Living Lab activities – by Digital Flanders
From 2 to 4 October, we had the pleasure of participating in the General Assembly (GA) of the URBREATH Horizon Europe Project, organised by the Madrid Cluster in the Villaverde pilot district of Madrid. The URBREATH project focuses on the design, implementation, and evaluation of Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) across nine pilot cities, grouped into four climatic zones. Using Living Lab principles, the project strives for maximum stakeholder participation and co-creation. Digital Flanders is proud to be one of the 37 partners in the project, leading the Living Lab work package and contributing to various others.
A major milestone
After nine months of hard work, we reached a significant milestone at the GA, where we had the opportunity to co-present with WP2 the up-to-date challenges, use cases, and detailed requirements for all the pilots involved. This achievement was the culmination of a series of co-creative workshops, one-on-one meetings and pilot case presentations, forming the foundation for comprehensive mindmaps, the distillation of epics and requirements, and the integration of macro-meso-micro scale needs. It was a collaborative effort across work packages 2-4-5-7, Climate Alliance and South Pole, demonstrating the power of the Living Lab approach.
Day 1: co-creation and validation
The first day of the GA started with a detailed explanation of the pilot requirements to the technical teams. After, these requirements were validated by the pilot cities, and a workshop brought together front-runner and follower cities, alongside technical partners, to fine-tune the use cases and define the main priorities. The discussions were lively, interactive and very productive, setting the stage for the next steps in technical development, Living Lab designs and Nature Based Solutions (NBS) implementations.
Day 2: from requirements to technical solutions
On the second day, Digital Flanders had the honour of presenting the overall approach for the next steps in the project to the technical teams. We discussed the upcoming feasibility check of the validated requirements list, the subsequent translation into JIRA tasks and the follow-up plan for JIRA tasks. During a joint exercise, we found a general approach to transforming use cases and requirements into tangible technical solutions – ranging from Digital Twins and KPI dashboards to co-creation and participation tools – leveraging the expertise of all technical partners to build a comprehensive and hands-on toolbox. During the upcoming weeks, the prioritised use cases of all front-runner cities will be worked out in detail, together with the involved climatic zone pilots.
Day 3: Living Lab insights and future directions
For Digital Flanders, the third day was dedicated to sharing the results of previous Living Lab exercises, which provided valuable insights into the current (as-is) and desired (to-be) users and processes for the Living Labs throughout the use case phases. The Madrid Cluster presented valuable lessons learned from their experience in Madrid, and we wrapped up the session with a co-creative workshop where enthusiastic pilots shared their expectations and visions for potential approaches moving forward. Next on the radar is the Living Lab establishment to support the joint efforts to design, implement and evaluate Nature Based Solutions.
Final thoughts
This General Assembly was an intensive and highly rewarding experience. A huge thank you to the Madrid Cluster for their flawless organisation and insightful presentations. We also thoroughly enjoyed the tour of the Madrid Rio project and the bike ride through the Villaverde district, where we explored various nature-based solutions firsthand. We look forward to continuing this exciting journey with all partners, advancing our shared goals.