NEXUS4Future Living Lab

NEXUS4Future Living Lab is an innovation and experimentation platform located in Northeast Portugal, developed through three territorial pilots in Macedo de Cavaleiros, Miranda do Douro, and Alfândega da Fé. Led by Bragança Polythecnic University (Portugal) this Living Lab applies a place-based approach to innovation by connecting academia, local governments, businesses, and communities to co-create solutions addressing regional challenges. Through collaborative experimentation, NEXUS4Future translates the Living Lab methodology into practical territorial development initiatives. The pilots align innovation, skills development, and applied research with regional priorities, fostering sustainable economic growth, social cohesion, and territorial attractiveness.

Context and Challenge

Many rural regions in Europe face challenges such as population decline, ageing communities, and limited economic diversification. In Northeast Portugal, territories like Macedo de Cavaleiros, Miranda do Douro, and Alfândega da Fé combine strong cultural heritage and natural resources with demographic and economic pressures. Addressing these challenges requires closer collaboration between local communities, institutions, and knowledge organisations. The NEXUS4Future Living Lab creates collaborative environments where students, researchers, local authorities, and community actors work together to explore solutions that strengthen local economies, support social cohesion, and promote sustainable territorial development.

Mission

The objective of the NEXUS4Future Living Lab is to promote place-based innovation that supports sustainable regional development in rural territories. By connecting academic knowledge with real territorial challenges, the Living Lab fosters collaborative experimentation where stakeholders co-design and test solutions responding to local needs while creating opportunities for economic, social, and cultural development. The initiative contributes to strengthening regional innovation ecosystems by supporting interdisciplinary collaboration, encouraging youth engagement and entrepreneurship, and promoting the valorisation of local resources and cultural heritage. Through its activities, NEXUS4Future aligns with multiple RIS3 priorities (Regional Smart Specialisation Strategies that guide innovation investments in European regions).

What We Do

EXUS4Future Living Lab operates through territorial experimentation and collaborative problem-solving, structured around challenge portfolios developed with local stakeholders. The Living Lab focuses on three main territorial pilots:

Macedo de Cavaleiros

This pilot focuses on strengthening the regional economic fabric and business innovation. Key challenges include promoting collaboration between local companies, supporting the brand transformation of a traditional regional cheese producer, improving management systems in artisanal production, and exploring innovative ways to add value to forest and wood resources.

Miranda do Douro

This pilot focuses on cultural heritage, rural value chains, and wellbeing in ageing communities. Activities include developing asinine-mediated activities (therapeutic or recreational activities involving donkeys) for elderly groups, promoting the Mirandese language (a recognised regional minority language spoken in the Miranda do Douro area) in contemporary contexts, attracting new breeders for Mirandesa cattle (a traditional Portuguese cattle breed), supporting the recognition of the Music of the Lands of Miranda (a traditional musical heritage of the region) as intangible cultural heritage, and exploring higher-value uses for wool as an agricultural by-product.

Alfândega da Fé

This pilot addresses demographic renewal, social cohesion, and territorial attractiveness. Challenges include promoting youth entrepreneurship and sustainable businesses, improving agricultural productivity through accessible technological innovation, strengthening the municipality’s attractiveness as a place to live and invest, improving health and social support for dispersed elderly populations, supporting the integration of immigrant communities, and creating opportunities for diaspora investment in local development.

Activities and Impact

The NEXUS4Future Living Lab generates impact through collaborative activities that connect academia with local communities and stakeholders.

Kickoff Sessions

Each pilot begins with a launch event where participants are introduced to the Living Lab, its objectives, and the territorial challenges. These sessions help establish working teams and initiate the co-creation process.

Stakeholder Engagement and Field Visits

Meetings with institutional representatives, local organisations, and residents allow participants to better understand territorial dynamics and collect relevant insights that inform the development of solutions.

Immersive Weeks

During intensive working periods, multidisciplinary teams of students and facilitators collaborate to refine ideas and develop proposals addressing the identified challenges. Activities include collaborative workshops, validation with partners, community input collection, and conceptual prototyping.

Hackathons and Collaborative Innovation Events

Innovation events such as hackathons provide opportunities for experimentation and creative problem-solving. For example, a 24-hour hackathon held in Carpintaria Mofreita (a local carpentry and wood innovation workshop in Macedo de Cavaleiros) focused on sustainable innovation and wood valorisation.

Final Pitch and Evaluation

The process concludes with public presentations where teams present their proposals to a jury of experts and local stakeholders, receiving feedback on the feasibility, impact, and relevance of their solutions.