Meraka Institute

Living Lab network in Southern Africa (LLiSA)

SAFIPA conference 20 October 2011

Marlien Herselman Chairperson: LLiSA

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Presentation Outline

•  The concept •  Defining LL in African context •  The Purpose of LLiSA and LL in LLiSA •  Value proposition of LLiSA •  What makes LLiSA a success •  SAFIPA supporting LLiSA

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Defining LL in Africa context •  Living Labs are environments, a methodology or an

approach which caters for user-driven open innovation within real-life rural and urban settings/communities, where users can collaborate with multiple committed stakeholders (whether NGOs, SMMEs, industrial, academic/research, government institutions or donors) in one or more locations, to become co-creators or co-designers of innovative ideas, processes or products within multidisciplinary environments.

•  Successful deployments can result in improved processes or service delivery, new business models, products or services, and can be replicated (with necessary socio-cultural adaption) to improve overall quality of life and wider socio-economic impact (including entrepreneurship) in participating and other communities”.

•  Leveraging Living Labs methodologies and Living Labs Networks in Africa provide an important opportunity to collaborate, co-create, prototype and test new products and services, technologies, processes, business models or ideas customised for developing markets

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Purpose of LLiSA

•  Create capacity for understanding, establishing and developing LL activities in Southern Africa

•  Support Living Labs in Southern Africa •  Facilitate local and international collaboration

and linkages •  Links developers, research organizations,

industry and government together for advancing regional LL activities

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2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

1 Meraka visit to Europe

Meraka researchers invited by Telematica Instituut

1st living lab practitioners workshop held in

RSA (Ingrid Mulder, Daan Velthausz)

LLiSA official launch

Provincial road shows

along with SAFIPA

2nd Annual Conference focus

on sustainability and funding

2. Telematica Instituut visit to South Africa

Establishment of Living Labs Research Group at CSIR, Meraka Institute

Living Lab research agenda (draft)

Establishment of the

Board of LLiSA

Living Labs evaluation (conducted by

Deon)

MoA between ENOLL and

LLiSA

3. Living Lab research plan (short, medium & long term goals)

1st annual conference

Living Labs Business Plan

Web 2.0 for LLiSA

llisa.net

4. C@R meeting, Prague

1st international online journal Article published

COFISA closing conference

Living Labs @ IST Africa Conference 10

May

5. Living Labs tour in Finland (funded by COFISA)

LLiSA branding completed

Incubation of new LL & toolkit, comm strategy

6. Sekhukhune LL accepted as ENOLL member

Siyakhula LL Accepted as ENOLL member

LLiA task force & white paper;

Paper on LL & design research to journal

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Living Labs in LLiSA

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Data of LL in LLiSA

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Value proposition of LLiSA •  Context we can provide – specific rural communities – poverty reduction – skills development

– from a SA rural perspective •  Network with NGOs, local municipalities, government, HEI, industries, SMMEs, community

representatives •  Lessons on scalability, impact & evaluation •  Guidelines on setting up and maintaining LL – lessons, experience gained (toolkit) •  Allow communities access to new innovation creation (co-creation) as they are drivers of the

process •  Trust relationships, diversity of network, community owned •  Quality feedback on community engagement with new ideas, inventions and innovations •  Access to depth of network and wide range of customer base •  Support to SMMEs on valuable lessons learnt and best practices •  Can provide links between different projects within LL •  Credible network with lot of members and access to communities to test products and do

research collaboratively •  Technological products & success: JAMiiX, baseline studies, feasibility needs assessment

framework •  Grew together: sponsored workshops, outsource case studies to NWLL, Communication

strategy and webpage (RLabs), workshop hosting (Rlabs & Siyakhula)

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What makes LLiSA a success?

•  Hosting entity – independent (Meraka) •  LLiSA board – insight & transparency with portfolios, broad representation •  Using specific community focus with DI and CI as key area for comparing and

collaboration in Africa & international •  Use our small entity as a strength to get work done & leverage LL expertise •  Have regular face-to-face interactions and workshops with specific focus/

theme •  Focus on successes of existing LL – best practices/replication and why LL fail

– also product testing between LL •  Research LL from all angles •  Share networks, knowledge & skills transfer & ideas, replication of models •  Databases of users, industry involvement, stakeholder maps and unique

focus of LL •  Write collaborative & scientific papers •  Market LL to each other and to potential funders/partners •  Uniqueness of each LL focus = contributions not only on ICT •  Established and new LL – part of network

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SAFIPA support to LLiSA •  Strengthen and market concept as solution to innovation in

SA •  Collaborating with experts in ENoLL and Finnland •  Workshops on specific themes and to bring all stakeholders

together •  LL to co-create and collaborate across SA •  White Paper on growing LL into Africa •  Visit ENoLL on logistical issues (share best practices) -

MoU •  Develop toolkit to set-up and grow LLs •  Develop social media type webpapge •  Provide leadership on LL activities •  Support new and established LL •  Evaluation of LLs •  Scientific papers

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Thank You