DC Living Labs

Home DC Living Labs

DC Living Lab is an international student exchange program focused on creativity and innovation, powered by the Districts of Creativity Network. It offers students from all the Districts of Creativity (DC) the opportunity to work in an international team to tackle real challenges within the Creative and Cultural Industries (CCIs).

The program runs in a hybrid format this year, combining a 5-day online bootcamp from March 18-22, 2024 (online), and an in-person workshop and presentations during the Creativity World Forum (CWF) from April 15-17, 2024 (Bilbao, Basque Country).

The 2024 edition will be coordinated by KSIgune, the Cluster for Cultural and Creative Industries in the Basque Country, and Travelling U/TAZEBAEZ, an educational cooperative that designs international learning experiences based on three main pillars: collaborative learning, human-centered design, and entrepreneurship.

Download full brochure

DC Living Labs 2024 in a nutshell

4 key challenges that connect with the key topics of the forum
24 international students working on the challenges at hand in groups of 6 people
Challenge owners from DC Living Labs districts that bring context and realness to the challenges
Hybrid process of shared workshops and working sessions online, and in person training and presentations during the forum. Online platform and support of digital tools of creation
A coherent process aligned with the CWF and integrated on its development

Challenges

The program is designed to address challenges within the CCIs. The challenges are hosted by four companies and partner organizations from the Basque Country District of Creativity network and are related to the four key thematic areas of the CWF24.

TA1 - Reimagine Urban Space: Collaborative Governance Models powered by Urbanbat

TA2 - Future Rides: Exploring Tomorrow's Vehicle Interior powered by Automotive Intelligence Center - AIC

TA3 - Sustainable Soundscapes: Building An Authentic Connection With Millennials And Gen Z Through Sustainability powered by Last Tour

TA4 - The Future Of Fashion Education: Can We Create Cutting-Edge Biomaterials For The Fashion Industry Using Virtual Tools And Resources From Nearby Businesses? powered by Elisa Palomino and BIAAF

Challenge title:
THE FUTURE OF FASHION EDUCATION: CAN WE CREATE CUTTING-EDGE BIOMATERIALS FOR THE FASHION INDUSTRY USING VIRTUAL TOOLS AND RESOURCES FROM NEARBY BUSINESSES?

What strategies can be employed to actively engage students in hands-on projects transforming waste from local industries, offering practical experience in sustainable material innovation while simultaneously empowering them with the virtual skills required to actively contribute to the ongoing transformation of the fashion industry towards sustainability ?

How can we effectively address the shift towards sustainability in the global fashion industry by developing innovative educational programs that equip the next generation of fashion professionals with the necessary skills for this transformative journey?

The challenge is connected with the thematic area of Education and Research in CCIs, one of the key topics inside of the Creativity World Forum 2024.

Challenge owner:
BIAAF & ELISA PALOMINO

Bilbao International Art & Fashion (BIAAF) is a nonprofit organization focused on showcasing talented, innovative, and radically creative young fashion designers from around the world.

Consistently staying connected with emerging designers, renowned fashion schools, and experts in the global fashion industry, BIAAF goes beyond its primary fashion contest function by organizing various initiatives. These include forums, conferences, and training activities held in prestigious institutions. https://biaaf.com/

Elisa Palomino, with 25 years of experience designing for luxury brands such as John Galliano and Christian Dior, bridges fashion, education and anthropology. With a PhD in Anthropology and Sustainable Fashion from the London College of Fashion, she is an international lecturer and has held the position of Director of Fashion Print at Central Saint Martins, leading sustainable innovations.

She has led EU funded projects like FishSkin and earned prestigious fellowships. As a Research Associate at the Smithsonian, she specializes in Arctic Indigenous Fashion. Elisa actively contributes to BIAAF.

http://www.fishskinlab.com
https://www.linkedin.com/in/elisa-palomino-7040a110/

A different timeline adapted to the academic calendar

DC living labs have a different working methodology and timeline aligned with the academic calendar.

The launching phase and selection to attract both challenge owners and students will be done by January 2024. In February 2024 they will start working remotely to culminate the process in person in the CWF24.

Big picture of the process

The process combines an hybrid working methodology, as follows:

5 days online bootcamp
The process culminates in an in-person workshop inside the CWF as well as in person presentations for industry professionals for quality feedback and collaboration opportunities
The process is accompanied by process owners and facilitators from TZBZ-Travelling U that lead all the teams through the leading methodology.
The small teams are also accompanied by voices from the industry/ Challenge Owners by at least 3 designed and planned interactions.
Challenge Owners will play a key role in bringing insights of the industry and helping the teams to land the challenge in a concrete context.
The process is supported by digital tools to enable quality work both in sessions and asynchronous.

Main methodology

A specific methodology has been designed for the DC Living Lab, and all teams will follow it throughout the process, both online and in person. The collaborative sessions ensure that all the teams move forward coherently and have all the tools necessary to keep advancing and present good-quality solutions during the CWF24.

Online Bootcamp
March 18-22, 2024
5 days, 4h working sessions

Five days, four-hour working sessions, supported by Challenge Owners, experts, and facilitators.

These sessions go through five key phases:

Understanding and diving deeper into the topic, context, and research into what already exists and may be relevant to the challenge at hand.
Combining the participants’ knowledge with new knowledge found through research and connecting with experts and challenge owners.
Creating solutions to the challenges through design thinking processes and future thinking tools.
Contrasting the designed solutions with industry representatives and preparing the final deliverable.
Presenting the outcomes and creating a roadmap for the CWF24.

Creativity World Forum 2024
Bilbao, Basque Country
April 15-17, 2024

DC Living Lab’s final highlight invites the participants to join the Creative World Forum in person. In the forum, the participants will:

Participate in the conference and the activities the Basque Country Creative District organizes.
Take part in one last in-person training session that culminates with pitching their final presentation to industry professionals for quality feedback and future collaboration opportunities.

Thematic Areas