The members of the Upper Rhine Cluster for Sustainability Research are happy to share the Executive Summary on Feasibility Study for the Fessenheim Innovation Region. Please read it here !

Please find the details of the specific pilot projects in the Fessenheim Innovation region here !

The members of the Upper Rhine Cluster for Sustainability Research are happy to share the final report on Feasibility Study for the Fessenheim Innovation Region.

Kindly find the link to the project film here.

In the context of the 2019  Franco-German Treaty of Aachen on cooperation and integration, the  Fessenheim Territory Project, and the  closure of the Fessenheim nuclear power plant (NPP) in June 2020, the competent national, regional and municipal authorities have defined sustainable development goals for the region surrounding the Fessenheim area. One key objective is the transformation of the region into an emission-free and innovative pilot region with sustainable energy and mobility systems based on renewables, while at the same time promoting economic added value and job creation. In this framework, Eucor – the European Campus and the URCforSR with its numerous scientific members and industry partners, have been commissioned to conduct a feasibility study for an innovative region accompanied by concrete lines of action for Franco-German demonstration projects.

The overarching goal of the feasibility study is to develop a concept for an innovative and sustainable pilot region to advance the economic and societal transformation towards a clean energy system, a circular economy, and the creation of future-oriented jobs in the region. With the help of the scientific and industrial expertise available in the region, the study aims to make the vision and potential of the Fessenheim region more concrete and to define the first Franco-German and European demonstration projects. To this end, four competence groups made up of interdisciplinary experts from both sides of the Rhine have been formed in areas that have been identified as having particular potential: 1) green batteries and battery recycling (circular economy), 2) hydrogen and 3) smart grids. A fourth competence group is focusing on the social, legal and environmental framework accompanying the pilot projects to ensure the feasibility of future implementation. The feasilibility study also produced an interactive competene map of science actors in the Upper Rhine region.

By the end of 2021, Eucor and URCforSR aim to develop a roadmap for the realization and financing of the pilot projects developed by the competence groups. The presented concept will provide policy-makers with scientific support for informed decisions for the development of the pilot region and at the same time serve as a model for other European border regions.

Contact:

Prof. Dr. Barbara Koch
Director, Upper Rhine Cluster for Sustainability Research
University of Freiburg
Tel.: +49 (0)761/203-3694
email: ferninfo@felis.uni-freiburg.de
www.sustainability-upperrhine.info

Prof. Dr. Alain Dieterlen
Vice-President, Valorization at the University of Haute-Alsace
Vice-President, Eucor – The European Campus
Tel.: +33 (0)3 89 33 76 65
email: alain.dieterlen@uha.fr
www.uha.fr

Prof. Dr. Thomas Hirth
Vice-President, Innovation and International Affairs at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)
Vice-President, Eucor – The European Campus
Tel.: +49 (0)721/608 41030
email: Thomas.Hirth@kit.edu
www.kit.edu

Prof. Dr. Christelle Roy
Commissioner for Strategies and Development at the University of Strasbourg
Tel.: +33 (0)3 68 85 70 85
email: croy@unistra.fr
www.unistra.fr