Network trains German and Polish high school students for economic change.
With the coal phase-out planned for 2038, many people in Upper Lusatia are worried about the competitiveness of an entire region. The "Netzwerk Arbeitsmarkt Oberlausitz" (NAMO for short) is taking action: The "KarriereHier" project has prepared 20 German and Polish high school students for entrepreneurship in their home country - including in the renewable energy sector.
In a two-month programme, 21 partner organizations ranging from employment agencies to members of the state parliament, entrepreneurs, associations and private educational institutions such as the DPFA Academy Group offered eleventh-graders from the Christoph Lüders vocational high school in Görlitz and the Polish DPFA high school in Zgorzelec the opportunity to gain practical business knowledge, which is usually neglected on the way to the Abitur. This gives them an insight into how to set up a company or take on economic responsibility. The aim is to inspire well-educated school leavers to get involved in their region.
DPFA Regional Manager Prof. Gerald Svarovsky emphasizes the importance of this generation for the direction after the coal phase-out: "The participants in the project will enter the labour market in around 2025 to 2030 after completing their training and studies. They will then be predestined to take on responsibility for transformation processes in Upper Lusatia."
Olaf Besser is an authorized signatory of the energy technology company Yados from Hoyerswerda. Like five other partner companies, including those in the food and mechanical engineering sectors, he invited the students to take a look at the processes in his company. Better motivated: "There is constant public talk of a lack of prospects. This completely ignores the fact that such a change offers opportunities to make a difference - especially for young people, who can develop freely in the smaller hierarchies of medium-sized companies."
The high school students also attended eight theory sessions at different locations in Görlitz, Bautzen, Zgorzelec and Hoyerswerda. On Tuesday, June 18, the "KarriereHier" closing event took place at the Wichernhaus in Görlitz. The former Saxon Minister of Economic Affairs and current member of the Bundestag Thomas Jurk (SPD) gave the keynote speech. The school leavers presented their findings from the company visits. Entrepreneurs and students were able to exchange ideas over guitar music and a small buffet.
The Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences is actively involved in "KarriereHier" and thus supports young talent in the region. Hartmut Paetzold and Davis Sauer took the opportunity to personally lead the "Management Training" module.
