Himmighausen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany

The village of Himmighausen lies to the West of the town of Nieheim, right by the confluence of the Fischbach and Emmer. The formerly independent village was assigned to the city of Nieheim as part of the municipal reorganization and is now a district of it. Himmighausen is located in a mountain valley at the foot of the Eggegebirge and has around 450 inhabitants.

Himmighausen is characterized by a diverse club life and good social cohesion. Nevertheless, the village had and still has to deal with a number of challenges. Initially there were no common goals and there was no networking between the various initiatives, groups and local associations, but this changed when the “village workshop” was convened in 2011. This also marked the start of the development process. Villagers developed a catalog of measures and the motto “We build bridges”. This is how the small district managed to build social bridges between the generations, clubs and initiatives as well as implement concrete (bridging) projects within the scope of its possibilities and with a lot of commitment. The village always had and still has holistic and sustainable development as its goal and the duty towards future generations in mind.

Himmighausen is located in an attractive landscape. A majority of the village areas are located in the landscape protection area. The greatest possible attention is therefore paid to the preservation of the cultural landscape, including cultural and ecological aspects. The Hude Foundation in Himmighausen is particularly worth mentioning. The common use of tree-lined pastures is called Hude. Until the 1970s, the pastures could be used jointly by the residents, but with the structural change in agriculture, interest in this community decreased. With the founding of the non-profit Hude Foundation Himmighausen in 2019, a very high ecological awareness in terms of sustainable action in agriculture and forestry was shown. The purpose of the foundation was to revitalize the original purpose of the Hude community, namely the common benefit for everyone. In particular, it is dedicated to the preservation and care of the areas, including nature conservation. The income from the leasing of the Hude areas, from donations and from endowments are used to promote non-profit and charitable projects in the village – resulting in a “win-win-win” situation.

The joint planting campaign of a 1000 meter long row of trees along the hiking trail that connects Himmighausen and neighboring Oeynhausen forms a bridge to the future: 90 trees were planted simultaneously by sponsors in a joint campaign within a few minutes. Another scenic feature in the municipality is the wattled hedge landscape. As early as the Middle Ages, these wattled hedges served as fences and demarcations for grassland areas. Today the plaited hedge stocks are clearly declining, but in Himmighausen they continue to characterize the townscape. The Heimatverein Nieheim e.V. is primarily responsible for the preservation of this cultural heritage, the knowledge of the old braiding technique is also cultivated and passed on to the younger generation. Last but not least, the hedges also make an important contribution to biodiversity in the area.

In addition to protecting nature and the landscape, the avoidance of vacancies and the activation of traditional buildings that characterize the townscape are important goals of the village community. Some vacant residential and farm buildings have been extensively renovated, refurbished and put to new uses. For example, some young families have developed new living spaces. The city of Nieheim supports such renovation and revitalization projects with a municipal funding program.

Other revitalization projects worth mentioning are the restoration of the festival barn, which is now used for events of all kinds, and the old school, which was taken over by the village community in 1985 and, after extensive renovations with many personal contributions, is used as a meeting space. The former evangelical chapel in the village of Himmighausen-Bahnhof was also in danger of becoming empty after it was no longer used for church purposes. After an agreement was reached with the church community, the chapel was purchased by a specially founded association for a symbolic price and renovated in an exemplary manner with a high level of personal contribution. In this way, a space for encounters and cultural creativity has emerged at the identity-forming, historic and local image-defining place.

Another place for communication is the generation park in the village center. The development of this social meeting place was one of the first measures of the village workshop, it particularly promotes and strengthens the bridge between young and elderly people.

The municipality has also set itself the goal of building a bridge to the digital present and future. In addition to the conventional media, particular attention is paid to communication using digital media. Overall, improving communication had high priority: First, the local newspaper “Emmerbote” was reactivated, which is now published several times a year and distributed to every household. Non-residents receive the newspaper via e-mail, and it is also made available on several websites and on Facebook.

In 2018, the “Smart Country Side” (SCS) lighthouse project finally started in the municipality, which was financed and planned by the district of Höxter. Twelve participants of different ages were trained to become village digital experts, who in turn pass on the knowledge they have acquired to interested parties, especially to the older villagers, and also provide information about cybercrime, for example. The knowledge of the village digital experts was particularly in demand during the pandemic. The fact that the community is future-oriented is also evident in other digital projects: As part of the participation in the “Dorf.Zukunft.Digital” project, digital guides were trained, who primarily focus on local, regional and nationwide networking and cooperation. A village radio app was also introduced as part of this project. With this app, news and articles about the village can be communicated quickly. Finally, in 2022, the “Dorf.Gesundheit.Digital” project, supported by volunteers, was started.

In summary, Himmighausen clearly shows that even in a small village with a great deal of voluntary commitment, the courage to tackle things, fresh ideas and forward-looking thinking and action, a development process can be promoted to create an attractive and sustainable living space.

Evaluated: 2022