On behalf of the Servicestelle Kommunen in der Einen Welt (SKEW), we supported five municipalities this year in preparing their first Voluntary Local Reviews (VLRs): the City of Augsburg, the Hanseatic City of Buxtehude, the Municipality of Lamspringe, the City of Pirmasens, and the State Capital of Saarbrücken. The VLRs now serve as the foundation for the further development and management of local sustainability processes.

Why VLRs are important:
VLRs are voluntary sustainability reports at the local level aimed at implementing the 2030 Agenda. They highlight local sustainability efforts, create transparency, strengthen data-driven decision-making, and help municipalities strategically advance their contribution to the global Sustainable Development Goals. Our work encompassed the entire process—from data collection and analysis to the final report.

In addition to the VLR project municipalities, five other municipalities that reported this year in accordance with the BNK and were supported by LAG 21 NRW attended the final meeting in Würzburg. Speakers from the German Council for Sustainable Development (Rat für Nachhaltige Entwicklung, RNE) provided insights into the opportunities and challenges of municipal reporting. The focus was on sharing experiences, successful examples from the reports, and the question: What’s next? The discussion clearly demonstrated the significant potential of continuous, data-driven sustainability reporting and the importance of embedding local processes for the long term.