About LINK
About the project
Learning and Innovation Network (LINK) is a 36-month project (September 2022 – August 2025) funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union. It aims to develop and test a new "Learning and Innovation lab model" to the delivery of more integrated and person-centred health and social care services to different target groups, e.g older people, families with young children facing multiple challenges, and young people with mental health conditions.
About the partnership
LINK brings together partner organisations from seven European countries, namely:
- Research and Development Centre (R&D Centre), Linköping, Sweden
- Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim, Norway
- European Social Network (ESN), Brussels, Belgium
- Avedis Donabedian Research Institute (FAD), Barcelona, Spain
- University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia
- University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Republic of Serbia
- Zemgale Planning Region (ZPR), Jelgava, Latvia
These organisations also work in collaboration with IT University of Copenhagen (ITU), Denmark and Kinda municipality, Sweden.
About the model: "learning and innovation lab"
The LINK project is developing the ‘Learning and Innovation Lab’ approach to create new social innovations that can solve societal challenges. A learning and innovation lab can be defined as a structure that invites and creates conditions for formal and informal actors (organizations, individuals, communities) to collaboratively develop, evaluate, and spread new methods, tools and ways of working – often by addressing structural and complex challenges in the current practice. The LINK labs in particular address the need for new competencies of frontline professionals and managers to address growing pressures and increased demand in social services.
When setting up a lab, here are some useful guidelines to observed:
- Identify which overall wicked problem or challenge the lab will work with.
- Invite the target group and other relevant stakeholders to participate in the lab.
- It is fundamental that all concerned actors are invited to participate on equal terms.
- Try to be as open-minded as possible and listen to the participants.
- Don’t hurry and start the process by creating an inclusive atmosphere.
- Reflect and document regularly during the process in order to learn about setting up a lab and about development of possible social innovations.
- Don’t just talk about possible futures, make experiments and try new things out.
To assist in setting up a lab, the LINK partnership has created a learning programme for anybody who wants to learn more about how to work with social innovations. It is available on the LINK platform, where you can also find detailed information about the different learning and innovation labs set up by the countries participating in the LINK project, including the challenges they each encountered and the lessons learnt whilst setting up a lab.
About all partners' learning and innovation labs
Name: Community power to reduce involuntary loneliness for elderly people
Location: Kinda Municipality, Sweden.
Objective: Reduce involuntary loneliness among older people and challenge the current structural conditions for performing voluntary work.
Target group: Older adults, although associations, volunteers, and business representatives can also benefit from involvement in the lab.
Name: Zemun Tad (Zemun Little Child).
Location: Zemun Municipality (City of Belgrade), Republic of Serbia.
Objective: Address the lack of support services for Roma families in the field of parenting and early development, and ensure these are adapted to their needs and contexts.
Target group: Vulnerable Roma families with children ages 0-6 experiencing challenges in early development.
Name: Konsulta’m Lab.
Location: Barcelona, Spain.
Objective: Approach youth emotional well-being from a community perspective.
Target group: Adolescents and young adults facing emotional challenges or emotional distress.
Name: Community meeting for youth inclusion.
Location: Jelgava City and Jelgava County, Latvia.
Objective: Address the lack of collaboration between specialists and organisations involved in youth work, involve youth in decision-making, and develop a more inclusive and diverse local community.
Target group: Marginalized youth who experience exclusion or disadvantage in society due to various factors. Their marginalization can arise from economical, social, cultural, gender, disability, geographical, or other barriers.
Name: Challenges of families and social work: with polyphonic community to desired outcomes.
Location: Ptuj (Spodnje Podravje region), Slovenia.
Objective: Support families experiencing various internal and external stressors through their active participation in the process (co-creation), instead of by deciding on the needed support on their behalf.
Target group: Families facing multiple challenges.
Name: FamWel Lab (Family Welfare Lab).
Location: Trondheim mostly; collaboration with Oslo, Alta, and Austevoll Municipalities, Norway.
Objective: Deal with families' structural and unjust living conditions at all levels.
Target group: Families facing multiple problems in contact with Child Welfare Services (CWS).