Sustainability Advisory Board

The Sustainability Council 2024-2026 currently consists of 25 member institutions, associations and organizations with a total of 24 members and 22 deputies. The members are made up of experts in the field of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. The aim is to bring together various stakeholders from all walks of life.

The Chairman of the Advisory Board is Lord Mayor Dr. Florian Janik.

The following are represented on the advisory board:

Bavarian Farmers' Association
Bund Naturschutz in Bayern e. V., Erlangen district group
Citizens' Initiative for Solidarity Agriculture Erlangen
German Trade Union Federation Erlangen - Höchstadt
Third World Shop Erlangen e. V.
Erlanger Stadtwerke AG
fairlangen.org
FAU Erlangen - Nuremberg
forum 1.5 Middle Franconia
Peace path of the religions
Economy for the common good
Health and Medicine in Erlangen e.V.
Nuremberg Chamber of Industry and Commerce for Middle Franconia, Erlangen office
Landesbund für Vogelschutz, Erlangen - Höchstadt district group
Reading café Anständig essen e.V.
Mobility associations: CarSharing e.V. / VCD Erlangen
Council for social justice
Siemens AG, Erlangen - Nuremberg regional office
Sportverband Erlangen e.V.City association of Erlangen cultural clubs
Erlangen Environmental Station, Youth Farm
Erlangen Adult Education Center
Center for self-determined life of disabled people e.V.
Experienced personality

The Sustainability Advisory Board was appointed for the first time in September 2020, replacing the Advisory Board for Erlangen Agenda 21. The current term of office runs from March 2024 to December 2026.

The Sustainability Advisory Board (NaB) is a body of experts that advises the city administration and the city council on sustainability issues and makes recommendations in this regard. It supports the administration in its public relations work on sustainability issues and communicates these issues to its own institutions and organizations. The committee's aim is to support the city council and the city administration in the transformation process with its knowledge and actions. In addition, its main function is to act as a multiplier in the respective institutions.

The Sustainability Advisory Board acts as an advisory body to the City of Erlangen. Its primary task is to advise the city administration and the city council on issues of sustainable development based on the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, which are the political objectives of the United Nations and came into force on January 1, 2016 with a term of 15 years (until 2030).

The Advisory Board consists of experts in the field of these 17 Sustainable Development Goals and attempts to bring together various stakeholders from all walks of life.

The Sustainability Advisory Board and its individual members want to contribute to spreading the discussion about and efforts towards sustainable development in Erlangen in the sense of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations to the widest possible sections of the population and to introduce the suggestions, ideas and impulses gained in the course of their activities to the institutions, companies and organizations they represent in order to take into account the principles of sustainability in connection with future planning, developments and decisions as far as possible.

The Sustainability Council works on a wide range of topics relating to the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, including

• Collaboration on the sustainability strategy of the city of Erlangen and the Climate Awakening
• Photovoltaic offensive
• CO2-free heat supply
• Energy saving and efficiency
• Curbing food waste, healthy and sustainable nutrition
• Urban gardens
• Education for sustainable development.

Unfortunately not. The advisory board is not elected, but appointed for three years by the city council on the recommendation of the administration.

Information on the meeting dates and agendas can be found in the citizen information system under "Calendar" for each meeting.

Citizens can get involved in forums and discuss and work on their topics, ideas and campaigns there. Please contact the office for this purpose.

Public meetings of the Sustainability Advisory Board 2024: March 7 (reconstitution), April 11 (special meeting on the Stadt-Umland-Bahn), July 11 (budget meeting), September 12 and December 5.

Time: 17:00-19:00

Location: Council chamber of the town hall (Rathausplatz 1, 91054 Erlangen). The venue is barrier-free.

The meetings of the Advisory Board are open to the public and participation is open to all citizens. However, the public does not have the right to speak or vote. There is also the opportunity to become active in the forums.

Forums are free groups that bring together existing steering groups, round tables, associations and initiatives on a specific topic, for example. However, they also accept completely new players and citizens who are interested in working together. The forums work independently on a sustainability topic, develop related projects and work with the city administration to implement them. They reach a broad base and involve as many sections of urban society as possible. The forums are open to all interested parties.

If you would like to take part, please contact the office of the Sustainability Advisory Board.

More detailed information on the forums:

The committee has taken the Augsburg model as an example and adapted it to Erlangen, its needs, possibilities and necessities. The work to achieve the 17 sustainability goals therefore consists of two pillars.

The first pillar is the "Sustainability Advisory Board" itself, which acts in an advisory and supportive capacity for the city council and the city administration. This is where numerous topics and concerns from the member institutions and associations are brought together, discussed and, if necessary, submitted to the city as proposals, which the Lord Mayor and Chairman of the Advisory Board bring to the committees and the City Council.

The importance of citizen participation in the sustainable development process of a municipality is undisputed. The desired goal can only be achieved together with numerous active participants from business, science, academia, civil society, specialist agencies and authorities. The city administration not only needs experts who promote the topic full-time in their institutions, companies or organizations, but also - and to no lesser degree - the citizens of Erlangen, who are actively involved in the topic and thus help to carry and communicate the decisions of the committee to the population. The exclusion of a group would mean that the ideas, projects and actions of the active members could be met with rejection and misunderstanding, which would be counterproductive and more likely to lead to failure than success. All areas of life must be considered and dealt with in this multifaceted process. This creates the greatest possible acceptance among the population and facilitates the practical implementation of the desired goals. To achieve this, both the committee and the administration as well as the advisory board members themselves require active and broad-based citizen participation, which is made possible by various working groups. This second pillar of sustainability work has been intensively developed since December 2020 and consists of forums.

Forums are free groups that bring together existing steering groups, round tables, associations, initiatives, etc. on a specific topic. However, they also include completely new players and members of the public who are interested in working together. The forums work independently on a sustainability topic, develop related projects and ensure their implementation. They reach a broad base and involve as many parts of urban society as possible. The forums are open to all interested parties.

If a topic is no longer relevant or has been completed as a project, the forum is dissolved.

Advisory Board members take on sponsorships for the forums in order to maintain the connection to the Advisory Board and to accompany the practical work. However, the sponsors report on current forum topics and projects to the committee and are therefore available for inquiries, suggestions and concerns.

The City Council of Erlangen provides the Sustainability Council with €30,000 to subsidize projects and campaigns in the field of sustainability. The principles of this funding are the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations.

The "General Guidelines on the Approval and Use of Voluntary Grants from the City of Erlangen to Third Parties (Grant Guidelines) dated April 1, 2015, as amended on August 1, 2017" form the basis for funding in the area of sustainability.

All 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are taken into account in the funding. Applicants can be legal entities as well as natural persons, initiatives and associations, not just members of the Sustainability Advisory Board.

Grants to third parties are financial assistance for the fulfillment of the recipient's tasks. Recipients of grants can be both legal entities (associations, clubs, societies, etc.) and natural persons.

These guidelines distinguish between the following grant purposes:

• Institutional funding (grants to maintain operational purposes),
• Project funding (grants for individual projects and events) and
• Investment funding (grants to finance fixed assets).

The prerequisites for a grant are

• substantial public interest,
• area of the city of Erlangen,
• Own contribution with own funds,
• proper economic circumstances and
• Project not yet started.

If you wish to submit a grant application to us, please note the following requirements and guidelines for the granting of a grant:

• The requirements for financial support can be found in the "Grant Guidelines" ("General Guidelines on the Approval and Use of Voluntary Grants from the City of Erlangen to Third Parties").
• Applications for grants must be submitted in writing - with a detailed project description, budget and financing plan - to the office of the Sustainability Advisory Board.
• The administration requires written proof of the use of the grants received, including a statement of account and project report, by the end of January of the following year.
• No personnel costs or fees are funded.

Please contact the office of the Sustainability Council before submitting an application. They will help you fill out the form and explain exactly which documents you need to submit.

The application deadline for 2024 is July 30, 2024. Applications received after this date will still be processed and grants will be awarded based on the date the application is received and available funds.

The grant guidelines and the forms for the grant application and proof of use can be obtained from the office.

Click here for the grant application