the parks. "I've been saying for a long time that Germany could be climate neutral as early as 2030, if it wanted to be," he points out. In total there are almost 47 square metres of water per resident no other German city with more than 400,000 inhabitants has as much water as we do here in Bremen. With a new production facility in the New Harbour District, and innovative bike designs, its founder Stathis Stasinopoulos is truly in tune with the times. These ingredients have all helped create a Freiburg that is one of Germanys, if not the worlds, most liveable, progressive, sustainable and child-friendly cities. Through this, the following provisional figures have been developed: Andreas Delleske's Passivhaus apartment block in Vauban. In this neighborhood of short distances, which has everything except cars, Konietzny shares a car with another family. Freiburg's citizens are known for their love of cycling, with over 400 km of cycle paths, separate bikepaths, and over 9,000 bicycle parking spaces, including "bike and ride" lots at transit stations. 100 houses adhere to a "plus-energy" standard, producing more energy than they use, with surpluses sold back to the city grid and profits split between each household. Though spearheaded by locals, the eclectic group of protesters grew to include left-wing activists, Alsatian winegrowers, skiers, German farmers, architects, doctors, educators, journalists, orchestral musicians and police officers, all united in their mission to stop construction of the proposed Wyhl nuclear power plant. He has been pleading with politicians for decades to increase their focus on renewable energies. Becks and Melitta may be high-profile brands, but international food and beverage companies also manufacture lots of other products in Bremen and Bremerhaven. Set spectacularly at the foot of Germany's Black Forest, the medieval city of Freiburg is celebrating its 900th anniversary this year (Credit: bluejayphoto/Getty Images). Here is an overview. Freiburg, a city of about 220,000 people and 155 km2, is already known as an eco-city with the Green Party having the strongest presence there of anywhere in the country. Is the get rich quick dream over? Freiburg may be an exemplary student when it comes to climate protection, but in Disch's view there's still a lot more it could do. And the colourful half-timbered houses and car-free cobblestone streets lining its Old Town are, in fact, relatively young, as they were faithfully reconstructed after World War Two bombings. Cargo bikes are truly multitalented they are not just appreciated by private individuals, but also those in business. On match days, a sea of football fans travel along the FR1 and descend on the 24,000-seat Schwarzwald-Stadion, Germanys first solar-powered football stadium thats home to local heroes SC Freiburg. For most, the citys sustainable turning point can be traced back to February 1975. At Expo 2010 in Shanghai, Vauban was named one of the 60 best neighborhoods in the world to live in. And if you'd like your cycle tour to last a little longer, then we recommend taking the Bremen-Nord loop, where you can see the tall ship Deutschland and the Valentin U-boat pen memorial site. He is the Chairman of the British Chamber of Commerce in Germany (BCCG), and wants to strengthen economic relationships between the two countries. Its exterior is clad with 4,000 sq m of solar modules, giving it the honour of the worlds first public plus-energy building meaning it produces more energy than it needs and feeds the excess back into the citys electric grid when it opened in 2017. 70% of the population lives within 500 meters of a tram stop, and the trains appear every 7.5 minutes during rush hours with ticket costs subsidized to encourage use. Around 10% of the citys 220,000 residents attend the prestigious Albert Ludwig University, making the population one of Germanys youngest. Bremen convinces companies from Germany and abroad with numerous location factors. It's incredibly expensive. The Dietenbach district in western Freiburg will provide homes for around 15,000 people climate-neutral homes, of course. With 400km of bike paths and twice as many bikes as cars, Freiburg is a cyclists paradise. We talked to the initiators. Situated on what is known as the Luneplate, a site close to the largest nature conservation area in the state of Bremen, the park is set to become the home of companies operating in the green economy. An attractive place to live, a city through which we can move easily and without stress. Two kilometres east, there is perhaps no greater proof of municipal commitment to sustainability than the new Town Hall. A trained forester, and a child of the anti-nuclear movement, she will be setting out Freiburg's climate protection policy to other cities as part of an online conference on Monday. Vauban has wide pavements and cycle paths, as well as designated play streets a paradise for children. There are occasionally problems between neighbours if someone parks their car in the pick-up area for too long or doesnt declare they own a car, Philipp said. For a long time, import duties prevented producers from selling anything other than raw beans to Europe. Breyer illustrates one of these tricks with a diagram about the modal split, or mobility behavior. So where better than this Green stronghold to take the lead on sustainability and helpGermany achieve climate neutrality as quickly as possible? New in the airport city: CAE-GmbH trains pilots. From 2023 onward, Freiburg intends to pump 12 million ($13.7 million)a year into additional climate protection measures, regardless of the budgetconstraints resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. Every building in Vauban has solar panels on its roof. It's parked in the underground garage 300 meters from his house, and sometimes it waits for him there for weeks. It should come as no surprise that the proportion of Bremen's land area designated a conservation zone is one of the highest in Germany, with Borgfelder Wmmewiesen, Werderland and Hollerland among the top places to visit. She's probably one of the best people to explain how Freiburg has come to lead the field on climate protection. The 5,000 hectares of forestry surrounding the town is managed sustainably and organically with certification from the Forest Stewardship Council. Conceived under the 16-year leadership of the former green mayor Dieter Salomon, the buildings solar panels produced 560 megawatt hours of electricity in its first year equal to the annual usage of 140 four-person households. Comeback Cities is a BBC Travel series that showcases under-the-radar capitals, champions the urban underdogs and revels in the success stories of cities that have turned their fortunes around. Almost half of all coffee beans imported into Germany pass through Bremens ports. "We almost collapsed here in Freiburg, too despite being a world leader in solar technology. Apparently, owning a car is the easiest way to commit social suicide in Vauban. But Philipp explains that this is, in fact, the world's first passive energy high-rise, in which heat is produced from internal appliances, body heat, and things like lightbulbs rather than conventional heating systems. Bremen-based Flyline can look back on two decades of success and expansion. Traffic modes in Freiburg showing how cycling and walking has increased and car use decreased, a trend that is projected to continue into the future. Basically, people are more green, more alternative and more social, Hoffmann said. In the decades since, Freiburg has quickly developed as an environmental economics and solar research hub with a packed green CV: 1994: Builds Heliotrope: the worlds first energy-plus house, 2002: Elects Germanys first Green Party mayor, Dieter Salomon, 2002: Wins Dubai International Best Practices award for sustainable development, 2010: Wins national award for its climate protection efforts, 2012: Named most sustainable city in Germany, 2017: New Town Hall becomes worlds first public building producing surplus energy.