From Ironworks to Future Works: How Ravne na Koroškem is shaping new opportunities

Ravne na Koroškem is a small industrial town in northern Slovenia, close to the Austrian border. With around 12,000 inhabitants, its identity has been shaped for more than 400 years by iron and steel production. For generations, industry defined not only the local economy but also everyday life, skills, education, and a strong sense of belonging. Steel was never just a material here; it was the foundation of the town’s culture and community.

Like many industrial towns across Europe, Ravne na Koroškem is now facing a key question: how can a place built around one dominant industry transform itself for the future, while preserving its identity and creating new employment opportunities? One of the most important answers to this question is taking shape in the very heart of the town, in the Old Ironworks (Stara železarna).

The Old Ironworks: A new development cycle for the town

The Old Ironworks is a unique complex of five historic buildings from the late 19th and early 20th century. It is located in the town centre, yet at the same time embedded within the still active industrial zone of the modern steel company SIJ Metal Ravne. In 2002, the area was transferred free of charge to the Municipality of Ravne na Koroškem, opening the door to a new chapter in its development.

For many years, the site primarily served as a museum space, preserving the memory of the “Mother Factory”, as steelworkers once called it. However, in 2022 a broader reflection emerged: the renovation of the Old Ironworks should not only restore buildings but also trigger a new development cycle for the town. Together with more than 40 local, regional, national, and international partners, a new vision was developed, one that places the Old Ironworks at the intersection of heritage, knowledge, innovation, and employment.

A vision for knowledge, connection, and jobs

At the core of this vision is the idea that a space rooted in industrial heritage, and still physically connected to active industry, can become a meeting point for education, companies, culture, and the local community. The Old Ironworks is envisioned as a place where historical know how meets contemporary skills and future professions.

This approach is captured in the guiding motto Future Works!, which emphasises the connection between past, present, and future forms of work. Around this concept, the Old Ironworks is gradually developing into a hub that links technical professions such as metallurgy and new technologies with cultural heritage management, creative industries, and tourism. Rather than a closed cultural institution, the site is evolving into a living space for learning, exchange, experimentation, and cooperation.

The Role of the SteelCityZen project

An important contribution to this process comes from SteelCityZen, a transnational cooperation project that connects industrial cities across the Danube Region facing similar challenges of economic transformation. These cities, often dependent on a single, resource intensive industry, are particularly vulnerable to structural changes linked to green and digital transitions.

In Ravne na Koroškem, SteelCityZen supports the development of the Old Ironworks as a bridge between education and employment. The focus is on identifying new opportunities in technical fields, advanced manufacturing, cultural heritage management, creative industries, and tourism - all areas with strong potential for diversification and inclusive growth. The project strengthens cooperation between municipalities, schools, companies, and other stakeholders, helping to align skills with real labour market needs.

From Vision to Cooperation

A key moment in this process took place in November 2025, with the International Development Conference Co creating Future Heritage: From Industrial Past to Future Horizons. Hosted at the Old Ironworks, the conference brought together Slovenian and international examples, as well as regional stakeholders from industry, education, culture, and development.

The conference was a starting point for long term cooperation. It helped establish new connections, partnerships, and shared ambitions for the future use and programming of the Old Ironworks. One common understanding emerged clearly: the long term resilience of industrial towns depends on young people, skills development, and the ability to connect different worlds – schools and companies, heritage and innovation, local knowledge and international experience.

Concrete Steps and Ongoing Activities

Building on the momentum created by the conference, the focus shifted toward practical questions: how to continue the dialogue locally, involve key stakeholders more closely, and translate ideas into concrete next steps. As a direct continuation of this process, cooperation with impact investor Primož Šporar (Fund 2740) was established, bringing a stronger emphasis on impact oriented development and structured collaboration. This is further supported by impact design workshops planned for March and April 2026, which will bring local actors together in a focused, hands on format to clarify roles, identify priorities, and explore how the Old Ironworks can function as a shared platform for cooperation, learning, and innovation for boosting new job creation.

Alongside this structured cooperation, the process continues through concrete activities embedded in the local environment. One example is the already running project “Z mladimi očmi – koroška podjetja od blizu” (Through Young Eyes – Carinthian Companies Up Close), implemented by Srednja šola Ravne (secondary Schol Ravne), which enables students to engage directly with local companies and real working environments. An annual project event planned for May 2026 further strengthens the link between education, skills development, and future employment opportunities.

The process will continue in June 2026, when the Old Ironworks will be activated through the Urban Festival. This represents the next step in testing the Old Ironworks as a hub for new business and creative opportunity through real use, opening it to diverse audiences and strengthening its role as a living place for culture, exchange, and cooperation within a resilient and inclusive post industrial town.

The ambition of Ravne na Koroškem is to achieve concrete, realistic, and transferable results. The long term goal is for the Old Ironworks to develop into a centre of excellence for technical professions and the future of work - a place where skills meet the real world of work, and where industrial heritage becomes a driver of new opportunities.