Saxony⁵

Since 2007, the five Saxon universities of applied sciences (HAW) in Mittweida, Zwickau, Zittau/Görlitz, Dresden, and Leipzig have been collaborating in teaching and research.

Through the Saxony⁵ Transfer Network, they have also been pooling their expertise and resources since 2018 to fulfill what is known as the “third mission”—research-based knowledge transfer. This effort is based on a joint transfer strategy for the intelligent networking of knowledge flows within a “Smart University Grid.”

As part of the project, a wide range of knowledge transfer activities were carried out from 2018 to 2022 within the framework of the so-called Co-Creation Labs, which are good documents here.

In 2023, the follow-up project “Saxony5 – Sustained University” Grid—which continues to be funded through the “Innovative University” program line—was launched.

Here, the focus will once again be significantly greater on gaining insights into how good knowledge transfer can be achieved. To this end, transfer modes have been defined in which the participating universities focus on and analyze different forms of knowledge transfer. At Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences, “Experiential Transfer Spaces” are being investigated and further developed.

Among other tools, the project utilizes CELSIUZ (www.celsiuz.de), which was established during the first project phase.