On 9 April, the Polish Living Lab Summit took place at the Poznań Supercomputing and Networking Center, a nationwide meeting of the Living Labs community, as well as representatives of science, business, and public administration. The event was co-organised with partners Krakow Technology Park (KPT) and Campus Living Lab, both accredited members of the European Network of Living Labs. The conference focused on the development of Living Labs in Poland as innovation ecosystems where solutions are created and tested in real-life conditions, with user involvement and within the quadruple helix model.
Polish Living Lab Summit, 9 April 2026 (Poznań, Poland) – Image courtesy of PCSS.
The experts Wim de Kinderen, Martina Desole, Aleksandra Petcu, and Agnieszka Włodarczyk-Gębik opened the event with a panel dedicated to the role of Living Labs in modern innovation ecosystems. Tthey discussed the value of this methodology, its evolution, its impact on public policies, and the challenges of scaling solutions from pilot projects to systemic change.
The panel on the role of Living Labs in fostering collaboration between science, technology, and industry included: Zbysław Ziemacki (Ministry of Development and Technology), Dr. Piotr W. Zawadzki (NCBR), Dr. Eng. Jakub Jasiczak (Special Purpose Vehicles Agreement / KIGEiT), Izabela Banaś (PARP), Marta Pytlarczyk (Polish Patent Office), and Emilia Wasielewska (BGK / Konin Agglomeration Association).
Polish Living Lab Summit, 9 April 2026 (Poznań, Poland) – Image courtesy of PCSS.
During the conference, Agnieszka Włodarczyk-Gębik from KPT, a partner of the SOILL-Stepup project, presented the objectives of the Horizon Europe Mission "A Soil Deal for Europe", which aims to improve soil health across Europe by establishing up to 100 Living Labs and lighthouse sites by 2030. She also presented the assets of SOILL-Stepup and the services the consortium provides.
Polish Living Lab Summit, 9 April 2026 (Poznań, Poland) – Image courtesy of PCSS.
The event provided a valuable space for networking, exchanging experiences, and discussing innovations co-created with users.