Latest news with #Brandenburg
News.com.au
12 hours ago
- Business
- News.com.au
European town offering free accommodation in a bid to attract residents
A quaint European town is luring new residents with free accommodation as a unique way to boost its population. A quaint European town is luring new residents with free accommodation as a way to boost population in the area. Eisenhüttenstadt, located on the Oder-Spree district of the state of Brandenburg, is a hidden gem on the Germany-Poland border. The town is on the hunt for new people to call it home, with the council offering a 14-day trial starting September 6. Successful applicants will receive free furnished housing, local tours, and career networking opportunities as part of the innovative migration program called the 'Make Plans Now' campaign. The application window is now until early July, and is aimed at attracting skilled workers, former residents who have moved away and self-employed workers looking for a change of scenery. According to local German publication, The Local, before residents leave, they will be asked to write a 'love letter to Eisenhüttenstadt' in which they share their impressions of their stay. The city was founded in 1950 by East German authorities as a socialist model city after the end of WWII alongside a massive steel mill, the town's largest industry. It was known as Stalinstadt between 1953 and 1961. According to The Local, the population of Eisenhüttenstadt has dropped by over half since German reunification in 1990. Reasons have been attributed to young people moving because of a lack of job opportunities and prospects. However, the council is hopeful its rent-free move will help boost interest.
TechCrunch
a day ago
- Business
- TechCrunch
AWS establishes new German corporate presence to advance European sovereign cloud
Amazon Web Services (AWS), Amazon's cloud computing division, is forming a new parent company and three subsidiaries in Germany as part of a sovereign cloud the company is launching in the European Union. AWS VP Kathrin Renz will serve as managing director of AWS' German corporate parent, which will also be led by EU-based 'government security and privacy official[s],' according to Amazon. The German company will oversee the aforementioned new sovereign cloud, the AWS European Sovereign Cloud, which is scheduled to launch by the end of 2025. 'Everything needed to operate the AWS European Sovereign Cloud is in the EU,' wrote AWS in a blog post. 'In addition to independent infrastructure, there will be zero operational control outside of EU borders; only AWS employees, residing in the EU, will control day-to-day operations, including access to data centers, technical support, and customer service for the AWS European Sovereign Cloud.' A growing number of tech giants and cloud providers, including Amazon rivals Microsoft and Google, offer European sovereign cloud, or data residency, programs. These help customers comply with European local privacy and data protection laws like the GDPR and Germany's Federal Data Protection Act. AWS announced in May 2024 that it would invest €7.8 billion (roughly $8.8 billion) to build the AWS European Sovereign Cloud in Germany through 2040, with the first cloud 'region' to go live in the State of Brandenburg. The AWS European Sovereign Cloud will feature infrastructure located within the EU and operated independently from AWS' existing cloud computing regions, according to Amazon. Customers using it will be able to keep their data and metadata — including the configurations they use to run AWS — in the EU to comply with applicable laws and regulations, Amazon says. In addition to the new corporate presence in Germany, AWS says that it's establishing an advisory board made up of EU citizens and a dedicated European security operations center. '[W]e've designed the AWS European Sovereign Cloud to address European digital sovereignty requirements while maintaining the services portfolio, security, reliability, and performance that customers expect from AWS,' Renz said in a statement. 'Our investment in the AWS European Sovereign Cloud reinforces our commitment to Europe's digital future.' Techcrunch event Save now through June 4 for TechCrunch Sessions: AI Save $300 on your ticket to TC Sessions: AI—and get 50% off a second. Hear from leaders at OpenAI, Anthropic, Khosla Ventures, and more during a full day of expert insights, hands-on workshops, and high-impact networking. These low-rate deals disappear when the doors open on June 5. Exhibit at TechCrunch Sessions: AI Secure your spot at TC Sessions: AI and show 1,200+ decision-makers what you've built — without the big spend. Available through May 9 or while tables last. Berkeley, CA | REGISTER NOW Amazon has found itself in the crosshairs of European regulators before for failing to comply with EU competition and data privacy rules. In 2021, Luxembourg's data watchdog slapped Amazon with a then-record €746 million (around $849 million) fine for allegedly processing user data for targeted advertising without seeking people's consent. And in 2022, AWS settled an EU antitrust probe into how it allegedly abused rivals' sales data to unfairly favor its own products.
Associated Press
27-05-2025
- General
- Associated Press
Berlin presents bid to rehost Olympics with 100th anniversary of 1936 Games looming
BERLIN (AP) — Berlin formally presented its bid to rehost the Olympics on Tuesday in the same stadium where Jesse Owens starred during the 1936 Games under the Nazis. Berlin sports minister Iris Spranger said the city wants to put on a sustainable Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2036, 2040 or 2044, making use of existing sports venues. But her announced plans to include the former airport Tempelhof are likely to be resisted by locals who already opposed any development of the popular city park in a 2014 referendum. Spranger envisaged beach volleyball at the Brandenburg Gate, and water sports in Grünau, a riverside locality which also staged water sports in 1936. Otherwise, Spranger gave few details during the presentation, saying the bid was still at concept phase. 'You'll have to be patient,' she told a journalist. Berlin's bid — titled 'Berlin+' with support from the states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, and Schleswig-Holstein — is to be presented to the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) before an end-of-month deadline. It will be up to the DOSB to decide which Games to bid for. Los Angeles is hosting the 2028 Olympics and Brisbane the 2032 Olympics, so the next available edition will be 2036, the 100th anniversary of the Berlin Games. The DOSB previously said a German bid for 2040 was also possible. 'I believe that the 2036 Games, regardless of where they take place, will also focus on the Nazi Games of 1936. That's part of history and attention will be paid to it,' Berlin Mayor Kai Wegner said. 'I have to tell you, I'm proud to be the governing mayor of a city that has changed in the last 100 years, that we no longer stand for dictatorship, exclusion, and mass violence, but that Berlin is now a cosmopolitan, international metropolis, a colorful, diverse city.' Wegner said it was 'important for Germany to make a bid. We're making an offer here today.' Wegner, Spranger, and the governors from the other four states made their presentation in the same battle-scarred stadium, Berlin's Olympiastadion, where Adolf Hitler watched Owens, the Black American athlete, win four gold medals in the 1936 Games, dealing a blow to Hitler's notions of racial superiority. Hitler was personally involved in the design and construction of the 100,000-seat track-and-field stadium after the Nazis assumed power in 1933, two years after the Games were awarded to the city. ___ AP sports:
National Post
23-05-2025
- Politics
- National Post
Berlin wants to host Olympics as 100th anniversary of 1936 Games looms
Berlin is making a bid to host the Olympics again, possibly 100 years after the city hosted the 1936 Games under the Nazis. Article content Article content Berlin Mayor Kai Wegner is to present bid plans, with help from four other German states, on Tuesday at Berlin's Olympic Stadium. Article content The invitation sent on Friday to the presentation does not mention which Games the city is bidding for, but the next available edition will be in 2036 — the 100th anniversary of the Berlin Games. The German Olympic Sports Confederation has said a German bid for the 2040 Games is also possible. Article content Los Angeles is hosting the 2028 Olympics and Brisbane the 2032 Olympics. Article content The states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, and Schleswig-Holstein would also host competitions as part of Berlin's bid. Article content Berlin's Olympic Stadium, known as Olympiastadion in German, was built for the 1936 Games. Adolf Hitler was personally involved in the design and construction of the 100,000-seat track-and-field stadium after the Nazis assumed power in 1933, two years after the Games were awarded to the city. Article content Hitler was initially unenthused by the idea of hosting the Games, but he changed his mind after being convinced of their potential for propaganda. He invited Leni Riefenstahl to film the event and she used the material for her film 'Olympia.' Article content Olympiastadion is still in use and hosted soccer's European Championship final between Spain and England last year. Hertha Berlin plays its home games there, and on Saturday it will host the German Cup final between Stuttgart and Arminia Bielefeld.
The Independent
23-05-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
100 years after Hitler's infamous Games, the Olympics could return to Berlin
Berlin is making a bid to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games, potentially marking a century since the controversial 1936 Games held under Nazi rule. Mayor Kai Wegner is set to unveil the city's plans on Tuesday at Berlin's Olympic Stadium, joined by representatives from four supporting German states. While the invitation to the Tuesday event, sent on Friday, is ambiguous about the specific target year, the timing of the announcement suggests that the city is aiming for 2036 – 100 years after the last Berlin Games. Los Angeles has been confirmed to host the event in 2028 and Brisbane in 2032. However, the German Olympic Sports Confederation has also suggested a possible bid for the 2040 Games. The states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, and Schleswig-Holstein would also host competitions as part of Berlin's bid. Berlin's Olympic stadium, known as Olympiastadion in German, was built for the 1936 Games, as were multiple other gymnasiums and smaller arenas. Adolf Hitler was personally involved in the design and construction of the 100,000-seat track-and-field stadium after the Nazis assumed power in 1933 – two years after the Games were awarded to the city. The Nazi leader was initially unenthused by the idea of hosting the Games, but he changed his mind after being convinced of their potential for propaganda. He invited Leni Riefenstahl to film the event and she used the material for her documentary film Olympia, released in 1938. German Jewish athletes were mostly barred from competing in the 1936 Games, which were the last to be held for 12 years due to the turmoil caused by World War II. The next Summer Olympics were in London in 1948. American track and field athlete Jesse Owens was the most successful athlete at the 1936 Games, winning four gold medals. ESPN later said that as a Black man, Mr Owens 'single-handedly crush[ed] Hitler's myth of Aryan supremacy'. Olympiastadion is still in use and hosted the European Championship final between Spain and England in 2024. Hertha Berlin plays its home games there, and on Saturday it will host the German Cup final between Stuttgart and Arminia Bielefeld.
