Co-Creation Dynamics in Urban Living Labs

Emma Puerari, Jotte I. J. C. De Koning, Timo Von Wirth, Philip M. Karré, Ingrid J. Mulder and Derk A. Loorbach
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Emma Puerari: Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering, Delft University of Technology, 2628 CE Delft, The Netherlands
Jotte I. J. C. De Koning: Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering, Delft University of Technology, 2628 CE Delft, The Netherlands
Timo Von Wirth: Dutch Research Institute for Transitions (DRIFT), Erasmus University Rotterdam, 3062 PA Rotterdam, The Netherlands
Philip M. Karré: Research Group City Dynamics, Inholland University of Applied Sciences, 3072 AG Rotterdam, The Netherlands
Ingrid J. Mulder: Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering, Delft University of Technology, 2628 CE Delft, The Netherlands
Derk A. Loorbach: Dutch Research Institute for Transitions (DRIFT), Erasmus University Rotterdam, 3062 PA Rotterdam, The Netherlands

Sustainability, 2018, vol. 10, issue 6, 1-18

Abstract: Citizens and urban policy makers are experimenting with collaborative ways to tackle wicked urban issues, such as today’s sustainability challenges. In this article, we consider one particular way of collaboration in an experimental setting: Urban Living Labs (ULLs). ULLs are understood as spatially embedded sites for the co-creation of knowledge and solutions by conducting local experiments. As such, ULLs are supposed to offer an arena for reflexive, adaptive, and multi-actor learning environments, where new practices of self-organization and novel (infra-) structures can be tested within their real-world context. Yet, it remains understudied how the co-creation of knowledge and practices actually takes place within ULLs, and how co-creation unfolds their impacts. Hence, this paper focuses on co-creation dynamics in urban living labs, its associated learning and knowledge generation, and how these possibly contribute to urban sustainability transitions. We analyzed empirical data from a series of in-depth interviews and were actively involved with ULLs in the Rotterdam-The Hague region in the Netherlands. Our findings show five distinct types of co-creation elements that relate to specific dynamics of participation, facilitation, and organization. We conclude with a discussion on the ambivalent role of contextualized knowledge and the implications for sustainability transitions.

Keywords: sustainability transitions; urban innovation; participatory design and planning practices; co-creation; experimentation; Rotterdam (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (31)

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