MINT-Initative: Lollar becomes a digital workshop for talents!

MINT-Initative: Lollar becomes a digital workshop for talents!

On January 31, 2025, a Makerspace was inaugurated at the Clemens Brentano European School (CBES) in Lollar, which opens up new technical opportunities for the pupils. Anna Sauer and Fiona Kern, tenth grade students, are already using the tablets provided to calculate cycling for a robot. This digital workshop is part of an innovative project that was created by the MINT innovation budget of the district of Gießen. The budget is available to all 51 schools in the district and amounts to a total of around 273,000 euros in 2024.

The goal of this budget is to promote practical education in the MINT subjects-mathematics, computer science, natural sciences and technology. At the inauguration ceremony Christopher Lipp expressed the need to arouse the interest of young people in MINT training. The schools can use the innovation budget to buy a variety of technical devices, including robotics sets, VR glasses and 3D printer that are tailored to the respective school concepts. An investment of around 42,800 euros was provided for the Makerspace on the CBES.

shortage of skilled workers in the MINT calls

Despite such initiatives, the shortage of skilled workers in the MINT area remains an urgent problem. In Germany, more than 209,000 jobs are currently vacant in Germany. The bottlenecks in the energy and electrical calls with 68,600 vacant areas are particularly large, followed by machine and vehicle technology with 41,500 and construction professions with 30,800 open positions. These gaps in securing skilled workers affect the ability to innovate and the growth of the German economy, as reported by the website employer.de.

A reason for this deficiency is demographic change in Germany, which together with a falling number of MINT qualifications creates future challenges. While other countries such as Japan, Korea and the USA are better positioned, companies in Germany show that 44% of them are slowed down by this shortage of skilled workers in their digitization efforts.

measures to strengthen MINT formation

In order to meet these challenges, comprehensive measures are required. This includes a cliché-free professional and study orientation, especially for women, the targeted further training of MINT forces and an improvement in the framework conditions for later pension. It is also important to expand early childhood education and high -quality all -day offers in order to offer the youngsters a strong basis.

The initiatives for MINT funding are important because MINT professions are decisive for technological progress in areas such as IT, engineering, medical technology and renewable energies. Engineers, computer scientists, mathematicians and scientists play a central role in product development and innovation.