At the Crossroads of Imagination: Living Lab Approach for Social Innovation

This article addresses momentum-gaining approaches to enhancing imagination, ambition, and cross-sectoral collaboration in efforts to advance the UN Sustainable Development Goals. As a practical, needs-driven response to the increasing social and ecological challenges, it foregrounds open social innovation as a solution, living labs as an approach, as well as open and citizen science as methods for co-creating more sustainable futures, with particular emphasis on the role of academic institutions. The article combines a review of recent scientific literature with a brief empirical illustration from Viskaļi – The Institute of Design for Quality of Life in Riga, Latvia, developed within a broader case study. Based on this analysis, the article outlines several directions through which academic institutions can contribute to SDG implementation by fostering locally grounded, co-created social innovations that enhance quality of life. The need for expanding imaginaries towards a hopeful future as means for meaningful societal transformation is emphasised.