Deputy Mayor Wiederkehr and City Councillor Czernohorszky congratulate brothers Reto and Lorin on their realised idea
What if the ideas of children and young people in our city became reality? What if they wrote down their wishes, submitted them and just a few months later saw their vision realized? This is not a utopia, but already a reality thanks to the Children and Young People’s Million.
350 square meters for balance and coordination in the Clemens-Krauss-Park
The idea of the brothers Reto and Lorin F. was chosen online by most children and young people as one of the best ideas in the first round of the Children and Youth Million, which is now in its second edition, and was then successfully implemented in close cooperation with the city. One year later, both are standing in the Clemens Krauss Park in Hernals and looking proudly at the space they have created: a 38-meter balancing course and an 11-meter climbing course on a 350-square-meter area that is covered with fall protection made of bark mulch.
The eleven-year-old Challenge says enthusiastically: “It is great that children can help shape city planning. We have also learned that such implementation takes time.” His nine-year-old brother Lorin added: “We wanted a balancing and climbing park because we were missing one in the area.”
A model for participation: The Children and Youth Million in action
“Exercise is the key to the healthy development of our children. This course proves impressively: Those who become active and get involved can achieve great things – like Lorin and Reto. Every idea, every commitment can change our city and enrich the lives of many,” says Deputy Mayor and Youth Councillor Christoph Wiederkehrwho tested the new balancing and horizontal climbing park together with Climate Councillor Jürgen Czernohorszky. “It is inspiring to see how the Children and Youth Million, as a pioneering project of the city, is turning the ideas of our young citizens into tangible reality – in this case as a new exercise space that benefits everyone.”
“Children and young people are experts in their own concerns. And as part of the Children and Young People Million, they have the opportunity not only to contribute their own ideas and wishes, but also to implement them together with the city’s experts,” emphasises Climate and Democracy Councillor Jürgen Czernohorszky“Reto and Lorin, together with the Vienna City Gardens, have implemented a fantastic project from which all children and young people in the area benefit.”
Together with the idea generators Reto and Lorin and the Vienna City Gardens, the exact design of the course was worked out in a workshop in April 2023. Tanja Richter, head of project development and management for districts 14 to 19 of the Vienna City Gardens, brought plans and suggestions for balancing and climbing equipment, and the children were able to select the individual course elements themselves and help design their arrangement. “Based on this basis and the children’s wishes, I then drew up the final plan,” explains Tanja Richter from the Vienna City Gardens (MA 42).
Balancing stones, wobbly beams and tilting boards
The result is an exciting obstacle course with ten different elements for children aged 6 and over. These include balancing stones, wobbly beams on ropes, tilting boards and a balancing pyramid. These offer a varied opportunity to train balance and coordination in a playful way. Similar climbing elements can be found in Vienna in the motor skills parks in Donaustadt, in Helmut Zilk Park in the 10th district and on a similar climbing route in Elinor Ostrom Park.
“I am very pleased that the construction work on the new balancing and skill course in Clemens Krauss Park has been completed and that the training equipment is available to all children and young people. Here you can now run, jump and climb to your heart’s content – a great project in the district that was made possible by the City of Vienna’s Children and Youth Million,” says Peter Jagsch, District Chairman of the 17th District.
Skill parks promote motor development and strengthen children’s self-confidence by training balance, coordination and fine motor skills. They also support social interaction by overcoming challenges together.
“It is great to see and actively follow how a children’s idea becomes a concrete and real project. Reto and Lorin submitted this idea back in autumn 2021, which they then developed further in the spring together with experts from the city administration in a co-creative workshop into a concrete project that was finally voted on by the children and young people of Vienna. After this process, the idea generators are now reaping the fruits of their commitment and seeing how much they can achieve with their ideas. That is exactly the goal of the Children and Youth Million,” says the Project manager of the Children and Youth Million, Nada Taha Ali Mohamed.
The City of Vienna’s Children and Youth Million is a successful participation project that enables children and young people to actively contribute and implement their ideas and wishes for their environment. With financial support from the city, their suggestions are implemented – from playgrounds to sports facilities. The new climbing and balancing course in Hernals is another project that shows how valuable the participation of young people is for shaping a city. The initiative is organized and implemented by the City of Vienna’s “Young Vienna” coordination office at Wienxtra. More information: junges.wien.gv.at
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Inquiries for media
Nina Oezelt
Media spokesperson for Vice Mayor Christoph Wiederkehr
+43 1 4000 83221
nina.oezelt@wien.gv.at
Philipp Lindner
Media spokesman City Councillor Jürgen Czernohorszky
+43 1 4000 81853
philipp.lindner@wien.gv.at
Kristina Grgic
Wienxtra Communication
+43 1 909 4000 84375
kristina.grgić@wienxtra.at
