How can we, economically and socially, revitalize former industrial heartland regions while promoting a green transition? In this report, John Austin reflects on the experiences of the tour, which took participants to several iconic mining and steel regions: Charleroi, in Belgiumâs Wallonia region; the Saarland linking Germany and France; and Saxony in Germanyâs former East.
In his new paper, John Austin delves into the global rise of nationalist and anti-democratic sentiments, particularly in economically declining industrial heartland communities in Europe and the United States. Based on the learnings from the Industrial Heartlands and Democracy Study Tour in November 2023, the paper outlines the reasons behind peopleâs dissatisfaction and anger. Factors such as economic decline, geographic inequality, social alienation, and political disillusionment emphasize the urgent need for leaders to understand the underlying emotions and experiences driving these anti-democratic sentiments.
Author: Sandra Rath
As part of Das Progressive Zentrumâs âTransatlantic Dialogue on the Industrial Heartlandsâ Project, a group of local decision makers from the US Midwest travelled through Belgium and Germany last November to strengthen transatlantic ties and exchange ideas on a common challenge: Fostering economic revival through climate neutral industries and fortifying liberal democracy in industrial heartland regions. During their visit to Brussels, Charleroi, SaarbrÞcken, Leipzig and Berlin, our delegation met with experts, civil society leaders and politicians on local and federal levels to learn how they approach issues ranging from trust in democracy and political institutions, transforming production towards climate neutrality, the role of science and innovation as well as financial instruments to fund local initiatives.
The delegation was further accompanied by John Austin, Director of the Michigan Economic Center and Senior Fellow at Brookings Insitute and Wolfgang MÃķssinger, former German Consul General in Chicago as well as our project team with Florian Ranft, Axel Ruppert and Sandra Rath.
The Wallonian city of Charleroi is located just an hour outside of Brussels, yet unlike the Belgian capital, the former industrial town grapples with the challenges of a declining population, dwindling job prospects and a dire life outlook. On their first day, our delegation had the chance to visit the townâs Biopark. They were greeted by Wallonian Minister President, Elio di Rupo, and Belgian State Secretary for Strategic Investments and Science with the Ministry for Economic and Labour, Thomas Dermine. Both stressed the importance of government action in encouraging scientific ventures to settle in the city and in bolstering green transition and industrial policy efforts. They underlined that support measures by governments should focus more on mid-sized cities and rural regions as bigger cities are attractive in their own right for companies as well as skilled workers.
Later on, the delegation had the opportunity to tour the facilities of Charleroiâs Biopark with CEO Dominique DemontÃĐ, a scientific hub that so far has attracted more than 100 companies and helped create 45 startups in the health care and science sector. Experience the visit as covered by Belgian TV.
In the afternoon, the delegation enjoyed a tour of St. Gilles, one of Brusselsâ 19 municipalities and a former working class district, where city planning has been put to use to lead modernisation efforts towards better living standards. The highlight of the tour was a visit to the Aegidium, an impressive building hidden behind a regular facade, with a rich history of being repurposed to meet the districtâs needs since the 1920s.
How does the European Commission plan on supporting industrial heartlands in light of the European Green Deal? On the second day in Brussels, our delegation attended and spoke at the Transatlantic Conference on the âGeographies of Discontentâ, co-hosted by the European Commission DG Regioâs Peter Berkowitz. The conference highlighted the importance of place-based policies that equip local and municipal leaders with capacities to deliver a green transition and build modern infrastructure. These processes need to create and uphold local identity, ownership and participation to counter right-wing populist narratives of top-down green transition policies. In her conference keynote, our Sounding Board member Cathryn ClÞver Ashbrook further emphasized, how central subnational transatlantic cooperation is to better deliver for rural regions and in countering illiberal movements. After the conference, our delegation headed to SaarbrÞcken, Germany by train.
How do industrial workers in affected regions in Germany look at the green transition challenges ahead? The delegationâs first day in Germany started with a visit to the Saarstahl steel plant in VÃķlklingen. In a meeting with the workersâ council, the delegation learned about the companyâs plans to produce green steel with hydrogen energy, the biggest steel transformation project in Europe to secure jobs in the region. The remarkable determination and unity of the workforce in fighting for a federal grant to produce green steel was impressive. At the time, the grant was still pending EU permission, as of December 2023, the EU has allowed the German government to issue it. The visit ended with a private tour of the steel plant. Read in his article for the Washington Quarterly on how former Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto reflects his visit and what he hopes to take away for the steel industry around Pittsburgh.
In the final meeting of the day, the delegation learned from Saarlandâs Minister of Finance, Jakob von WeizsÃĪcker, about Saarlandâs Transformation Fund, a fiscal instrument to allocate government funds to local green transition initiatives, underlining the all-of-government approach to the green transition in the Saarland. The meetings of the day emphasized the power of a united approach to green industrial policy that encompasses workers, company management and the political level.
In protecting liberal democracy, civil society plays a crucial role in providing spaces for exchange and discussions. Before embarking on a long train travel to Leipzig, the delegation visited the Foundation Democracy Saarland, learning about its projects, events and educational field trips to foster civic education for adults with the goal to support liberal democracy in the region.
The next day included a first for most of our delegation members: visiting East Germay. In Leipzig, our delegation was welcomed at the German-American Institute Saxony, an institution that fosters transatlantic relations in East Germany. After learning about the Instituteâs work, the group was introduced to the specificty of East German in the green transition and reasons for the rise of right-wing populism in large parts of East Germany. East Germany underwent an astounding transformation after the German reunification with disappearance of manufacturing jobs and perspectives for skilled workers which ultimately caused a declining and aging population.
(Fotos: Corinna Mehl)
In a conversation with Sebastian Striegel, Member of Parliament in Saxony-Anhalt for Alliance 90/ The Greens, the group learned about concrete examples of what the German governmentâs decision to phase out lignite coal production by 2038 means for the region around Schkopau. Striegel also spoke about how former chemical production sites in Leuna are being replaced with green technology and yet, the local population feels left out of the decision making process in the green transition of the region. Although the region grapples with a âchange fatigueâ as a result of the reunification years, the government is actively trying to encourage citizen participation.
(Fotos: Corinna Mehl)
In a last meeting of the day, our delegation met with Thomas Kralinksi, State Secretary in the Saxon Ministry of Economy, Labour and Transport and Sounding Board member of the Transatlantic Dialogue on the Industrial Heartlands Project. During the conversation, Kralinski spoke about the governmentâs strategy to attract chips production through the âSilicon Saxonyâ initiative, thus fosterting the creation of green jobs, and the âFuture Saxâ platform which aims to connect universities with small and medium sized enterprises around the state. Regarding the rise of right-wing populism in the state, Kralinksi reiterated the fear of change in East Germans rooted in the reunification experience and currently driven by the aftermath of the Covid pandemic, inflation, migration and the war in Ukraine.
(Fotos: Corinna Mehl)
The final day of the study tour began with a visit to the Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Action in Berlin. During a meeting with Philipp Steinberg, Director-General for Economic Stabilization and Energy Security, the delegation heard about how the government allocates funding to support the economic transition away from coal production and towards carbon neutrality by 2045.
In an second meeting at the Federal Ministry for Labour and Social Affairs, the group engaged in discussion with Ana Dujic, Head of the Think Tank âDigital Labour Societyâ about the challenges and opportunities of the digitalization of the labout market through AI. The most pressing issues discussed were AI regulation for the labor market, an aging workforce as well as the skills shortage in Germany.
In the afternoon, the delegation attended the official launch of the Transatlantic Dialogue on the Industrial Heartlands Project at Das Progressive Zentrumâs Innocracy Conference. They discussed the Project Fellowsâ impulse papers and gave feedback and advice on what topics to focus on throughout the course of the fellowship. The day ended with an informal meeting with representatives of the AtlantikbrÞcke, rounding up a week of week of transatlantic peer learning on industrial heartland regions.
(Fotos: Fabian Melber)
Authors: Florian Ranft, Axel Ruppert, Sandra Rath
There is a growing convergence of interest and effort on both sides of the Atlantic to bridge geographic economic divides and reconnect residents of industrial heartland communities to economic opportunity. Where these communities continue to decline, residents feel disconnected and alienated from a rapidly changing global economy and polity, while polarizing, resentment-driven and populist political movements that undermine our democracies can grow from within. Where economic regeneration has been done successfully, it serves to return community pride and optimism about the future and reduces political discontent.
In order to share transatlantic experience and promote effective strategies for investment in people living in industrial heartlands, the Conference on Transatlantic Work to Address “Geographies of Discontent” brings together leaders and economic change practitioners from across Europe, the UK and the US.
After a keynote address by Cathryn ClÞver Ashbrook, Senior Advisor and Vice-President, Bertelsmann Foundation and Sounding Board Member of the Transatlantic Dialogue on the Industrial Heartlands Project, we will engage in discussions with:
Please note that there is a limited capacity for in-person attendance. We look forward to welcoming you at the convening and discussing the future of industrial heartlands with you.
This conference is organized within the context of a delegation trip of local decisionmakers from the United States to Germany and Europe. The trip’s goal is to engage in a transatlantic exchange on the challenges facing the industrial heartlands in Europe and the United States as well as best practices to tackle them. The delegation trip is organized within the Transatlantic Dialogue on the Industrial Heartlands Project.
On 17 November 2023, we held a workshop called “Democracy at the crossroads in the industrial heartlands â transatlantic perspectives for the future of the places that matter” as part of Das Progressive Zentrum’s Innocracy23 conference.
What are solutions for a better, greener and more democratic life in the âplaces that donât matterâ?
For a generation, people living in the traditional industrial heartlands all over the world have been buffeted by a technological and services revolution, the decline of manufacturing, and the rise of a borderless global digital economy. The result is deepening inequality, ongoing political support for right-wing populists and a hollowing out of the middle class. From the rise of Trumpism to the successes of the AfD, industrial heartlands lie at the crossroads to the future of our democracies. This is why we we’ve hosted an interactive workshop to discuss best practices, political strategies and policy solutions to foster democratic participation, trust and tangible future perspectives for those living in the places that matter.Â
The workshop entailed an inspiring exchange with our 12 project fellows of the âTransatlantic Dialogue on the Industrial Heartlandsâ project as well as a delegation of seven decision-makers from the US Midwest. Join us for fresh, transatlantic takes on how to tackle the challenges of a just transformation while rebuilding trust in democracy.Â
To combat this decline, Das Progressive Zentrum and its partner organizations from the United States have launched the three-year project âTransatlantic Dialogue on the Industrial Heartlandsâ with the goal of creating new opportunities in old industrial heartlands of both countries by forging a transatlantic dialogue, exchanging best practices, and developing political strategies and policy solutions for a better, greener, and more democratic future in the “places that don’t matter.” As part of this project, 12 project fellows from the U.S. and Germany are working on the two thematic blocks âPerspectives for the Future, Respect and Participationâ and âClimate, Work and Innovationâ to demonstrate through their input how the living standards and opportunities for people in the industrial heartlands can be increased while working towards rebuilding trust in democracy in both countries.
As part of the workshop âDemocracy at the crossroads in the industrial heartlands â transatlantic perspectives for the future of the places that matterâ, we introduced the Industrial Heartlands project and the 12 project fellows presented their impulse papers as a starting point for their project work. Afterwards, participants exchanged ideas with you in four groups and discuss the topics of âParticipation and Democracyâ, the âIndustrial Transformationâ, âBidenomics and the Green Deal – Local Implementationâ and âCountering the Far Rightâ.
