In the CONUS network, universities, municipalities, companies and other civil and public actors from the Lower Rhine join forces to jointly develop innovative and digital solutions. CONUS focuses on strengthening and linking local industries between urban and rural areas in the region and in the neighbouring country of the Netherlands in order to achieve the overarching goal of climate protection - especially the reduction of the ecological footprint. To this end, different innovations are tested in living labs, e.g. autonomous driving, highly digitalised agriculture, collaborative food supply and bio-based raw materials. In addition, the CONUS network manages the further scientific, economic and social exploitation of its projects and initiatives. CONUS sets public impulses, e.g. through workshop formats, joint innovation events and conferences. With the expertise and support of the entire network, potentials for the entire region are explored and developed. The CONUS project is funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the state of NRW.