Rethinking participation:
Our path to a climate-neutral city

Dialogue forum in cooperation with HM:UniverCity, the innovation hub of the University of Applied Sciences Munich

5 December 2024, 6 p.m. at the Strascheg Center for Entrepreneurship at the University of Applied Sciences Munich

Climate change is becoming more and more visible in Germany through heatwaves, droughts, and floods. This increases the pressure on society to move faster and more decisively towards climate neutrality. Municipalities hold powerful levers to mitigate climate change, and Munich has set an ambitious goal to become climate neutral by 2035.

Now, this goal needs real actions and practical steps. We need to find common ground on the way forward, and rethink how we approach participation. After all, a climate-neutral city needs to win over majorities. Therefore, climate protection can only succeed with active citizens, dedicated local politicians, and committed businesses. How can we build new alliances to create a climate-friendly future for everyone in Munich? What forms of participation are possible? How can civil society get involved, and what changes are needed? What steps should the city of Munich take, and how can businesses contribute?

These are the questions we want to discuss with our panel and the audience. As a contribution to the discussion, two participation ideas from the Munich project 'Creating NEBourhoods Together – Neuperlach' will be briefly presented.

Panel guests

Christine Kugler
Head of the Munich City Council Department of Climate and Environmental Protection

Alexander Rossner
Member of the Munich Climate Council and head of the cooperative sustainability and climate protection consultancy Zukunftswerk eG

Leon Schmid
Fridays for Future

Prof. Martina Wegner
Professor of Applied Social Sciences, Munich University of Applied Sciences, main topics including: local government consultancy and development, civic engagement

Moderation

Paju Bertram
Co-Creation Managerin, HM:UniverCity