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Lookup NU author(s): Dr Myra GiesenORCiD, Professor Oliver HeidrichORCiD
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).
A Living Lab can demonstrate industrial ecology principles to advance sustainable and resilient communities, providing innovation ecosystems for iterative testing of novel solutions (Nakkasunchi & Heidrich, 2023). These labs are data-driven (Bozeman III et al., 2024) and are effective for urban governance and testing test low-carbon technologies and strategies (Voytenko et al., 2016). Using the Royal Air Force (RAF) Base at Leeming (England) as a case study, this presentation explores how military bases serves as microcosms for examining interconnectivity. Collaboration among military, academic, industrial, and community stakeholders is crucial in achieving system-wide sustainability. As one of the highest emitters, militaries urgently need to decarbonise, with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) developing a framework for its members to address this challenge (Rajaeifar et al., 2022). Yet, the implementation, effectiveness, and on-the-ground outcomes of decarbonisation and sustainability plans remain less well understood. This study underscores the importance of recognising dependencies between individual actions and collective outcomes to achieve meaningful change. At RAF Leeming, the ViTAL Living Lab developed tailored sustainability strategies through focused experiments, creating actionable roadmaps toward achieving net-zero goals (Heidrich, 2021). These experiments emphasised the importance of addressing the military's organisational practices alongside its academic partner. Key findings revealed that collaborative practices, interdisciplinary engagement, and adaptive strategies are critical to tackling critical sustainability challenges within a military context However, the lab faced limitations in fully integrating scientific experiments with the lived experiences of personnel on-site and in bridging cultural divides between military and academic partners. These challenges provide valuable lessons for future living labs in both urban and military contexts. Adopting a systems-thinking perspective (Bassi et al., 2021), this work connects individual behaviours with broader technical and environmental solutions, illustrating how interconnected human and material processes can drive change across multiple levels. The study exemplifies how military bases can serve as testing grounds for sustainability practices, offering insights that transcend the military context to benefit broader communities. The findings enhance our understanding of how individuals and organisations can collaboratively bridge the gaps between policies, everyday practices, and community resilience, as efforts move towards reaching net-zero goals. We conclude by presenting lessons learned, identifying opportunities to better align research initiatives with stakeholders’ lives, and recommending strategies for improved communication and operationalisation of key terms to support scalable, sustainable solutions. References Bassi, A. M., Bianchi, M., Guzzetti, M., Pallaske, G., & Tapia, C. (2021). Improving the understanding of circular economy potential at territorial level using systems thinking. Sustainable Production and Consumption, 27, 128-140. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.spc.2020.10.028 Bozeman III, J. F., Hollauer, C., Ramshankar, A. T., Nakkasunchi, S., Jambeck, J., Hicks, A., Heidrich, O. (2024). Embed systemic equity throughout industrial ecology applications: How to address machine learning unfairness and bias. Journal of Industrial Ecology. doi:https://doi.org/10.1111/jiec.13509 Heidrich, O. (2021). The ViTAL Living Lab: Newcastle University supports RAF’s pathway to Net Zero. Retrieved from Newcastle upon Tyne, UK: https://www.ncl.ac.uk/press/articles/archive/2021/11/vitallivinglab/ Nakkasunchi, S., & Heidrich, O. (2023). Identifying research diversity of the Living Labs across different sectors. Paper presented at the 11th International Conference of the International Society for Industrial Ecology (ISIE2023), Leiden, The Netherlands. Rajaeifar, M. A., Belcher, O., Parkinson, S., Neimark, B., Weir, D., Ashworth, K., Heidrich, O. (2022). Decarbonize the military - mandate emissions reporting. Nature, 611(7934), 29-32. doi:10.1038/d41586-022-03444-7 Voytenko, Y., McCormick, K., Evans, J., & Schliwa, G. (2016). Urban living labs for sustainability and low carbon cities in Europe: towards a research agenda. Journal of Cleaner Production, 123, 45-54. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2015.08.053
Author(s): Giesen Myra, Heidrich Oliver
Editor(s): Lynette Cheah Harn Wei Kua
Publication type: Conference Proceedings (inc. Abstract)
Publication status: Published
Conference Name: 12th International Conference on Industrial Ecology (ISIE2025)
Year of Conference: 2025
Print publication date: 04/07/2025
Online publication date: 10/07/2025
Acceptance date: 12/02/2025
Date deposited: 10/07/2025
Publisher: ISIE
URL: https://isie2025.sg/index.php
ePrints DOI: 10.57711/55pj-fm11
Notes: Position B56
