Living Labs (LLs) are open innovation ecosystems in real-life environments based on a systematic user co-creation approach that integrates research and innovation activities in communities, placing citizens at the centre of innovation.
The EU-funded GILL project developed a pan-European collaboration Hub grounded in Living Lab principles as a framework for European actors committed to open, gender-responsive innovation. The project co-created and validated sustainable mechanisms to increase Gender Responsive Smart Innovation and Entrepreneurship (GRSIE) across European ecosystems.
GILL, coordinated be ENoLL, the largest international network of Living Labs, focused on four macro-objective: (I) to enable organisational and cultural change, (II) to enhance professional development, (III) to increase the integration of gender and diversity into product design, technologies, and innovation, (IV) to allow gendered educational practices.
These objectives were operationalised through 15 Action Oriented Experimentations (AOEs) conducted in eight European countries, engaging stakeholders from the Quadruple Helix model: citizens, public authorities, academia, and the private sector.
Through two full iterative cycles structured around understand, co-design, implement, and evaluate phases, GILL generated validated methodologies, tools and services for GRSIE. The project consolidated more than 40 gender-responsive methods and made them publicly accessible through the GILL Hub, which evolved into a fully operational digital ecosystem integrating many different resources.
By enabling cross-country experimentation and joint validation, GILL created a shared evidence base and a common methodological language for gender-responsive innovation in Europe.
