In the heart of Timișoara, Romania, something remarkable is happening at the West University of Timisoara (UVT). This institution isn’t just a place for lectures and research; it’s a thriving Living Lab, called UVT Digital and Green Living Lab, where innovation meets collaboration, and ideas are brought to life through community engagement.
When Sebastian Ștefănigă, Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science, and Senior Lecturer at UVT’s Computer Science Department, talks about Living Labs, his enthusiasm is contagious. “Imagine developing a software or hardware prototype in class,” he explains, “and then testing it with real people, often friends or family of our students. This feedback helps refine our ideas and make them practical.” For Sebastian, UVT isn’t just a university; it’s a playground for innovation, where students and professors collaborate with external partners to solve real-world problems.
This hands-on approach is a cornerstone of UVT’s identity as a Living Lab. The campus isn’t limited to traditional classrooms and labs; instead, it serves as a testing ground for solutions that can benefit the community and beyond.
One standout example of UVT’s Living Lab in action is the Green Mobility Hackathon. This event brought together students, professors, and local stakeholders to tackle the challenge of sustainable transportation. Participants developed apps to promote green mobility, and the most practical solution was implemented on campus.
“The university becomes both the creator and the first customer of these innovations,” says Alexandra Petcu, Innovation Manager at UVT’s Advanced Environmental Research Institute. “This cycle of innovation and implementation creates a continuous loop of improvement that benefits everyone involved.”
UVT’s role as a Living Lab extends beyond its campus. A recent project focused on reimagining the Cardinal Points Fountain in Timișoara exemplifies this. The initiative began with a challenge from the local water utility company, city hall representatives, and the Faculty of Arts and Design, who sought to redesign the fountain to address aesthetic, environmental, and functional concerns.
The challenge was framed as a competition among interdisciplinary teams of students from departments such as Psychology, Biology, and Design. Each team proposed solutions that integrated biodiversity, improved air quality, and enhanced public acceptance. Students consulted with citizens early in the process to understand their expectations, using this feedback to refine their designs. Over one month, eight teams produced 11 innovative solutions.
The results were showcased in an exhibition, where citizens were invited to vote for their favorite design. The project not only fostered collaboration among students from diverse fields but also gave citizens a voice in shaping their city. While the fountain’s redesign has yet to be implemented, the initiative provided valuable insights for public authorities, who now have a project with strong community backing.
“This was an end-to-end project where open innovation was key,” Alexandra explains. “It demonstrated how a university can act as a mediator between citizens and local authorities, ensuring that solutions are both innovative and widely accepted.”
At UVT, collaboration is key. The university’s Strategic Partners group (GPS UVT) includes 17 companies and public entities that help shape research and education initiatives. Additionally, over 225 entrepreneurs supported through European funding work with UVT on challenge-based learning projects. These partnerships ensure that the university’s innovations are practical, relevant, and impactful.
Andra Cenan-Glăvan, PhD candidate and former Intellectual Property Specialist at UVT and trainer for ENoLL’s Virtual Living Lab, underscores the importance of Living Labs as ecosystems that facilitate open innovation, despite the legal complexities involved. “Living Labs are an opportunity,” she says. “Maybe they could even be seen as the middle ground for something that could be much bigger than that.” Her perspective highlights how Living Labs balance innovation with legal considerations, fostering a culture of collaboration and experimentation.
This aligns with the approach championed by Alexandra Petcu, who sees Living Labs as drivers of organizational transformation. “I think it’s fundamental to locate more Living Labs in universities, and even to perceive universities as Living Labs,” she emphasizes. By integrating cognitive and technology transfer with economic operators and civil society, universities create dynamic environments for applied and experimental research.
UVT’s transformation has been further supported by its membership in the European Network of Living Labs (ENoLL). Alexandra highlights the role of ENoLL in facilitating collaboration and providing a structured framework for stakeholder engagement. “Being part of ENoLL has elevated our credibility and visibility, enabling us to attract more partners and scale our impact,” she explains.
Andra echoes this sentiment, noting how ENoLL offers a platform to address societal challenges through co-creation and innovation. This connection has been pivotal in helping UVT refine its Living Lab approach, ensuring that solutions are both effective and socially relevant.
Alexandra Petcu believes that universities are uniquely positioned to act as Living Labs. “We have traditional labs for fundamental research, but applied and experimental research happens everywhere—in classrooms, corridors, and even public spaces,” she says. “This is where real innovation thrives.”
The story of UVT demonstrates the transformative potential of universities as Living Labs. By engaging students, researchers, industry partners, and citizens, UVT has created a dynamic ecosystem where innovation flourishes. From promoting sustainable mobility to revitalizing public spaces, the university shows how academic institutions can bridge the gap between knowledge and real-world impact.
For universities worldwide, UVT’s journey offers an inspiring blueprint: embrace collaboration, focus on applied research, and put the community at the heart of innovation.
In this sense, ENoLL has launched a new Working Group – Education and Learning, which is lead by UVT Digital and Green Living Lab.
Note: This article is based on an interview conducted by Andrada Barață, Head of Communications at ENoLL, with Alexandra Petcu, Innovation Manager at the Advanced Environmental Research Institute and member of the ENoLL Council, Andra Cenan-Glăvan, Intellectual Property Specialist at UVT, and Sebastian Ștefănigă, Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science and Senior Lecturer at UVT.
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