The Living Lab methodology from Citilab-Cornell

Isidor Fernndez
Head Social Media Lab in Citilab-Cornell
isidor@citilab.eu

Membership Application from Citilab Cornell to in the 3r wave ENOLL (European Network of
Living Labs). Lyon, November 2008.

A community that learns by itself

Citilab-Cornell is an experimental Institution based in the LivingLab model, in the citizens,
enterprise, public administration and research centers find a stakeholder in the innovation process.
Operate the innovation like centre of dissemination and outreach and technological learning which
intends to promote from the citizen ship, using the models and the tools of the social Internet like a
transforming instrument and not like a purpose in itself.
The net becomes like this a vehicle of expression, but also an only instrument to learn, to know
other persons with similar interests, to sustain the family in touch, to understand our environment
and to participate in the construction of the future own. The personal motivation is the engine of the
learning in Citilab-Cornell, and depending on how it develops and interacts with the motivations of
the other members of the digital community (or citilabers) they keep on being acquired some
knowledge or other.
Many persons are refractory in the technology, simply, because they do not see a relationship with
the day on day of theirs lives and they presuppose, moreover, a level of unattainable complexity. In
this sense, the commitment to the Foundation for the Promotion of the Knowledge Society it is to
contribute to the reduction in the phenomenon of "the digital crack", clearly generational, that still
divides the persons today among those that are in the world and those that continue on the other
side of the net connected.

The Living Lab

Citilab-Cornella is Living Lab project of the non-profit Private Foundation for Building the Society of
Knowledge, whose aim is to promote make an open community that learns by itself, supporting the
values of innovation and creativity to build a society of knowledge available to everyone.
To promote the knowledge society among the citizenry, business and public administration in
Catalonia and the entire territory of the Spanish state. Projecting its values abroad through
partnerships with organizations linked to the development of the knowledge society. Citilab is a
specific case of Living Lab, concern that involves in a same innovative environment the public and
private sector, citizens and other research canters. Unlike other approaches, this laboratory
validates his technologies, products, services and business models on real time, in real population
areas that provide complex answers related to social behaviors and conditioning factors involved.
The most innovative view of this model is that, contrary to the classical science/technology
dynamics, research and innovation progress in parallel, feeding mutually. The singularity of Citilab
is that incorporates direct experiences gathered by citizen networks during several years of activity
in Catalonia -the Cornella.net, in this case- a quite unusual fact in such large projects. This Open
Innovation concept is the frameworks that bind together the members of CatLab, the Catalan
Network of Living Labs, promoted by the Secretariat for the Information Society of the Catalan
Government, and the I2 Cat Foundation. Citilab is part of common projects that foresee Catalonia
as a large Social Laboratory and keep a permanent contact with leading research groups
worldwide focused on learning and innovation.
Citizens involvement
The principal participative citizen in Citilab it is a neighbors of Cornell and the Barcelona
Metropolitan area. Including other people who access to training programs and the information
contained in the disclosure of Citilab-Cornell.
Citilab-Cornell offers free in form to all newcomers that a set of basic learning that constitutes a
true "school of digital pipeline" is not yet familiarized with the new technologies. The contents are
structured at three levels, more one introductory that is followed by everybody, independently of
which its level of knowledge is:
Level 0: Welcome. How does Citilab work? Tools for connect. Photographing, filming and writing to
Internet. Like organizing and constructing groups of project in the ninth Internet.
Level 1: Expressing and collaborating on the net with tools (blog's, wiki, social nets and media)
Level 2: Programming
For those, which they do not know yet, how to program: Scratch and Squeak.
For those which already they know how to program (professionals and hackers): SmallTalk ,
Java, C++, Scheme, Flex, Ruby on Rails, Mashups, Perl, Python, PHP
Level 3: Construction
Like constructing the infrastructure of the same Internet personal and shared Nets. Nets Wi-
Fi open civic citizens. Infrastructures in grid computing and civic p2p
Construction of the new Internet. Web services, Grid Computing, Infrastructures Wifi.
Specific experience from users/citizens engagement:
1. Users who want to learn and improve their standard.
2. Students from different disciplines with motivated to carry out innovation projects.
3. Professionals in technology and the information society to develop innovative projects
aimed at citizenship.

Service creation and business mode

The functionality of the building corresponds to the distribution of the floors: at level of street there
are the spaces of technological divulging and of free connection, with more than 100 portable
computers at the disposal of the citilabers, which can also go with its own team, if they wish it.
Adjacent in this big common space there are several spaces of experimentation, like Forma Lab,
for the development of virtual learning, Media Lab, a concept of mediateca of new generation
where the same users bring them good part of the audiovisual contents, or Familiy Lab, designed
to explore the possibilities of intergenerational learning between the biggest and the smallest of
house.
In the first floor the classrooms, ones provided with blackboards digital interactive and the space
are found where linked companies TIC are installed to projects of Citilab-Cornell.
The second floor is for the production of audiovisual and multimedia content, which will host the
Social Media Lab, a space to explore the possibilities generated by the convergence of audio-
visual platforms on the Internet (IPTV).
The values created per skateholders is the collaborative environment for developer a projects in
the knowledge society, the synergy of the community that learns by itself, with input from citizens.
Building the knowledge society as a value exponentially among citizens with the capacity of social
and technological innovation.

The infrastucture
Placed in the antique factory of Can Suris, Citilab-Cornell lodges a series of digital equipment of
new generation. The building of the antique factory has been in a architectural project that has
sustained the manufacturing essence of the 19th century completely reconstructed and has
allowed the adequacy of new spaces in accordance with the new uses of the 21st century.

To manage all this collection of knowledge the Private Foundation has been created for the
Promotion of the Society Knowledge, that the attendant is from making this so ambitious project
viable. Its goals are to promote the new digital culture of the society knowledge, to pass approach
to the public the last technological innovations, to sustain the social cohesion in the new digital era
and to promote formative activities.
Technological infrastructure of the centre available to the user:
Over a hundred computers for free public access for Citilabers
1 Gb broadband connecting.
Three modular spaces for training, presentations and learning, separated from each other
soundproof folding panels. The rooms are equipped with digital interactive whiteboards and
high luminance projectors. Each individual room has a capacity of 75-seated people and
150 standing.
Auditorium for accommodation 300 sitting people, whit two high luminance projection
systems, HD full robotized digital cameras for streaming, infrared dynamic sound system,
automatic realization and production control and two simultaneous translation rooms.
Independents booths of 30sq2 for technological companies that are starting as business
and that cooperate with the research and innovation lines of Citilab-Cornell.
Six boots exist in the hall between the two rows of company boxes, designed in order to
keep their acoustic isolation while keeping them connected to the surroundings.
 The centre is open 24 hours for companies and projects. For citizens is from 16:00 to 22:00
hours.

Expertise of Citilab
Citilab Cornella opens the centre and the services for citizen in November 2007. This has been
possible to group of management, with the great experience since 1997, in the creation and
management of Cornell Community Networking and BCNET Community Networking. The
members of the research team have a strong experience in cultural management, audiovisual
production and development of digital communities networking.
Cocreation facilitation expertise and experience is based in the collaborative model is defining a
different way to create knowledge. Each individual has the capacity to find out more with a high
level of knowledge, multiplying the opportunities of creating new projects and building new
technological, social or innovate possibilities. This advantage enables greater flexibility to
recognize and to value knowledge, no matter where it is generated. Citilab-Cornell works
permanently in developing new research models that allow articulating social networks, groups and
institutions that grow more and faster thanks to mutual collaboration.
Citilab methodology is based on the knowledge of people, especially in their experience as
individuals and professionals, assembling a staff that includes the following profiles: Digital
journalist, Anthropologist, Telecommunications Engineering, System Engineering, Senior
Developer, Educational Technology Specialist, Technologist teacher, Multimedia Engineering,
Cultural Management, Sociologist, Historian, Product Manager, Visual Artist.

Methods, tools and processes

The goal in Citilab-Cornell is not to form users, but builders of technology. The main contribution
of this initiative is that works simultaneously all the dimensions of the construction of society of
information and knowledge.
As citizens: promoting the aspects of active participation typical of the technological culture.
As constructors of technologies: enabling for the practice in projects and communities.
As innovators: knowledge for the collaborative construction again and setting forth, criticism
and responsibility in the communities of development, to the collaboration.
As entrepreneurial: facilitating the formation and the initial resources to display
entrepreneurial activities based on that learned and development in Citilab-Cornell.
To get involvement and commitment of other stakeholders in the goals of the Private Foundation
for the promotion of the Knowledge Society is to have an equipment that has the fundamental
mission of promoting and to give support to the company creation innovative, to favor its growth
and to facilitate its positioning in the entrepreneurial issue.
All that is learned in Citilab and his environment helps to build a framework of the new knowledge
that they will be a advantage for a wide range of actors. This dynamics allows him offer to facilitate
collaboration and co-creation in-between different stakeholders and build all together, services of
great interest for a ever changing society and economy.
- Living Labs
- Flash Meetings
- Consulting in innovation
- Environments for testing technology
- Collaborative platforms
- Methodology for technological education and popularization
- Technological monitoring
- Consulting in energizing communities
To manage living lab related data, information and knowledge, the research work done on the
Citilab environment is always connected to what is happening in a global scale. A new way of
innovate starting from people initiative, willing to take risks in exploration, exploiting the value of the
diversity, taking advantage of using open spaces of collaboration and creating a common
background of knowledge among citizens, research groups, companies and institutions.

Organization and governance

Citilab-Cornell is promoted by the Private Foundation for the Promotion of the Society of the
Knowledge of which they are part the Town Council of Cornell de Llobregat, The Regional
Government of Barcelona, the Generalitat de Catalunya, the World Trade Centre Almeda Park,
Siemens, the Polytechnic University of Catalonia and the Catalan Foundation for the Research and
Innovation.

The Citilab-Cornell participates in and promotes among its users the Catalan Networks of Living
Labs. In this environment collaborate with the TecnoCampus Mataro, Fundation Barcelona Digital,
Neapolis, Foundation i2Cat and the Secretary of Telecommunications and Society of Information.
Also works with various national institutions to create the Hispalab, the Spanish Network of Living
Labs.

Replies on the model of Living Lab, mixed entity public / private where the citizens, companies,
public organizations and centers of research involve themselves in the process of innovation,
unlike the laboratories and conventional centers of research, the living labs. Allow to create and to
validate technologies, products, services, and models of business in environments and real and
daily contexts. The singularity of Citilab is that it incorporates. The experiences of activity years of
the civic nets in Catalonia, in this case the community networking Cornella.net, Which is not
frequent in projects of these dimensions. This concept of open innovation is the one that
agglutinates the members of the Catalan net of Living Labs, Catlab , presented recently by two of
their main instigators, Secretarys Office for the Society of the information of Generalitat de
Catalunya and the Foundation i2CAT in the Centre of Culture Contemporary of Barcelona .Citilab
is part of a common project that contemplates Catalonia like a big social Laboratory an it sustain s
a the same time permanent connection with top groups of all the world, in research as well as in
innovation and learning.

Citilab Cornell
http://citilab.eu