danube connects – the magazine for the danube countries, 2/2014

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connectsdanubethe magazine for the danube countries

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Looking AheadBusiness and Education

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Editorial

TDear readers,

he EU Danube Strategy wants to spark change. The Danube region is supposed to be strengthened economically but this goal is de-layed by corruption and instable political circumstances. The transition from state-owned businesses to private companies has not gone smoothly everywhere. A lack of education leads to unemployment and skilled wor-kers move to the west. This brain-drain has become a massive problem in the Danube countries and whole villages and regions are deserted.

This list of negative examples could be continued without end.

Our current issue takes a look at the positive deve-lopments in the field of education and economy – two subjects that are closely related. We cover the dual education system which is currently imple-

mented in some of the Danube countries. This form of vocational training has become a valuable alternative to a university degree since it offers good qualifications and high chances of employment. For many compa-nies, skilled workers have become a strong location factor.

BuKi in Cidreag/Romania and ASIROMA are two projects supported by Baden-Württemberg foundation that battle educational deprivation in different ways – we take a look at the two initiatives. Also you can learn more about Märklin’s recipe for success and the Green Port Giurgiu in Romania.

Enjoy reading!

Andrea Toll & Sabine GellerChefredaktion und Initiatorinnen danube connects

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FULL STEAM AHEAD: SWABIAN MODEL RAILWAYS IN GYÖR.Promising future for Märklin’s site in Hungary...................................4–5

A NEW ERA FOR THE PORT OF GIURGIUOne of the Danube region’s most modern ports is built in Romania......6–7

A EUROPE OF DIGITAL ADMINISTRATIONDuring the “Central and Eastern Euro-pean eGov Days“ experts discussed digital administration........................8–9

MORE PRACTICAL EXPERIENCE, PLEASE!Romania is implementing the system of dual education.........................10–11

THE LONG PATH TO THE FUTUREBuKi House in Cidreag/Romania takes care of Roma children ................12–13

NO REASON TO TAKE A DEEP BREATHFrom 30.000 to 2.500: Res,it,a has changed.....................14–15

SUCCESSFUL CO-OPERATIONHow the Aki e.V.‘s educational project helps future winegrowers in Hungary ..........................................16

BETTER QUALIFICATIONS FOR JOBS IN THE SOCIAL SECTORAn educational initiative in Bulgaria could become a model project for other countries.................................17

”LEARNING IS STRUCTURED ANEW”danube connects interviews Anders Bergström................................18

DANUBIANS ROCK! DANUBE SUMMER SCHOOL 2014Participants and organisers agree that the first summer school was a success..................................................19

BETTER PACKAGING WITH DANUBEPIEEU project for Danube countries supports eco design.............................20

LIVING EUROPE – DANUBENET BUSINESS WOMENBPW-Conference in Regensburg........20

COUNTERING DROPOUTSActions against educational deprivation among Roma....................21

PAY ZERO FOR WHAT IS YOURS!Young people against corruption........22

I AM NOT A TREE WITHOUT ROOTSThe story about Kovin........................23

IMPRINT & DATES...........................24

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Märklin in Györ

the magazine for the danube countries

Tel. +49 (0)731 153 75 05Fax +49 (0)731 153 75 [email protected]

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The name Märklin lights up children’s faces, takes adults back to their child-hood and fascinates collectors. The model railways from Göppingen in Baden-Württemberg, 35 kilometres east of Stuttgart, have a dedicated fan base. Part of the company’s younger history is its factory in Hungarian Györ that works closely together with the main plant in Göppingen. Director Florian Sieber calls it „intelligent task sharing“: Göp-pingen covers all production processes of Märklin and is the site of innovation and development, CAD-constructions, mould design and the production of metal parts. Furthermore the parts of the high-end engines, like the insider type H0 will be exclusively produced in Göppingen. This is done for marketing reasons and to meet the fans expecta-tions for the highest possible quality.

Lots of Handicraft

Györ is much more for Märklin than an extended work bench: the site has de-veloped into a growingly independent plant for demanding tasks in the last twenty-one years and is nowadays fully integrated into the company’s product planning. Whereas Göppingen mostly uses automated methods to produce high numbers, many steps such as col-ouring are still done manually in Györ. Up to twenty workers paint the engines and wagons with a steady hand and sharp eye. Due to the high percentage of handicraft, many products from Györ only exist in limited editions of 500 to 600 pieces. Apart from engines and wagons, the Györ plant also works on tracks and switch points. Märklin is fa-mous for its vertical range of manufac-

turing: even the smallest parts such as rack-wheels, screws or parts of cable for the electronics are produced by Märklin itself and then shipped to Györ for as-sembly.

More and more the demanding techni-cal task such as CAD-construction or the design of tools and moulds for mod-els are transferred to Hungary. Up to twenty constructors play a large part in a unique recall effort: when the British investor Kingsbridge was in charge of

Märklin from 2006 to 2009, all engines and wagons made for track type Z and garden rail LGB were produced in the Far East. Declining quality and long delivery times made an end to this ad-

The model railways of traditional Swabian manufacturer Märklin are look-ing upon a bright future in Györ (Western Hungary). After nearly ten mil-lion Euros of investments in buildings, modernisation and new machines the enlarged factory of Märklin Hungaria was opened on October 2nd 2014. Märklin has been building engines, wagons and tracks there for twenty-one years: a Swabian-Hungarian success story.

Full Steam Ahead Swabian Model Railways in Györ

venture in 2010/11. Since then, Märklin tries to regain the numerous moulds – most of which are in bad condition. The constructors of Györ repair them and af-ter the end of the project, all Z and LGB models will be produced in Hungary and return to the high Märklin stand-ards.

Further steps are taken that will bring Györ to a level with Göppingen: Mär-klin is training Hungarian tool manu-facturers for the construction of resin moulds. The growing number of tasks also asks for a growing number of staff: no wonder then that the plant needed to be expanded and modernised after 2011. Märklin invested more than nine million Euros into the new buildings, the modernisation of production and machines; the new plant was opened on October 2nd 2014.

Dual Education Lacking

Wolfrad Bächle, Märklin director for Hungary, has worked and lived in Györ for four years and thus witnessed the development. He draws a positive balance. The quality of education has steadily increased in Györ. In the begin-ning, trained staff from Göppingen had to be present in Hungary at all times to lead the processes and supervise the quality. “By now our whole manage-ment in Györ is from Hungary,” says a

proud Bächle. The only worrying factor is the lack of dual education and the resulting shortage of skilled workers. “The competition to get the best staff is getting harder,” Bächle notes with a hint towards German automobile com-panies such as Mercedes and Audi. The trained Märklin workers are sought-af-ter by these firms.

Although the difference in salary be-tween Györ and Göppingen is getting smaller, Bächle sees a growing impor-tance in Eastern European countries such as Hungary, especially since Hun-gary became a member of the European Union in 2009: “This gives us confidence and planning reliability,” says Bächle. This is reflected in the growing number of staff Märklin employed in Györ: 650 permanent workers and up to 250 tem-porary workers. 50 more will get per-manent positions after the expansion.

Thomas Zehender, journalist, Ulm

The site in Györ was modernised for nearly ten million Euros.

INFO

Märklin was founded in 1859 by Theodor Frie-drich Wilhelm Märklin as a producer of metal toys. His sons Eugen and Karl Märklin took over the company in 1888 and displayed their first model railway on the Leipzig Fair in 1891. Today Märklin is the global leader of model railway. In the spring on 2013 the toy firm Sieber & Son GmbH & Co. KG has become principal share-holder of the company; the types Märklin Trix and LGB garden rail will be continues. Märklin employs approximately 1000 permanent work-ers in Göppingen and Györ.

Economy


Trucks are crawling along dusty pot-holed streets towards the port of Gi-urgiu, Romania. There is no railway connection and the cranes along the Danube port are outdated. When the water is low one can see that the basin has not been dug out in years. Time and time again the handling of cargo has to be stopped because many ships can-not reach the pier. Plans to modernise and expand the port of Giurgiu have failed due to high costs. However, on initiative of the logistic firm “Indus-trie-Logistik-Linz” from Upper Austria, a breakthrough seems to draw close. Industrie-Logistik-Linz has two rea-sons to invest in Romania: two years ago one of their costumers has opened a production site close to Giurgiu and “furthermore, South-Eastern Europe is interesting in regards to the econom-ic usage of the Danube,” says Heimo

Hintersteiner. The firm handles high-end steel products for the automobile industry throughout Europe. In a joint effort with their Romanian subsidiary company ILR Logistica Romania, with the city of Giurgiu and the port opera-tor S.C. Administratia Zonei Libere Gi-urgiu S.A., the businessmen from Linz have started the project “High Perfor-mance Green Port Giurgiu”.

Trimodality as Only Option

At the heart of the project is the tri-modal, dehumidified logistics centre that allows the handling of cargo be-tween ship, railway and trucks under one roof. Furthermore, the distributor roads towards the port as well as the railway tracks to the centre have to be modernised and the old cranes have to be renewed. Project coordinator Hinter-

steiner points out that trimodality is the only option and a railway connection has to be built: “Trimodality is a must for an innovative logistics firm like us”. In the long run the ships’ cargo holds will be upgraded as well so that high-end products that have to be handled with care can be shipped safely. The key word “green port” raises a promise of an eco-friendly harbour facility after the model of Linz. The emphasis on transport on water route and railroads will lead to less usage of trucks and thus fewer emissions. The backlog in regards to environment protection is immense as Hintersteiner witnessed: “When handling bulk car-go a lot of product gets into the water and goes directly into the Danube.” His aim is ambitious: “We want to apply the same environment protection measures as in Austria!”

The first phase of the project is a sta-tus-quo analysis which has begun in July 2013 and analyses the facilities, market opportunities and environmen-tal criteria of the port. This stage of the

Interview

Ships, railway, and trucks under one roof – that is the vision of High Perfor-mance Green Port Giurgiu. The project wants to turn the Romanian harbour into one of the most modern of his kind along the Danube. Partners from Austria and Romania have been working together since July 2013 and the opening is planned for 2017.

project is almost completed and will be followed by the steps “Innovation and technical Concepts” and “Port and Business Model”. These will develop a detailed concept for the port, the tri-modal logistic centre, transport connec-tions and environment measures. First visualised models already exist and were presented on a press conference in Giurgiu in March. A more detailed public presentation will follow in the summer of 2015 during a “Port Day” in Giurgiu. Due to the supra-regional importance of the harbour one half of the project is supported the EU-Pro-gramme Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T). A comparison of numbers show that the millions of in-vestments in Giurgiu could pay off one day: Linz handled 350.000 tons of cargo on waterway in 2013, Giurgiu 60.000. In the medium term Hintersteiner sees a yearly potential of 200 000 tons – if the project of a High Performance Green Port is realised.


A New Era for the Port of Giurgiu

:: INFO ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Industrie-Logistik Linz GmbH was founded in 1993. The logistics firm has sites in Linz and Styria (Austria), Moerdijk (Netherlands) and Giurgiu (Romania). At the moment it has 280 employees. In 1998, a 17 300 square metre port centre was built in Linz, at the time first fully roofed trimodal harbour in Europe.

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Model of the harbour

Giurgiu

Economy

The Romanian port city of Giurgiu on a strategically important spot 493 river kilometres from the Black Sea.

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MAMA DUNA7. Internationales Donaufestin Ulm und Neu-Ulm27. August - 5. September 2010

Kontakt und Information:

donau.büro.ulm · Tel. 0049 (0) 731 / 88 03 06-0

www.donaubuero.de · [email protected]

„Von mir, der Donau, kannst du die Lektionen des ewigen Lebens lernen.“ György Konrádfestdonauulm neu-ulm

Under the headline “eGov: Driver or Stumbling Block for European Integra-tion?” the advantages and disadvantag-es as well as the feasibility and usage of digital administration in Europe were discussed. After being held in Prague for several years now the conference returned to Budapest, at the newly opened National University of Public Administration (NKE) and at the Ger-man language Andrássy University Budapest (AUB). Both institutions had organised the conference in coopera-tion with the College of Public Admin-istration and Finances Ludwigsburg (HSLU), the Austrian Computer Asso-ciation (ÖCG), the Austrian Institute of Legal Policy (ÖIR) and the Federal Chancellery of the Republic of Austria (BÖ).

Henrik Hansen, vice-rector of AUB ex-plained that the founders of AUB (Aus-tria, Switzerland, Hungary, Germany,

Baden-Württemberg Foundation and the Free State of Bavaria) had wanted to build bridges and bring people from central and middle Europe together – and now even people from Asia were present. “eGov is perceived ambiva-lently”, said Hansen“, especially in re-lation to privacy ePolicies are often seen negatively for which Edward Snowden is the best example.” He expressed his hopes that the scientific community would not resolve to a collective behav-iour like the one that could be seen in the public debate around former Feder-al President Christian Wulff.

Legislation Bills on Facebook In his keynote, Jani Makraduli, Vice-President of Macedonia’s Parlia-ment, explored the possibilities of the internet as a new political medium, e.g. through online campaigns of political

parties or as a source of information for citizens. “In Macedonia, all parties agree on communication technology; that is why we have an eParliament, which is broadcasted via web-tv and on which all proposals can be viewd,” said Makraduli. Citizens can even comment on legislation bills via facebook. Simi-larly, Manfred Matzka, Director of BÖ, praised eGov in its importance in the re-lation of politics, economy and citizens as it provides quick service. “The digi-tal world has the potential to strengthen faith in public services,” said Matzka. “The high transparency leads to a de-crease in illegal actions and to a stabi-lisation of costs.” Austria thus founded the initiative “Digital Austria” through which 14 million proposals have been

CEE eGov Days 2014 in Budapest

A Europe of Digital Administration

submitted in 2014 only – this is equiva-lent to 2 proposals per citizen.

On the two following days more than thirty talks on eDemocracy, data secu-rity and compatibility, transparency and eBusiness were held. In one of them, Robert Müller-Török (HSLU) soberly stated: “A mix of different cit-izenships is completely normal today, but the authorities are not ready for it on an administration level.” He drew attention to the problems of different ways of spelling a name in different countries or regarding the vote: Dual citizens lose their vote in one country when they have committed a crime but not in the other. “This is crazy,” so the researcher. On enquiry of danube connects, Müller Török, co-organis-er of the conference and Danube re-gion coordinator at HSLU, explained that Baden-Württemberg Foundation wants to promote the EU-Danube Strategy and therefore is the event’s biggest sponsor.

„eGov will come to be the standard form of administration“

In a workshop on eID, Peter Reichstäd-ter (BÖ) introduced a strategy started in 2003 by which the Austrian ID card is valid as a digital signature, can be used as e-ID and for online petitions. The strategy founders had learned much from the EU-regulations, said Reichstädter who believes that eGov will come to be the standard form of administration in the future. In Peter Kustor’s (BÖ) opinion the regulations for e-signatures were the commissions answer to citizens’ and entrepreneurs’ growing usage of the internet; never-theless e-signatures are still not equal to digital or physical signatures since the new rules only apply from Octo-ber onwards, explained Reichstädter. “The implementation needs national legislation and the EU-members need to make a joint effort and mutually ac-knowledge the signatures,” said Kus-

tor. It still needs to be decided how to handle foreign eIDs and which data should be send into foreign countries. The implementation will run on pro-ject STORK (Secure idenTity across boRders linKed) which is already run-ning in sixteen countries. During the panel discussion at AUB, Diana Simic, former Croatian State Secretary and responsible for project eCroatia explained that the system was also introduced as a measure to get into the EU. Wolfgang Riedel, di-rector of the newspaper Wiener Zei-tung called Europe hard work, not a question of romance: “We need to find ways to make Europe work. eGov is one of them.”

Municipal websites still leave room for improvement

On the second day of the conference Klaus Stranacher (TU Graz) talked about eGov procedures and their re-lation to the EU directive on services: if citizens want to use an administra-tive authority, it has to be competent to provide the services. Therefore, joint documents have to be constructed and STORK could act as a pilot project. In order to reduce manual editing “legal, administrative, semantic and technical challenges have to be met,” said the IT expert. Martina Eckhart (AUB) presented the results of a study on eGov performance of municipal websites in the Danube region. “eGov is a measure for foster-ing the EU strategy for the Danube re-gion for the nine EU and five non-EU countries,” explained the economist.

2015 conference held in Budapest again

The Best Paper Awards, funded by Baden-Württemberg Foundation, were awarded to Mohamed Awad (Univer-sity RAs Al Khaimah, VAE; in absen-tia) for his work on American eVote

automatisms and to Simon Delakorda (Institute for Electronic Participation, Ljubljana) for his study on informa-tion-communication usage of NGOs in CEE. Postserver.at’s Audience Award went to Alois Paul (TU Vienna) for his paper on eGov sustainability. In 2015, the CEEeGov Days will be held at NKE again, as Müller-Török declared. The participants were satisfied with the conference and Hansen closed with a statement that critical examination of all developments, technological as well as all other, were part of Europe-an identity. “It is not smartphones that make Europe, but Greek philosophy.”

Daniel Hirsch,journalist, Budapest

The effort to draw Europe closer together is not only made on a political level. The international conference “Central and Eastern European eGov Days” was held in Budapest in May and experts from the areas of research, administration and IT discussed digital administration and eGovernment (eGov).


Dual Education

In Romania, for example, less the fifty percent of classes for practical educa-tion are held in the actual businesses. Laboratories are poorly equipped and the curricula do not match the de-mands of modern technologies. The re-sult: current graduates with an educa-tion in technical vocations cannot keep up with the standards and demands of the Romanian job market.

The former Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta has identified this weak-ness which also reflects on investments in the region: between 2000 and 2005 many investors came to Romania be-cause of its low labour expenses, now-adays skilled labourers are the only valid argument for investors. This does not only apply to those compa-nies which have already invested in the region like German investors who are used to skilled workers from their main plants but is also relevant for at-tracting new businesses in the global “battle for investors”.

Learning from the BestIn 2013 Ponta noted that the extraordi-nary economic success of the German Federal State of Baden-Württemberg was due to its dual education sys-tem. He pointed out that his country wanted to benefit from Baden-Würt-temberg’s experiences and support in designing a new educational scheme. In the context of the Danube Strategy Ponta and Baden-Württemberg’s pres-ident Winfried Kretschmann signed a cooperation agreement for the sec-tors of vocational training, chambers of commerce and for the fostering of small and medium-sized companies. In a joint effort they want to improve

the quality and efficiency of vocational training, creativity and innovation in the region. The agreement also aims at fostering entrepreneurial thinking on all levels of education and lifelong learning and mobility for graduates so that they can find jobs in both Romania or abroad according to their qualifica-tions. Thus the project “Modernisation of Vocational Schools in Romania” was founded.

Vocational training experts, represent-atives of Baden-Württemberg’s Min-istry for Education, members of the academy of Esslingen and representa-tives of chambers and investors form a German-Romanian work group and have identified three focuses: Selection of skilled professions required in the region and designing of curricula, ed-ucation of Romanian vocational school teachers and marketing for schools on the model of the dual system.

Inadequate vocational training is one of the reasons for the high youth un-employment, the lack of innovation and small numbers of small and medi-um-sized businesses and start-ups in the Danube region. Which are the soft spots in vocational training in South-Eastern Europe and the Balkans? Low qualification standards (both theoretical and practical) among graduates of technical colleges, few class hours for practical skills and laboratory work.

Standardised Vocational TrainingEspecially those companies which are part of the “German Economic Club” in Romania are highly motivated. The clubs in Brasov, Sibiu, Satmar and Timisoara are the most dedicated and among the businesses are well-known companies such as Continental, Kath-rein, Terwa Rerotec, Cadtec, Schaeffler Group, Dräxlmaier, Stabilus, Hella, Dura, Barum, DM, Netex. The clubs in-volved are exchanging their experienc-es and guidelines so that a standard-ised vocational training has emerged.

Already in 2010, before the presidents had signed the agreement, the German Economic Club of Brasov and its com-mitted president Werner Braun had become active on a local scale. In early 2012 a cooperation protocol was signed by the club, the economic initiative “DWK – Fit for Future” and municipal and local institutions. 224 apprentice-ships are available now and thirteen companies are involved in the practical section of the education. The theoreti-cal part is held in a newly refurbished building with modern equipment. The vocational school Brasov (SPGK) of-fers a two- or three-year technical ed-ucation plan in Romanian language for students in the fields of mechatron-ics, tool making, melding and electro engineering. This kind of training is very popular since chances of finding

a job afterwards or being employed by the company one trained at are high. Also, the diploma is internationally acknowledged. Furthermore students can get their A levels at SPGK and gain further qualifications. And – last but not least – there is a scholarship of 400 Lei per month.

When the project started it was hard to fill all the apprenticeships because vocational training had a bad repu-tation in comparison with a universi-ty degree and many families wished for their children to study. In the past many universities could be bribed to admit persons to their university and to give them good results when they graduated. New EU regulations put – at least in part – an end to this which resulted in fewer people entering the universities. Thus, after a phase of ap-plications and interviews all places in the vocational school could be filled this year. The clubs were promised EU funding which they have not received yet, though.

Maybe some of the workers trained at the vocational school will find a job in Germany, where a drastic shortage of skilled workers is projected for the next years. Until 2020 1,7 million skilled la-bourers will be needed on the German market. Other Danube countries such as Hungary, Slovakia, Croatia or Serbia

have also taken to the dual education system. The change is mostly initiat-ed by companies from the automotive supply and engineering sector.

Wolfgang Limbert, danube connects

More practical experience, please!

One special concern is the tackling of youth unemployment (NEET – Not in Employment, Education of Training). The EU-27-average showed that unemplo-yment among 25- to 24-year-olds is at 13,2 percent. In 2012 it was as high as 21,5 percent in Bulgaria and 16,8 percent in Romania; 16,7 percent in Croatia and 14,7 percent in Hungary. In comparison the same age group was at 6,5 percent in Austria and 7,7 percent in Germany. Additionally South-Eastern Europe was below the average of Danube countries like Austria and Germany in the area of innovation (founding of small and medium-sized businesses) and in regards to vocational training and skilled labour.

Dual Education


Roma and Education

With a broad and proud smile Lui-ci holds his diploma into the camera. He has gained it at BuKI e.V.’s project house which he can attend in the after-noon on one condition: he has to go to school. Luici is Roma and lives in the village of Cidreag in the North-West of Romania. On one side of the village Ro-manians from Hungary have settled on the other side Roma. The latter mostly live in great poverty. The image of Luici smiling is only one glimpse at Cidreag but it is a hopeful one.

When Stefan Zell and his wife, mem-bers of BuKi, came to Cidreag for the first time in 2008 they were shocked at

what they found. The Roma in the village did not have electricity or run-ning water and their small huts made out of plastic and wooden remains of-ten did not even have walls. Reasons for the poverty of Roma in Romania can be found in their history: until the 19th century they had been enslaved. “This has left its mark in their self-con-ception,” suspects Zell, the director of the association BuKi. Also, the struc-tural changes affected the minority to a great extent. They had mostly been doing physical work which was not in demand after the end of state-directed economy.

Obstacles on the Way to School

In 2009 BuKi built a house in Cidreag in which twenty-five children are support-ed by five permanent employees who e.g. help them with their homework. At the age of a fourth-grader some of them cannot even write their name. School classes fail at integrating them; Roma children do not have to repeat a class

but are not supported either. “It is surprising that they go to school at all,” says Zell. “But they are never talked to at all; they leave school in the afternoon no different from how they entered it in the morning.”

From the age of ten onwards, Roma children are usually integrated into work life in their family. Their parents work on the fields in the region, oth-ers even in foreign countries. Despite common prejudices, having work is important for the Roma of Cidreag and thus the motivation to go to school de-creases the older the children become and it is hard for the social workers to get in contact with the parents. This needs to change in the future, confirms Stefan Zell. To reach the initiative’s goals the German association needs to expand and cross the border of vol-untary work. Right now, the project is funded by private donations and since 2010 by Baden-Württemberg Founda-tion as well. The foundation wants to strengthen civil society in the region which BuKi does through the integra-

Roma and Education

Luici is proud of his diploma.

The Long Path

tion of Roma. The fact that the children receive individual care and counselling regarding their perspectives was also a reason for the foundation to support the project. Lobbying for the Children

In the near future the children will also have the opportunity to earn money at BuKi House and get a basic manual and mercantile education. Luici’s smile and his diploma also tell a story of the at-tention the children get at BuKi which however cannot be measured in school grades. There is still much work to be done. The main goal of the project, so Zell, is “to lobby for the children.” One of the main obstacles on this path are the set structures in the families and public organisations. Thus the steady strengthening of the children’s self-es-teem is the best chance the project has got.

Carolin Krahl, journalist, Leipzig

to the FutureBuKi House in Cidreag/Romania wants to be a place where Roma child-ren can develop ideas of a future free of stigmata and outdated societal structure.

Help for Roma children

Gyula and Luci frequently visit BuKi House. In the middle: Vivian and Jutta Nerlich.


The smoking furnaces nowadays only survive in people’s memories. “We stood on top of the hill and looked down onto the valley in shock. We could not believe that this bleak, run-down industrial ruin was supposed to be Reșița. What we saw had nothing to do with the city we knew from our grandparents’ and father’s stories.“ Such were the impressions of my fami-ly when I first took them to Reșița.

In 1771, the time of the Habsburg rule, the small farmers’ village developed into one of the most modern and impor-tant metal working sites of south-east-ern Europe. In rapid pace furnaces, steel-mills, forges, carbonisation and sintering sites and even engine manu-factures were built in the region. The industries were enormously successful;

Reșița had its first steam engine in 1872 and its first railway bridge over Tisza, constructed by famous engineer Gus-tave Eiffel, in 1882. Bridges over the Danube from Belgrade to the Black Sea were designed and built here and the country’s first welded bridge was built over the small river of Bârzava in 1930. The world-famous Orient Express was running its impressive Pacfic locomo-tive on tracks built in Reșița’s steel-mills and the town became a symbol of industrial boom and wealth. Large orders for Nazi war machinery let the production numbers go through the roof and like a massive flywheel, Reșița pulled all of its surroundings with it. Even in the years of socialist planned economy Reșița was able to compete with the younger, bigger and more modern industrial sites in Romania and could in some areas even expand

its supremacy. Even today most of the country’s trains run on engines and bo-gies from the engine work UCMR. Rail-way tracks were exported to all over the world from Reșița. The company’s logo became a seal of quality for tur-bines, generators, engines and driving

Senior Rudolf is saddened by the development in Res,it,a.

Insightparts known from Brasil to Korea, and made the small town world-renowned.

The City’s Fall

During the mid-70s the site first began to tumble. There had been efforts to enlarge the industrial sites at the ex-pense of the old town. Whole streets and important buildings such as a clin-ic, hotels, a cinema and various hous-es were demolished, a whole district torn down. Even the “eternal flame”, a monument erected on a prominent crossroad for the cities 200th anniversa-ry in 1971 was destroyed. A large steel-mill for a special kind of section steel, the so called Blooming, was built right at the centre of the city. The concept as intended by the planners, however, never fully took off.

Upset by the pressure from the com-munist regime, disappointed by the lack of perspective and the catastroph-ic social situation, many qualified Ger-man workers left the country thus kick-ing of the beginning of the end. Shortly before the end of the communist era a last attempt was made and a diesel engine with more than 30.000 PS was constructed together with MAN Augs-burg. But the industry’s slow death could not be prevented and the fall of the Eastern Bloc was its final stroke.

A City without Perspective

In times of confusion and insecurity, of corruption and legal vacuum everyone thinks of themselves first. Resources ran dry, orders were not completed in time, industrial sites deteriorated and morale was low. Instead of working hard for a modernisation of the coun-try, quarrels about technicalities broke out. Foreign investors who came to Reșița were driven off by nationalists who did not want to sell “their” land to foreigners. Only half of the 30.000 em-ployees remained in 1997. “Today only 2.500 people are employed by the two model industrial works in Romania”

Sigrid tells us. She is a mechanical engi-neer and has witnessed the rise and fall of the works. She is one of the few who has not left her hometown. The city’s population has shrunk to 70.000 and ICPEHR, the former institute for devel-opment and project planning has only 60 employees nowadays. Most of the highly qualified women work as nurs-es for the elderly in German or Austria. Their husbands are unemployed, the youths move abroad or to Timisoara. By now, Reșița has a university, where “the unemployed of tomorrow are ed-ucated,” as Sigrid says disappointedly.

Nothing is produced here anymore; what is left is the administering of the city’s ruin. Once well-paid skilled workers are now welfare recipients with no hope for change. The city that used to be a destination for work seek-ers from the whole of Romania has lost its appeal. The remaining skilled workers move away and contribute to the lack of workforce. “We have built so much here! And today? We live in ruins! But wait, not even the ruins are left to us! Even the smelter, monu-ment of our industry, was torn down. Today, one can wear a white shirt in Reșița without getting dirty.” Rudolf takes his leave with a sad smile. He is going home to watch the news on his new satellite set. Maybe it will bring him reports of a better world, outside of Reșița.

Werner Henn, journalist, Baden-Baden

“Today Res,it,a is regarded a spa town because of its good air,“ says Rudolf, an eighty-year-old senior, and looks up nostalgically to the smelter’s chimneys which rise impressively against the clear sky. The thick black smoke that used to hover over the whole of the town has long since stopped emitting from the chimneys – the former emblem of Romania’s heavy industry.

No reasonto take a deep breath Place 1. Decembrie 1918


Pruning, methods of treating must, sul-phurisation: for more than a hundred years, these specialist terms have been taught to students of Soós István wine school. More than three hundred youths from fourteen onwards go to the techni-cal college in Budafok. After three years of vocational training they are equipped to work in a winery. Their prospects are good and most young winegrowers find work in Hungary.

In 2013 drastic changes came over the Hungarian wine school. After a reform of Hungarian vocational training laws a dual education system modelled on the German system was established in Hun-garian technical colleges. When designing the new curriculum the Hungarian teach-ers looked for the help of their German colleagues. Bíróné Móricz Ágnes, who teaches German as a foreign language at the Hungarian wine school says: “We have an excellent relationship with Josef Watzl, a teacher of oenology at Christi-ane-Herzog-vocational college in Heil-

bronn. In Germany it is important to work practice-oriented. We now try to imple-ment this method in our school as well.”

Theory and Praxis

“Germany’s structure of small and me-dium-sized companies taking on ap-prentices grew over hundreds of years and still has to emerge in Hungary. This is a unique chance to standardise exams and develop guidelines in vo-cational training throughout Europe. In Hungary we are establishing a prac-tice-oriented model right now which can later be transferred to other Danube countries,” Watzl explains. The dual apprenticeship project “Dual Appren-ticeship for Winegrowers and Coopers in Hungary” at AgrarKontakte Interna-tional (agrarian contacts international) e.V. (AKI) includes an exchange pro-gramme: three young graduates from the school in Budapest will do a short-ened apprenticeship in companies in Baden-Württemberg. They will get to know the German dual system and can act as multiplicators in Hungary later on. “The wine countries of Europe need to cooperate and train highly qualified specialists in a joint effort,” says Watzl. Only then is it possible to cater to the

emerging markets in China, Russia, In-dia and Africa and to stand up to the growing international competition.

Better professional outlook

The first one-year project started in September 2013 and was funded by Baden-Württemberg Foundation and AKI e.V. Its aim is to reduce the number of students leaving the colleges without a degree in Romania, Austria, Hungary and Bulgaria through the implementa-tion of the dual education system which operates successfully in Germany. “With this initiative we want to enable young people to enter the professional world. Also, the project strengthens civ-il society by integrating different ethnic groups on a neutral professional basis,” elucidates Sabine Grullini, head of edu-cation at Baden-Württemberg Founda-tion. This co-operation acts against the brain drain in many of the countries by giving the youth a positive profession-al outlook in their home region thus strengthening the Danube region.

Barbara Pehi, journalist, Budapest

Successful co-operation

Hungarian technical colleges ad-opt the German system of dual education in their vocational trai-ning. To support this, a project launched in 2013 by Aki e.V. brings young apprentices of Budapest’s Soós István wine school to Baden-Württemberg for a shortened app-renticeship.

1717

Better Qualifications for Jobs in the Social Sector

There is a lot to say in favour of a dual education system in the training for ger-iatric care in Bulgaria and other Danube countries. The ongoing demographic change leads to a higher demand in care of the elderly and the UN convention re-garding the rights of handicapped peo-ple has to be implemented as well. At the same time, unemployment among youths is high and many people move away to find work. That is why the German Foundation Stiftung Liebenau and the Association of Social NGOS in Bulgaria (FSSB) have initiated the pro-ject “Work based learning for social pro-fessions within the EU Strategy for the Danube Region”. It aims at developing a new training system for people work-ing with elderly and handicapped per-sons. The initiators did not want to wait for state action and meanwhile risk even more people moving away to find work. They want to make a change on the job market and in the education sector from within civil society. The dual education system, an export from Germany, is new to Eastern education systema, but could benefit them highly.

The pilot project in Bulgaria is modelled after the examination regulations of Baden-Württemberg. The diplomas are rated on the level of European Qualifi-cations Framework 3 (EQF) and diplo-mas after a full vocational training are rated EQF 4 (geriatric care) and EQF 6 (handicapped aid). A research group ac-companies the project and will develop a paper with recommendations for pol-icy makers after the first project phase.

If the intended cooperation of the two spheres of school and practical train-ing is successful, the project could be brought to other countries in the Dan-ube region as well. The training phase in Bulgaria will start in autumn 2015, transfer to other countries will begin in 2016.

The Bulgarian president who regards the dual system highly from his years in Germany will advocate the project him-self in a public event. Establishing con-tacts to government officials had been hard in the past and during the period of government’s resignation virtually impossible. It is a good sign that the prospective designated Prime Minister has called the dual education system a priority of his political program.

ato, danube connects

Dual Education

An education project that was designed for Bulgaria is to be implemented in other Danube countries as well: Stiftung Liebenau and the Association of Social NGOs in Bulgaria (FSSB) want to pursue this goal with the help of Baden Württemberg’s state ministry. Assistance and care of elderly and handicapped people are to be professionalised on a medium and long term scale. For centuries, dual education was successful in the Danube’s country of origin. Now it will be introduced in a country at the river’s rear end, in Bulgaria and other countries of the region.

Stiftung Liebenau is the project’s lead partner. The foundation has been wor-king in the area of education, social work and health since the 19th century and has been part of Ravensburg Institute for Social Professions for decades. Its partner in this project is a young Bulgarian association which consists of ten registered societies and foundations from the whole of the country. Agapedia gGmH Stuttgart and Liebenau Foundation initiated the Bulgarian association in 2011.

Bíróné Móricz Ágnes (centre front) and her pupils.


In late September and early Octo-ber the European Danube Acad-emy (EDA) held the first Dan-ube Summer School. 24 students, young researchers and profession-als from Bulgaria, Romania, Ser-bia, Croatia, Bosnia and Germany between the ages of 24 and 29 fol-lowed the call.

Representatives of the Universities of Applied Sciences Ulm and Neu-Ulm as well as members of Ulm University gave talks about a broad spectrum of topics such as renew-able energy, marketing/branding in the Danube region, the develop-ment of the IT-sector, politics and economy. The participants used the week to build new contacts and en-ter discussions with scientists and representatives of other institutions and businesses. Overall, everyone showed interest in an intensified collaboration in the Danube region, especially in the field of education. It became clear that the students

want to take on responsibilities in the building of a European Dan-ube region and all résumés after the Summer School were positive: “A great week of knowledge and values for the Danube Region. We made a great kick-off and I believe we have a long way to go in order to reach our goals. I am also happy to meet and found common purpose with all of you guys,” Durukan Kürüm from Ruse posted on Facebook. The organisers were satisfied. Paul Langer, member of EDA since 2012 said: “It was a big success and we plan a similar event for next year. And I am confident that there will be a co-operation with danube con-nects as well.” Professor Gerhard Mayer, chair of the European Dan-ube Academy already formed con-crete plans: “In our second Summer School we want to involve teachers and professionals from other uni-versities and institutions in the Dan-ube region apart from the professors from the Ulm area.”

Danubians rock! Danube Summer School 2014

dc: The Baltic Sea Strategy (EUSBSR) is the mother of all regional strategies of the EU. What are the differences and similarities of the EUSBSR and the Danube Region Strategy (EUSDR) concerning the education systems?

Bergström: First of all the education-al systems in the respective member states (MS) differs more between each other than between the macro-region-al strategies. For example within the EUSBSR we have in some of the MS a tradition with more of the vocational education in the schools whereof others have more of apprenticeships. Sweden, Estonia, Finland, Latvia and Lithuania have more of the education in schools.

When comparing the strategies and the PA Education with PA9 People and Skills in PA Education the main opera-tions are done in what we name flag-ships. These flagships are policy pro-cesses, usually consisting of a cluster of projects, involving different stakehold-ers using multi-level governance prin-ciples. For example we have flagships combating early school leaving or in-ternationalisation of vocational educa-tion and training (VET). In EUSBSR in general we have less of working groups and not yet so many of our PAs have steering groups compared with EUS-DR. Instead we have more projects, or-ganized in some 100 flagships.

dc: What can the Balkan States learn from the Baltics and vice versa?

Bergström: It’s a difficult question. In general the MS in EUSBSR are more ho-mogeneous compared with the ones in EUSDR, homogeneous in the sense of common history, economy and popu-lation. Having said that we have some very rich countries and some rather big ones but still there is a feeling of belongingness among the 8 MS. We all share the responsibility for the Baltic Sea. Most of us have our neighbours as main trading partners. We all share the idea of less bureaucracy in EU and more multi-level governance. Popular-ly called bottom-up.

dc: Should education be a matter of the regions or of the EU?

Bergström: Education could very well be a part of our common policies with-in EU. If so we need to be prepared for a long harmonisation process. I use the word could because we can also keep it as now but still increase harmonisation. Consciously start building a common market for education. Preferable this process of harmonisation takes place within the macro-regions.

dc: Is dual education the best model for all countries?

Bergström: Yes and no, meaning that the model used in for example Ger-many and Austria can’t be transferred to other countries but others can learn from it. Most countries have on-the-job training included in their VET, some even in their educations on universi-ty level. In all countries there is work in progress regarding closing the gaps between education and labour market. The difficult part with the dual edu-cation is the shared ownership of the education between public and private sector, municipalities/”ländern” and chambers of commerce/crafts. In all countries but Germany within EUSBSR chambers of commerce/crafts are not so strong organisations with relatively few members and not able to take on a joint ownership. This is one of the chal-lenges. The other being the tradition, mainly in the Scandinavian countries with high taxes, where companies feel they pay enough in tax and should be

”Learning is structured anew”

Anders Bergström, coordinator of the Baltic Sea Strategy‘s Priority Area “Education“, talks about the differences and similarities between the two EU strategies and what Danube and Baltic Sea Region can learn from each other.

provided with “ready made” skilled employees. However learning is now being structured and I’m sure we will take the best out of all systems and ad-just them to the prerequisites for each MS, in line with harmonisation towards a common market for education.

dc: Ethnic groups, different languages and social differences: What is more challenging the education systems in the EUSBSR and the EUSDR?

Bergström: One important challenge for many of the MS, not just in EUSBSR is integration of our immigrants. With the demographic change they are very much needed and welcomed but still it takes far too long to integrate them in our societies not the least to offer them jobs. The educational systems play an important role. The systems need to be more flexible, in line with the concept of lifelong learning. When comparing the two Strategies I believe we have much in common in regards to these challeng-es.

Interview: Sabine Geller, danube connects

Danubiana Network: Learning from the EU-Baltic Sea Strategy in Stockholm.

Participants of Danube Summer School at Vöhlin Palace in Illertissen near Ulm.

ato

Education

Anders Bergström


Danube PIE is lead by Steinbeis-Eu-ropa-Zentrum from Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg. Its partners are the Hungarian Agency for Foreign Trade and Investments in Budapest, Technological Park Varaždin, Croatia, the University of Novi Sad in the Ser-bian province of Vojvodina, the eco-nomic support centre for small and medium-sized companies in Ruse, Bul-garia, and the Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture in Timisoara, Romania. The project has a budget of

approximately 830.000 Euros. EcoDesign Company, a company that was founded at Vienna’s Technical Uni-versity acts as a mentor in the project. It has developed a software called EcoDe-sign+ which gives designers the oppor-tunity to calculate how different ma-terials and other production decisions impact a product’s carbon footprint.

The project’s offers are received with great interest in the participating coun-tries, Steinbeis-Europa-Zentrum re-

ports. Especially the regional approach of DanubePIE is relevant for the EU. Different from other EU projects Dan-ubePIE has a very practical orientation in regards to eco design and sustainabil-ity; it offers product analyses, in-house trainings, workshops as well as person-al consultations and co-operations with product and industrial designers. DanubePIE started in April 2013 and will be continued until the end of 2014. Maria Kourti, project coordinator at Steinbeis-Europa-Zentrum, hopes, how-ever, that it will gain momentum and will continue to operate after the official end of project.

A concrete example can also be found in Baden-Württemberg: in co-opera-tion with experts from Media College in Stuttgart-Vaihingen, a Swabian com-pany has developed new covers for its solar collectors that are now sold in Arabia.


Better Packaging with DanubePIE

Product Innovation through Eco-designin the Danube region

EU project for Danube countries supports eco design

Paying attention to eco friendliness can be a competitive advantage when desi-gning a product. The EU project “Pro-duct Innovation through Eco-Design in the Danube region” (Danube PIE) aims at small and medium-sized packaging companies in the Danube countries and at product and packaging designers.

The event was held under the head-ing of the EU Danube Strategy and the many participants discussed pos-sibilities of fostering competitiveness and creating wealth in the Danube region (Priority Area 8). The meet-ing’s title “Power. Success. Prosperi-ty – Women Creating a New Europe” was as sign of European dialogue and community. Ingrid Asche, chair of the event’s organiser BPW Club Regensburg explains: “It is neces-sary, especially for us Germans, to fight Europe-critical tendencies.

That’s why we decided to hold both the Danubenet Forum and our an-nual meeting of BPW Germany at the same time to strengthen the joint goals of all women in Europe.”The participants took the chance to build border-bridging business contacts and talk to representatives of economy, science, culture and politics about the possibilities of women fostering other women to become more competitive and cre-ate sustainable wealth in Europe. BPW Danubenet has been an exam-

ple of living Europe since 2006. “It is important for us to create personal encounters from woman to woman as living proof of the European idea. The abstract political construct of the European Union or the Danube Strategy can only live through per-sonal contact. Without roots in civil society, Europe cannot be conveyed. And which platform would be suit-ed better that an international wom-en’s business network?” says Marion Volk, founder of BPW Danubenet. ato

Living Europe – Danubenet Business Women Forum

This November, Regensburg, the largest German city along the Danube, was the site of the ninth Danubenet Business Women Forum of Business and Professional Women.

According to a 2004 UNO study only 43 percent of school-aged Roma children in South-East Europe go to school. The older the children get the less likely is it for them to get a formal education. As most of them come from families with a low financial and educational background, the children’s situation is precarious. Due to the lack of integra-tion policies in the last decades, Roma are segregated spatially and socially in countries such as Hungary and Ro-mania. In schools, prejudices, social and cultural differences hinder the in-tegration of Roma children. Hungary, for example, was criticised heavily for its strict educational segregation with Roma children being sent so so-called “Special Roma Schools” in which the pupils from the Roma community were taught by only non-Roma teachers with no specific training for the fostering of minorities. The educational deprivation of these children and youths is thus per-petuated and their future, impressed by old traditions and stereotypes, seems to be carved in stone already. Methods of UnderstandingTo confront these problems, the Acad-emy for Innovation in Social Sciences

(Akademie für sozialwissenschaftliche Innovation e.V. ASI) in Waiblingen has started an initiative to train teachers for the special needs of Roma children in order to socially integrate them. The project funded by Baden-Württemberg Foundation aims at lowering the drop-out rate of Roma children. The initiators designed a curriculum that focusses on a decrease of dropouts, the develop-ment of social competences of children and youths, a strengthening of self-es-teem and the reduction of prejudices in society as a whole. On the basis of this curriculum, teachers in Sibiu and Cluj in Romania as well as in Budapest and Sofia will engage in three weeks of training and eight months of super-vised practical application. Among the project partners are members of staff of organisations such as Diakonia in Cluj (Romania) and teachers from partner schools. All of them, teachers, education and social workers are highly ambi-tious to change the situation “although time and financial resources are scarce in the countries,” says Karl-Heinz Ditt-mann who coordinates the project. At the heart of the initiative is an under-standing for the situation of children from poor and educationally disadvan-

taged families. One participant from Hungary speaks with great relief of her first experiences with the new methods: “Especially the exercises for fostering motivation and self-esteem were very important. I understood how hard the life is for a child which is called ‘doomed to fail’ in the first place.”

Long-term ChangeThe long-term goal is an implementa-tion of the curriculum into the official syllabi of the countries in question. “We are getting in contact with the educational institutions, colleges and ministries of education of the involved countries,” says Dittmann. The project will end with an international confer-ence in 2015 in which further measures will be discussed. This could be a ma-jor step towards a chance in the educa-tional deprivation of Roma children. So far, only few participants of ASIROMA are Romas themselves – this has to be changed in the long run.

Carolin Krahl, journalist, Leipzig

Countering Dropouts

ASIROMA wants to face educational deprivation among Roma children and youths through qualification schemes for teachers in Eastern Europe. According to a 2004 UNO study only 43 percent of school-aged Roma children in South-East Europe go to school.

Participants of the training in Cluj

ASI training in Budapest


The beginning of the „fight“ „Young people against corruption“ is a civic education project which lasted three years (2010-2013) and involved over 2500 pupils from several Romani-an high schools. This is an information campaign, to rai-se awareness and youth involvement in anti-corruption activities. This cam-paign aims at increasing awareness of youth on corruption in Romania and negative consequences on society; hel-ping raise awareness and encourage an attitude of intolerance to corruption among young people; fostering youth participation in reporting corruption.This project is implemented by Asocia-tia Pro Democratia in partneship with Anticorruption General Directorate from Bucharest.

The Anticorruption LabyrinthIn 2013 Asociatia Pro Democratia came up with an inovative idea, the Anticor-ruption Labirinth. This action is part of the project „Pay ZERO for what is yours“. The project is a continuation of „Young people against corruption“. The anticorruption Labirinth is an actu-al maze that is installed in the center of different cities in Romania. In 2013 the

labirinth was installed in Sibiu, Brasov, Slobozia, Focsani and Bucharest and in 2014 it was installed in 12 cities Boto-sani, Iasi, Targu Neamt, Targu Mures, Cluj, Galati, Buzau, Oltenita, Bucharest, Resita, Tirgu Jiu, Ramnicu Valcea.

The event usually lasts 4 to 5 hours du-ring which citizens have the opportuni-ty to be informed in regards to the fen-omena of corruption by going through the Anticorruption Labyrinth and completing a questionnaire on corrup-tion. Also, in cases where people want more information, representatives of Anticorruption General Directorate are available with numerous examples and explanations.

We also give the citizens the opportu-nity to speak their minds and tell us which system they think is most cor-

rupt by taking part in an inovative sur-vey and each time the „winner“ was JUSTICE.

Amazing resultsThis year the event grew momentum, many local leaders took interest in the action, mayors, prefects, policemen and personalities of the local government came to support the initiative. The event was also present in many local media channels, TV, radio, newspapers. Over 4000 citizens visited the Anticorruption Labirinth and welcomed the initiative noting that such actions of informing are a great opportunity to change the society and to raise awareness among people that the fenomena needs to be reduced if not stopped.

Ana-Maria Apopei, Asociatia Pro Democratia, Bucharest

Civil Society

Anticorruption Labyrinth, Iasi 2014

Which system is most corrupt -

Police, Education, Justice or Health?

Pay ZERO for what is yours!

The importance of educating young peo-ple to prevent and combat corruption is visible in the attempts which have been made to renew the political class and the administrative body in hope of a perma-nent practice of ethics and integrity in the public system in Romania. This belief was the starting point of the project.

Tourism

Innerhalb der Europäischen Union steigt die Tendenz, Regionalisierung zu unterstützen. Das zeigt die wachsende Anzahl makroregionaler Strategien. So gibt es bereits eine fürs Zentrum der Union (Donauraum) und eine für den Norden (Ostsee) sowie eine für den Süden (Adriatisches und Ionisches Meer), die gerade vorbereitet wird.

In South Banat District of Vojvodina, located 50 km away from Belgrade, there lies a small town called Kovin (Romanian- Cuvin, Hungarian- Ke-vevára, German- Kubin). With its unique position next to the Danube river, Kovin is one of the most beau-tiful towns of South Banat and right after Pančevo, the most important city in the Danube basin of Banat. Kovin is the only place in Serbia situated on a small backwater channel of the Danube River called Dunavac with a marina at its end.

Petar Lukić, whose hobby involves coll-ecting memorabilia about the history of Kovin, is one of 13,515 people who live in this town. He is one of the few peo-ple who know so many interesting facts about the history of their home town. We visited him in his home, where he showed many photographs and told many historic stories, not only to us, but to everyone who decided to visit him with the same idea in mind- to hear the stories from the past. Branko Isaković, who has lived in Ko-vin his entire life, remembers the wa-the Danube model used to look back

in the days: „I was 35 then. And let me tell you, it looked really nice. There was an option to adjuct the water level to be either higher or lower, and the whole park was taken care of by 3 gar-deners. It was very popular during its glory days.“

This unique model was built in 1967. The model follows the Danube flow from the estuary of the Tisa river all the way to the Đerdap Dam. This area has cultural, and tourist importance for the municipality of Kovin, as well as the South Banat.

People should never forget where they come from

Petar Lukić has been gathering his collection for many years, and is ho-ping to one day have a place where his photographs and stories could be exhi-

bited for his townsmen and tourists to see. As we were leaving his house and thanking him for his hospitality he said “I love when people come and show interest in my collection. Sometimes, I have people coming all the way from Austria or Germany, looking some kind of written trail of their ancestors. I always give my best to show people what they came to see- the history of their town. Although, it is not always most convenient, because I am com

pelled to keep all those photographs at my home, and I don’t have a proper display place. I wish one day to be able to display all these stories and pho-tographs in a museum, as befits. You know, people should never forget their roots, never forget where they come from. We have this saying in Serbian- I am not a tree without roots.

Kristina Koprivica, journalistNovi Sad, New School of Journalism

This is an unspoken rule: if you find yourself in Kovin and a local takes you out for a walk - you will most certainly go in the direction of Dunavac, as if some invisible force is drawing you there, yet maybe it is because of its beauty and charm that this delightful marina attracts so much foot traffic.

Danube in Kovin- the unique 100 meters long model of the Danube river flow

The story about Kovin

I am not a tree without roots

There is a beautiful scale model of the river Danube, in the park in front the remains of the old fortress, made in topographic scale with the exact width, curves, river islands and depth of the river realistically showing the flow of Danube through the Republic of Serbia, slightly longer than 100m. The names of all the places through and next to which the Danube flows are marked on the scale model.

danube connects 02 I 1424

Imprint

danube connectsdas magazin für die donauländerTel. +49 / (0)731 / 153 75 05Fax +49 / (0)731 / 153 75 [email protected]

Herausgeber: European Journalists Association,Sektion Ulm

Verlag: Süddeutsche VerlagsgesellschaftNicolaus-Otto-Str. 14, 89079 Ulm

Konzept und Gestaltung: Sabine [email protected]

Redaktion: Andrea [email protected]

Social Media Thomas Zehender

Anzeigenleitung: Sabine [email protected]

Bildnachweis: Titelbild: Belgrad, ©Thomas Zehender, Werner Henn, Sabine Geller, Asociata Pro Democratia,Daniel Hirsch, 123rf.com

Übersetzung: Christiane Hadamitzky

Autoren: Ana Maria Apopei, Werner Henn, Daniel Hirsch, Kristina KoprovicaCarolin Krahl, Wolfgang Limbert, Barbara Pehi, Andrea Toll, Thomas Zehender

Events 2014/15

Even

ts 2

014/

15

08.–12.12.14 1. DANET e.V. training seminar Haus auf der Alb, Bad Urach

15.–17.12.14 Learning Pathways to social cohesion: 1st EUSDR Youth Platform, Vienna

2015

26.01. Meeting Council of Danube Cities and Regions, Vienna

bis 15.02. “Clean Water – the world’s most valuable ressource“) exhibition at LENTOS, Art Museum Linz

10.–11.02. “Innovative Approaches for the Integration of Socially Diasadvantaged Young Roma in the Eastern European Education System and Job Market”, conference in Cluj, Romania

04.–08.03. ITB Berlin, Tourism Fair

16.–22.03. 8th One World Romania International Human Rights Documentary Film Festival, Bucharest, Romania.

19.–21.04. In Search of a Future – The Situation of Roma in South-Eastern Europe, Stadthaus Ulm

24.04. – 26.04. Danube Festival Krems, Austria Music, Film, Theatre, Art

29.06. International Danube Day

26. – 28.06. 32. Donauinselfest, Vienna

09.–12.07. EXIT-Festival, Novi Sad, Petrovaradin Fort

10.–17.08. Sziget Festival, Hungary

05.09. Linz Sound Festival, Donaupark Linz

10.–13.09. Danube Festival in Bratislava, Slovakia

29.10.–30.10. 4th Annual EU Danube Strategy Forum in Ulm, Germany

danube connects – the magazine for the danube countries, 2/2014

Documents

Transcript of danube connects – the magazine for the danube countries, 2/2014