immo!nvest – Die Plattform für Standorte und Immobilien

Tag: Partizipation

  • Young adults help shape the future of a central area

    Young adults help shape the future of a central area

    In the municipality of Adelboden, young adults can contribute to the future use of the car park area. The municipality is organising a creative workshop in the Adelboden leisure and sports arena in cooperation with the Adelboden-Lenk-Kandersteg tourism organisation, Parkhaus AG and Hotel Adler AG to find ideas. On 19 June 2026, 80 young adults up to the age of 35 are invited to develop concrete proposals for a structural redesign. Interested parties can register until 5 June.

    According to a press release, approaches that go beyond the “classic planning logic” are in demand. The municipality is keen to make young people’s opinions on the future of their living environment visible. After all, “they make a valuable contribution to the long-term development of the village as a liveable residential and attractive tourist destination”. Before feasibility studies are commissioned, a “broad range of ideas” is required.

    Two options will be actively included and discussed in the “transparent, democratically supported” process: a panorama square with a view of the mountains and an adventure pool with existing development plans. There is also room for further and new concepts. The best project ideas will be professionally visualised, publicly exhibited and then examined in consultation with the local population and tourism stakeholders.

  • Spatial planning is taught in a practical manner in the classroom.

    Spatial planning is taught in a practical manner in the classroom.

    Planning officials from Baden Regio initiated a spatial planning project with students from the Wettingen Cantonal School in autumn 2025. According to a recent announcement, the planners designed three lesson blocks in the specialised subject of humanities and social sciences. Working methods and planning tools were presented, and opportunities for public participation were explained.

    In practical projects, students analysed their immediate school environment and then developed proposals for the design of the western part of the monastery peninsula. In further lessons, the young people worked with their teachers to explore different housing concepts, housing needs and their influence on urban development. The focus was on social components.

    “The practical perspective and in-depth expertise of the speakers from Baden Regio opened up valuable new perspectives for both the pupils and the teachers,” said Oliver Schneider, a teacher at the Kantonsschule Wettingen, in the press release. “The lively interplay between theoretical principles and their direct application to a concrete example made the topic of spatial planning tangible and easy to understand. This aroused curiosity, promoted networked thinking and encouraged the students to look beyond their usual boundaries.”

    Those involved from Baden Regio and the teaching staff noted that it was striking how important the coexistence of people was to the pupils.

  • Virtual reality for urban planning

    Virtual reality for urban planning

    Researchers at ZHdK and ZHAW have developed an innovative tool for participatory urban design. Using virtual reality (VR), residents and those responsible are given the opportunity to experience planned redesigns virtually. For example, the effects of traffic-calming measures on street noise, space conditions or bicycle and pedestrian traffic can be experienced through the senses of sight and hearing.

    In the Gestalte Zürich project, the researchers support the Zurich city administration in planning sustainable spaces in the city, explains the ZHdK in the project description. Gestalte Zürich is supported by the City of Zurich‘s Department of Urban Planning, the city’s Civil Engineering Department and the Zurich Transport Authority. Other practice partners are the organisations myclimate, umverkehR and Fussverkehr Schweiz. Prototypes of the VR tool could be tried out on 20 September at Zurich Park(ing) Day. The project, which will run until next year, is funded by the digitalisation initiative. Its aim is to strengthen cooperation between Zurich’s universities on the topic of digitalisation.

  • Swiss cities are getting smarter

    Swiss cities are getting smarter

    Thanks to digitization, networking, participation and efficiency, a smart city should contribute to a higher quality of life and more sustainability. This is how most Swiss cities explain the concept of the Smart City, according to a study by the Zurich University of Applied Sciences ( ZHAW).

    The ZHAW carried out the study for the first time this year and was supported by several partners. A total of 84 Swiss cities and municipalities took part. According to the results, more than half of them rate the topic of smart cities as important or very important and are actively involved in it. At the end of 2020, however, only 23 cities had a developed smart city strategy. According to the ZHAW, this number is likely to increase in the coming years. For example, a strategy is already being developed for seven cities.

    The ZHAW has examined the development of intelligent cities using nine dimensions. The cities surveyed had a total of 329 existing projects in these dimensions. Most of the projects – 98 in total – are part of the Smart Governance dimension. City apps or chatbots, for example, make it easier to access information relevant to administration. This category also includes digital building permits or the digital notification of relocation.

    There are also 76 projects in the Smart Energy and Environment dimension. Certification as an energy city was mentioned here particularly often. Many projects aim to promote renewable energies and conserve resources. But intelligent power grids and lighting systems are also in focus in several cities.

    According to the ZHAW, most smart city projects are initiated within the administration, by energy suppliers or by politics. The cities are often based on other cities at home and abroad. However, many cities would like more support overall from the federal government and the cantons.