Report: Living Labs need to look broader than a local technical solution

Local Living Labs can rise above the level of experimentation if they look beyond their, often technical, solutions. It helps to take into account earnings models, laws and the preferences and interests of citizens from the start. Finding connections with other initiatives is also important to be able to scale up.

This is stated by the Rathenau Instituut in its recently published research report "Beyond local enthusiasm: Lessons for scaling up living labs" (only available in Dutch). Medical Delta is one of the parties that cooperated in the investigation.

According to the Rathenau Institute, living labs can play an important role in the mission-driven innovation advocated by the government. This mainly concerns parts where social value creation lies at the heart of the approach

Four lessons

The Rathenau Institute distilled four lessons that initiators, participants and funders of living labs and local experiments can use to give their results a broader and more sustainable outcome.

The first lesson is that it is important that living labs are not only used to learn about an innovation, but also about its social embedding. The living labs also have to take into account from the very beginning that after the local experiment a lot of follow-up work is still needed to make the solution suitable for other locations.

In addition, it is smart to find the connection with a larger program so that exchange and mutual learning between local initiatives becomes possible. And finally, intermediary organizations are needed to make connections between parties, locations and other initiatives.

Recognition for Medical Delta's Living Labs approach

“The report shows that the existing Medical Delta Living Labs are on the right track. Among other things by focusing on embedding in healthcare practice, bridging the gap with the larger academic programs and seeking cooperation with private partners. New Living Labs are also formed along this line. In this respect we can regard the results of the Rathenau report as a recognition of our approach, "said Gertine van der Vliet, director of Medical Delta.

In addition to the existing Medical Delta Living Labs, Medical Delta is currently setting up new Living Labs together with lecturers from four colleges in South Holland. These will be launched at the Medical Delta Conference on 14 April.