The Würzburg district Sanderau gets a neighbourhood magazine: the Sanderschau. In a collaborative project with the city of Würzburg, THWS- Students of Social Work have developed a newspaper that is not only informative but also aims to strengthen solidarity in times of demographic change.
Published on 05.03.2024
After several months of hard work, the time had come. The district Sanderau, which is close to the city centre, got its very own neighbourhood magazine, the Sanderschau. Bachelor students of Social Work in their fourth semester created the magazine together with Professor Dr. Dieter Kulke of the Faculty of Applied Social Sciences (FAS) in collaboration with the city of Würzburg.
The student project was developed in the course "Practice-Related Project". The students explored the district, conducted interviews with experienced managers of the other districts of Würzburg, worked out a concept for the newspaper, produced texts and took pictures. Steffen Deeg of the city of Würzburg was involved in addition to lecturer Professor Dr. Kulke. The city of Würzburg provided financial support for a writing workshop with a journalist and paid for the final layout and printing.
At first glance, you do not see an obvious connection between the degree programme Social Work and the neighbourhood magazine project. Yet, there is a clear link. "The link to Social Work is that our students are able to produce different texts, e.g., for annual reviews, or for press releases, and they have a feeling for it," Professor Dr. Kulke explains. Another connection to the degree programme are the fields of district management and community work.
Funding project "Demographically resilient community"
The neighbourhood magazine project is part of the funding project "Demographically resilient community", for which the city of Würzburg applied with the district Sanderau. The project is funded by the Bavarian State Ministry of Finance and Regional Identity (StMFH). "We are one of a few pilot municipalities in Bavaria. Our task is to examine neighbourhoods and to come up with ways to strengthen their demographic resilience," Steffen Deeg explains. It was about equipping them for the major changes of the future.
At the beginning of the funding project, a demographic analysis of the district Sanderau was conducted by Professor Dr. Kulke. After the analysis was completed, the idea emerged to create a neighbourhood magazine with Professor Dr. Kulke and his students. Other neighbourhoods like Heidingsfeld or Zellerau already have neighbourhood magazines, which are generally managed by the competent district management. "The city of Würzburg aims to have a district manager for every district. This creates a field of action everywhere and the city administration is more closely connected to the locals," Deeg says. A district management is responsible for the citizens’ interests of the neighbourhood and collaborates closely with social institutions and the city. "In the rural districts, every small municipality has a major, but in large cities, there are more than 10,000 citizens and sometimes not a single person in the city council, who can articulate the requirements of the neighbourhood," Deeg says.
![[Translate to Englisch:] Steffen Deeg ist in der Koordination und Sozialplanung im Sozialreferat der Stadt Würzburg tätig und verantwortlich für das Projekt Stadtteilzeitung (© Viktoria Krzyszczyk)](/fileadmin/redaktion/bildmaterial/Hochschulmagazin/Campus_und_Leben/Ausgabe-6/6-CuL-1_Sanderschau/6-CuL-1_Steffen_Deeg.jpg "[Translate to Englisch:] Steffen Deeg ist in der Koordination und Sozialplanung im Sozialreferat der Stadt Würzburg tätig und verantwortlich für das Projekt Stadtteilzeitung (© Viktoria Krzyszczyk)")
Information, identification, and integration
The city aims for the Sanderschau to have several effects: "The objectives are information, identification, and integration," Professor Dr. Kulke says. "We intend to inform citizens reading the magazine about Sanderau news. The second aim is to strengthen identification with a district, by for example reporting on the history of the sports area Sanderrasen. And the third point is integration." People should start conversations with one another and realise that something is happening in Sanderau, Professor Dr. Kulke says.
But to what extent does a neighbourhood magazine influence demographic resilience? A neighbourhood magazine leads to a "sensitisation for topics of different age groups", Professor Dr. Kulke explains. "A city worth living in includes people of all ages and of all groups like people with impairments or people with migration backgrounds. Through the reports, people ought to develop empathy and sensitivity for other life realities," Professor Dr. Dieter Kulke says.
Among other topics, the first edition of the Sanderschau covered the recently established district council of Sanderau and the district management with their focus on senior citizens. The city’s senior citizen council was introduced, and the meadows at the river Main, the Mainwiesen, and conflict management were featured. There were also practical tips on how to behave in the heat.
After the first edition of the Sanderschau was printed, it still had to reach the citizens of the Sanderau district. For this, Professor Dr. Kulke and Steffen Deeg got on their bikes and distributed the magazine in person with shops and businesses. Thus, Professor Dr. Kulke and Deeg directly came to speak with Sanderau citizens and received initial, highly positive feedback. The complimentary neighbourhood magazine was available in doctor’s offices, pharmacies, and shops in the district Sanderau. A total of 2,500 copies of the first edition were printed.
In times of the Internet, a print magazine is considered a classical medium. However, Deeg considers a print medium a meaningful source of information. "Online information must be searched for, but if the information is available in print, the information looks for people," Steffen Deeg explains. "It is like a push message on paper. It is simply there, I see it, and it either appeals to me or it does not." However, the Sanderschau can also be downloaded as a PDF-file from the website of the city of Würzburg. Since the winter edition, the online version has been barrier-free.
The cooperation between the city of Würzburg and THWS continues
Professor Dr. Kulke and Deeg, but also the students involved give a positive summary of the cooperation of the city and the Technical University of Applied Sciences. “The Faculty of Applied Social Sciences has impacts on the urban society, and could strengthen the collaboration of the city and THWS”, Professor Dr. Kulke says. Not only Kulke but also his students are content with the project. “The students liked that is was an extraordinary project, in which they could develop their journalist abilities and also learn a lot about community work“, the lecturer adds. Deeg as well is convinced that the city has benefitted from the cooperation “This is a good opportunity for us to introduce students to our fields of work and to tell them what topics we are concerned with.”
The neighbourhood magazine project is intended to be continued in cooperation with THWS. Professor Dr. Kulke is still involved in the project. He plans that there will be another lecture in the degree programme Social Work covering the Sanderschau.
