25 ideas for the digital state: The call for speakers for SCCON 25 has been finalised

Almost 400 applications, hundreds of best practices and the 25 most interesting and innovative will be presented live on the SCCON stage: the Call for Speakers for the Smart Country Convention 2025 was a great success. Ministries, municipalities, start-ups, science and administration submitted their best ideas for digital transformation in the public sector. The selected contributions are as diverse as they are inspiring - they range from technical innovations and agile management to participatory urban development.

What unites them? A clear goal: to make the public sector smarter and more sustainable and to put citizens centre stage.

1. digital infrastructure by municipalities for municipalities

The Urban Stack of the city of Gütersloh is more than just a technical solution - it stands for digital sovereignty and genuine collaboration. As an open cloud infrastructure, developed and operated by local authorities, it enables scalable, secure and sustainable IT structures - and shows that a smart city works even better when it is co-operative.

2. urban development with VR and Vision Dome

In Ludwigsfelde, urban planning becomes an experience: citizens develop their vision for the Future Park with bar camps, audio walks and VR workshops. The 1:400 model construction and the walk-in vision dome show how human and interactive participation can be.

3. bureaucracy reduction through transparency app

Which administrative service costs how much - and why? The transparency app from the Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf district office provides answers with just one click. AI forecasts and sustainability indicators not only make efficiency measurable, but also sustainability visible.

4. register modernisation - thinking digitally about parental allowance

Applying for parental allowance is often a paper chore. A pilot project by the Federal Ministry of Finance shows how data exchange between authorities can be automated, secure and user-friendly - even across administrative levels. A step towards proactive administration.

5. human-centric government - digitalisation with a focus on people

Digital administration only works if it is geared towards people. The research project of the FIM Research Institute for Information Management and the University of Bayreuth shows how process screenings, digital post and human-centred design can strengthen democracy and efficiency.

6. digital situation picture for civil protection

The cross-federal and cross-state situation picture from the joint Civil Protection Competence Centre shows where resources are scarce or measures are needed in terms of civil protection. Automated interfaces and geodata platforms form the basis for better civil protection in real time.

7. the digital trade tax assessment notice

It has been live since 2024: the digital trade tax assessment notice from the Hessian Ministry of Finance. It enables the process of business tax collection for companies and administration without media discontinuity via the electronic tax return (ELSTER). A best practice for the implementation of the Online Access Act (OZG), which was awarded first place in the 2023 eGovernment competition.

8. speed up participation procedures with AI

Speed up planning and authorisation procedures while ensuring adequate participation. The Federal Environment Agency's AI Lab shows that it is possible to analyse comments more quickly while maintaining an overview at all times using artificial intelligence. In the repository search process, AI models help to analyse comments more quickly. The use case shows when AI is worthwhile, what data is needed and what a good balance between efficiency and participation means.

9. OKRs for administration

Teamwork makes the dream work - even in administration? BayKommun AöR uses OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) to achieve goals across teams in 3-month cycles. The agile framework brings focus, transparency and motivation. The result: more agile working, better collaboration and more personal responsibility. BayKommun shows how administration can manage itself in a modern and effective way.

10. municipal cloud strategy for Bavaria

Munich, Augsburg and Nuremberg are calling for a centralised cloud register from the federal government. Their joint approach focuses on standardisation, municipal perspectives and the integration of existing specialist procedures - a blueprint for efficient administrative IT. Together, the three cities are inviting administrators and innovators to develop pilot projects - for an efficient administration with a future.

11. Estonia - Thinking democracy digitally

Estonia is considered the most digital society in the world. The country shows how digital structures strengthen democratic participation and resilience: from e-voting and digital identities to cyber security and transparent processes. They make the country a role model for Europe and present best practices that could also accelerate digitalisation in Germany.

12. Resilient administration in crises

What to do when technology fails? The City of Essen thinks of cyber security not just as an IT issue, but as a question of organisational survival: with robust processes, clear roles and analogue emergency capability. Municipalities need more than technical solutions - they need strategies to survive an emergency.

13. organising and sharing data sensibly

A good data strategy needs clear roles, processes and tools. The Berlin Senate Chancellery's project shows how internal and open data requirements can be considered together - and what incentives and rules are needed for sharing data between public administration and business. The experts show how a sustainable and connectable data culture can be created within the administration - between internal control and open provision.

14. cultural change in administration

Three NRW cities, together with the Association of German Cities, will show how digital transformation can also succeed in organisational terms - with lessons learned, resistance, successes and the question: What does it take for real change? After all, the use of AI, agile project work and the stabilisation of smart city solutions still often come up against traditional hierarchies and established processes in municipal administrations.

15. participation digital and open

The KielRegion's MokWi platform combines participation tools such as surveys, calendars, chat and DIPAS integration on an open map. This creates a scalable, public interest-orientated infrastructure for real participation in the Kiel region and shows how modern citizen participation can succeed in the Smart Region.

16. digital twins for rural areas

The district of Herford and the Rhine district of Neuss in North Rhine-Westphalia show how existing networks and geoinformation systems can be developed into digital twins. These technical infrastructures are an essential basis for smart city and smart region strategies.

17. from lighthouse to basic architecture

Munich's digital twin is taking the next step: from concept to agile showcase project with sustainable infrastructure. Instead of selective lighthouse projects, Munich is now focusing on a central IT programme, integrated solutions and a clear focus on the continuation of smart city measures.

18. masterplan for the smart city

Stuttgart ranks 7th in the Smart City Index 2024- A smart city masterplan is currently being developed to make the city even smarter and more sustainable. Together with citizens, associations and employees. The result: a clear vision, fields of action and lighthouse projects with a roadmap, KPI and digital monitor - which other cities and regions can learn from.

19. resilience management for municipalities

The FreiburgRESIST project of the city of Freiburg im Breisgau is developing an IT-supported, cross-organisational system that brings together security actors, event organisers and administration in crisis preparation - data-supported and user-centric. The system provides support from event and deployment planning to implementation and evaluation in order to make processes more efficient and thus make residential and event locations safer.

20. AI model for microclimate in real time

A real-time climate model with 500 measuring points, AI simulations and 5x5 metre resolution: Mannheim set out on the path to becoming a smart city several years ago and shows how urban planning can become climate-resilient, data-based and forward-looking - in dealing with the challenges of climate change and in terms of a city worth living in.

21 BaKIM - tree data from the air

The BaKIM project in Bamberg uses drone images and deep neural networks to recognise individual trees, species, vitality and height of trees in urban parks and forests. This creates the data basis for climate-adapted forest and urban planning.

22. norms & standards for a world in motion

People are usually looking for simple solutions and standards - but these are often not available for complex issues and problems. In its project, Stadtwerke Lübeck presents the importance of norms and standards for local authorities in Germany. What role they play in a global context and how standardisation can succeed within the Smart Cities model projects.

23. Simplicity instead of complexity

Prof. Dr Jürgen Kegelmann from Kehl University of Applied Sciences advocates genuine simplification instead of new bureaucracy. Debureaucratisation is currently on everyone's lips - but often leads to even more complex processes when implemented. His simplicity approach shows how cities can become more agile through clear structures, digitalisation and AI - in a very practical way and in the spirit of Leonardo da Vinci: ‘Simplicity is the highest form of sophistication.’

24. making smart cities measurable

The Urban Digitainability Lab at the Technical University of Munich is developing methods that cities can use to analyse the impact of their digital projects on sustainability goals - locally adapted and scientifically sound. Together with partner municipalities, practical tools for the strategic management of digital transformation in cities and regions are being developed.

25. AI for municipal practice

32 partners, 9 use cases: URBAN.KI from the Westphalian University of Applied Sciences brings artificial intelligence into municipal reality. From climate protection and urban planning to maintenance management, joint AI solutions are being developed - scalable, transferable and with real added value for sustainable municipal management.

The best practices show how much innovative spirit there is in municipalities, authorities, ministries and the digital economy. From 30 September to 2 October, the experts will be at the Atrium, Forum and Arena Stage of the Smart Country Convention to provide a deeper insight into their diverse projects and solutions.