Public Sector Innovation through Co-Production in LL Environments

• In Event: Co-creating or Testing Scalable Societies? Test Beds and Living Labs as Emerging Innovation Policy Instruments - II

Abstract

Pragmatist approaches to PSI is best engaged through research-action which gives the possibility of organising concrete activities engaging the actors (officials and end users) themselves. The article will propose the very first analysis of a recent research action developped in Belgium in “emergency planning and crisis management” : many actors (local officials and associated disciplines such as police, firemen, urgency medical groups and the army) asked me to help them develop new approaches for developing tools enhancing the possibility of “learning by experience”. We developped a “Living Labs” environment, which is user-centric and contribute to strengthen users’ involvement and access to common resources, (Schaffers et al. 2011). The protocole was based on focus groups, interviews, Delphi on line inquiries, scenario workshops in order to 1) visualise the processes and concerns of the participants, 2) help them creatively design alternative approaches and 3) test the propositions in local setting before launching the design dynamic upfront (Bason 2017). The main issue was to organise cooperation between these groups of professionals from different disciplines to help them develop together a shared undertanding of what means “learning from experience between disciplines”. The fieldwork mobilised an interpretative methodology for analysing framings, boundaries, institutional discourses, actors identities and relations: the paper will concentrate on the analysis of some significant points of achievements.

Author

• Catherine FALLON, Liege University