As part of the BMBF project ‘TransRegINT’, which is due to start next year at Rhein-Waal University of Applied Sciences (HSRW), further extensive support is being provided by a company from North Rhine-Westphalia: the E-Gruppe from Herne. On 16 December 2022, the agreement with the sponsor was signed on the Kleve campus.
From the 2023 summer semester onwards, the company will be supporting the university’s major project by funding visiting researchers in the Faculty of Society and Economics, who will, amongst other things, assist with the development and establishment of a European Centre for Sustainability Transformation (‘EUZENT’). Over the next decade, this European centre is set to dedicate itself to researching, facilitating and implementing sustainability transformations in business, politics and society, and forms part of the ‘TransRegINT’ project.
European Centre for Sustainability Transformation (‘EUZENT’)
The planned European Centre for Sustainability Transformation (‘EUZENT’) is set to become ‘a centre with regional, national and international visibility’ in the coming years. To this end, the HSRW plans to develop and expand systemic, ecological and participatory-democratic capacities for renewal and resilience in the economy and society – anchored in the Euregio, with a national and international reach and network. ‘This agreement is a further step towards shaping sustainability for the region,’ says Dr Oliver Locker-Grütjen, President of the university, explaining the project. Prof. Dr Ralf Klapdor adds: “We are supported by many partners, and as Dean of the Faculty of Society and Economics, I am delighted to be part of this initiative. In the E-Group, we have a competent partner at our side, whom we thank for their support,” says the Dean.
‘EUZENT’ forms part of the funding provided under the federal-state initiative ‘Innovative University’, in which the university prevailed this year against numerous competitors with its ‘TransRegINT’ concept (Transformation of the Lower Rhine Region – Innovation, Sustainability, Participation). A cornerstone of the submitted concept is the idea of ‘EUZENT’. This also forms part of the university’s development plans in the context of drawing up the University Development Plan 2030.
Funding from the E-Group
As a project developer, project manager and property owner, the E-Group carries out sustainable commercial property projects in the sectors of logistics, retail and development close to city centres, with a particular focus on economic, environmental and social sustainability. ‘Change is driven by research institutes and universities. And I also raise research questions: for example, we have used micro wind turbines for a project. Alongside the engineering perspective of how much wind energy is actually generated, I am also interested in how the local community reacts to it. With its interdisciplinary approach, Rhein-Waal University of Applied Sciences is the ideal partner for addressing such questions. The E-Group is therefore firmly committed to the ‘TransRegINT’ project and the establishment of ‘EUZENT’, and is pleased to support Rhein-Waal University of Applied Sciences with a grant of 200,000 euros for teaching, research and development purposes,” says Dr Steven Engler, owner and managing director of the E-Group, confirming the funding.
