In Living Lab Lund we will test the future in reality, but what is a Living Lab actually?

Did you know that Living Lab is an established method for innovation and research? In a Living Lab, users, researchers, companies and public actors develop and test solutions together in real environments and not in a separate testing environment. The concept emerged in the late 1990s at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) , where researchers such as William Mitchell, who also coined the term, explored how new technologies could be studied in people's everyday lives rather than in traditional laboratories. In Europe, the approach gained great momentum in the 21st century, not least through the European Network of Living Labs (ENoLL) , which was founded in 2006 and today brings together around 200 members in 45 countries.

Living Labs are used worldwide in areas such as urban development, health, energy, mobility, digitalization, agriculture and social innovation.

What characterizes a Living Lab is that development and research takes place together with the people who will actually use the solutions. It often involves trying out new ideas step by step, collecting experience, adjusting and testing again. This way, the results become more relevant, usable and rooted in real needs.

For example, research can be about how housing can become more sustainable and energy-efficient, how technology in the home works in everyday life, how living environments affect safety and community, or how new mobility solutions, care services and digital services are actually used by people. There are also Living Labs that research circular construction, climate-neutral neighborhoods, the independence of the elderly in the home, the electrification of transportation and how residents can be involved in community development in a more concrete way.

When Living Lab Lund, HSB Skåne Future becomes a reality, we will be involved in driving the development together with the people who will live, live and use the solutions every day. Right now, intensive work is underway to make contacts for future research projects and find more partners.