Dear readers,
As Mayor of the City of Dessau-Roßlau, I would like to welcome you to our city. We are delighted that you are here and would like to make your arrival as pleasant and smooth as possible. The Welcome Compass will support you in your everyday life in this new environment and give you an initial orientation for life in Dessau-Roßlau.

Freedom, peace and prosperity are not things we can take for granted and rely on blindly. Our democracy requires commitment and joint endeavour in order to ensure successful coexistence. In a diverse society, it is also a matter of tolerating differences. The liberal-democratic values guaranteed by our constitution play a central role in this. This includes ensuring that all people, regardless of gender, origin or religion, have the same rights and opportunities. These freedoms have their limits where discrimination and hate speech begin. Sharing responsibility strengthens our values and ensures the basis for peaceful, respectful coexistence. We would like to encourage you to take an active part in life in our city and to contact us at any time if you have any questions.

Dessau-Roßlau can look back on successful integration projects and benefits from the close cooperation of numerous committed organisations, coordinated by the city's integration office. The Welcome Compass also provides you with an overview of important contacts and advice centres. Together with internationally renowned institutions characterised by internationality, such as Bauhaus Dessau, Anhalt University of Applied Sciences and the Federal Environment Agency, civil society networks and projects make Dessau-Roßlau a lively, cosmopolitan place. Diversity and integration are actively practised and promoted here.

In Dessau-Roßlau, we want to stand up together for a society in which diversity and mutual respect characterise coexistence. Everyone who gets involved here contributes to making our city a safe place worth living in for everyone.

I hope you enjoy reading this report and that you will soon feel at home in Dessau-Roßlau.

Sincerely Yours

Dr Robert Reck