RER analyses the impact of reconstruction funding after the 2021 flood within the KAHR2.0 research consortium
On 11 and 12 May 2026, the kick-off event for the BMFTR-funded research project KAHR2.0 – Climate Adaptation, Floods, Resilience took place in Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler. With the second funding phase, the scientific support of reconstruction processes following the 2021 flood disaster is being continued and further expanded. In addition to reconstruction-related issues, the project focuses in particular on climate adaptation, flood risk management, strengthening resilience, and transferring experiences and findings to other regions. One of the consortium’s aims is to systematically evaluate previous measures, identify effective approaches, and derive strategies for future climate-resilient reconstruction processes.
During its first project phase, KAHR already made important contributions to sustainable and resilient reconstruction in the regions of Rhineland-Palatinate and North Rhine-Westphalia affected by the 2021 flood. KAHR2.0 now continues and further develops this work. Among other topics, the consortium addresses differentiated protection objectives, climate factors, technical and nature-based flood protection measures, legal frameworks, and knowledge transfer. KAHR2.0 is coordinated by the University of Stuttgart (IREUS) and RWTH Aachen University (IWW).
The Chair of Regional Development and Risk Management (RER) at TU Dortmund University is particularly responsible for Work Package 5: Evaluation of the impact of previous reconstruction funding within KAHR2.0. The focus is on analysing whether, and to what extent, funded reconstruction measures actually contribute to reducing flood risks, strengthening resilience, and supporting climate-adapted reconstruction. This includes, among other aspects, relocation measures, damage-reducing structural and technical measures, and the underlying funding logics.
Methodologically, RER combines spatial risk analyses, GIS-based assessments, cost-benefit analyses, and multi-criteria evaluation approaches in this work package. This enables impacts to be assessed not only at the level of individual cases, but also comparatively across different types of measures and funding approaches. The results are intended to provide concrete recommendations for more effective, efficient, and climate-resilient reconstruction funding programmes.
At the kick-off in Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler, the consortium partners discussed the objectives, working structures, and next steps of KAHR2.0. In addition to the project partners, representatives of the BMFTR, other ministries, and the federal-state advisory group also took part. The exchange underlined the continued interest in further developing the findings from KAHR and making them usable for reconstruction, flood risk management, and climate adaptation. In workshops on protection objectives and climate factors, legal frameworks, reconstruction funding, knowledge transfer, and the planned digital tool, the participants laid initial common foundations and coordinated key interfaces between the work packages. For RER, the project launch marks the starting point for an in-depth analysis of previous reconstruction practice and the development of a robust evaluation basis for future funding decisions.