ABSTRACT
The city of Munich is one of Europe’s most renowned knowledge cities (see for example van den Berg et al. 2005). It is home to innovative companies (such as BMW, Siemens and Linde AG), several higher educational institutes (HEIs) and a number of public research institutes (for example, Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft and Max Planck Institute). Famous inventers, such as Rudolf Diesel (inventor of the diesel engine), Carl von Linde (refrigerator), Georg Simon Ohm (theory of electricity), Rudolf Hell (television and communications) and Albert Einstein all spent part of their life in Munich. Nowadays, it is generally recognized that knowledge has become the prime source of growth in advanced economies. Knowledge development in the Munich region is increasingly strengthened; for example, key firms like BMW still contribute significantly to innovation in the Munich area. One of Munich’s inner-city districts, Maxvorstadt, is one of the key locations of the city’s knowledge infrastructure as it includes a wide variety of cultural and educational institutions. However, various stakeholders feel that Maxvorstadt’s potential is not fully exploited, and therefore an evaluation of the area as a knowledge location is taking place. The district and its unique combination of knowledge and cultural institutions have been described as a ‘gift not accepted’, or as an ‘undiscovered treasure’. Current efforts focus on bringing actors together to formulate a strategy to develop the district further, and to exploit the area’s potential. An important part of this strategy is to integrate marketing of the different museums in Maxvorstadt in order to attract more visitors to the district. Policymakers, as well as other stakeholders, such as representatives of museums and universities, are aware of the need for an integrated development plan for Maxvorstadt. Therefore, the city of Munich has started a discussion (referred to as the ‘Maxvorstadt discussion’ in this report) with other key stakeholders to explore whether the integration efforts for the Maxvorstadt museums can function as a stepping stone towards an integrated development plan for Maxvorstadt. This chapter seeks to provide guidance for this discussion. Therefore, we provide insight into the potential of and barriers to further development of Maxvorstadt. Moreover, we give suggestions for management for further development of Maxvorstadt. Hence, we analyse the stakeholders involved, their interests and co-operation or conflict among them.
