More than half of the world’s population lives in cities, and by 2050 this figure will rise to over 70%. Even today, cities consume up to 80% of the energy produced worldwide and are responsible for up to 70% of global resource consumption. This means that there is a high resource efficiency potential in cities, creating the opportunity to develop and test resource-saving measures.

Within the funding program RES:Z, 12 inter- and transdisciplinary projects involving more than 20 model municipalities are supported. Implementation-oriented concepts for water management, land use and material flow management are researched, developed and tested as a basis for the sustainable development of urban districts. In addition, a cross-sectional project supports the networking of the projects in terms of content, external communication and transfer to local practice.

The funding program is part of the flagship initiative “Zukunftsstadt” (“future city”) within the framework program “Research for Sustainable Development – FONA3” ³“ of the Federal Ministry for Education and Research.