News

Living Labs: A Strategic Approach to Advancing the European Commission’s Missions and Partnerships

Date: 30th of May
Morning Session: 8:30-12:45 CEST
Afternoon Session: 14:00-17:30 CEST

Venue

Room: Conference room

Address: Rue de la Loi / Wetstraat, 227 – 1040 Brussels

Event Overview

Join us for a comprehensive policy event focused on the pivotal role of Living Labs in advancing the European Commission’s Missions and Partnerships. This event will highlight how Living Labs have emerged as a transformative approach, integrating researchers, citizens, and stakeholders to tackle Europe’s most pressing challenges.

Morning Session: Advancing the European Commission’s Missions

The morning session will delve into the European Commission’s five ambitious Missions, which address critical global challenges: A Soil Deal for Europe, Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities, Adaptation to Climate Change, Beating Cancer, and Healthy Oceans, Seas, Coastal and Inland Waters. Participants will hear from Mission representatives and European Commission officials about the significant impact of Living Labs in supporting these Missions and fostering innovation.

Key Highlights:

  • Insights from successful Living Lab projects.
  • Roundtable discussions with European Commission Heads of Units.
  • Dialogues on leveraging Living Labs for innovation and impact.

 Agenda

8.30 -9.14 Welcome coffee  
9.15 – 9.30 Opening Ignasi Centelles Santana, Representative of the Government of Catalonia to the European UnionEvdokimos Kostantinidis, ENoLL Chair

Artur Serra, Deputy director i2CAT/Colaboratoris Catalunya

9.30 – 9.45 Understanding Living Labs Evdokimos Kostantinidis, ENoLL Chair
9.45 – 11.00 Roundtable: Living Labs in the EU Missions  “Living Labs: A Catalyst for Innovation and Impact in Achieving the European Commission’s Missions” 

Moderator: Martina Desole, ENoLL Director 

Kerstin Rosenow, Head of Unit Research and Innovation’ DG AGRI, Head of Mission Secretariat‘- Mission A Soil Deal for EuropePhilippe Froissard, Head of Unit Strategy, Policy Coordination & Urban Transitions – Mission 100 Climate-Neutral Cities by 2030

Philippe Tulkens, Head of Unit Climate and Planetary Boundaries DG RTD– Deputy Mission Manager Mission Adaptation to Climate Change

Elisabetta Balzi, Head of Unit Mission and Partnerships Oceans and Waters DG RTD, Mission Restore our Ocean and Waters

Jan Willem Van de Loo, PhD, Cancer Theme Lead – Science and stakeholders DG RTD – Cancer Mission Senior Expert cancer research

and innovation

11.00 – 11.40 Projects supporting the EU missionsModerator: Evdokimos Kostantinidis, ENoLL Chair SOILL Startup/Nati00ns, Giulia Campodonico, Head of Projects ENoLL, Porject CoordinatorFairClimate, Pablo Cabanelas, Project Coordinator

BlueMissionMed, Fedra Francocci CNR, Project Coordinator

NetZeroCities, Anthony Zacharzewski, President, Democratic Society, Brussels

4P-CAN, Marius Geanta, INOMED President, Project Coordinator

11.40 – 12.20 Roundtable: Lessons Learned fromLiving Lab InitiativesModerator: Georgia Ayfantopoulou, Deputy director of CERTH-HIT, Research Director at CERTH-HIT Artur Serra, Deputy director i2CAT/ Colaboratoris CatalunyaPanagiotis Bamidis, Director of the Lab of Medical Physics and Digital Innovation in the School of Medicine of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUTH), Thess-AHALL Living Lab

Jokin Garatea, Coordinator Ozean Living Lab

Korinna Varga, Head of Agricultural Policy Research Group OMKI Living Lab

Riccardo Saraco, Torino City Lab

12.30 – 12.45 Closing remarks Evdokimos Kostantinidis, ENoLL ChairMartina Desole, ENoLL Director 
12.45 – 14.00 Networking Luch

Afternoon Session: Exploring the Role and Potentialities of Living Labs in European Partnerships

The afternoon session will explore how Living Labs serve as innovation ecosystems that bring together people, technology, and organizations to co-create and test new solutions to societal challenges. The focus will be on the contribution of Living Labs within European Partnerships, which aim to address complex challenges and drive innovation across various sectors.

Key Highlights:

  • Examination of current and future collaborations.
  • Discussion on the transformative impact of Living Labs in European Partnerships.
  • Compilation of insights into a comprehensive report for broader dissemination.

Agenda

14.15– 14.30 Opening and Welcoming Evdokimos Kostantinidis, ENoLL ChairArtur Serra, Deputy director i2CAT/Colaboratoris Catalunya
14.30– 14.45 Understanding Living Labs Evdokimos Kostantinidis, ENoLL Chair
14.45– 16.00 Roundtable: Living Labs in the EU Partnerships“Leveraging Living Labs to Maximize the Impact of EU Partnerships”

Moderator: Artur Serra, Deputy director i2CAT/ Colaboratoris Catalunya

Susana Gaona Saez, Research Programme Officer, DG Agri Unit for Research and InnovationSimone Maccaferri, Project Officer Circular Biobased Europe Joint Undertaking (CBE JU)

Tiina Laiho, Head of services and communicaLons at CLIC InnovaLon Oy Clean Energy TransiLon Partnership

Johannes Riegle, FFG DUT Digital Urban TransiLon FFG (video)

16.00 – 17.00 Roundtable: Lessons Learned from Living Lab Initiatives  Moderator: Evdokimos Konstantindis, ENoLL Chair Marta Martorel, Director of DST group i2CATValentino Piana, Senior policy Manager HES-SO Energy Living Lab

Bram Lievens, Senior Researcher IMEC and Research Valorisation Manager IMEC/SMIT

Panagiotis Bamidis, Director of the Lab of Medical Physics and Digital Innovation in the School of Medicine of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUTH), Thess-AHALL Living Lab

17.00 – 17.30 Q&A and Closing Evdokimos Kostantinidis, ENoLL Chair

Join us for a day filled with insightful discussions, best practices, and collaborative opportunities aimed at driving positive change across Europe through the power of Living Labs.

Event Registration

You can register for the event here.

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