Department Environmental Social Sciences

A real-world lab is a format of transdisciplinary research. Researchers of different disciplines and actors of diverse societal sectors jointly identify sustainable development issues, develop and implement concrete measures to address them and explore whether and how the measures work on the ground. Cooperation on equal footing is essential in this process. Social exchange is key to understanding each other’s perspective, to identifying topics of joint interest and to build trust and networks between researchers and residents.

Joint learning in Real-world Labs also includes experimental small-scale implementations of sustainability measures, so called Real-world experiments. These experiments are used to observe and analyse whether an idea works in practice and what unexpected side effects it has. If the implementation was successful, the findings from the pilot project in Jurapark Aargau can be used to initiate further Real-world Labs in other Swiss parks.

With Regional Nature Parks such as the Jurapark Aargau, the Swiss Confederation aims to preserve and enhance the cultural and natural landscape. In addition, a sustainable economy is to be promoted in the region and environmental education and awareness are to be supported. The federal administration provides the framework for sustainable development. Implementation is the responsibility of the cantons and communes. Due to their (financial) autonomy, the municipalities are key actors for sustainable development.