Cross-Sectional workshops are one of the elements of the learning cycle of the Social Labs set up in the course of the NewHoRRIzon project. Due to the current pandemic crisis, the project organiser team arranged the 2nd Cross-Sectional workshop virtually.
The meeting mainly consisted of different live sessions, fostering as much as possible interactivity, and providing group work in smaller break out rooms. Members of the NewHoRRIzion project virtually shared in various sessions what was achieved by the Social Labs and exchanged what lessons could be learned from these experiences.
On day one of the workshop participants shared the present overall big picture of the pilot actions in the Social Labs. A main point were different strategies to overcome issues they faced and barriers that they encountered. Especially the exchange between different participants and the involvement of multi-stakeholder groups was considered by many workshop participants as a key factor for success.
On the second day, one break out room was especially dedicated to reflection on the Social Lab approach. For many participants, the lab was a shared learning experience. They appreciated the Social Lab workshops as suitable formats that helped them to think outside the box. In general, the Social Labs as such are seen as a suitable intervention to address complex issues, and the good experiences made in the labs need to be shared.
Recapitulating, the two-day cross-sectional workshop was very successful thanks to the large number of participants and the excellent organisation of the NewHoRRIzon organisational team. The future of RRI turned out to be a cross-sectional topic as it was discussed several times. It became clear that the principle “Science with and for Society” should not be abandoned, because if effectively implemented, it will be an enrichment for present and future research and innovation activities and projects.
