On 26 July, 1969, Nottingham officially twinned with Karlsruhe, a German border city in the Upper Rhine Plain. Given this connection, I recently took a group of ten students on a research trip to investigate how creative technologies can help engage youth in civic society. This was funded by NTU Global as part of an annual European Cities Challenge that mainly involves students from Ashfield, Bolsover and Mansfield, areas that are undergoing active regeneration, with a strong focus on involving young people in shaping their communities. Bolsover, for example, has recently created a Youth Council called Young Voice which is similar in purpose to the Youth Advisory Board at Nottingham UNESCO City of Literature, both of which suggest optimism for the Prime Minister’s desire to change the legal voting age in England to sixteen so it has parity with Scotland and Wales.
In 2019 Karlsruhe became a UNESCO Creative City of Media Arts and so under the excellent guidance of Angelika Schmidt of the Department of Cultural Affairs we visited various locations, a couple of which are discussed below.
In April 2014 a former pig market, Alter Schlachthof, was converted into a business incubation centre that provides opportunities for creative industries start-ups by providing low rent for five years (100 euros a month) to enable them to become viable and sustainable. The offices are comprised of 86 sea freight containers in one building, enabling breakout spaces so that professional networks can develop or entrepreneurs can seek business advice from the K3 Karlsruhe Cultural and Creative Industries Office and Karlsruher Fächer GmbH. If the start-up is successful – such as Klangio, an ai business who translate music into notes – they can upgrade to a bigger office at FUX across the yard. It’s a bit like a league, offering promotion or demotion.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer has built his manifesto around growth and this is a good example of how it can be achieved. However, lots of independent businesses I have spoken to in Nottingham complain that industrial estates and buildings are being sold off, partly because the council is bankrupt and desperate for cash. One example of the impact of this short-term thinking is a small bespoke furniture company that ended up laying off staff because they could not find suitable premises, forcing the owner to go it alone. Perhaps the council should give the Greek shipping magnet and Forest owner, Evangelos Marinakis, a call. The now empty Debenhams in Market Square could become an Afflecks Palace with a bit of imagination. Though Dr. Robert Howie Smith provides optimism through the current regeneration on Broad Street.
In 1999 the ZKM (Zentrum für Kunst und Medientechnologie, Centre for Art and Media) was opened. Linking new media theory and practice, the ZKM is located in a former weapons factory and conducts research and produces works on the effects of media, digitization, and globalization. It’s an impressive exhibition space bringing researchers, archivists, and art practitioners under one roof.
We visited Hertzlab to see the development of a 360 degree screen that enables the public to actively engage in civic society by adding items to the landscape, a little bit like Sim City, so they can see the impact of their suggestions for urban planning. Our researchers felt technologies that help visualise and simplify decision making could be something adopted by councils back home, to whom they presented their research at the end of the trip.
The best way to involve youth in civic engagement is to create meaningful opportunities so that their ideas are validated. Regarding our research trip last year, Deputy Mayor Craig Whitby of Mansfield District Council, said:
“It was a pleasure to be involved in this year’s European Inclusive Communities Challenge. What impressed me most was the creativity and practicality of the ideas, and the fact that they reflect the kinds of challenges we grapple with in local government every day. I’m particularly proud that an idea from last year’s challenge has now become a live project in Mansfield, with our first-ever AI exhibition planned for later this year. It shows that when we create space for young people’s ideas, and back them with real support, they can have a lasting impact.”
The 2025 European Inclusive Communities Challenge: Youth Driving Change was from 6 – 10 April NTU Global website.