Kick-off for new series of events organized by the Wittenstein Foundation
29.11.2024
At the end of November, Bronnbach Monastery provided an inspiring backdrop for the start of the Wittenstein Foundation's new "Discourse of Bronnbach" series of events. 12 regional representatives from science, business, politics and education discussed the topic of STEM in the Main-Tauber region, based on ongoing scientific research by the MIND Center Würzburg.
According to the latest surveys by the Federal Employment Agency, there is already a shortage of almost 210,000 skilled workers, specialists and experts in the fields of mathematics, IT, natural sciences and technology - the so-called STEM subjects - as of September 2024. A shortage that may soon affect not only Germany as a whole, but first and foremost the economic strength and prosperity of the Main-Tauber region. To counteract this, the kick-off event of the " Discourse of Bronnbach" was dedicated to precisely this topic, focusing on STEM-related dynamics that contribute to the educational and career decisions of children and young people in the Main-Tauber district. The basis for the interdisciplinary exchange was the "dynaMINT" research work of the MIND Center Würzburg, which is being funded by the Wittenstein Foundation with one million euros over a period of five years.
Thinking in advance
The Discourse of Bronnbach is intended to create a forum for interdisciplinary dialogue between innovative research and relevant practice, in which representatives from various organizations in the Main-Tauber region, but also from other tangential worlds of experience, discuss and advance fundamental questions about the "where" of the region. The use of Bronnbach Monastery as an extraordinary place to think is part of a wider range of activities relating to the future prospects of the Main-Tauber district. "With this special format, we want to stimulate the extremely important dialog between practice and science. Unfortunately, this does not have the status it should have in Germany - because science largely discusses among itself, while transfer dialogues are lacking," Prof. Dr. Eckard Minx, Deputy Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Wittenstein Foundation and moderator of the kick-off event, explains the intention of the new series. In the practical references and case studies, different areas of reality such as technology, business, politics, culture and society will be addressed throughout the events. Following the kick-off event on November 19, 2024, further dates - also on the topic of STEM - are already planned for 2025 and 2026, in which the results of the research work will be further analyzed and measures to be taken for the Main-Tauber district will be derived. Some of the STEM-related and other themed events will also be open to the public.
Bronnbach Monastery
Bronnbach Abbey is a former Cistercian abbey founded in 1151. In 1986, the Main-Tauber district acquired the monastery and had it renovated in several construction phases. The individual monastery buildings were successively put to a new use while preserving the overall historical ensemble, and Bronnbach Monastery developed into a culturally diverse and revitalized center, where all the events of the "Discourse of Bronnbach" will also take place in future.
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The participants of the Wittenstein Foundation's first Discourse of Bronnbach (from left to right): Dr. Manfred Wittenstein (Founder and Chairman of the Board of Trustees Wittenstein Foundation), Florian Frank (PhD student MIND-Center Würzburg), Prof. Dr. Kim Linsenmayer (Head of DHBW Campus Bad Mergentheim), Dr. Sascha von Berchem (Managing Director Wittenstein Foundation), Agnes Birner (PhD student MIND-Center Würzburg), Prof. Dr. Eckard Minx (Deputy Chairman of the Board of Trustees Wittenstein Foundation), Dr. Markus Elsholz (Managing Director MIND-Center Würzburg), Heiko Knebel (Managing Headmaster Bad Mergentheim), Dr. Anna-Katharina Wittenstein (Member of the Board of Trustees Wittenstein Foundation), Dr. Gunther Schunk (Chairman of the Board Vogel Stiftung Dr. Eckernkamp), Iris Lange-Schmalz (MINT-Region Main-Tauber e.V.) and Ursula Mühleck (Head of District Development and Education Main-Tauber-Kreis).
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