It’s now the 2nd time that welcome has supported Entwicklungsgesellschaft indeland GmbH in setting up what is now the company’s 6th future laboratory. The venue for the latest round of dedicated talks in front of approx 160 guests was the RWE training workshop at Weisweiler on 21 June 2018. In the focus of attention: the end of opencast mining in the Rhenish lignite mining area, involving a challenge to the region of how to rethink matters and reset the scene from scratch.

The various approaches and the setting were both equally innovative. This time, attention was focused on a centre stage for the various contributions, with a genuine TV studio atmosphere being generated. Film sequences provided for top infotainment. The event was presented by Simone Thelen from the Aachen newspaper publishing house. And Graphic Recorder Volker Voigt visualized just in time a different record of the event.

It matched the nature of the event that the audience were positioned around the podium as in an arena: “We’ve done our homework” said Jens Bröker, Managing Director of indeland GmbH, by which he meant first and foremost the technical addition to the Cologne administrative district’s regional plan, a draft of which is supposed to be lying, next year, on the tables of the various town halls. This study, drawn up by the Prognos Institute, shows what can be brought about one day at the Indesee. And that was a remarkable vision of the future - expressed in quite concrete terms.

Those present on the stage alongside Oliver Lühr, Principal of Prognos AG, one of Europe’s oldest business research companies, were: Gisela Walsken (Head of the Cologne district government), Ralph Sterck (Managing Director of IRR GmbH), Prof. Dr. Christiane Vaeßen (Aachen Regional Association) and Dr. Patricia Peill (Member of the State Assembly). In some cases quite passionately, they discussed the opportunities offered by the Regional Plan for the region concerned.