Business reception in the state capital of Hanover 2021

This year's business reception on April 19 was special for two reasons: Due to the coronavirus pandemic, it only took place online. At its peak, 380 invitees joined in. After the opening by the First City Councillor and Head of Economic and Environmental Affairs Sabine Tegtmeyer-Dette and the recognition of the winner of the CITY OF HANNOVER PRIZE "Frauen machen Standort", Gesa Lischka (Managing Director and owner of the creative and neurostrategic agency Kochstrasse - Agentur für Marken GmbH), the event focused on a panel discussion on the topic of "Environmentally friendly mobility & business: a contradiction?".

The second special feature of the reception was that Sabine Tegtmeyer-Dette had been invited for the last time as Head of Economic Affairs. In her opening speech, she regretted that a personal meeting with business representatives was not possible this year due to the coronavirus pandemic. She also looked back on the past eight years of her time in office. She praised the good cooperation between administration, business and politics in Hanover. The state capital offers "the best conditions for good networking: diverse players, a manageable size and a high willingness to exchange ideas and work together. In my opinion, this well-functioning network is an important location factor for Hanover," emphasized Tegtmeyer-Dette, who referred to a large number of fixed rounds of talks with Hanover's business community.

The panel was followed by a discussion with Lord Mayor Belit Onay, Maike Bielfeldt, Managing Director of the Hanover Chamber of Industry and Commerce, and Bertina Murkovic, Chairwoman of the Works Council of Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles (VWN). Cem Özdemir, Member of the Bundestag and Chairman of the Committee on Transport and Digital Infrastructure in the Bundestag, joined the discussion online from Stuttgart.

Mayor Onay answered the initial question as to whether environmentally friendly mobility and the economy were in conflict with each other with a clear no: "There is no longer any question that environmental protection and the economy are compatible. Even in traffic. Hanover is on the way to a multifaceted and sustainable mobility mix that also takes economic concerns into account." Mobility is a decisive factor in the state capital, on the one hand in terms of accessibility and on the other in the use of areas and spaces.

Maike Bielfeldt emphasized that sustainable mobility will be one of the most important drivers of innovation for the economy in the coming years. "The automotive industry is in the midst of a structural change towards mass-produced electric mobility and new mobility concepts. In industry, shipping and heavy goods traffic on the roads, innovative hydrogen projects are in the starting blocks."

Bertina Murkovic argued that a functioning economy is the basis for employment and therefore social security. "The transformation of companies must be driven towards sustainable management on the one hand and the inclusive design of 'good work' on the other," said the VWN Works Council Chairwoman.

Cem Özdemir reinforced the overall German perspective: "There is a spirit of optimism in the country, people are just waiting for us to get serious about climate protection and finally tackle the transport revolution. This is about nothing less than the modernization of our country. We need to speed up the expansion of rail, e-mobility and investment in cycle paths and footpaths." Özdemir spoke out in favor of long-term funding for sustainable transport infrastructure. "This will also benefit our economy and local authorities."

The evening was hosted by Jan Egge Sedelies, editor of the Hannoversche Allgemeine Zeitung. At the end of the event, there was a small surprise for Sabine Tegtmeyer-Dette: Belit Onay, Maike Bielfeldt and Bertina Murkovic presented her with flowers and thanked her for the last business reception she hosted and emphasized the always constructive cooperation over the past years.