The first partners' meeting held in Ljubljana

From February 6th to February 7th, 2024, project partners met in Ljubljana, where their first meeting within the project „Reindustrialization based on the brownfield better than greenfield principle" (ReInd - BBG) took place. The meeting was hosted by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Slovenia, which is also the Lead partner of the mentioned project, while the Regional Development Agency Bačka is responsible for the project’s communications as well as dissemination of results in order to spread our findings around the Danube Region area and beyond.

This meeting was an opportunity for partners from 16 organizations from eight countries of the Danube Region to better acquaint themselves, exchange opinions and knowledge in the field of brownfield-based reindustrialization (which represents the focus of the project), and to better prepare and plan upcoming activities within the project. The project implementation started on the 1st of January this year, with a planned duration of 30 months.

Throughout the meeting, the significance of fostering collaboration among the public and private sectors, academic community, and civil society in the brownfield regeneration process was emphasized, alongside the necessity for an inclusive and participatory approach in planning and implementing revitalization projects. Communication was highlighted as key to project success, coupled with continuous monitoring and evaluation of results.  Additionally, the meeting provided an occasion to visit the pilot brownfield location in Hrastnik – the infrastructure remnants of the former mining company Trbovlje-Hrastnik.

The partnership in the ReInd-BBG project comprises of six municipalities and cities in the Danube Region: the Municipality of Hrastnik (Slovenia), the Municipality of Reșita (Romania), the City of Sombor (Serbia), the City of Zenica (Bosnia and Herzegovina), the Municipality of Vratsa (Bulgaria), and the Municipality of Nikšić (Montenegro). Their joint aim is to effectively implement the brownfield better than greenfield reindustrialization principle. These municipalities and cities also serve as demonstration partners in the project – hosts of the pilot locations. They are categorized as small or medium-sized administrative areas and possess suitable brownfield locations derived from former industrial or mining activities.

The partnership also includes the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Slovenia (Slovenia), Slovenian National Building and Civil Engineering Institute (Slovenia), Department for Development and International Projects of Zenica-Doboj Canton (Bosnia and Herzegovina), Eko-Forum Zenica (Bosnia and Herzegovina), Vojvodina Development Agency  (Serbia), University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences in Vienna (Austria), Chamber of Commerce and Industry Vratsa (Bulgaria), Make Better Association (Romania), EPCG-Steelworks Nikšić (Montenegro), and Regional Development Agency  Bačka Novi Sad (Serbia).

The project also engages associated strategic partners: Local Development Institute Association - Think Global Act Local (UrbanizeHub) - Romania, S.C. NHOOD SERVICES ROMANIA SRL - Romania, Agency for regional and economic development, Vratsa - Bulgaria, Danube Strategy Point - Austria, Centre for European Perspective - Slovenia, Steinbeis 2i GmbH - Germany, North Regional Development Agency - Moldova, Development Agency of Serbia - Serbia, and Environmental movement Ozon - Montenegro. Their involvement is invaluable, as their knowledge and experience in the relevant field will be further integrated into the project results.

The ReInd-BBG project is funded under the Interreg Danube Region Programme 2021-2027. The project focuses on reindustrialization based on the brownfield better than greenfield principle (BBG), which is an important priority for municipalities and cities in the Danube Region. The main objectives of the project are to strengthen the institutional capacities of public authorities and stakeholders in the Danube Region; reduce socio-economic and administrative fragmentation in spatial, economic, and environmental transformation processes; demonstrate the advantages of BBG reindustrialization through territorial examples; and implement the 4H approach. The project's budget is 2,398,800.00 EUR (co-financed by the European Union in the amount of 1,919,040.00 EUR, or 80%). The project implementation period is from January 1st, 2024, to June 30th, 2026.