Digital transformation and social innovation in Beverin Nature Park

Like everywhere else in the world, innovation in Switzerland takes place primarily within cities. But in order to create added value not only in urban areas, it is important to involve rural areas more strongly in the digitization process. The Naturpark Beverin, in the Canton of Graubünden, already has a lot of innovative forces, but little attention has been paid to them on the bigger stage. This is exactly where the "Kompetenzstelle für Digitalisierung und soziale Innovation" (Competence Center for Digitization and Social Innovation), which was created in 2021, comes in. In order to position the Naturpark Beverin as a unique living, working and economic space, we support the region in building up competencies and deliver projects around digitalization.

Digital transformation as a cultural issue

Since digital transformation is not only a question of new technologies, but also a question of culture, cooperation with local stakeholders is essential. The goal is to develop and implement a suitable digitization strategy. This strategy should be non-invasive and thus prevent alienation. The bottom-up nature of the initiatives, the accessibility of the Kompetenzstelle, and the fact that it is embedded in the well-established Naturpark-team means that as many residents as possible feel that they are addressed.

The cooperation of Dezentrum and the Naturpark Beverin begun in 2020 with the project Desk im Dorf. Through this booking platform, anyone can become a coworking-space provider. The providers determine their own price and opening hours. The workplaces can then be booked by the hour or day on an online platform. This enables remote-work and creates value for the Naturpark. Thanks to this, unused real estate can be revitalized as well as local stores, restaurants and public transport.

For the project we worked together with the association Coworking Graubünden, Trust Square and Impact Hub Zurich.

Desk im Dorf Website

After the successful implementation of Desk im Dorf, it was jointly decided to continue the cooperation with Naturpark Beverin. The Kompetenzstelle was launched in May 2021 to provide new impulses, build up competencies and implement projects at the intersection of society, economy and nature and as a driver of development. The first pilot year, ran until the end of April 2022.

Our offer

In the first months of the pilot year, the team of the Kompetenzstelle talked to many different actors in the region. From administrative workes to farmers, hotel managers and entrepreneurs. Taking from these conversations and insights, a multifaceted offer was developed. This co-creative approach ensured that the developed offers can deliver added value in the region.

View our video about the offers

On November 30, 2021, the Kompetenzstelle organized a workshop with 20 residents of the Naturpark. The workshop addressed the question: What could the region look like in the year 2040?

Spread over three locations, Splügen, Andeer and online, the participants collected desirable ideas for the future of the region. In addition, they discussed what needs to be done today in order to implement the ideas in the coming years. The individual ideas were then organized into four main topics: Mobility, Economy, Politics/Participation and Society/Health.

summary of the findings from the workshop

Numerous sponsors backed the Workshop. A sponsorship contribution was made by the Zurich electricity company (EWZ), Raiffeisen, Swisscom, the Graubündner Kantonalbank and the Rotary Club Thusis.

The "Focus Futur" report serves to identify important trends and developments in the region. Through the report, daring visions of the future are given a place to be seen and heard. What innovative projects already exist in the Naturpark? What is happening elsewhere in Switzerland and could also be interesting for the region? What opportunities and risks does digitalization hold for the mountain region? Focus Futur explores these questions and is sent out three to four times a year in the form of a newsletter.

The first trend report deals with topics related to the future of mobility in mountain region. Flexible public transport concepts, climate-neutral mobility, car sharing and electric mobility are among the topics discussed. In addition to being sent out as a newsletter, the reports are published in regional newspapers. This way, the contents are made accessible to all residents.

Register for Focus Futur