What course is Europe setting for the future of its structural policy and regional funding? How can competitiveness, innovation and cohesion in the regions be further strengthened? These and other key questions were the focus of an intensive exchange between the regionen.NRW network and representatives of the European Commission and the European Parliament in Brussels on 2 July.
Among those taking part in the discussions was Dr Stefan Berger, Member of the European Parliament and spokesperson for the CDU NRW in the European Parliament. With regard to the decisions that need to be taken in the EU, he explained: “In view of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and a changing transatlantic partnership, the EU is facing enormous challenges. This also has implications for the future EU budget and structural policy. This makes it all the more important to take the perspectives of the regions into account – they know best how geopolitical upheavals and political decisions have a concrete impact on local life and economic development and what is needed in each case to promote equal living conditions and innovation.”
The exchange took place as part of a visit programme in Brussels, which also included talks with the Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy (DG REGIO) and the Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs (DG GROW). The aim was to incorporate the perspectives of the regions in North Rhine-Westphalia into the discussions on future EU funding policy at an early stage. Another focus was on strengthening the role of regional development organisations as intermediaries between the European and local levels.
The day concluded with the NRW Summer Party hosted by the NRW State Representation in Brussels, where around 1,500 guests from politics, business, science and the media exchanged ideas.
The alliance regionen.NRW, a coalition of the nine regional development organizations in North Rhine-Westphalia and the Zukunftsagentur Rheinisches Revier, met on June 25 in Berlin with around 20 members of the Bundestag from NRW for a political exchange. The goal was to highlight key regional policy concerns and bring them into the political discourse. The focus was on topics such as the design of future EU cohesion policy, the reform of the joint task “Improvement of Regional Economic Structures” (GRW), and current funding strategies for infrastructure development in structurally diverse regions.
After a brief introduction of the alliance, an intensive expert discussion took place. The aim was to bring concrete impulses from regional practice into ongoing political reform processes at the federal and EU levels. Representatives of the alliance advocated, among other things, for funding eligibility across all regions and for the consistent implementation of the partnership principle.
Ms. Anne König, Member of the Bundestag, thanked the group for the practical perspective: “Strong regions are the backbone of a sustainable Federal Republic. The exchange with the alliance regionen.NRW demonstrates how important close cooperation between politics and regional stakeholders is for strengthening mutual understanding, further developing funding policies in a practical and targeted manner, and securing sustainable development perspectives across all parts of the country.”
In the evening, the alliance also presented itself at the NRW Summer Festival at the State Representation with its own stand featuring regional specialties. Around 1,500 guests from politics, business, science, and media attended the event.
About the opportunities and challenges of large-scale events for regional development, around 200 participants from politics, science, and society discussed on March 25th (Tuesday) at the spring reception of the association regionen.NRW in the state parliament in Düsseldorf. Special focus was placed on the structural development initiatives “REGIONALEn” in the Bergisches RheinLand and South Westphalia, which will celebrate their presentation year in 2025.
In her contribution, Minister Ina Scharrenbach emphasized the importance of special formats like the REGIONALEn for strengthening regional identity and innovative capacity:
“The regions not only define their future tasks – they actively take them into their own hands. Many people are concerned that things cannot continue as they have in the past. What makes the REGIONALEn special is that, instead of the state government, the regions themselves develop the goals and ideas. Thus, the REGIONALEn can make an important contribution to finding regional answers to demographic change or the sustainable transformation of the economy and to turning frustration back into courage.”
Panel Discussion: NRW with Unique Feature “REGIONALEn”
In the high-profile panel discussion, including Prof. Dr. Walter Siebel, former Technical Director of the IBA Emscher Park, the special features of formats like the REGIONALE were highlighted:
“REGIONALEn represent exceptional, time-limited situations. They must have a clear end and must not become the rule. It is precisely this that creates focus – faster decisions and swift implementation become possible. At the same time, REGIONALEn are meant to serve as role models and trigger practical innovations. Therefore, they take place within regular funding structures that are fundamentally open to all regions.”
Looking ahead, those responsible for large-scale events that will serve as engines for regional development in the coming years provided insights into their work – including Manifesta 16 Ruhr 2026, the two State Garden Shows in 2026 in Neuss and 2029 in Kleve, the Federal Garden Show 2031 in Wuppertal, as well as the International Garden Exhibitions 2027 in the Ruhr area and 2037 in Garzweiler.
Networking and Dialogue
Informal conversations rounded off the evening, giving guests the opportunity to network and develop shared perspectives.
On February 4th and 5th, the management boards and executives of the network met in Bonn for a retreat. A key topic was the future cohesion policy of the EU. In discussions with Dr. Stefan Lock, Head of the European Commission’s Regional Representation in Bonn, the guidelines of the new EU Commission and plans for the upcoming Multiannual Financial Framework as well as the perspectives for the regions were discussed. Additionally, measures to increase the network’s visibility and to promote innovation were addressed.
For more than ten years, the regions in NRW have been networking under the slogan “regionen.NRW. Strong Regions. Strong State” and developing joint concepts, strategies, and projects.
Several events are planned for 2025, including the network’s spring reception at the state parliament in Düsseldorf as well as workshops on current topics. Furthermore, cooperation with the state government and the EU Commission will be intensified through regular exchange meetings. Additionally, opportunities for cooperation with a new federal government were discussed to sustainably represent the regions’ interests.
Further information
The regionen.NRW network has existed since 2013. It strengthens cooperation among the regions themselves and consolidates strategic cooperation with the state government. The network includes the Zukunftsagentur Rheinisches Revier and nine regional management organizations: Region Aachen Zweckverband, Bergische Struktur- und Wirtschaftsförderungsgesellschaft mbH, Regionalmanagement Düsseldorf – Kreis Mettmann, Region Köln/Bonn e.V., Münsterland e.V., Standort Niederrhein GmbH, OstWestfalenLippe GmbH, Regionalverband Ruhr, and Südwestfalen Agentur GmbH. The network’s office is hosted by Münsterland e.V.
Environment Minister Oliver Krischer: North Rhine-Westphalia Benefits Sustainably from the Green Economy
On Monday, September 16, 2024, the Ministry of the Environment and NRW.BANK honored three particularly sustainable companies with the Environmental Economy Award.NRW 2024 in Düsseldorf. First place and a prize of €30,000 went to ClayTec GmbH & Co. KG from Viersen for its innovative clay building materials and production processes. Other award-winning companies were Voltfang GmbH from Aachen and HDB Recycling GmbH from Hünxe.
Environment Minister Oliver Krischer:
“We want to make North Rhine-Westphalia the first climate-neutral industrial region in Europe. This transformation will require great effort and will only succeed if we actively drive the ecological transition while simultaneously turning our federal state into one of the most sustainable and competitive economic locations in Europe. The companies in the environmental economy are pioneers in this transformation. Their forward-looking ideas are building blocks for a modern Green Economy, in which competitiveness, climate protection, and social security are inextricably linked. The companies awarded the Environmental Economy Award.NRW 2024 brilliantly demonstrate how innovations from small and medium-sized enterprises can initiate transformation processes that will sustainably benefit our region.”
The Environmental Economy Award.NRW has been presented every two years since 2020 by the Ministry of the Environment and NRW.BANK. The award recognizes companies that are economically successful with innovative and sustainable products, services, or processes, while making significant contributions to climate and environmental protection.
Dr. Peter Stemper, Member of the Executive Board of NRW.BANK:
“Sustainable business practices are the foundation for a future-proof North Rhine-Westphalia. That’s why we need targeted support for dedicated companies that develop ecologically and economically convincing solutions. We help make that possible with our funding programs – and by awarding the Environmental Economy Award.NRW, we express our appreciation for the hidden champions of the environmental economy in general and the outstanding winning teams in particular.”
ClayTec GmbH & Co. KG from Viersen took first place and received a prize of €30,000. The company has been producing clay-based construction materials such as mortar and drywall panels for 40 years. Clay, which is abundantly available in Germany, is a suitable substitute for less eco-friendly materials such as gypsum and limestone. The raw material is sourced from excavated earth that accumulates as waste during gravel and sand extraction and civil engineering. Thanks to clay’s natural moisture, the material can be processed into construction products without the need for additional water.
Due to its breathable surface and thermal storage capacity, clay creates a healthy indoor climate and also provides heat protection. To further improve the climate performance of its almost fully recyclable clay products, ClayTec already operates a CO₂-neutral production site powered by renewable energy. In North Rhine-Westphalia, the company has also implemented a pilot plant for solar drying of drywall panels – the first of its kind.
Second place and €20,000 went to Voltfang GmbH from Aachen. The company developed an innovative battery storage system using “second-life” batteries that helps small and medium-sized businesses as well as industrial companies reduce their ecological footprint and save costs. The sustainable system enables intelligent electricity use by storing surplus energy – particularly from photovoltaic systems – and balancing peak loads. By reusing decommissioned electric vehicle batteries with an average remaining capacity of 80 percent, valuable resources are conserved, and the circular economy in the battery industry is strengthened.
Third place and €10,000 went to HDB Recycling GmbH from Hünxe. The company independently developed the wet-processing plant “R-Gestein Niederrhein,” which transforms mineral waste into high-quality secondary construction materials for structural and civil engineering. The plant combines washing technology, optical sorting, and density separation using a jigging machine. Unlike traditional recycling methods, the integrated washing process removes water-soluble contaminants. Over 95 percent of the water used in the process comes from rainfall. The result of this wet processing: environmentally friendly sand, gravel, and crushed stone. The recycled materials can fully replace equivalent amounts of primary raw materials.
Background Information
North Rhine-Westphalia is the national leader in the environmental economy. The Environmental Economy Award.NRW is part of a cross-ministerial environmental economy strategy led by the Ministry of the Environment. Under the motto #MilestonesGreenNRW, 2024 is entirely focused on the environmental economy as a driver and pioneer of ecological transformation.
North Rhine-Westphalia has long prioritized support for the green economy: ten years ago, the federal state launched KUER.NRW (Climate, Environment, Energy, and Resource Conservation), the first nationwide competition for environmentally oriented startups, as part of its environmental economy strategy.
Since 2014, innovation for climate and environmental protection has also been specifically supported through ERDF funding programs. Regularly published environmental economy reports ensure transparency of achievements. The environmental economy in NRW has shown consistent and above-average growth. The goal: 800,000 employees and an annual gross value added of €70 billion in NRW’s environmental economy by 2030. This shows how North Rhine-Westphalia is paving the way toward an innovative and successful Green Economy.
NRW.BANK is the development bank for North Rhine-Westphalia. In close partnership with its owner – the state of North Rhine-Westphalia – it contributes to strengthening SMEs and startups, creating affordable housing, and improving public infrastructure. NRW.BANK offers tailored financing and advisory services to individuals, businesses, and municipalities in NRW. It works in a competition-neutral manner with financing partners, especially banks and savings banks. To support transformation processes, the bank sets targeted funding impulses – moving toward a sustainable, climate-neutral, and digital North Rhine-Westphalia.
Source: Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Transport of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia
The NRW-USA Year 2023/2024 was the focus of the summer festival hosted by the NRW State Representation in Berlin — and with it, the transatlantic relations between the federal state and the United States. Around 1,500 guests from politics, business, and media gathered to exchange views on current topics and developments in North Rhine-Westphalia and to celebrate the decades-long cultivated relationship between NRW and the USA. Münsterland e.V. was also present as one of the nine regional development organizations of the association regionen.NRW.
The guests discussed current issues, talked about the important transatlantic ties, and sampled typical American foods and beverages. At the NRW regions’ booth, visitors could experience the diversity of NRW through gins and cocktails from special local producers and manufacturers from the nine regions. An exhibition with historic steles also highlighted economic, political, and socially significant moments of friendship between NRW and the USA.
The idea behind the joint presentation of the nine regions under the title “regionen.NRW” is to position themselves collectively towards the state government. The association has existed since 2013 and includes the Zukunftsagentur Rheinisches Revier as well as the nine regional management organizations: Region Aachen – Zweckverband, Bergische Struktur- und Wirtschaftsförderungsgesellschaft mbH, Regionalmanagement Düsseldorf/Kreis Mettmann, Region Köln/Bonn e.V., Münsterland e.V., Standort Niederrhein GmbH, OstWestfalenLippe GmbH, Regionalverband Ruhr, and Südwestfalen Agentur GmbH.
How should the design and implementation of the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) look from 2028 onward? These and many other questions were the focus of the regionen.NRW network on May 2nd at an event hosted by the Ministry of Economic Affairs at the Representation of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia in Brussels.
The discussions centered on the crucial questions of how the ERDF should be shaped and implemented from 2028, as well as the wishes and goals of the state government, the EU, and the regions in NRW. In an intensive exchange, possibilities for deepened cooperation were explored to strengthen strategic collaboration across state borders.
In the afternoon, the regions engaged in direct dialogue with officials from the European Commission about the problems and challenges facing the future of cohesion policy and took a closer look at the Harnessing Talent platform and its impact on the regions.
The event marks an important step toward effective and targeted cooperation between the state government of North Rhine-Westphalia, the regions, and the European Union regarding cohesion policy from 2028. It underscores the shared responsibility for sustainable development and the economic success of the regions.
Minister Neubaur: With the right strategic priorities, we support the regions in their individual strengths
Promoting growth and regional balance, stimulating innovation, and successfully implementing the climate-neutral transformation of the regions: Regional policy in North Rhine-Westphalia has set ambitious goals. How this can succeed was discussed by Economics and Climate Protection Minister Mona Neubaur together with Prof. Dr. Michael Hüther (IW Cologne), Wuppertal’s Mayor Prof. Dr. Uwe Schneidewind, Prof. Dr. Jens Südekum from Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, and many other experts from science and practice at the specialist conference “Regional Political Renewal in NRW” in Düsseldorf.
Economics Minister Mona Neubaur: “Regional policy is experiencing a renaissance. We support the regions in their forward-looking transformation! To ensure that all regions of the state—from the Lower Rhine to Siegerland and from Aachen to Ostwestfalen-Lippe—benefit, we set the right strategic priorities and support the regions in their regional strengths and needs with a variety of state, federal, and EU programs. Better coordination between regional funding and regional planning, clear priorities in funding programs, and closer regional cooperation can make an important contribution.”
IW Director Prof. Dr. Michael Hüther: “Regional diversity and balance are strengths of the German economic model and guarantees of broad prosperity in our country. However diverse the regions are, so too are their problems and challenges. Smart regional policy can help manage current economic upheavals. For this, a clear strategy—and targeted investments—are needed.”
Prof. Dr. Jens Südekum: “Regional policy used to focus mainly on creating jobs in economically weak regions. Today, the scope is broader: it is about ensuring that transformation succeeds everywhere, combining climate protection with more added value and rising prosperity. For this, regional policy requires new instruments and more flexible approaches—exactly what is being discussed by experts and practitioners at the conference.”
Around 180 experts from regional science, regional development, economic promotion, chambers, unions, associations, politics, and administration exchanged ideas on strategic guidelines at the conference. The insights will contribute to sharpening regional policy in North Rhine-Westphalia and moving closer to an integrated system of regional development.
Press contact: Evelyn.Binder@mwike.nrw.de, 0211 – 61772 615
Information on the processing of personal data by the Ministry of Economy, Industry, Climate Protection and Energy of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia
Climate neutrality and energy security, circular economy, environmentally friendly mobility, sustainable food, protection of ecosystems: The European Green Deal has many facets. Around 200 actors from politics, business, and society discussed the contents and their implementation in the regions, as well as current developments, on February 27 (Tuesday) at the Spring Reception of the Regions in the State Parliament in Düsseldorf. Münsterland e.V., one of the ten partner organizations of the alliance, was also present.
André Kuper, President of the NRW State Parliament, welcomed the guests. “Strong regions in Europe are the backbone of democracy. We need close regional and cross-border cooperation to meet the diverse challenges of our time — for sustainable industry and agriculture, modern transport infrastructure, and climate neutrality. Only together can we initiate these important processes.”
European Green Deal as an Economic Strategy
The keynote was delivered by Kurt Vandenberghe, Director-General for Climate Action of the European Commission. “The European Green Deal is our economic strategy. Ecological transformation is not just an environmental agenda but also a fiscal and economic one. Only with sustainable, innovative business models and decoupling economic growth from resource consumption can we remain economically successful in the long term and maintain our standard of living. This requires particularly high investments at the beginning, which will pay off economically in the medium and long term. In these investment decisions, we want to support companies and reduce bureaucracy.”
“The green and digital transformation in the context of the European Green Deal is one of the greatest challenges of our time. The success of the transformation is decided in the local organization, in the regions,” emphasized the boards and managing directors of the regionen.NRW alliance at the event.
After the presentations and impulses, the regions engaged in intensive exchanges with the guests over beer and pretzels.
Spring Reception on February 27 at the State Parliament
For over ten years, the regions of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) have been networking under the slogan “regionen.NRW – Strong Regions. Strong State,” developing joint concepts, strategies, and projects. In order to continue tackling future challenges together, the managing directors and board members of the regional alliances recently met for a strategic retreat in Münster, where they set the annual strategy for the network.
One of the key topics discussed was the planning of this year’s Spring Reception of the Regions, which will take place on Tuesday, February 27 at the NRW State Parliament in Düsseldorf. The event will be held under the theme: “The Regions and the Implementation of the European Green Deal.”
The keynote address will be delivered by Kurt Vandenberghe, Director-General for Climate Action at the European Commission.
Additionally, the representatives of NRW’s regions discussed plans for closer cooperation with the European Commission in Brussels, including regular exchange meetings and joint positioning on the future of cohesion policy.
Workshops on various topics are also planned in individual regions throughout the year. Furthermore, the network will again contribute to the NRW Summer Reception on June 4 at the NRW State Representation in Berlin, where they will have their own stand. Exchange meetings with various state organizations are also planned to ensure continued close cooperation in the future.
A look back at the 10th anniversary year in 2023 was also included. During that year, the network significantly deepened its cooperation with both the European Commission and the NRW state government, and many successful projects were implemented. These partnerships are set to be expanded further, making the network’s effective work even more visible.