In mid-September was International Parking Day and our Cottbus „Patenschaftsbüro“ was part of it. For two hours, the Marktstraße was closed and different players from Cottbus, such as students from the BTU Cottbus or the ADFC Cottbus, each had the opportunity to fill a parking space with content, such as a chapel, a bicycle self-help workshop or a games club. Under the motto „A parking space can just as well be a table full of food and games to spend an unforgettable time with friends or even make new friends.“ Wir sind Paten Cottbus created a picnic with Arabic specialities, home-baked cake and home-made apple juice. And of course they had many nice conversations with people from Cottbus and tourists from the surrounding area.

In addition, they took part in the „Cottbus Weeks for Diversity and Democracy“ at the end of September at the invitation of the Cottbus Integration Commissioner. The event ran for a fortnight with different theme days. Wir sind Paten Cottbus used the „DAY OF THE REFUGEE / DAY OF THE SMILE“ and combined it with an open house. Interested people and network partners were invited between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. to visit the Patenschaftsbüro and make contacts or talk about joint project ideas. A wide variety of people accepted the invitation – children did handicrafts, drank tea together and enjoyed a picnic. In the afternoon, Saleh played live music for everyone there.

In short: In Cottbus, we can look back on two very successful events – in addition to the nice everyday work – where many people came into exchange with each other.