Facilitation and Synthesis Research for the SURE Funding Priority: Advancing transdisciplinary research and impact monitoring in Sustainable Urban Regions
The SURE funding priority is accompanied by a Facilitation and Synthesis Research project (F&SR) that provides both scientific and organisational backing to the overarching funding priority and the individual funded projects. The facilitation activities foster synergies through activities and events with and for the project community as well as the promotion of knowledge to a diverse group of stakeholders.
The SURE Facilitation and Synthesis Research project (F&SR) is jointly carried out by HafenCity University Hamburg, TH Lübeck, University of Applied Sciences. It offers scientific and organisational support to the Funding Priority and the individual projects. The project promotes cross-project collaboration to enhance outcomes on both individual and collective levels.
Its work is divided into two main areas: facilitation activities and synthesis research.
The facilitation activities foster synergies through activities and events with and for the project community as well as the promotion of knowledge to a diverse group of stakeholders.
The synthesis area gathers and integrates findings across projects, analysing the collective impact of SURE on sustainable urban development.
Moreover, SURE F&SR addresses the challenges of synthesis research, specifically of monitoring impact in the complex context of urban development, transdisciplinary and transnational settings.
Sythesis Research: Approach and Methods
The SURE F&SR employs meta-analysis to systematically integrate both quantitative and qualitative findings from ten transdisciplinary projects. The meta-analysis uncovers trends, challenges, and successes in bridging various academic disciplines and stakeholders’ perspectives. In order to establish a common foundation for these research activities, six Focus Topics were identified, reflecting the thematic focus of each project and facilitating exchanges across projects. Through systematic project analysis, Cross-Cutting Issues were identified that underscore the challenges of transdisciplinary research, enabling continuous dialogue between stakeholders in both practical and academic settings. These findings facilitate the formulation of generalizable conclusions, which support continued discussion and shared learning.
The SURE F&SR project is dedicated to support the SURE projects knowledge dissemination and transfer. The SURE F&SR team is hosting the SURE Website and created a LinkedIn that serves as a platform for networking and exchange of ideas and experiences among its members. Additionally, a YouTube channel is maintained, featuring informative videos, project achievements of the SURE Funding Priority landscape. The SURE F&SR team regularly publishes a newsletter to keep the SURE community informed about relevant topics, such as events the latest project results. By connecting with the SURE F&SR team, members of the SURE community can stay updated on valuable information and opportunities for collaboration, ensuring that knowledge flows effectively across projects.
The F&SR team facilitates hosts pivotal events, in Germany and Asia that fosters dynamic networking and the exchange of ideas. A series of synergy workshops offers expert insights on selected topics, produces joint outputs, and stimulates cross-project collaboration. The SURE F&SR project, in partnership with other SURE projects, showcase outcomes at major international conferences – such as the International Conference on Application-specific Systems, Architectures and Processors (APSA), International Society of City and Regional Planners (ISOCARP), World Urban Forum (WUF), and the Barcelona Smart City Expo – amplifying the impact of SURE’s achievements on a global stage.
Research in Action
F&SR -WUF
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F&SR Sure Atlas
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Publications
The SURE publication series, »SURE Solutions – Sustainable Development of Urban Regions« establishes a platform for transdisciplinary and transformative research focused on sustainable urban development in South-East Asia and China. Co-authorship with local implementation partners, SURE Solutions offers space for various formats, such as research papers, activity reports, snapshots, or news articles. SURE Solutions is published in English and additionally includes abstracts in local languages, including German and Southeast Asian languages (Thai, Vietnamese, Mandarin, Khmer, Laotian, Burmese, Indonesian).
The Brochure, »SURE Highlights — Shaping Sustainable Urban Regions«, showcases the key outcomes from the SURE Funding Priority Research and Development (R&D) phase over the past five years. It provides detailed summaries of each project, highlighting their significant achievements, impacts, and future initiatives, making it an essential reference for understanding their contributions to sustainable urban development. In addition to project summaries, the brochure includes important information such as notable publications, project partners, timelines, and research locations. The project summaries have been provided by the respective project consortia and were edited by F&SR Team.
SURE atlas
In order to enhance a collaborative process, the SURE atlas was created. The SURE atlas provides and combines key information about the overarching goals and structure of the umbrella SURE project, thereby enabling cross-sectional analysis. As a digital, interactive web based interface the SURE atlas organises synthesised qualitative and quantitative data into accessible formats.
Reference Picture
The SURE Reference Pictures give the SURE collaborative projects the opportunity to continuously reflect on the progress made towards impact. With the support of the SURE Reference Picture, it is possible to monitor – throughout the whole project cycle – whether specific references could be achieved, have changed and may need to be adjusted. In this way, it is possible to intervene during the process in a purposeful manner and, for example, to reinforce certain activities.
Additionally, the SURE Reference Picture can help to locate the SURE funding priority on the international level. For example, the Reference Picture can be used to identify in what way and depth the UN Sustainable Development Goals are addressed.
We are researchers, data scientists, architects and practitioners dedicating our time to sustainable development all over the world. With our synthesis research we gather, integrate, publish and visiualize findings across the SURE projects, and by that analyse the collective impact of the funding initiative. We offer scientific and organisational suppor to the individual projects and promote and facilitate cross-project collaboration to enhance outcomes on both individual and collective levels.
Prof.Dipl.-Ing. Frank Schwartze
The development of sustainable urban regions is technically challenging and complex, and requires a strategic and integrated approach to implementation. The close integration of scientific knowledge with practical application is essential in order to bring about change along sustainable transformation pathways. SURE serves as a pathway explorer in this global endeavour!
Dr. Katharina Borgmann
Sustainable urban development thrives on learning from one another and bringing together knowledge from different projects, disciplines, and contexts. In the SURE F&SR project, we examine which strategies and solutions are advancing sustainable development in Asia’s urban regions, identify cross-cutting patterns and experiences, and ask what lessons they may also offer for our cities and regions in Germany and Europe.
Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jörg Rainer Noennig
The development of urban agglomerations especially in the South-East Asian and Chinese sphere will be decisive for key issues of human settlements in the near future - it is here where the major pathways for global climate, energy and resource efficiency, human migration and economy are defined. The projects in the SURE funding priority have collected highly valuable scientific and technological knowledge to address these conditions and will - especially in the final implementation phase of the projects - contribute actionable knowhow and skills to navigate the complex challenges we are facing.
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SURE - Trailer: Video on BMBF Funding Priority
SURE Facilitation and Synthesis Research Project
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The sixth Synergy Workshop, and the first in-person workshop between two SURE Projects, took place in Huế, Vietnam on October 1, 2022, bringing together GreenCityLabHuế and FloodAdaptVN. Hosted by Binh Minh Hoang of the Mientrung Institute for Scientific Research, the workshop explored synergies in communication, events, and Nature-based Solutions between the two Huế-based projects, and concluded with a guided tour of the GreenCityLabHuế exhibition.
Synergy Workshop 17 »Young Academics«
SURE Facilitation and Synthesis Research Project
Online
Groups
Synergy Workshops
The 17th Synergy Workshop with focus on the SURE Focus Topic »Young Academics« took place on February 26, 2026.
The online workshop aimed to establish a Young Academics Working Group on sustainable urban development that provides space for exchange, joint learning, and the collaborative development of future activities.
The 16th Synergy Workshop with focus on the SURE Focus Topic »Risk Management & Risk Reduction« took place on February 28, 2025.
Three input talks to the topic were presented by experts in the field: Mark Pelling, Catarina Camarinhas and Maria Moleiro Dale.
Synergy Workshop 15: »Academic Writing Workshop for Young Academics«
SURE Facilitation and Synthesis Research Project
Zoom
Groups
Synergy Workshops
From January 23 to 24, Dr. Andrea Sanchini led an intensive 2-day scientific writing workshop. The event, specifically aimed at young academics, was hosted by the Facilitation and Synthesis Research (F&SR) team.
Synergy Workshop 14 »Dissemination of results«
SURE Facilitation and Synthesis Research Project
Zoom
Groups
Synergy Workshops
The 14th Synergy Workshop focused on the dissemination of results. Two presentations were given by Sarah Hoeflich from UCLG and Stefan Hornig from TÜV Rheinland. Furthermore, the contributions of the projects to the SURE brochure were reviewed.
Synergy Workshop 13 »Local Action and Impact«
SURE Facilitation and Synthesis Research Project
Hanoi, Vietnam
Groups
Synergy Workshops
The 13th Synergy Workshop on "Local Action and Impact" was conducted at the Competence Centre for Sustainable Building at the Hanoi University of Civil Engineering. The researchers of the SURE projects GreenCityLabHuế, PolyUrbanWaters and LIRLAP shared their experiences on impact monitoring in the field and the challenges they encounter in their projects.
Synergy Workshop 12 »Synopsis process and science communication«
SURE Facilitation and Synthesis Research Project
Zoom
Groups
Synergy Workshops
Synergy Workshop 12 presented the status of the synopsis process, supported the projects to develop pitch presentations for events and introduced them into scientific storytelling.
Synergy Workshop 11 »On Reflection«
SURE Facilitation and Synthesis Research Project
Zoom
Groups
Synergy Workshops
In the workshop we will introduce you to our previously announced SURE Toolbox for Reflection. After a presentation of the Sensemaker by CHARMS, we will introduce you to the toolbox in detail and invite you to explore it, find your way through it and discuss its application.
SURE Synergy Workshop 10 »Synthesizer and Status Seminar«
SURE Facilitation and Synthesis Research Project
Zoom
Groups
Synergy Workshops
To ensure that the Status Seminar ran smoothly for all participants, the Synergy workshop was used to discuss seminar details, arrangements, travel logistics, side event planning and other updates and requests. The main objective of the workshop was to introduce the synthesiser concept and the approach developed through the synthesis research, while previewing the visual representation of the collected SURE data.
Synergy Workshop 9 »Applied Urban Climate«
SURE Facilitation and Synthesis Research Project
Zoom
Groups
Synergy Workshops
The SURE Facilitation and Synthesis Research team invites all the SURE members to the next Synergy Workshop on “Applied Urban Climate” taking place on 30 March 2023 between 9:30 – 12:00 h (CET).
Synergy Workshop 8 »Cooperation leading to successful implementations«
SURE Facilitation and Synthesis Research Project
Online
Groups
Synergy Workshops
The SURE Facilitation and Synthesis Research team invites all the SURE members to the next Synergy Workshop on “Cooperation leading to successful implementations” taking place on 15 February 2023 between 9:00 – 12:00 h (CET).
The 7th Synergy Workshop will start off with a key note presentation by Dr Oskar Marg, Institute for Social-Ecological Research on the topic "Social effects of transdisciplinary urban research. Findings from the accompanying research project 'SynVer*Z'". Afterwards the SURE Facilitation & Synthesis team will introduce the participants to the SURE Reference Picture and...
Synergy Workshop 5 »SURE Collaboration Platform«
SURE Facilitation and Synthesis Research Project
Online
Groups
Synergy Workshops
After presenting the findings of the previous Synergy Workshop, the fifth Synergy Workshop focused on introducing the Collaboration Platform "SURExChange".
Synergy Workshop 4 »Sustainable Research – Technology Overview and Data Lifecycle«
SURE Facilitation and Synthesis Research Project
Online
Groups
Synergy Workshops
The SURE Synergy Workshop 4 focused on digital technologies and data management in SURE collaborative projects and within the SURE framework. The workshop’s intention was multifold: it aimed to explore and exchange digital tools (open-source or commercial) and technologies developed and used in the SURE collaborative projects that help...
Synergy Workshop 3 »Stakeholder Dialogue between Sustainability Science and Society«
SURE Facilitation and Synthesis Research Project
Online
Groups
Synergy Workshops
The SURE Synergy Workshop 3 focused on stakeholder dialogue between science and society. The workshop’s intention was multifold: it aimed to reflect on stakeholder involvement through both scientific and community lenses and provide input and exchange opportunities on external and SURE 10 collaborative projects.
Synergy Workshop 2 »From Research to Action – Lessons Learned«
SURE Facilitation and Synthesis Research Project
Online
Groups
Synergy Workshops
The intentions of SURE Synergy Workshop 2 were to have an exchange on experiences from previous programmes and projects, to get insights into different research programmes and projects and to learn from each other’s experiences.
Synergy Workshop 1 »Introduction and Exploration«
SURE Facilitation and Synthesis Research Project
Online
Groups
Synergy Workshops
The first SURE Synergy Workshop aim was twofold: introduction and exploration. First, the workshop aimed to introduce the SURE Facilitation and Synthesis Research Project, the concept of synergy workshops and intended to gather feedback and suggestions. Secondly, the workshop aimed to provide space for project partners to meet, explore each other’s work and exchange about potential synergies.
Project coordination
SURE F&SR Team (Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jörg Rainer Noennig | Prof. Dipl.-Ing. Frank Schwartze)
HafenCity University Hamburg, TH Lübeck, University of Applied Sciences
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