[et_pb_section admin_label=“Sektion“ fullwidth=“on“ specialty=“off“][et_pb_fullwidth_image admin_label=“Volle Breite des Bildes“ src=“https:\/\/www.scivit.de\/lang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/WebIMG_0967.jpg“ alt=“Scivit has moved to Zittau \u2013 join me exploring the area“ title_text=“Scivit has moved to Zittau \u2013 join me exploring the area“ show_in_lightbox=“off“ url_new_window=“off“ use_overlay=“off“ animation=“left“ use_border_color=“off“ border_color=“#ffffff“ border_style=“solid“] [\/et_pb_fullwidth_image][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section admin_label=“section“][et_pb_row admin_label=“Zeile“][et_pb_column type=“4_4″][et_pb_post_title admin_label=“Posttitel“ title=“on“ meta=“on“ author=“on“ date=“on“ categories=“on“ comments=“on“ featured_image=“off“ featured_placement=“below“ parallax_effect=“on“ parallax_method=“on“ text_orientation=“left“ text_color=“dark“ text_background=“off“ text_bg_color=“rgba(255,255,255,0.9)“ module_bg_color=“rgba(255,255,255,0)“ title_all_caps=“off“ use_border_color=“off“ border_color=“#ffffff“ border_style=“solid“] [\/et_pb_post_title][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row admin_label=“Zeile“][et_pb_column type=“4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=“Header“ background_layout=“light“ text_orientation=“left“ use_border_color=“off“ border_color=“#ffffff“ border_style=“solid“ text_font_size=“18″ header_font_size=“22px“ header_line_height=“1.7em“]<\/p>\n
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[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image admin_label=“Entrance Robur-Werke, Zittau“ src=“https:\/\/www.scivit.de\/lang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/WebIMG_0934.jpg“ alt=“Entrance Robur-Werke, Zittau“ title_text=“Entrance Robur-Werke, Zittau“ show_in_lightbox=“off“ url_new_window=“off“ use_overlay=“off“ animation=“left“ sticky=“off“ align=“left“ force_fullwidth=“off“ always_center_on_mobile=“on“ use_border_color=“on“ border_color=“#ffffff“ border_style=“solid“ border_width=“0px“] [\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text admin_label=“Text“ background_layout=“light“ text_orientation=“left“ use_border_color=“off“ border_color=“#ffffff“ border_style=“solid“ text_font_size=“18″ header_font_size=“22px“ header_line_height=“1.7em“]<\/p>\n
Zittau is located at the very South-Eastern edge of the former German Democratic Republic (GDR). Like a true microcosm the area displays many of the issues of the larger region. Since I am new to Zittau, this newsletter will not give an exhaustive account, but rather summarize some very obvious features and ask some very obvious questions. There is, for a start, open coal mining and corresponding devastation combined with deindustrialization (the \u201eRobur-Werke\u201c in Zittau shown above give a typical example) and depopulation. More or less intact nature in mountain ranges and historic cities, on the other hand, provide the basis for growing tourism. While this situation is similar in many locations in Northern Czech Republic\/former Southern GDR, the presence of two international borders adds an interesting twist to the story. The Zittau area therefore not only reflects how effectively our societies cope with industrial devastation and the consequences of deindustrialization. It also reflects how good we are in coping with our violent past. <\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image admin_label=“Zittau and its surroundings (radius 30 km) “ src=“https:\/\/www.scivit.de\/lang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/Bildc.png“ alt=“Zittau and its surroundings (radius 30 km) “ title_text=“Zittau and its surroundings (radius 30 km) “ show_in_lightbox=“off“ url_new_window=“off“ use_overlay=“off“ animation=“left“ sticky=“off“ align=“left“ force_fullwidth=“off“ always_center_on_mobile=“on“ use_border_color=“off“ border_color=“#ffffff“ border_style=“solid“] [\/et_pb_image][et_pb_divider admin_label=“Teiler“ color=“#7cda24″ show_divider=“on“ divider_style=“solid“ divider_position=“top“ hide_on_mobile=“on“] [\/et_pb_divider][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row admin_label=“row“ make_fullwidth=“off“ use_custom_width=“off“ width_unit=“on“ use_custom_gutter=“off“ padding_mobile=“off“ allow_player_pause=“off“ parallax=“off“ parallax_method=“off“ make_equal=“off“ parallax_1=“off“ parallax_method_1=“off“ column_padding_mobile=“on“][et_pb_column type=“4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=“Header“ background_layout=“light“ text_orientation=“left“ use_border_color=“off“ border_color=“#ffffff“ border_style=“solid“ text_font_size=“18″ header_font_size=“22px“ header_line_height=“1.7em“]<\/p>\n <\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image admin_label=“Border triangle Czech Republic-Poland-Germany“ src=“https:\/\/www.scivit.de\/lang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/WebIMG_1002.jpg“ alt=“Border triangle Czech Republic-Poland-Germany“ title_text=“Border triangle Czech Republic-Poland-Germany“ show_in_lightbox=“off“ url_new_window=“off“ use_overlay=“off“ animation=“left“ sticky=“off“ align=“left“ force_fullwidth=“off“ always_center_on_mobile=“on“ use_border_color=“off“ border_color=“#ffffff“ border_style=“solid“] [\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text admin_label=“Text“ background_layout=“light“ text_orientation=“left“ use_border_color=“off“ border_color=“#ffffff“ border_style=“solid“ text_font_size=“18″ header_font_size=“22px“ header_line_height=“1.7em“]<\/p>\n Second world war started when Germany attacked Poland, shortly after it had occupied Czech Republic. The three countries bordering near Zittau represent the beginning of this murderous war. The border between Germany and Poland was shifted here as one of its many consequences. It took many decades and memberships in the European Union until these borders could become \u201enormal\u201c borders of today, where you can pass without controls. Crossing the border versus Liberec nowadays is as easy as crossing versus Strasbourg and cultural and linguistic diversity is a stimulating element of the Zittau area. Nevertheless, German relations with the Czech Republic or Poland are not as settled as, for example, with France. Disregarding our violent history there are also clear differences in cultural, political and economic terms; differences which have to be kept in mind when considering regional trinational cooperations.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_divider admin_label=“Teiler“ color=“#7cda24″ show_divider=“on“ divider_style=“solid“ divider_position=“top“ hide_on_mobile=“on“] [\/et_pb_divider][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row admin_label=“row“ make_fullwidth=“off“ use_custom_width=“off“ width_unit=“on“ use_custom_gutter=“off“ padding_mobile=“off“ allow_player_pause=“off“ parallax=“off“ parallax_method=“off“ make_equal=“off“ parallax_1=“off“ parallax_method_1=“off“ column_padding_mobile=“on“][et_pb_column type=“4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=“Header“ background_layout=“light“ text_orientation=“left“ use_border_color=“off“ border_color=“#ffffff“ border_style=“solid“ text_font_size=“18″ header_font_size=“22px“ header_line_height=“1.7em“]<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=“Text“ background_layout=“light“ text_orientation=“left“ use_border_color=“off“ border_color=“#ffffff“ border_style=“solid“ text_font_size=“18″ header_font_size=“22px“ header_line_height=“1.7em“]<\/p>\n While I have no expertise in economic issues, economic problems have had such a strong impact in the past 30 years that they have to be mentioned at least: Since the disintegration of the Warsaw Pact in 1991 all former members have been confronted by similar problems: They had to adapt their economies to completely new markets and conditions. Transformations were particularly painful, since the traditional focus of Warsaw Pact economies on industrial production suddenly became exposed to a global trend of deindustrialization. Reactions to these economic challenges differed markedly when comparing the former GDR with countries like Poland or the Czech Republic. One apparent consequence of these differences is a particularly prominent decline in population in the former GDR. Apart from such differences, however, economic reorientation is far from completed in all former Warsaw Pact countries and many regions still are looking for their future economic role. <\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_divider admin_label=“Teiler“ color=“#7cda24″ show_divider=“on“ divider_style=“solid“ divider_position=“top“ hide_on_mobile=“on“] [\/et_pb_divider][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row admin_label=“row“ make_fullwidth=“off“ use_custom_width=“off“ width_unit=“on“ use_custom_gutter=“off“ padding_mobile=“off“ allow_player_pause=“off“ parallax=“off“ parallax_method=“off“ make_equal=“off“ parallax_1=“off“ parallax_method_1=“off“ column_padding_mobile=“on“][et_pb_column type=“4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=“Header“ background_layout=“light“ text_orientation=“left“ use_border_color=“off“ border_color=“#ffffff“ border_style=“solid“ text_font_size=“18″ header_font_size=“22px“ header_line_height=“1.7em“]<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image admin_label=“Lignite mining and power station near Bogatynia (Poland)“ src=“https:\/\/www.scivit.de\/lang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/WebIMG_0993.jpg“ alt=“Lignite mining and power station near Bogatynia (Poland)“ title_text=“Lignite mining and power station near Bogatynia (Poland)“ show_in_lightbox=“off“ url_new_window=“off“ use_overlay=“off“ animation=“left“ sticky=“off“ align=“left“ force_fullwidth=“off“ always_center_on_mobile=“on“ use_border_color=“off“ border_color=“#ffffff“ border_style=“solid“] [\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text admin_label=“Text“ background_layout=“light“ text_orientation=“left“ use_border_color=“off“ border_color=“#ffffff“ border_style=“solid“ text_font_size=“18″ header_font_size=“22px“ header_line_height=“1.7em“]<\/p>\n Lignite mining is a particularly devastating industrial activity and is widespread in the whole region. The Zittau area comprises active open pit mining on polish territory together with multiple abandoned mines, sometimes transformed into recreational lakes like the \u201eOlbersdorfer See\u201c on the German side. Transformation of open mining pits into recreational lakes is a common approach and certainly has its benefits for the local population. But what is the long-term ecological impact? Is the diversification of landscape forms also translating into a higher diversity of plants and animals? Or does the new, disturbed habitat rather provide an efficient stepping stone for invasive species? Such questions impose themselves in an area with numerous active and historic open pit mining locations. <\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image admin_label=“Lignite mining in the Zittau area“ src=“https:\/\/www.scivit.de\/lang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/Bilddb.png“ alt=“Lignite mining in the Zittau area: Active mines – brown, Olbersdorfer See – blue“ title_text=“Lignite mining in the Zittau area: Active mines – brown, Olbersdorfer See – blue“ show_in_lightbox=“off“ url_new_window=“off“ use_overlay=“off“ animation=“left“ sticky=“off“ align=“left“ force_fullwidth=“off“ always_center_on_mobile=“on“ use_border_color=“off“ border_color=“#ffffff“ border_style=“solid“] [\/et_pb_image][et_pb_divider admin_label=“Teiler“ color=“#7cda24″ show_divider=“on“ divider_style=“solid“ divider_position=“top“ hide_on_mobile=“on“] [\/et_pb_divider][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row admin_label=“row“ make_fullwidth=“off“ use_custom_width=“off“ width_unit=“on“ use_custom_gutter=“off“ padding_mobile=“off“ allow_player_pause=“off“ parallax=“off“ parallax_method=“off“ make_equal=“off“ parallax_1=“off“ parallax_method_1=“off“ column_padding_mobile=“on“][et_pb_column type=“4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=“Header“ background_layout=“light“ text_orientation=“left“ use_border_color=“off“ border_color=“#ffffff“ border_style=“solid“ text_font_size=“18″ header_font_size=“22px“ header_line_height=“1.7em“]<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image admin_label=“Touristic railway in the Zittau mountains“ src=“https:\/\/www.scivit.de\/lang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/WebIMG_1021.jpg“ alt=“Touristic railway in the Zittau mountains“ title_text=“Touristic railway in the Zittau mountains“ show_in_lightbox=“off“ url_new_window=“off“ use_overlay=“off“ animation=“left“ sticky=“off“ align=“left“ force_fullwidth=“off“ always_center_on_mobile=“on“ use_border_color=“off“ border_color=“#ffffff“ border_style=“solid“] [\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text admin_label=“Text“ background_layout=“light“ text_orientation=“left“ use_border_color=“off“ border_color=“#ffffff“ border_style=“solid“ text_font_size=“18″ header_font_size=“22px“ header_line_height=“1.7em“]<\/p>\n There are two major forms of landscape dominating the area: Hilly lowlands used primarily for agriculture to the North and South and wooded mountain ranges (Lusatian Mountains, Jizera Mountains) running from West to East in the central part. These mountain ranges are particularly attractive to tourism and provide the basis for the economic importance of this sector. Given the weakness in other economic sectors, development of tourism is a must. But how can this be done sustainably? Besides climate change and the invasion of alien species, tourism consitutes a major stress factor for nature. What are the combined effects of these stress factors in the Zittau area? Which habitats are particularly sensitive deserving particular care? Such questions are of interest for a very large region; as in the case of open pit mining, they suggest themselves in the Zittau area. <\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image admin_label=“Distribution of (mostly forested) mountain ranges in the Zittau area“ src=“https:\/\/www.scivit.de\/lang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/Bilde.png“ alt=“Distribution of (mostly forested) mountain ranges in the Zittau area“ title_text=“Distribution of (mostly forested) mountain ranges in the Zittau area“ show_in_lightbox=“off“ url_new_window=“off“ use_overlay=“off“ animation=“left“ sticky=“off“ align=“left“ force_fullwidth=“off“ always_center_on_mobile=“on“ use_border_color=“off“ border_color=“#ffffff“ border_style=“solid“] [\/et_pb_image][et_pb_image admin_label=“Mountain forest close to Zittau“ src=“https:\/\/www.scivit.de\/lang\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/IMG_1009.jpg“ alt=“Mountain forest close to Zittau“ title_text=“Mountain forest close to Zittau“ show_in_lightbox=“off“ url_new_window=“off“ use_overlay=“off“ animation=“left“ sticky=“off“ align=“left“ force_fullwidth=“off“ always_center_on_mobile=“on“ use_border_color=“off“ border_color=“#ffffff“ border_style=“solid“] [\/et_pb_image][et_pb_divider admin_label=“Teiler“ color=“#7cda24″ show_divider=“on“ divider_style=“solid“ divider_position=“top“ hide_on_mobile=“on“] [\/et_pb_divider][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row admin_label=“row“ make_fullwidth=“off“ use_custom_width=“off“ width_unit=“on“ use_custom_gutter=“off“ padding_mobile=“off“ allow_player_pause=“off“ parallax=“off“ parallax_method=“off“ make_equal=“off“ parallax_1=“off“ parallax_method_1=“off“ column_padding_mobile=“on“][et_pb_column type=“4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=“Impressum“ background_layout=“light“ text_orientation=“left“ use_border_color=“off“ border_color=“#ffffff“ border_style=“solid“ text_font_size=“18″ header_font_size=“22px“ header_line_height=“1.7em“]<\/p>\n This newsletter is produced and published by\/Verfasser und Produzent dieses Newsletters: [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row admin_label=“row“ make_fullwidth=“off“ use_custom_width=“off“ width_unit=“on“ use_custom_gutter=“off“ padding_mobile=“off“ allow_player_pause=“off“ parallax=“off“ parallax_method=“off“ make_equal=“off“ parallax_1=“off“ parallax_method_1=“off“ column_padding_mobile=“on“][et_pb_column type=“4_4″][et_pb_cta admin_label=“Handlungsaufruf“ title=“Obtain newsletter by e-mail“ url_new_window=“off“ use_background_color=“on“ background_color=“#63b32e“ background_layout=“light“ text_orientation=“left“ header_text_color=“#000000″ body_text_color=“#000000″ use_border_color=“off“ border_color=“#ffffff“ border_style=“solid“ custom_button=“off“ button_letter_spacing=“0″ button_use_icon=“default“ button_icon_placement=“right“ button_on_hover=“on“ button_letter_spacing_hover=“0″] Borders and reconciliation?<\/span><\/h3>\n
Economic reorientation in the wake of 1989<\/span><\/h3>\n
Lignite mining<\/span><\/h3>\n
Mountain ranges and tourism<\/span><\/h3>\n
Legal disclosure\/Impressum<\/h3>\n
\nThomas Fester, Dr. rer. nat., Blochmannstrasse 21B, 04105 Leipzig \u2013 Germany
\nContact\/Kontakt:
\nHomepage: https:\/\/www.scivit.de, e-mail: tfester@scivit.de, Telefon\/Phone: +49 341 9839673
\nVAT-number\/Steuer-Nummer: 231\/218\/02201
\nUst.-ID gem. \u00a7 27a UStG: DE235829085
\nPerson responsible for content in accordance with 55 Abs. 2 RStV \/ Inhaltlich Verantwortlicher gem. \u00a7 55 II RStV:
\nThomas Fester (Address see above\/Anschrift siehe oben)<\/p>\n