The methods training included a workshop by Professor Dr Jochen Eckart. He is an engineer and transport ecologist at the University of Karlsruhe. He has implemented several Living Labs in the transport sector in Germany, Africa and Asia. The workshop brought together scientists and practitioners from Central Asia and Kampala, Uganda. Professor Eckart also played a leading role in the SPCE Hub’s pilot Living Lab on cycling infrastructure in Bishkek.

Professor Eckart will use his own international projects as examples to explore the topic of stakeholder management. Involving relevant stakeholders in the research process is a key element of Living Labs and increases the chances of generating practical knowledge and solutions. Stakeholder mapping is an important method for the successful design and implementation of living labs. The mapping process is carried out by the conveners during the project design process, but is updated throughout the research process.

In addition to Professor Eckart’s workshop, HKA researchers Oliver Hochlehnert and Martin Bejarano presented their living  projects MoveMore and ‘Citizens Science and Sensor Bikes – a new perspective’.

The workshop also included a scenario workshop on stakeholder involvement in urban transport planning and test rides with SensorBikes.

This workshop was part of a programme, focused on promoting German-Central Asian living lab projects. It was jointly organised by SPCE Hub, ISoG BW, and Hochschule Karlsruhe – University of Applied Sciences. The programme was financed by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) with funds from the German Foreign Federal Office.