Full steam ahead into the future

Creativity, entrepreneurship and digital skills are not necessarily the first terms that come to mind when you think of traditional school education. However, they are precisely the crucial skills that companies are already looking for in the working world of tomorrow and will increasingly be looking for in the future. According to estimates by experts from the World Economic Forum, 65% of children who start school today will work in jobs that do not even exist at the moment.

Even though schools and teachers have recognized this, they often lack the necessary resources and time to adequately promote the required skills. Regional companies and institutions, led by the Digitales Hannover e. V. association, have therefore joined forces to form the "Bildungsoffensive 2025 - NachwuchsKraft" (Education Campaign 2025 - Young Talent).

In workshops, digital offers and events, schools in the Hannover Region are to be supported in the practical training of these future skills and the pupils are to be "ready for the next level".

"The shortage of skilled workers is becoming an ever greater challenge for companies. To ensure that young people are optimally prepared for the working world of tomorrow while they are still at school, we need to break new ground today," explains Ulf-Birger Franz, Head of Economic Affairs for the Hannover Region.

The initiative will kick off with the "Smart City Days" from April 20-22, 2022, for which it is being funded by the Region and City of Hanover.

The term "smart city" is being used more and more frequently, but what exactly it means is far from common knowledge. Central to the concept is the question of how cities can use advancing digitalization for sustainable urban development geared towards the common good. Last year, Hanover was selected as one of the Smart Cities model projects by the Federal Ministry of the Interior, Building and Community and received funding for this.

The Smart City Days are planned for April 20-22 to make the term tangible and tangible for schoolchildren, to get to know specific projects and plans and, above all, to develop and contribute their own ideas and visions. Taking place around Opernplatz and Georgsplatz, they will focus on the "smart city" and its desired positive and sustainable effects on areas such as energy, mobility and urban planning.

Various partners who are intensively involved in these topics have been acquired for this - including Deutsche Bank and Gundlach Bau, public institutions such as the city libraries and social institutions such as Diakovere. However, the initiative is also still looking for partnerships with companies that want to work on these topics together with young people.

Workshops as early as February

In order to introduce pupils to the topic in advance, NachwuchsKraft is offering "Smart City Days: Tutorial" workshops from February, for which schools can now apply. At these workshops, experts will come to schools together with trainees from various companies, introduce the topic, present their job profiles and venture a look into the future of the world of work.

These offers will be supplemented by an afternoon program in the city libraries, where pupils can also develop their own projects and ideas, which will then be presented at the end of April. They will also be collected and further developed on an online platform in the longer term.

"Complaining about teachers and schools for failing to address and train these future skills won't get us anywhere. On the contrary - we need to support them. Only together can we contribute to preparing pupils for the future in the best possible way. The Smart City Days are a good start," says project manager Kai Schirmeyer.

However, the Digital Hannover association is planning even more with NachwuchsKraft. Following the Smart City Days, workshops for pupils at extracurricular learning locations are to be developed and supported.

The medium-term goal is to establish a "NachwuchsKraftWerk" as a place where young people can continuously receive offers relating to "Innovation & Future" during and after their school years. This would be a unique approach to teaching these topics in Germany and thus a clear sign of Hanover's future orientation to strengthen the location.

"Digitalization is an exciting, all-encompassing process, but one that needs to be communicated. The goal of Digital Hannover for the region is: 'Digital. Lovable. Make'.

We want to set the course for this at school," explains Uwe Berger, board member of the association and managing director of the B&B brand agency.

"However, we still need more partners to support us in this major project. Interested participants, companies and schools are welcome to get in touch with us," adds Kai Schirmeyer.

Further information and contact details can be found atNachwuchsKraft.de.