Living Labs in Action: creating sustainable rural futures through new data and tools

The UK RUSTIK Regional Dissemination Event, held on 20 November 2025 at the historic Blackfriars Priory in Gloucester, brought together around 40 participants representing research, local government, community organisations, and policy. Titled “Creating Sustainable Rural Futures through New Data and Tools,” the half-day workshop explored how innovative data approaches and participatory mapping can inform more resilient and inclusive rural strategies.

 

Opening and Context

The event opened with welcoming remarks from Professor Matthew Reed, Director of the Countryside and Community Research Institute (CCRI) and Head of Research at the University of Gloucestershire. His introduction set the tone for an afternoon focused on rural sustainability, grounded in both regional experience and wider European collaborations.

Participants then received updates from the UK Living Labs across the RUSTIK and GRANULAR projects. Speakers included Daniel Keech and Katarina Kubinakova (Gloucestershire Living Lab), Aimee Morse (Monmouthshire Living Lab), Demelza Jones (Monmouthshire County Council), and Jonathan Hopkins (James Hutton Institute, GRANULAR Scotland Living Lab).

 

Insights from the Living Labs

 

1. Monmouthshire Living Lab – Understanding demographic change

Aimee Morse and Demelza Jones presented a data experiment on demographic change implemented as part of the Living Lab, exploring ways to achieve better demographic balance by retaining and attracting younger working-aged people to live and work in the county. Their three-step approach included:

  1. Developing a prototype dashboard, using Welsh Index of Multiple Deprivation data and satellite imagery.
  2. Gathering new data with Maptionnaire, targeting residents aged 16–44 to address gaps in existing datasets. Several interviews and focus groups were conducted to complement the survey.
  3. Analysing results to support local planning and decision-making.

Key issues affecting liveability for younger residents included high housing and living costs, limited educational and employment opportunities, public transport constraints, and a lack of social, leisure, or retail options. Positive comments highlighted green spaces, access to the countryside, and a peaceful, safe environment.

The findings provide Monmouthshire County Council with a baseline dataset on a group they previously had little information about, offering granular insights that can support decisions where “official statistics flatten local rural variations.”

Next steps include linking findings with the UKRI-funded Rural Wales Local Policy and Innovation Partnership, contributing to the Well-being of Future Generations Act regional wellbeing assessment, and undertaking deeper research on the public transport needs of younger working-age residents.

 

2. GRANULAR Scotland – New rural data for policy

From the James Hutton Institute, Jonathan Hopkins presented work from the GRANULAR project’s Scottish Living Lab. With 24 partners, 7 Living Labs, and 9 replication labs, GRANULAR focuses on generating spatially detailed rural knowledge.

Hopkins discussed research on:

  • Drivers of rural wellbeing advantages in Great Britain.
  • Daily mobility patterns and accessibility.
  • Rural proofing in collaboration with Ecorys.

The team confirmed the “rural wellbeing advantage”, a paradox where rural areas report higher subjective wellbeing despite reduced access to services—using a broad suite of geographic, socioeconomic, and environmental variables.

 

3. Gloucestershire Living Lab – Digital inclusion and data innovation

The Gloucestershire Living Lab team, represented by Daniel Keech and Katarina Kubinakova, presented work on digital transition challenges in the county’s four rural districts (additionally, there are two mainly urban districts in the county). Partnering with community-sector providers, a smart dashboard was developed by the University of Gloucestershire team enabling users (predominantly voluntary sector organisations) to import datasets, clean data, and perform analyses based on geographical levels. The dashboard also supports cross-reference analysis across different datasets and includes heat-map visualisation for both numerical and categorical data.

The Gloucestershire LL team also briefly presented some preliminary findings from their recent online survey linked to decentralised rural proofing of the DIIIS.  The survey shows that most digital support is directed towards vulnerable people, and that organisations targeting rural areas consistently report greater difficulty due to resource constraints and a rapidly changing public-service environment.

A key takeaway: fine-grain data doesn’t always inform policy, but the dashboard marks a significant improvement in rural data analysis, though its success also depends on social innovation and clearer strategic direction for rural digital transformation.

 

Panel: Mapping Tools for Policy and Engagement

A panel discussion chaired by Demelza Jones brought together:

The panel explored how mapping tools, participatory surveys, creative place-based methods, and continuous community dialogue can strengthen evidence-based policy. Scott Orford showcased work using poetry, videos, storytelling, and open-street mappers to mobilise community insights. Asta Hiippala highlighted the importance of ongoing dialogue rather than one-off extraction of data, noting how some cities, such as Helsinki, publish anonymised results openly to encourage transparency.

After the break, lightning talks provided additional examples of how local data can support rural policy development and informed the day’s final activity: group discussions.

 

Rural Wales Local Policy and Innovation Partnership – Strengthening evidence for policy

The Rural Wales LPIP‘s work on building a wellbeing economy for rural Wales, with a focus on inclusive and sustainable growth was presented by Matthew Reed, on behalf of Professor Michael Woods (Aberystwyth University) and Scott Orford.

The projects approach includes:

  • Strengthening the evidence base for rural policymaking.
  • Community-led action research, enabling communities to identify local issues, design research, and use evidence.
  • A new LPIP data hub, designed to support stakeholders across rural Wales.

This work complements that of the RUSTIK Living Labs by expanding data access and improving regional policymaking capacity.

 

Closing remarks

The afternoon concluded with group discussions and a plenary session led by the RUSTIK UK team, summarising key takeaways on how local data, community-driven engagement, and fine-grained analysis can contribute to more resilient rural futures.

Building on earlier RUSTIK workshops in Galicia and Finland, the UK event reinforced the importance of collaboration, knowledge exchange, and adaptive, data-informed strategies in navigating demographic, digital, and environmental transitions.

Innovative responses to rural demographic shifts: key takeaway from RUSTIK first regional workshop!

Gathered around the theme of demographic change and innovative responses to it, three living labs from the RUSTIK project: Rhein-Hunsrück (Germany), North Karelia (Finland), and Monmouthshire (UK) came together on June 5th to present and exchange ideas on shared challenges in the heart of Koli National Park, Finland.

This event aimed to disseminate the results developed within these real-life laboratory of the project and trigger peer-to-peer discussions.

Simo Rautiainen, a doctoral researcher at the University of Eastern Finland and the Karelian Institute, set the scene by introducing the host region North Karelia and outlining its demographic challenges over the period 1980 to 2024.

These three Living Labs, regional innovation hubs that experiment with real-world solutions to rural issues, then presented their unique, locally adapted approaches to addressing demographic specificities. Despite the geographical distance, many common patterns emerged.

Svea Thietje and Achim Kistner, both working within the Rhein-Hunsrück Living Lab, presented ongoing initiatives aimed at strengthening the region’s demographic resilience. They highlighted two key challenges: out-migration among young people aged 18 to 25, and the gap between supply and demand in the training and apprenticeship market.

Their Living Lab’s approach to addressing these challenges involved analysing mismatches in the apprenticeship landscape and improving alignment through a series of actions: organizing focus groups, co-designing surveys, and conducting interviews with both young people and employers (including agencies, job centres, and local administrations).
They shared the following key achievements:

  1. Created a well-founded database on the needs and obstacles faced by both young people and employers in relation to apprenticeships and vocational training.
  2. Ensured that young people’s voices were heard and considered in discussions around training.
  3. Created new networks and revived old ones, fostering dialogue among stakeholders.
  4. Attracted political attention — both at the district and regional levels — and initiated discussions with policymakers based on the findings.

In North Karelia, Aura Liski, project Manager at the Regional Council of North Karelia, presented a survey aimed at collecting data on the integration of immigrants in the region. The data is intended to help municipalities improve their integration services and better support the successful settlement of immigrants, given that the latest reform of the 2025 Integration Act, which made municipalities responsible for promoting the integration of immigrants, lacked the tools and data to evaluate and develop their integration services.

The survey was developed and launched in spring 2024 and has since been expanded to other municipalities in the region. An improved version of the survey is currently being prepared through a multidisciplinary collaboration with regional stakeholders.

Finally, Demelza Jones, Research Fellow at the University of Gloucestershire and representative of the Monmouthshire Living Lab, highlighted how a survey incorporating emotion-based questions on belonging and aspirations, combined with geo-referenced data and secondary datasets, enabled deeper insights and allowed for meaningful local-level comparisons.

In the context of Monmouthshire, which is marked by an ageing population as well as challenges related to housing, employment, and transport, this experimental approach provided valuable understanding of the needs and expectations of younger residents in the region.

Beyond the sharing of achievements, successes, and challenges, the panel discussions also revealed a strong desire to continue these initiatives beyond the timeframe of the project, as some of the results have proven to be valuable tools in themselves for other stakeholders.

Addressing Youth Outward-Migration and an Ageing Population in Monmouthshire

In Monmouthshire, the RUSTIK project is collecting data to help Monmouthshire County Council understand issues contributing to the region’s demographic challenge of youth outward-migration and an ageing population. Improving demographic balance is a key strategic objective for the Council and is central to ensuring Monmouthshire’s communities are economically and socially sustainable.

Data collection is being carried out using the Maptionnaire survey tool, alongside community focus groups with young people and younger-working age people who live, work or study within Monmouthshire. The survey and focus groups are aimed at people aged 16-44, and explore people’s views about life and quality of life in Monmouthshire; including availability of suitable housing, employment or education/training opportunities, as well as access to services, transport and leisure.

Original data from the survey and focus groups will be combined with existing local and regional statistics to produce an experimental place-based data viewer, allowing comparison between hyper-local areas within the county. This will provide place-based insights, and quick accessibility of locally relevant quantitative and qualitative data by both the Council and aligned organisations such as housing providers and third sector organisations to inform local decision-making and interventions.

Another version of the survey is aimed at people who do not currently live in Monmouthshire but have a connection with the county. Perhaps they work or study there but live elsewhere, have lived there in the past but moved away, have family there, or may like to live there in the future. The survey seeks to understand what the barriers or the enabling factors are to these groups living in Monmouthshire or making it their future home.

To encourage a high response rate, the RUSTIK team are visiting community spaces across Monmouthshire to speak to residents and visitors about the research, as well as promoting the survey though online channels, and via the newsletters of local community and third sector organisations.

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Monmouthshire’s Approach to Demographic Challenges

Monmouthshire (Sir Fynwy in Welsh) is a predominantly rural county in south-east Wales, home to 93,000 residents. Despite its picturesque landscapes and vibrant communities, the county faces significant socio-economic and demographic challenges. An ageing population and a constrained, expensive housing market make it difficult for younger residents to settle, prompting Monmouthshire County Council (MCC) to seek innovative solutions through strategic predictions and projects.

Transition Focus: Socio-Economic and Demographic Shifts

Monmouthshire is undergoing profound transitions, especially in mobility, demographics, and transport. The county’s average age is 48, and by 2036, it’s projected that 36% of the population will be over 65. This demographic shift has serious implications for economic growth, community sustainability, and public health. A focus group identified the lack of higher education, employment, and affordable housing as key factors driving young people away.

Addressing the Housing Crisis

Monmouthshire’s ageing population poses economic and social sustainability challenges. Predictions indicate that 70% of new households will be priced out of the housing market, the most expensive in Wales. Vibrant towns like Abergavenny are essential to the county’s future, but they face economic pressures such as rising energy costs and declining household spending. MCC, in collaboration with local councils, aims to reimagine these towns, potentially repurposing town center spaces for residential use to meet affordable housing needs.

Living Lab Challenge

The Monmouthshire Living Lab experiment aims to understand and address the drivers of demographic change. By exploring why younger people stay, leave, arrive, or return, the experiment will also examine related issues such as transport, housing, income inequality, and the skills needed for environmental and digital transitions.

Rationale

Youth out-migration is a significant challenge to sustainable communities. MCC’s Well-being Plan (2018) highlights that 42% of outward migration is by 15-29 year-olds, typically driven by educational and economic factors. MCC seeks to balance the needs of an ageing population while making the county viable for younger residents. Understanding the reasons behind demographic shifts will help MCC develop targeted interventions.

Policy Relevance

MCC’s key strategies, the Replacement Local Development Plan (2023) and the Community and Corporate Plan (expected 2024), focus on attracting and retaining younger people. The Living Lab’s findings will inform these plans, contributing to socially and economically sustainable communities. MCC’s involvement in various partnerships and adherence to the Well-being of Future Generations Act further underscore the importance of this initiative.

Research Questions

  • What barriers do young people (16-25) perceive to living and working in Monmouthshire?
  • For younger working-aged people (25-45), what makes Monmouthshire an (un)attractive place to live and work?
  • How can MCC increase the attractiveness and viability of the county for younger working-aged people?

Emerging Data Needs

MCC needs more granular and qualitative data to understand the reasons behind demographic shifts. The data experiment will explore these reasons in detail, focusing on younger people’s views and experiences. This approach will help MCC develop informed policies and interventions to address the county’s demographic challenges.

Monmouthshire’s Living Lab initiative aims to tackle the county’s demographic challenges by understanding the drivers behind demographic changes. By engaging with younger residents and gathering qualitative data, MCC hopes to develop targeted interventions to retain and attract younger working-age people. This initiative is crucial for ensuring a sustainable and resilient future for Monmouthshire.