And the winner is… Kassel!

Who would have guessed: in the ranking of Germany's most dynamic city, Kassel came in first.
The Northern Hessian city is primarily known for the documenta art exhibition. Kassel is not only appreciated by art lovers, but also boasts Germany's third highest number of museums after Frankfurt and Stuttgart. And the Hessentag, an annual festival celebration highlighting various regions in Hessen, will even be coming to Kassel in 2013.

In addition to culture and industry, Kassel's primary strengths include the university. We all know the immense potential up-and-coming scientists hold. A prime example: three engineers who focused on renewable energies in 1981 and who would go on to turn their company into the world market leader for PV inverters.

2011 city ranking

The results are based on an comprehensive comparative study: as part of a city test conducted by Germany’s WirtschaftsWoche business news magazine, The Initiative for the New Social Market Economy (INSM), and the Cologne Institute for Economic Research, reviewers looked at 91 indicators such as education level, unemployment rate, criminality, and disposable income. Kassel was able to hold its own among the 50 cities. The extended article can be found online on the WirtschaftsWoche website.