A new beginning in Lower Saxony's schools: Open Spaces Congress inspires!

A new beginning in Lower Saxony's schools: Open Spaces Congress inspires!

On July 15, 2025, over 250 participants, including teachers, school management and more than 100 students, flocked to the Hannover Congress Center to take part in the first “Innovation Summit – Open Spaces Congress”. Education Minister Julia Willie Hamburg opened the event with a clear message: Lower Saxony is on the move and the schools are ready for new paths. This congress marks the end of the Future School model project, which expires on July 31, 2026. The aim of the congress was to discuss ideas for school development and to actively involve students in the school design process. Education click reports.

With around 60 model project schools that provided ideas, the congress welcomed a colorful mix of creative minds. In 25 different workshops, which were designed by teachers, students, and employees from the Ministry of Culture and other educational organizations, participants had the opportunity to find out about promising topics such as participation, contemporary examination culture and the integration of artificial intelligence. Discussion was initiated about the change in the upper level and the reform of the Abitur examinations, as well as the role of formats such as FREIDay, which are intended to promote new learning. The Lower Saxony education portal explains that the workshops offered a valuable exchange for both students and educators.

Together for sustainable education

A panel discussion between Minister Hamburg and five students of different age groups illustrated the importance of the voice of the young generation in this transformation process. The importance of well-being and learning success in schools was discussed and how the new approaches in the open space process should benefit students' participation opportunities. The open space process is seen as an important step in promoting innovative school development. Education click highlights that the adjustments to the decree and regulation expand schools' scope for design.

The project receives great support from the “School on the Move” initiative, which has existed since 2012 and establishes fundamental values ​​such as trust, appreciation and responsibility in education. This initiative, founded by personalities like Margret Rasfeld, advocates for a learning culture in which children and young people become active designers of their society. The Future School Network reports that this is also successful in Lower Saxony in more than 20 schools that receive constant support in the transformation process.

Looking for innovative approaches

In order to promote school and teaching change, Lower Saxony made 350,000 euros available in June to promote targeted development projects. These funds met with great interest and were quickly exhausted. Schools that use the open spaces portal have the opportunity to apply for different models for school development. This shows the great need for new and creative approaches that can do justice to the education of our young people. Education click highlights that since 2021, over 60 schools have been actively working on taking new learning paths and developing education for the future, democratically and sustainably.

The diversity of ideas and the clear spirit of optimism during the Open Spaces Congress in Hanover are just the beginning. There is a creative environment in Lower Saxony that invites schools to take innovative paths and redesign learning. With the support of the state and committed educators, the vision of sustainable education can become reality.