Empowering Integration through Community and Creativity: Learnings from IWM’s Local Approach

How do we build inclusive communities where newcomers can thrive, not just survive? In Erfurt, the Society for International Business Development and Management (IWM) is tackling this question through a holistic, people-centered approach that goes far beyond traditional integration services, redefining what it means to belong.

At IWM’s local hub, we encountered more than a service provider. We experienced a living example of integration as a two-way process, where both host communities and newcomers are supported to grow, adapt, and thrive together. Their programs span language learning, vocational guidance, entrepreneurship support, and cultural orientation, but what ties it all together is a strong commitment to dignity, empathy, and human connection.

A 2023 scoping review on migrants’ participation in urban settings reinforces the value of this approach. It found that active engagement in inclusive, locally-driven environments significantly strengthens psychological integration, social networks, and a sense of belonging, though the quality of these environments plays a critical role. IWM embodies this insight in practice, showing how integration efforts rooted in care and mutual respect can yield lasting impact.

What makes IWM’s approach especially meaningful is how it reframes integration not as assimilation, but as mutual transformation. By investing in the potential of migrants, refugees, and international professionals, they are cultivating a more vibrant, diverse, and economically resilient community. This includes personalized coaching, intergenerational learning opportunities, and a welcoming space where cultural exchange is encouraged, not just tolerated.

From the moment we stepped into their space, it was clear that IWM embodies a model where integration is a shared responsibility, grounded in care, creativity, and long-term thinking. For Global Solvers Accelerator Participants exploring just, inclusive systems, this visit offered powerful insights into what sustainable inclusion can look like in practice.

About the Organizations

IWM (Gesellschaft für Internationale Wirtschaftsförderung und Management)

Founded in 1996, IWM is a leading education and training provider operating across Thuringia and Hesse. Their core mission is to support individuals especially newcomers and marginalized groups, in integrating into the local labor market. Through language courses, business coaching, and vocational training, IWM equips people with the tools needed for long-term professional and personal success.

Currently, IWM runs 13 integration courses in Erfurt alone, and operates in several other cities including Jena, Ilmenau, and Eisenach. One of their newest initiatives, the German Professional School (GPS), offers participants from Latin America the opportunity to come to Germany, learn the language, and enter the workforce.

ZLG e.V. (Zusammen Leben Gestalten – “Shaping Life Together”)

ZLG e.V., a subsidiary of IWM, focuses on community-building and cultural exchange through creative and participatory formats. Their activities include:

• Weekly community cooking events

• Improvisational theatre and skill-sharing workshops

• A podcast titled “Feels Like Integration”, highlighting life stories and integration journeys in Thuringia

• Intercultural trainings and the publication of “Integration is(s)t bunt”, a downloadable method book

• Mach(T) Theater, a participatory theatre initiative

• Crazy Cooking, a cooking tour across the region bringing diverse communities together through food

The two organizations work in close partnership, combining structural support and creative expression to create a holistic integration experience.

Integration Isn’t Only About Jobs, It’s About Belonging

One of the most powerful insights from our visit to IWM was the reminder that true integration is not just about employment or checking bureaucratic boxes like learning the local language. It’s about creating a sense of belonging.

IWM’s programs recognize that people arriving in a new country often under difficult circumstances need more than practical tools. They need safe spaces to express themselves, opportunities to build trust and relationships, and platforms where they’re not merely recipients of support, but active participants in shaping their new community.

This is where ZLG e.V., IWM’s community-driven subsidiary, plays a transformative role. Weekly community cooking events become shared cultural rituals where food becomes a language of connection. Theater workshops and skill-sharing spaces offer moments to tell stories, reclaim agency, and build confidence. Even their podcast, “Feels Like Integration”, gives space to diverse voices, validating the lived experiences of those navigating life in a new society.

These approaches aren’t just innovative, they reflect growing global evidence on what works. A 2014 study by Harris et al. found that shared community gardening activities helped African humanitarian migrants in Australia build strong social anchors and intercultural trust, creating vital spaces of connection and emotional well-being. Similarly, Cecile Rousseau and colleagues, in a three-year drama therapy project with immigrant and refugee youth in Quebec, demonstrated how participatory theater helped participants narrate personal stories, reclaim their identities, and overcome social isolation ultimately fostering empathy and community empowerment.

Through such efforts, IWM and ZLG are cultivating environments where newcomers are not seen as problems to solve, but as people with potential, talents, and stories that matter.

The learning for us as participants was clear: integration is not only about economic participation, it’s about creating communities where people feel seen, included, and valued. And often, it’s the small, human-centered practices like sharing a meal, telling your story, or being invited to contribute, that lay the foundation for long-term inclusion. One of the most striking takeaways was how participatory IWM’s work is. Their programs are designed with, and not just for the communities they serve. Whether it’s skill-sharing workshops or “Crazy Cooking” community tours, the people who benefit are also shaping the process.

A story shared during the visit a former language school student who went on to open his own café, highlighted the ripple effect that empowerment can create when people are given both support and agency.

Inclusion Is Made Up of Small, Intentional Choices

One clear takeaway from our visit was that inclusion lives in the details. Whether it’s sourcing food for community cooking through donations and food-sharing, or navigating restrictions around what people in government-supported job programs are allowed to produce or sell the day-to-day choices organizations make matter.

We saw how inclusion isn’t just about doing good, it’s about understanding and working within complex systems of rules, ethics, and limitations.

What made the biggest impression was IWM’s transparency. They openly shared both successes and ongoing challenges, which allowed for honest questions and deeper learning. As participants, we were reminded that meaningful inclusion requires not only action, but constant reflection and adaptability.

Looking Ahead

Our visit to IWM and ZLG e.V. reminded us that integration and inclusion are not abstract ideals, they’re built through everyday actions, shared spaces, and the willingness to meet people where they are. Whether through language classes, creative expression, or communal meals, we saw how a local organization can make a lasting impact by listening closely and acting intentionally. For us as participants, it was a chance to reflect on how inclusion shows up in our own contexts and how small, people-centered practices can lead to broader systems change.