They actually only wanted to prevent their elementary school from closing. But it quickly became clear to residents of Flegessen, Hasperde, and Klein Süntel that they could do even more for the future of their home villages, all of which belong to Bad Münder in Lower Saxony. They founded the ideas workshop Dorfzukunft and have worked together ever since. With a cinema, a village university, improved day-care offers, an organic shop owned by citizens, and gardens tended by citizens, they hope to make their villages more liveable for residents and coming generations, and to arouse young familys’ enthusiasm for rural life.