The carnival float of Mainz University of Applied Sciences, “Meerwert Helau,” was awarded the “Helau für morgen – Preis des Oberbürgermeisters der Stadt Mainz für Nachhaltigkeit in der Fastnacht” (Helau for tomorrow – The Mayor of Mainz’s award for sustainability in carnival). The city of Mainz is working on making the Rose Monday parade and carnival in general more sustainable and less wasteful. With this in mind, the Mayor of Mainz introduced the award this year.
“Showing how tradition and environmental awareness can go hand in hand”
Mainz University of Applied Sciences and the Hechtsheim Dragoons were honored for their eco-conscious approach to this year’s Rose Monday parade and received prize monies of €333 each. “These groups have shown in the most different ways how tradition and environmental awareness can go hand in hand. This award for sustainability in Carnival in Mainz will also be presented in the coming years and aims to inspire other groups to incorporate sustainability into Carnival activities,” emphasized Mayor Nino Haase.
On Rose Monday this year, the interactive carnival float of Mainz University of Applied Sciences made its way through the city streets and caused quite a stir. The interdisciplinary team of students and lecturers made a statement against ocean pollution from plastic waste. This was the second time that Mainz University of Applied Sciences had participated in the Rose Monday parade, having celebrated its premiere in 2024 with its innovative “Helau-O-Mat.”
“University deeply rooted in the region”
Prof. Dr. Susanne Weissman, President of Mainz University of Applied Sciences, is delighted about the award: “The award is a wonderful acknowledgement of the dedicated students and colleagues. ‘Meerwert Helau’ is not only a creative contribution to carnival; it is also a strong statement in favor of environmental protection and shows that carnival can mean innovation and responsibility as well as tradition. As a university that has strong roots in the region, we are proud to take an active part in the carnival celebrations. This is another way of demonstrating our close ties with the city.”
“Sustainability played a key role”
Project manager Naomi Neumann is pleased with the high-profile success of the project: “Being part of Carnival in Mainz and contributing in front of around 400,000 people on Rose Monday was an impressive experience. It wasn’t just about having fun; sustainability also played a key role for us. The opportunity to work on such a great project as part of our degree program was really fantastic.”
“This project proved how students can use creativity and collaboration to implement complex topics like sustainability and environmental protection in an innovative way. With our interactive carnival float, we helped raise awareness and showed that responsibility and fun can go hand in hand in carnival too,” emphasizes Prof. Dr. Bernhard Ostheimer from the School of Business at Mainz University of Applied Sciences, who was one of the project supervisors.
