Review of the Sustainability Forum Illmitz | Sustainability Forum Illmitz, September 2nd, 2023

2023-09-02 16:53:04

Top-class speakers – including Philipp Blom, Martha Krumpeck and Tarek Leitner – at the Illmitz Talks from August 30th to September 1st, 2023

Illmitz/Vienna (OTS) – Already for the fifth time from 30.8. – 1.9. the Illmitz talks. As a face-to-face event, the 3 days are not only a tool, but also a “power plant” for all participants, as Prof. Mag. Thomas Malloth, the founder of the forum, calls it.

Central, strategic goals are the creation of a pool for reflection and thought, as well as the bringing together of science and civil society. The Seewinkel is to become a model region for sustainability. Promoting this in everyday life is another declared aim of the forum.

The speakers could hardly be surpassed in terms of versatility. dr Andreas Baumgarten, biologist, University of Vienna, spoke about the central importance of soil protection. Due to erosion, 1 cm of soil is tolerated within a few seconds, it takes us 100 years to restore it! Even if we succeed in preserving the most valuable areas, we are at most 3/4 self-preserving.

Afterwards, the spokeswoman for the “Last Generation” Martha Krumpeck, BSc, gave an insight into the resistance actions of the movement. From Krumpeck’s point of view, non-violent resistance is an essential approach to motivate political representatives to act.

Josef Umathum, organic veteran and winemaker, presented his five criteria for success: natural soil, the highest product quality, social responsibility, enjoyment of work and “money is not everything”. With him the “Sonnentor” founder Johannes Gutmann: He has a network of over 1000 small suppliers, a cultivation area of 400 hectares and over 600 employees: inside. Its products are exported all over the world.

Deputy Governor Astrid Eisenkopf opened the second day and gave an overview of the state’s initiatives: organic storage, biodiversity hotspots, the EU Life Project (endowment € 12 million), organic farming in Burgenland (42%) and the new Groundwater monitoring system were the core topics of their presentation.

Lawyer Mag.a Michaela Krömer, LLM gave an insight into the lawsuit of 12 young people to change the climate protection law. DI Dr. Stefan Sattler explained Vienna’s plans for “Raus aus Gas”.

The political scientist Dr. Patrick Scherhaufer (BOKU) urgently pointed out that the mere creation of plants for the generation of energy from renewable sources cannot cover Austria’s energy requirements; rather, energy consumption must be drastically reduced. At the end of the second day, Mag. Anton Innauer, ski jumper and trainer, encouraged people to take unpopular paths to achieve change.

The third day started with a video greeting from BM Leonore Gewessler.

The historian and philosopher Dr. Philipp Blom Parallels to the “little ice age” 400 years ago. At that time, the planet cooled by 2 degrees Celsius. This resulted in famine, social upheaval and changes in all areas of society. People began to work empirically, universities were founded, trade and production were professionalized, the bourgeoisie began to demand their rights.

A special highlight of the Illmitz talks is the Mayor’s Forum. Local politicians show best practice examples: In Bad Schallabach, an energy community was successfully established within a very short time. In addition to a number of other socially sustainable projects, a women’s museum was set up in Hittisau. The Mayor of Moosburg turned the place upside down from 1995 and actively opposed the development on the outskirts. The core was actively enlivened, a path of thought was created, and the castle meadow was saved as a living and event space.

ORF anchorman and ZIB moderator Mag. Tarek Leitner ended the round of top-class speakers at the event. His credo: “Not everything has to be useful, it can and should also be beautiful!”

DI Dr. At the end, Harald Frey summarized the demands of the forum for the organization team. It is finally time to develop strategies and visions for the good of society instead of measures geared to individual interests.