1. Background, Initial Situation

The Federal Ministry for Education and Research (BMBF) is funding joint research projects in the field of new strategies of use within the research program of sustainable economy. New strategies of use are strategies which contribute to an increase of the productivity of resources and to a decrease of environmental pollution through technical, social, organizational and economical innovations (e.g. reuse of products, replacement of products by services, long-term use of products or joint use). In part A of this priority research area, the regional approach, 20 projects are funded with a high number of participants. One main objective of the joint research is to build up regional networks and network structures in different regions and for different product groups to support sustainable strategies of use.

The networking within the projects and the transdisciplinary research approach requires on the one hand a high competency of the project partners in cooperation and coordination. On the other hand the joint projects have to be linked in order to use synergies and to integrate and synthesise the results of the research.

2. Objectives of the Coordination Project

The main objective of the coordination project is to link up the projects of the described joint research projects, to combine the results of their research and to coordinate with the accompanying projects from the area of network research for sustainable use, economical potentials and legal restrictions of new strategies of use.

Further sub-goals of the project are:

• To interface part B of the priority research area regarding requirements
• To support the public relations of the projects
• To contribute to the advance of the research program of new strategies of use
• To contribute to the evaluation and quality assurance of the main research

3. Expected results of the project

The principles of sustainable development - for example participation - will also be of great importance for future research in this field. Projects for sustainability will therefore involve many stakeholders who have to be coordinated and accompanied professionally. Coordination and accompanying projects will improve and optimise the success of these joint projects in using their inherent potential. Experiences and knowledge of this coordination project will contribute to the improvement of such coordination and cooperation projects in general.

4. Projectpartners