Das Projekt "SorbIT!" ist eine innovative Initiative der Verwaltungsgemeinschaft Schleife zur Förderung und Revitalisierung der sorbischen Sprache und Kultur in der Region. Im Rahmen unserer Zusammenarbeit mit den Kommunen der VG Schleife sind wir immer wieder auf verschiedene Themen in Verbindung mit der sorbischen Tradition angesprochen worden. Viele Ideen, die auf ehrenamtlichen Schultern liegen und die nachhaltige Entwicklung derer waren hier oft eine Herausforderung. Darum haben wir gemeinsam mit den Bürgermeistern der Verwaltungsgemeinschaft und in Abstimmung mit den Akteuren der Region dieses Projekt im Rahmen der Förderung "Sorbische Sprache und Kultur im Strukturwandel" der Stiftung für das sorbische Volk entwickelt und den Antragsprozess umfangreich begleitet. 

Das Ziel ist die Bewahrung, Revitalisierung und touristische Entwicklung der sorbischen Kultur und Sprache. Geplant sind Konzeptionen für den Tourismus, unter anderem die Modernisierung sorbischer Kultureinrichtungen und die Entwicklung einer sorbischen Landmarke, niederschwellige Sprachkurse und Konzepte zur Gleichstellung der sorbischen und deutschen Sprache. Eine strategische Öffentlichkeitsarbeit sowie Maßnahmen zur langfristigen Verankerung begleiten das Vorhaben.

Für die Umsetzung dieses ambitionierten Projektes wurden im Januar 2025 vier Vollzeitäquivalente bewilligt. Das Gesamtbudget für dieses Projekt beläuft sich auf ca. 1,5 Mio. € für den gesamten Zeitraum von 2025 bis 2029.

Testimonial, Jörg Funda (mitte, Schleife) mit seinen Bürgermeisterkollegen Sebastian Bertko (rechts, Groß Düben) und Robert Sprejz (links, Trebendorf) aus der Verwaltungsgemeinschaft 

Well-developed local amenities are of crucial importance for the population's quality of life. Not only does it ensure access to the basic needs of everyday life, but it also strengthens social ties within a community for various reasons.

This handbook offers you an inventory and analysis of the challenges that communities face in relation to local supplies and offers suggestions for solutions on how to address them. The handbook presents projects from various communities in the district and from outside to show which ways are possible for better local supply and describes the procedure for implementing the various options.

The shortened version of the manual focuses on the implementation concepts; for more extensive information on the topic of local supply, we recommend the unabridged version.

The Städtische Klinikum Görlitz gGmbH has purchased a robot-assisted Da Vinci surgery system with which minimally invasive operations can be carried out in urology and gynecology, for example, which can no longer be performed with human hands. The investment, which creates 13 jobs and 6 training places, results in numerous advantages for patients and doctors, including only small external cuts and thus better cosmetic results, less blood loss, faster wound healing, less pain and thus a shorter stay in the clinic . The project was approved with a volume of 1.9 million euros.

Wind and sun - renewable energies are the key to a sustainable energy supply.
Appropriate conditions must be created for this and the consumption of fossil fuels such as oil, natural gas and coal must be reduced. Appropriately, there have been changes in the Renewable Energy Sources Act 2023 (EEG) and in the PV Open Space Ordinance of Saxony. This creates opportunities for more financial participation in the expansion of renewable energies. Examples are used to explain the opportunities that these changes give municipalities with regard to financial income that is higher than the 0.2 cents/kWh mentioned in the EEG. The topics of special usage rights and the approach to designating areas also form a separate focus. In addition to the questions mentioned, the guide deals with the main topic of citizen energy cooperatives - from the foundation to the implementation of projects.

Due to structural change and the legally anchored phase-out of coal, the Görlitz district is facing new challenges in the energy sector. In order to ensure a sustainable transformation of the energy supply, an integrated overall supply strategy for energy and network expansion in the Görlitz district is necessary. For this reason, ENO mbH commissioned a study in December 2022 to create an overall energy concept for the Görlitz district. The results now available are intended to support the district in assessing the network expansion required for the expansion of renewable energies, as well as the first indication of the hydrogen potential and municipal heat planning as well as the supply in the future.

As part of the bio-economic value creation in Lusatia, we, together with the HSZG and the Fraunhofer IWU, have asked ourselves what vehicles and buildings will be built with in the future. In doing so, it was examined which potentials existed in residues from agriculture and forestry that had not been considered until now. An application was submitted to the BMBF with the consortium leader Kluge GmbH, 14 other direct and 10 associated partners entitled “environmentally friendly plastic parts from biogenic residues for the vehicle and construction industry”. In the future, the efficient and climate-friendly production in the region should be promoted and added value generated by recycling these residues in the form of sustainable composite materials. The project was approved in 2022 with a volume of EUR 12 million for Upper Lusatia.

The aim of this guide is to give an impetus for your own ideas and to stimulate a process for the development of sustainable business parks. The focus is on resource-saving construction with regard to space availability, energy generation and use, water use and reuse, heat production and use as well as the use and combination of renewable raw materials. In the future, sustainably developed commercial areas will represent a locational advantage for municipalities from an economic, ecological and social point of view. The content focuses on the resource-saving construction of new commercial areas with information on planning and implementation. Furthermore, the possibilities for redesigning existing commercial locations are discussed. A third subject area deals with questions as to which control options can be used for the settlement of companies.

The topics of mobility and transport infrastructure are regarded as essential factors for a successful process of structural change in Lusatia. Because mobility is more than just transporting people. Rather, it is an economic engine and the cornerstone of healthy regional development. The specialist network "Lausitzcluster Mobility" was founded to create an innovation ecosystem for the actors from our region. The "Lausitz stop" project was created in joint workshops with more than 40 partners. This innovative form of a stop should be understood as a mobility, local supply and meeting point in rural areas in order to develop public transport more sustainably independently of the existing offer and to make it more attractive for all user groups. The guidelines developed are intended to serve municipalities as an initial classification of the necessary steps up to implementation.

The municipality of Rietschen is building a coworking space in a central location, which offers various stakeholders the opportunity to use modern and innovatively equipped workplaces. For this purpose, an old existing building will be extensively renovated. Coworking as a new form of work in rural areas provides important impetus for economic revitalization in structurally weak areas. It gives people the opportunity to use well-equipped workplaces close to home without having to cope with daily commutes. Up to 20 jobs will be created for coworkers. The project is currently in the application process at the SAB.

The historic mountain inn and the outdoor area are being restored in accordance with the requirements of the monument in order to take on its function as a sustainable cultural tourism excursion destination in Lusatia. A variety of usable space is made available: Knight's Hall (branch office of the registry office, municipal meeting room), administration rooms, office for tourism and culture management, exhibition rooms, event room, club room, kitchen and dining room for gastronomic offers. The building will receive a needs-based initial equipment inside and outside and for barrier-free accessibility an elevator system will be built from the Oybin train station to the building. The project creates 18 jobs (FTE)