Stimulating ideas for the future of Saarland

10.02.07 |

In 1761, a French vessel ran aground off a remote island in the Indian Ocean. The tiny island had neither fresh water nor any vegetation worth mentioning to offer the survivors. In spite of that, a handful of them did manage to subsist there for several years. A group of French archaeologists has now gone some way to getting to the bottom of the riddle: the scientists found evidence pointing to a 'well organised society which did not allow itself to be overcome by the difficulties'.

Perhaps one might similarly describe the 50 managers from Saarland's Ministries who came together last Monday at the invitation of the World Cultural Heritage Site at the Völklingen Ironworks, the European Centre for Art and Industrial Culture. Their mission was of course by no means as precarious as that of the shipwrecked party, but it was hardly the less challenging: together, their brief was to develop some stimulating ideas for the future of Saarland.

Their zeal for innovation was able to unfold unrestrainedly in the newly refurbished ore shed at this industrial site so full of tradition. This is where, in the old days, the iron ore was stored, the most valuable possession of the ironworks at the time. 'Today,' said Dr. Meinrad Maria Grewenig, Director-General of the World Cultural Heritage Site at the Völklingen Ironworks, welcoming his guests, 'we hope to tap another precious resource: your creativity.' The ore shed has become an idea laboratory. The idea is that, between now and the summer, a total of six so-called future workshops should pluck up the courage to look ahead and develop concepts for the Saarland of tomorrow. All the leading social groups will be involved, for example decision-makers from industry and commerce, young people, members of the State Parliament of Saarland, scientists and representatives from art and culture. And from May 13th 2007 onwards, the World Cultural Heritage Site at the Völklingen Ironworks will be dedicating a project of its own to the documentation of this pioneering project: 'Genius I. The mission: discover, research, invent'. Apart from that, the results of the various future workshops are to be submitted to Federal President Horst Köhler as part of the initiative 'Germany – Land of Ideas'.

That was the theory of it. No-one knew whether it would actually stand up under practical conditions. Monday saw the eagerly awaited acid test. Under the practised guidance of presenter Daniel Wiener from Basle, the participants were asked not to be backward in coming forward, to be critical and to work out and discuss new ideas in groups.

Analysis proved to be a solid basis for constructive visions of the future. The trick: the plus and minus signs are simply exchanged. Thus a preoccupation with the past suddenly turns into a confident openness for things new, and that feeling of being offside that Germans sometimes have when they consider their country's domestic politics is transformed into an awareness of standing in the middle of a wide-ranging European region full of focal cities. This is similar to the well known question of whether the glass is half full or half empty: the way you look at a thing is determined by where you are looking from, and what seems unthinkable today may begin to take shape tomorrow.

The participants in the first future workshop in the World Cultural Heritage Site at the Völklingen Ironworks put this concept into practice in textbook manner. In concentrated teamwork, they formulated some long-term aims which they feel will have a genuine chance of becoming reality.

Daniel Wiener from Switzerland calls serious designs for the future like that 'Matterhorns'. However, to climb a mountain like the Matterhorn, you do require a certain preparation: the proper training, a good rope team and well positioned bivouacs. 'On the way to the summit,' asked the presenter, 'where would the first base camp be?'

Once again, the participants put their heads together, working intensively in groups, thinking, discussing, scrapping and conceiving ideas. And once again, the ideas flowed in abundance. For example, concepts for multilingual early education and exchange programmes for Saarland's pupils and students.

There was certainly no lack of creativity and no paucity of ideas among the participants of the future workshop. For a whole day, they turned the World Cultural Heritage Site at the Völklingen Ironworks into a highly productive think tank. That gives us cause to hope: for the future of Saarland, and especially for the other future workshops which are on the programme of the idea laboratory of the World Cultural Heritage Site at the Völklingen Ironworks.                 

(Lorenz Töpperwien)

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