The Danube Bend Sustainability Guide and the “Egymeder” (One Channel)

The group brings together and connects efforts to create a sustainable, people-centred, open and modern cultural space for residents and visitors of the Danube Bend, providing recreation and enrichment for all ages and social groups. They set the task of using a map they designed, with attractive and informative graphics, to convince those who join the project that it’s worth thinking long-term and preserving the assets of the Danube Bend to the very end through a sustainable model. Their vision is to operate based on a tangible map, featuring partners who have made rigorous commitments to ensure that travellers can enjoy value-based services.

The map not only helps visitors to navigate the physical space but also guides them to the businesses and experiences that are making a real difference to the sustainability of the region. Their mission is to promote public transport, with a focus on the rail network, which has developed strongly in recent years, water transport, which is becoming increasingly popular, and cycling, which is enjoying great popularity. Less well-known and exciting places, natural assets and special attractions are presented, with playful infographics to help you find your way around and learn how to preserve them in their original form. Of course, gastronomy will also play a major role, as the quality of catering is one of the most important indicators of a region. Fortunately, many new restaurateurs with a fresh approach and a varied profile have emerged in recent years, ready to meet the conditions of the sustainable Danube Bend created by the “Egymeder Csoport” (One Channel Group). They favour raw materials from local producers and suppliers, practice environmentally-friendly waste management, actively participate in local cultural life and provide infrastructure to support public transport and cycling.

As a communication team, the initiation, creation and maintenance of the conditions for dialogue between the actors have been emphasised. They also operate as a regional knowledge repository to provide technical assistance to all decision-makers who want to implement sustainable development. They are trying to fill a gap, as there have been many efforts for improvement in the Danube Bend that have been lost due to a lack of properly-managed dialogue. They would direct them into one channel. In this spirit, they organised their professional conference, hosted by the Transport Museum, with participants such as Urbanum, MÁV Start Zrt. and the DANUrB professional group. The event was designed as an interdisciplinary community-building and roundtable discussion, to engage additional participants and supporters to build a common advocacy effort through the presentation of the project. However, the “Egymeder Csoport” (One Channel Group) does not want to stop at a single map, because the more actors able to identify with the commitment and the spirit of the project that we can convince of the importance of their cause, the more we can be sure that future generations will be able to experience the wonder we call the Danube Bend. And all visitors have to do is pick up the latest “KanyarGo “ map and discover its treasures!