A project co-financed by the European Union to strengthen cross-border cooperation and ecological transformation.
How companies can practically implement the requirements of the European Green Deal was the focus of the Economic Congress of the German-Polish Border Regions: Sustainability and the Future on 28 April 2026 at Trebnitz Castle. Around 120 companies, institutions and experts from Germany and Poland exchanged views on topics such as energy efficiency, sustainability management and funding opportunities.
Guests included Martin Kremer, Consul General of the Federal Republic of Germany in Wrocław, and Joanna Sterzyńska-Lindberg, Director of the European Commission's Regional Representation in Wrocław.
"The Green Deal is no longer a question of the future, but is already influencing investments, processes and competitiveness today," said Dr Knuth Thiel, Head of Economic Policy at IHK Ostbrandenburg. "Small and medium-sized enterprises in particular are faced with the task of fulfilling ecological requirements with limited resources – often under different legal and administrative conditions on both sides of the Oder."
The debates and panel discussion on the European environmental management system EMAS focused on practical solutions. For example, representatives of Prefere Resins Holding GmbH from Erkner, Moku lab Sp. z o.o. from Stargard, CEMEX Zement GmbH from Rüdersdorf, IMD Labor Oderland GmbH from Frankfurt (Oder) and CBR (Research and Development Centres of the University of Zielona Góra) presented their cross-border sustainability projects. In particular, the practical experience with EMAS showed how companies can improve their environmental performance in a structured way and document it transparently – an important approach for the systematic implementation of sustainability, especially for SMEs.
In specialist presentations, experts provided information on the current requirements of the Green Deal, possible future scenarios and the importance of clear sustainability communication in companies.
"The debates showed how many companies have already successfully found sustainable solutions for their processes - and also how central the further integration of the economic areas on both sides of the German-Polish border is for the development of our regions," explained Agnieszka Martini, head of the POLSMA project.
"Many challenges are similar, even if the framework conditions are different. That's why it's so important to share experiences across borders," says Sandy Morgen, Managing Director of the IHK project company representing the GoGreen project.
Awards for sustainable companies
One of the highlights was the award for sustainable companies from the German-Polish border region. This award honours corporate responsibility, innovative spirit and future orientation and went to:
- Globus Naturkost Eberswalde
- INCO Sp. z o.o. from Gorzów Wielkopolski
- Arctic Paper Kostrzyn S.A.
- IMD Labor Oderland GmbH from Frankfurt (Oder).
The congress was organised by two EU projects: POLSMA (Pomerania lives sustainable management from the Interreg VI A Mecklenburg-Vorpommern / Brandenburg / Polska cooperation programme) and GoGreen (German-Polish Competence Centre for Sustainability from the Interreg VI A Brandenburg - Polska cooperation programme).