In Schwäbisch Gmünd, committed tradespeople have dedicated themselves to a special project within the framework of BIWAQ V - ZEIT (Bildung, Wirtschaft, Arbeit im Quartier V - Zeitenwandel, Einheit, Integration, Teilhabe), which includes the Promotion of retail trade in the city center or Altstadt has as its goal. Through the artistic design of shop windows with floral motifs is intended to increase the attractiveness of the stores, draw in more customers and thus increase the local economy in the BIWAQ area be supported.

Katja Gatter, known under her Artist name "Paula Louida" and solo self-employed in the Altstadt, led the creative design of the shop windows. Numerous SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises), including the Gmünder Reisecenter, the hairdressing salon Haarlekin, Andrea Perdomo's and Claudia Schreier's beauty studios, the bakery Thorwart and Heinz Lochmann Filmtheater Betriebe GmbH TP Schwäbisch Gmünd, were enhanced by the artistic painting. Inga Adam, project manager of BIWAQ V - ZEIT at the city's business development agency, adds: "Window painting makes smaller stores more visible not only to customers, but also to potential new employees. Of course, aesthetics also play a role."

The entire city benefits from this project by contributing to the Securing and creating jobs in the retail and trade sectors. The increased customer frequency leads to a Revitalization of the storeswhich in turn boosts the local economy and secures jobs. A stable economy in Gmünd city center also has a positive effect on surrounding districts such as Oststadt or Hardt. This also makes the BIWAQ V project visible to potential skilled workers and shows that Schwäbisch Gmünd is an attractive location for career opportunities.

The "ZEIT" project is funded as part of the "BIWAQ V" program by the Federal Ministry of Housing, Urban Development and Construction and the European Union via the European Social Fund Plus (ESF Plus).

Training in household-related services

Module 2: Cleaning and hygiene

At the beginning of July 2024, 13 participants completed the second module on cleaning and hygiene of the BIWAQ V training course "Household-related services".

Under the guidance of Martina Zach from Berufsvorbereitungswerk Ostalb, the participants dealt with professional cleaning techniques. The training covered the four-color system, which enables a clear allocation of cleaning utensils and areas. Other topics included the Hazardous Substances Ordinance and the correct dosage of cleaning agents in order to achieve effective cleaning results and conserve resources. The cleaning of windows and sanitary areas was demonstrated in a practical way. Special cleaning techniques for stainless steel surfaces were also presented and refrigerator cleaning was covered.

The participants prepared for the four sessions of specialist theory in a.l.s.o. training rooms by attending a German language course, which Vera Holzwarth from the Gmünd VHS also gave on four dates in the Unipark.

The participants took part in the training with interest and commitment and were able to deepen their knowledge of cleaning techniques. The training showed that effective cleaning not only contributes to cleanliness, but also to health and safety in the workplace.

The training continues: Module 3 on nutrition will run until the end of July 2024 under the direction of Christel Steiner (lecturer at the Gmünd VHS) and Module 4 on digitalization with Sami Ehlhardt (Schwäbisch Gmünd Technical Academy) will begin in September. On Monday mornings, there will be lessons in technical theory and on Wednesday mornings Vera Holzwarth will prepare the technical vocabulary in the accompanying German course.

25.07.2024

Vera Holzwarth

On Sunday, July 21, 2024the city of Schwäbisch Gmünd and its cooperation partners hosted a special event in the Unipark from 10 am to 3 pm: The "Picnic in the Unipark" as part of the "BIWAQ V - ZEIT (Zeitenwandel - Einheit - Integration - Teilhabe)" project. This was the first time a picnic of this kind was held in Unipark and was well received by the people of Gmünd.

Quite freely according to the Motto "Experience, enjoy, chill out" guests could look forward to a wide-ranging program from actors from Oststadt and Altstadt. Program highlights included the StarkMacherMobil of the youth art school, sponsored by the Baden-Württemberg Foundation, and a boules tournament for young and old. The Staufersaga e.V. was also involved: Gundi Mertens and her Gewandmeisterei team worked with children on site to create a "Patchwork picnic blanket"Gmünd's only sarwürker (chain mail smith) showed his art and Ursel Elrefaey, Hilde Bergander and Grete Thomas held a flea market with all kinds of jewelry and other garment mastery collectibles. Oriental dancer Denise Fürstenau also put her art on display. Christa Bareiß, head of the district work department, explained how local wild plants can be used. As part of the funding project "We shape our commons - local encounters", visitors to the picnic were able to make their own herbal salt or blossom sugar from dried herbs and flowers. The culinary offerings from restaurateurs "Oh Mother" and Sifirbir as well as volunteer cooks were also well received by the guests.

The organizers of the project, Inga Adam (project management BIWAQ V - ZEIT) and Jörg Imle (district coordinator Oststadt) draw a positive balance: "For a first attempt and considering the weather, we are satisfied with the number of participants. The picnic also brought together people from a wide range of socio-economic backgrounds, with or without a history of migration, and raised awareness of the participating restaurateurs' offerings." The city of Schwäbisch Gmünd is one of 47 municipalities nationwide that took part in the fifth funding period of the federal and EU project BIWAQ (Education, Economy, Work in the Neighborhood). In Schwäbisch Gmünd, BIWAQ V - ZEIT is to be implemented from September 1, 2023 to June 30, 2026, primarily in Oststadt, Hardt and Altstadt. The project is being implemented under the leadership of the municipal economic development department in cooperation with the Office for Family and Social Affairs as well as the Gmünd Adult Education Center, the Technical Academy and a.l.s.o. e.V. The "ZEIT" project is funded by the Federal Ministry of Housing, Urban Development and Construction and the European Union via the European Social Fund Plus (ESF Plus) as part of the "BIWAQ V" programme.

On Monday, June 24, the volunteers from the second-hand clothes store of the Protestant parish of Schwäbisch Gmünd: Gudrun Oesterle-Hammer, Ursula Böhme and Isolde Weller, as well as Inga Adam, project manager of BIWAQ V, Nuru Debora Thie, coordinator for municipal development policy, Jörg Imle, Stadtteilbüro Ost, and the HfG students Inga Axelsson and Emi Eknigk met in the second-hand store at Buchstraße 32. The second-hand store has been in existence for 20 years and enriches the Oststadt. The store is a popular place to hand in clothes or buy new items at a reasonable price. From now on, the clothes will be digitally visible on Insta and reach a much wider audience, and the idea of sustainability will be strengthened many times over.

By strengthening the sustainable economy, one field of action of the BIWAQ V - ZEIT (Zeitenwandel - Einheit - Integration - Teilhabe) project is based in Schwäbisch Gmünd and supports the digitalization project. Together with two volunteer students from the Hochschule für Gestaltung, the digital switchover in the second-hand clothes store was made possible in the first place. This gave rise to the idea of supporting the second-hand clothes store with an internet and social media presence. "As a team, we thought about how we could directly and quickly support local, small businesses and then the second-hand clothes store came to mind," says Inga Adam.

The district coordinator of Oststadt, Jörg Imle, continued: "It was important to us that the support is tailored to the needs of the company and that this then creates added value for the entire district." The municipal coordinator for community development policy, Nuru Debora Thie, was also quickly involved in the "project within a project": "We already listed the second-hand store in our fair and sustainable shopping guide and now we wanted to go one step further and make the opportunities for second-hand shopping in Schwäbisch Gmünd better known." In order to put the plan of "how" to support the clothes store into practice, the project managers at the Hochschule für Gestaltung (HfG) asked whether students would have the time and inclination to design the store's website. The two HfG students Inga Axelsson and Emi Eknigk immediately got in touch: "We immediately found the idea exciting because we could present the store in a cool way, promote sustainability and use our design skills". The volunteer store team at the second-hand clothes store was also immediately enthusiastic about the idea: "It's great that the students are doing this. In this way, we hope to attract new and younger customers on a tight budget and also those who are particularly concerned about sustainability," said Gudrun Oesterle-Hammer, who runs the store together with six other employees.

The website of the second-hand clothes store can now be found on Instagram under "secondhandgmuend" with current styles and offers. The opening hours are: Wednesdays from 10 am to 12 noon and 2 pm to 5 pm, Thursdays from 2 pm to 5 pm and additionally every first Saturday of the month from 10 am to 12 noon.

The city of Schwäbisch Gmünd is one of 47 municipalities nationwide participating in the fifth funding period of the federal and EU project BIWAQ (Bildung, Wirtschaft, Arbeit im Quartier). In Schwäbisch Gmünd, the BIWAQ V - ZEIT (Zeitenwandel - Einheit - Integration - Teilhabe) project is to be implemented from September 1, 2023 to June 30, 2026, primarily in Oststadt, Hardt and Altstadt. With the two fields of action "Sustainable integration into the labour market" and "Strengthening the local economy" as well as the cross-cutting topics "Sustainability" and "Digitalization", the implementation of BIWAQ V -ZEIT in Schwäbisch Gmünd contributes to the mixing of milieus and to the reduction of labour shortages, especially in the household-related services, catering, construction and trade sectors. The project is managed by the city's economic development department in cooperation with the Office for Family and Social Affairs, the Gmünd Adult Education Center, the Technical Academy and a.l.s.o. e.V.

The "ZEIT" project is funded as part of the "BIWAQ V" program by the Federal Ministry of Housing, Urban Development and Construction and the European Union via the European Social Fund Plus (ESF Plus).

Training in household-related services:

Module 1: Environmental protection and waste avoidance

At the end of May, 13 participants completed the first module on environmental protection and waste avoidance of the BIWAQ V training course "Household-related services".

Over four mornings, Ilka Fiebig from the GOA gave vivid presentations on the topics of waste separation and disposal, illegal waste, environmental pollution, waste avoidance and consumer behavior. The participants collected litter on an excursion and at the end were given practical tips on how to avoid waste and save money at the same time.

The course was accompanied by a German course given by Vera Holzwarth from the VHS on Wednesdays in the Unipark.

All participants were fully committed to the project, and each and every one of them took home new knowledge and good intentions at the end.

The program continues in June with module 2 on cleaning and in July with module 3 on nutrition, both on Monday mornings. In both modules, the specialist vocabulary is again reinforced by an accompanying German course run by Vera Holzwarth, which always takes place on Wednesday mornings at Unipark.

04.06.2024

M. Manuwald

Schwäbisch Gmünd/Berlin (sv). On Friday, April 26, Klara Geywitz, Federal Minister for Housing, Urban Development and Construction, presented the funding certificate to the representatives of the participating project municipalities at the kick-off event for the fifth funding period of BIWAQ (Bildung, Wirtschaft, Arbeit im Quartier). The city of Schwäbisch Gmünd is one of a total of 47 cities throughout Germany to receive funding from the ESF-Plus project (European Social Fund, with federal and EU funds).

The city of Schwäbisch Gmünd has already participated in the BIWAQ project twice in the past. In December 2023, Schwäbisch Gmünd was awarded the final contract for the BIWAQ V - ZEIT (Zeitenwandel - Einheit - Integration - Teilhabe) project, which will run until 30 June 2026. The aim of BIWAQ V is to increase the employability and sustainable integration of the long-term unemployed and/or people with a migration background into the labour market, primarily in the construction industry, skilled trades, gastronomy and household-related services. What is new in this funding period is that the focus is on women, young people aged 18 and over and people aged 55 and over. At the launch event, Federal Minister Klara Geywitz described BIWAQ V as an opportunity that "opens doors for people for whom many doors were often closed in the past." BIWAQ V is intended to supplement investment-based urban development measures, which create the conditions for spatial participation in the neighbourhood, with projects that promote and stabilize the social and cultural infrastructure.

The implementation of BIWAQ V in Schwäbisch Gmünd contributes to social cohesion, the mixing of milieus and the reduction of labor shortages in the named sectors through targeted qualification and the supply of workers. The project objectives and content can be divided into the two fields of action "Sustainable integration into employment" and "Strengthening the local economy". The first field of action is primarily implemented in Oststadt and Hardt, while the second field of action involves adding the Altstadt district to the two neighborhoods. The city's economic development department is in charge of the project together with the Office for Family and Social Affairs. Cooperation partners are, among others, the Technische Akademie e.V., the Gmünder Volkshochschule e.V. and the a.l.s.o e.V.

"Thanks to the interdisciplinary composition of our team, we have the opportunity to offer a variety of (further) qualifications and thus improve the matching between employees and employers in times of a shortage of skilled workers through our proximity to the local economy," said Inga Adam, BIWAQ V project manager at the Schwäbisch Gmünd city administration's business development department. Information about the project and current (further) training courses can be found at https://biwaq-gd.de/.

The "ZEIT" project is funded as part of the "BIWAQ V" program by the Federal Ministry of Housing, Urban Development and Construction and the European Union via the European Social Fund Plus (ESF Plus).

On Sunday, March 10a special event was held at the Alevi Cultural Center in Gmünder Oststadt to mark International Women's Day. From 10:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., women met for breakfast, which was lovingly prepared by the men of the center. under the motto "Flower Power" was prepared.

The event was organized in cooperation between the BIWAQ V project "ZEIT" (Zeitenwandel - Einheit - Integration - Teilhabe; urban economic development), the Coordination for Municipal Development Policy (Office for Sustainable Development, Climate Protection and Citizen Participation) and the Alevi Cultural Centre.

The highlight of the day was the Distribution of fair trade rosesaccompanied by an informative Lecture on the topics of women at work and sustainable development goals (SDGs) of the United Nations. The musical performances by the in-house choir and music groups also created a festive atmosphere.

A big thank you to all participants and supporters who made this day a success.

The realization of the goals defined within the framework of BIWAQ V is based on the cooperation of the job coaches from a.l.s.o. and TA as well as the Gmünd Adult Education Center (VHS)

This partnership stands for a comprehensive support network that is individually tailored to the needs of the participants. The focus is on personal advice and tailored training opportunities that not only impart knowledge and skills, but also open up new perspectives in the professional environment.

The three project partners who are making a significant contribution to the success of the project are presented in more detail below.

Technical Academy Schwäbisch Gmünd (TA):

The Technische Akademie für berufliche Bildung Schwäbisch Gmünd e.V. (TA) was founded as a non-profit association on March 23, 1987. Since then, we have been organizing further and advanced training courses, primarily in the industrial-technical and commercial fields, and initiating specialist events of all kinds in order to provide the economy with practical vocational training. We want to make a contribution to technology transfer for the benefit of the economy.

In addition, the association offers demand-oriented retraining measures. We are also committed to promoting education and training. In particular, we aim to awaken an understanding of technology in children and young people at an early age, promote independent research, action and the ability and willingness to train and study technical professions, expand social skills and enable identification with the region. We work closely with vocational training providers, universities and other educational institutions.

Link to the homepage: https://www.technische-akademie.de/

Schwäbisch Gmünder Volkshochschule e. V. (VHS):

The Schwäbisch Gmünd VHS was founded in 1946 and has also been active in the field of vocational training for over 35 years. Since 2022, the VHS has been a basic education center (GBZ). The GBZ aims to reach adults and people with basic education needs in reading and writing, numeracy and other topics. The VHS also offers courses in German and foreign languages, health and creative courses, for example. 

Link to the homepage: www.gmuender-vhs.de

a.l.s.o e.V.:

The social enterprise has been offering people in Schwäbisch Gmünd and the Ostwürttemberg region new prospects through social, cultural and vocational education, integration and support for job and training seekers for 40 years.

Link to the homepage: https://alsogmuend.de/