Urban Living Lab for Local Regeneration. Beyond Participation in Large-scale Social Housing Estates

Living Labs are increasingly promoted as innovative tools for urban regeneration in Europe. In this contribution, we look at their potential in the context of the regeneration of large-scale social housing estates. Starting from the results of the research project SoHoLab (2017–2020) and building on the contributions of this book, we identify Living Labs as practices that are at the margin of key regeneration processes and actors but that nonetheless play an important, enabling role in triggering a more broadly supported approach to regeneration. We use the metaphor of the ‘interstice’ to identify Living Labs’ role of mediating across different social, institutional, disciplinary, departmental, and policy realms. Nevertheless, caution is warranted. Living Labs should not be considered the approach towards the urban regeneration of marginalized areas; their potential lies precisely in their hybrid and constantly transforming character. To steer regeneration practices and policies that are more inclusive, they should be accompanied by a critical and self-reflexive research attitude.