Regional structural change (in the tri-border region)
Lusatia has been undergoing an accelerated and multifaceted process of structural change—a development that predates the 2019 decision to phase out coal-fired power generation. This process encompasses a wide range of shifts: from dramatic demographic changes (aging, population decline, and immigration) and economic restructuring (the crisis of legacy industries alongside digitalization) to sustainability challenges (such as the transition to renewable energy) and broader political, cultural, and socio-cultural transformations. These processes of structural change are not confined to Germany; they are also evident in similar forms across the neighboring countries of the tri-national region—Germany, Poland, and the Czech Republic—where cross-border exchange and cooperation have intensified significantly over the last twenty years, supported in no small part by the European Union.
Within this thematic focus, the TRAWOS Institute addresses a broad spectrum of specific issues. These range from regional historical legacies (such as the state-socialist and post-socialist experience) and demographic questions (retention of the local population, management of immigration, integration of newcomers, etc.) to the societal impacts of the coal phase-out in Lusatia (including comparative analyses of Germany’s lignite-mining regions). The institute also examines innovative and sustainable development for small and medium-sized towns and regions—particularly within peripheral, rural social spaces—as well as topics related to transnational regional development and Europeanization, with a specific focus on this tri-national region. In addition to traditional research, the institute carries out knowledge-transfer and practical projects in collaboration with a diverse range of partners from within the region and beyond, employing various formats for public participation and the dissemination of knowledge.
Examples of externally funded projects within this thematic area over the past decade include:
1. Verbleibchancen junger Frauen in der Oberlausitz
2. NaRest
3. ATRAKTIV
4. BePart
5. Grüne Zukunft des Grenzraumes Polen-Deutschland
6. JuBReg