The “Smarte Hanse” network is growing steadily. A year ago, the cities of Rostock, Stralsund, Wismar and the Hanseatic city of Lübeck signed a declaration of intent for cross-city cooperation on the digital transformation to a smart city. In October, the cities of Neubrandenburg, Schwerin and Kiel followed suit with their signatures. All cities have agreed to establish closer inter-municipal cooperation on digitalization projects.
The cooperation agreement covers a wide range of areas, with a particular focus on the quality of life of citizens and urban society. In addition, measures will be taken to increase resource efficiency in the development of joint solutions. Another goal is intelligent networking and the transfer of knowledge from best practice projects. The aim is also to strengthen economic cooperation – with a focus on start-ups, modern public services and citizen participation. The alliance now has seven members.
“Joining the Smarte Hanse alliance gives us the opportunity to make Neubrandenburg even more sustainable in the digital age,” says Peter Modemann, Deputy Mayor of the four-gate city of Neubrandenburg, who is responsible for urban development and the economy, among other things. “Through the exchange and cooperation with other cities, we can not only benefit from best practice examples, but also contribute our own innovative approaches. Together, we are working on intelligent solutions for sustainable urban development in order to improve the quality of life of our citizens and at the same time strengthen Neubrandenburg as a business location.”
Another new member is the state capital Schwerin. “We are delighted to become part of the Smarte Hanse digital city network. Schwerin can very confidently point to considerable successes in the area of administrative and school digitalization. Successes that we are happy to share. And we can benefit from the knowledge of our sister cities – in the areas of transport and energy, for example. I look forward to working together,” explains Schwerin’s Lord Mayor Dr. Rico Badenschier.
Kiel, the capital of Schleswig-Holstein, is also a new member of the alliance. Lord Mayor Dr. Ulf Kämpfer explains why the cooperation is important: “Digital technologies offer great opportunities for cities. Examples of this include predictive repairs to urban infrastructure or urban planning that can simulate extreme weather events and react to them during planning. In order for cities to take advantage of these opportunities, they need a modern digital infrastructure, comprehensive technical standards and digital solutions. We want to achieve this together with the cities of the Smart Hanseatic League by learning from each other, adopting existing solutions and implementing new ideas together.”
The signing ceremony for the expanded cooperation was hosted by the Hanseatic City of Lübeck, which launched the city cooperation initiative last year. Mayor Jan Lindenau welcomed the new members in the town hall. “The Smart Hanseatic League is growing and the exchange between the cities is progressing. We are now in 8th place in the Bitkom Smart City ranking and we are happy to share our positive experiences in the implementation of digital projects. However, it is also important for us to exchange experiences in areas in which other cities have more expertise. We don’t want to reinvent the wheel, but rather share the best solutions with each other. Together, we will be faster in the digital transformation,” says Lindenau.
“We are delighted that the Smart Hanseatic League is being made possible as part of the Smart City Lübeck model project thanks to funding from the Federal Ministry of Building. It makes an important contribution to the implementation of our digital strategy and inter-municipal cooperation. Because: Smart City can only succeed together!” said Dr. Stefan Ivens, Chief Digital Officer of the Hanseatic City of Lübeck. “Municipalities that work together on solutions to current challenges will be better able to cope with the consequences of climate change, for example. Just yesterday, experts from the Smart Hanseatic League exchanged ideas, presented projects and shared knowledge at a barcamp on the topic of smart water. The professional cooperation will gain further momentum and substance thanks to the new members.”