Germany
German urban development professionals share their knowledge, benefit from global good practices, and strengthen their international network.
About the Region
Germany is known for its innovative approaches to urban development, with benchmarks like Freiburg and Heidelberg standing as examples of sustainability, climate protection, and livable city design. However, German cities are also grappling with challenges such as demographic change, affordable housing, climate adaptation, and the digitalization of municipal services. International cooperation offers valuable insights in this regard: While German municipalities share their expertise in areas like mobility transition, green infrastructure, and circular economy, they also benefit from global experiences and innovative approaches to more efficiently tackle current challenges. This not only strengthens resilience but also fosters future-proof solutions for German cities.
Many African cities have been in crisis mode since the 1980s: whether it's climate change, pandemics, loss of biodiversity, or water scarcity. In terms of crisis experience and digitalization, they are ahead of us. They are looking for true partners for cooperation. In Connective Cities, there's an opportunity to collaborate in municipal partnerships and projects and extend a helping hand.
Regional Learning Process
in Germany
Sustainable mobility – Combining future-proof mobility forms
In a world increasingly affected by climate change and resource scarcity, a corresponding transport revolution is becoming increasingly important. The goal is to reduce emissions and energy consumption while improving quality of life for users, by combining various forms of sustainable mobility. These include electric vehicles, car sharing, bicycles, public transport and walking. The Connective Cities dialogue event, which took place from 25 to 27 November 2025 in Bonn, marked the beginning of a new learning process.
Learn moreReuse Instead of Demolition: 2nd Hands on Public Buildings
From September 2024 to September 2025, more than 30 experts from six countries worked as part of Connective Cities‘ learning process ‘2nd Hands on Public Buildings. Repurposing Modernist Public Buildings from the 1960s and 1970s ’ on solutions for aging public buildings from the 1960s and 1970s. How can they be sustainably reused or repurposed instead of being demolished? At four events and two working meetings between September 2024 and September 2025, they learned about current trends in this area, deepened their knowledge, heard details about possible solutions from external experts, and inspired each other with their respective experiences, approaches, and ideas.
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Strengthening the voice of cities and accelerating the implementation of the SDGs
On a voluntary basis, more and more municipalities are reporting on the implementation status of the 2030 Agenda‘s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at the local level in so-called Voluntary Local Reviews (VLR) or Voluntary Sub-National Reviews (VSR) at the regional level. However, in many countries, there is more talk about local governments at the national level than with them when it comes to developing national sustainability strategies. Yet it is at the local level that over 65% of the SDGs are implemented (or not). From December 2024 to September 2025, Connective Cities therefore ran a learning process on sustainable reporting at the local and regional levels.
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Accommodation for evacuees and the use of volunteers
What happens when evacuees are unable to return to their homes for weeks or months? In many places, there are no plans in place for such situations. The city of Cologne wondered how other municipalities around the world deal with this problem. Connective Cities took up this question and organised an international learning process on disaster management from March 2023 to March 2024, focusing on the accommodation of evacuees and the involvement of volunteers.
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Climate-positive construction with circular materials
In Potsdam, the focus in 2023 was on climate-friendly construction using bio-based and recyclable materials. Demand for housing is growing worldwide, especially in cities. This makes the construction industry an important sector in every economy. However, the extraction and processing of raw materials for the construction industry contribute significantly to environmental degradation and CO2 emissions. Bio-based materials such as wood or bamboo can play a central role in the decarbonisation of the construction sector.
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Water-sensitive urban planning – How can heavy rain and storm water be better managed?
Heavy rain and storm water events can cause streams to swell into raging torrents, destroying houses and vital infrastructure and causing billions in damage and loss of life. In December 2022, 41 experts from 16 cities and eight countries accepted a joint invitation from Conective Cities, Stadtentwässerungsbetriebe Köln (StEB Köln) and United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG) to attend this dialogue event. Twelve practical examples from five countries formed the starting point for an in-depth collegial discussion on approaches to minimising the risks of heavy rainfall and storm water events for people and municipal infrastructure.
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Deep Dive
Heat in the City
Six cities – Lüdenscheid and Heidelberg (Germany), Aswan (Egypt), Nairobi and Mombasa (Kenya), and Lviv (Ukraine) – are collaborating from mid-2023 to 2025 as part of the "Heat in the City" learning process.
They are analyzing the effects of heatwaves and urban heat islands in their cities and developing tailored solutions for their local contexts. The goal is to promote urban adaptation to the challenges of climate change.
Learn moreDiscover exciting events and in-depth insights into the region
Good practices in the region
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