The TSHN Living Lab: "Governance & Management Techniques"

Proposal and concept for launch and set-up

The TSHN Living Lab is a "real laboratory" in which science, agriculture, companies, technology providers, consumers, initiatives and investors jointly develop, test and optimise new solutions - directly under real conditions. The aim is to develop marketable, sustainable and user-centred Innovations for Products and services and at the same time create new Insights for future generations to pass on.

Topics

The overarching theme "Governance & management techniques" was identified on the basis of the analysis of the latest EU-HORIZON call.

In the course of setting up and applying for public funding, the members will be involved in a dialogue under the the three most important topics selected, which will then be further elaborated.

The speciality of the TSHN Living Lab is its almost completely digital management, organisation and communication structure. It integrates a fully documented innovation and validation process that starts with Blockchain technology is secured.

Stakeholder groups to be addressed

Living Labs thrive on interdisciplinary collaboration and the unification processes of the participants and members. The TSHN Living Lab aims to address and involve all stakeholders who correspond to the TSHN concept and network.

Regenerative pioneers

Pioneers and experienced farmers have the opportunity to jointly develop, validate and refine innovative approaches to regenerative agriculture. Through interdisciplinary exchange, best practices can be identified and applied on a large scale - a decisive step towards switching to sustainable, resource-conserving cultivation methods.

Scientists from a wide variety of fields:

They benefit from a practical, interdisciplinary environment in which theoretical concepts can be continuously tested and further developed. This close dialogue between research and practice promotes the transfer of knowledge, enables innovative approaches and strengthens the relevance of scientific findings.

Initiatives & Associations:

They can contribute their networks and experience to the joint development of scalable solutions. As multipliers, they help to disseminate successful approaches, have a political and social impact and build important bridges between practice, research and the political framework.

Conventional farmers:

You can test new technologies, cultivation methods and management systems directly under real conditions. This reveals potential for optimisation, which can lead to more efficient processes and better yields.

Consumers:

As direct users, they benefit from products and services that meet their needs. Their early involvement ensures that developments are practical and user-friendly - which ultimately leads to greater acceptance and better end results.

Company:

Companies can test and further develop their products, services and business models directly under real-life conditions in a Living Lab. Close collaboration with farmers, technology providers, scientists and other stakeholders creates a practical innovation environment that enables them to validate solutions at an early stage and adapt them to market needs. In addition, the joint work promotes the formation of strategic partnerships, shortens the time-to-market and minimises the investment risk, as technological innovations have already been tested in realistic settings.

Blockchainers and digitalisation specialists:

They can contribute their expertise in the development of decentralised, transparent and secure data management and transaction systems. This is particularly important in order to create trust in digital processes in agriculture and enable new business models.

Investors and sponsors:

By participating in a Living Lab, investors and sponsors gain early access to innovative solutions that have been tested in a real-life environment. This enables targeted investment in and promotion of technologies and business models that have already been validated - a decisive advantage in risk management but also for the company's own marketing programmes.

Membership of the TSHN Living Lab

Every initiative raises the question of access, financing, controllability and the long-term motivation of participants. It is therefore necessary to discuss paid and free forms of membership.

The following is a comparison of the two approaches:

Advantages of a paid, exclusive membership

1. Commitment & Engagement
   Those who contribute financially are generally also more willing to actively participate. This increases the quality of the collaboration and prevents a "consumer attitude" in which participants only help themselves but contribute nothing.
2. Financial stability for coordination & quality assurance
   Setting up a professional living lab requires resources for organisation, moderation, scientific support, technical infrastructure and communication. Membership fees enable independent, solid financing - without having to rely solely on funding.
3. Exclusive access to expertise and partnerships
   Members receive access to curated content, research data, pilot projects, matchmaking formats and strategic alliances - which increases the practical and economic added value for all participants.
4. Protection of intellectual property & trust
   In a closed space regulated by contracts and shared values, sensitive information and innovations can be exchanged in a spirit of trust. This is particularly relevant for companies, scientists and developers.
5. Structural development & targeted innovation management
   A member space creates the basis for clear governance structures, harmonised development processes and measurable target tracking. In this way, innovations can not only be generated, but also efficiently managed and evaluated.

Disadvantages of open, free access

1. Non-binding & low depth of participation
   Open formats often lack the level of commitment that is necessary for co-creative processes. Participants change more frequently, which makes it more difficult to build sustainable relationships.
2. Lack of resources & project uncertainty
   Without contributions, there is a lack of funding for coordination, quality assurance or technical implementation. Projects easily come to a standstill as soon as external funding runs out.
3. Few protection options for sensitive topics
   Open spaces cannot offer the same protection for intellectual property or trust-based collaboration - which deters many potential innovation partners.
4. Excessive demands due to heterogeneity
   Without targeted selection or segmentation of the participants, the requirements, level of knowledge and interests can be too different - making collaboration inefficient and conflict-ridden.

Our decision in favour of a paid, exclusive membership

The decision in favour of a Living Lab with restricted membership is based on the targeted promotion of Quality, commitment, trust and impact - These are decisive factors for real transformation.

An open, free format can be useful for initial information and awareness-raising offers - e.g. as part of webinars, public events or a community newsletter.

For Targeted innovation processesstrategic partnerships and sustainable impact is, however, a Structured, member-based platform far superior.

Funding opportunities at national and EU level

Participation in the TSHN Living Lab can often be supported by public funding. In many countries - especially in Austria's neighbouring countries and Ukraine - there are attractive funding programmes for:

• Agricultural innovations and digitalisation
• Resilient and climate-smart agricultural systems
• Regional development and co-operation
• Research and applied sciences in practice
• Interlocking work results and business models with governance

At European level, too, programmes such as Horizon Europe, Interreg, CAP strategic plansthe EU Green Dealthe Mission Soiland the EU Carbon Removal Certification Framework (CRCF) significant sources of funding are available - both for individual partners and for transnational consortia.

Special preparation and concept development costs for the individual funding programmes are shared among the participants. In particular, these are funding experts and application moderators who, with their experience, give funding applications a higher probability of success.

Participation in the TSHN Living Lab - Process & Membership Categories

The TSHN Living Lab is aimed at committed players who want to actively contribute to the development, testing and scaling of regenerative innovations. Participation is linked to membership of the TSHN network and takes place via a structured but deliberately low-threshold selection process.

Application process - in three steps

1. Apply for membership
   The basis for participation in the Living Lab is an active membership in the TSHN network. The application is made via our digital onboarding form and provides access to exclusive development programmes, pilot projects and partnerships.
2. Submit a short profile
   Once membership has been confirmed, participants are invited to submit a thematically focussed short profile. This contains information on their role (e.g. farmer, entrepreneur, researcher, developer, multiplier, investor), thematic interests, regional focus and specific objectives within the Living Lab.
3. Selection and targeted invitation
   The coordination team curates the Living Lab groups according to content synergies, regional fit and complementary perspectives. The final invitation is issued after review by our selection committee. The aim is to form coherent, collaborative project groups with a strong focus on implementation.

Note: In principle, decisions on who is accepted into a Living Lab are based on qualification criteria. If qualifications are equal, the "first come - first serve" principle applies.

Membership categories in the TSHN Living Lab

The Living Lab offers various membership models that are tailored to the respective roles, needs and resources of the participants:

• Basic membership (Community Access)
  For individuals and organisations with a basic interest in the TSHN approach. Access to information events, public project data and network formats.
• Project membership (Active Participation)
  For stakeholders who would like to actively participate in the Living Lab. Includes access to project groups, validation loops, matching formats and scientific support.
• Partner membership (Strategic Partnership)
  For companies, universities or networks interested in strategic project development, product integration or co-financing. Including visibility in the TSHN context, co-branding opportunities and preferential participation in funded projects.
• Supporting membership (Impact Enabler)
  For institutions, foundations and investors who want to support TSHN financially and at the same time gain targeted access to innovation projects with measurable impact potential.

Roadmap for the development of the TSHN Living Labs

The roadmap visualises the multi-year development process of the TSHN Living Lab as a systematic project for the planning, implementation and continuation of a practical innovation space. It serves as a central steering instrument for the temporal orientation and structural anchoring of the main work packages.

Aim of the roadmap

The aim of the roadmap is to organise the complex implementation of the TSHN Living Lab into clearly identifiable work steps and to make their sequence and overlaps visible. In this way, it creates planning and action security for all stakeholders involved - from research and agricultural practice to administration and business.

The roadmap serves:

• the operational control of the overall project
• the internal coordination between sub-projects and partners
• the external communication vis-à-vis funding bodies, political decision-makers and the public
• as a basis for Evaluation, monitoring and later scaling

It is regularly reviewed and adapted in order to be able to flexibly integrate changes in the environment or from the course of the project.

The roadmap at a glance

The representation is in the form of an ascending time axis with horizontal bars, each of which Start time, Duration and thematic affiliation mark. The colour coding of the project phases (preparation, construction, implementation R&D) supports visual orientation.

Brief description of the phases and central work packages

🟡 Phase 1: Preparation (month 1-12)

Goal: Create strategic and organisational foundations
Work packages:

• Project start & target image (month 1-2): Definition of the overarching purpose, clarification of the value basis, delimitation of the project
• Stakeholder workshops (month 3-5): Involvement of relevant stakeholder groups, joint topic identification, network development
• Method framework & partner MoUs (month 6-8): Development of a methodological framework for co-creation, definition of the legal basis for cooperation
• Pilot regions & funding applications (month 10-12): Selection of start regions, submission of funding applications, securing initial funding lines

🟠 Phase 2: Build-up (month 13-24)

Objective: To create the structural and technical basis for the Living Lab
Work packages:

• Team building & co-operation (month 13-14): Recruitment of the core team, organisation of operational management
• Platform & test areas (month 15-17): Establishment of physical and digital infrastructures (real-world laboratories, data interfaces, digital tools)
• Design of the 5 R&D projects (month 18-20): Definition of the focal points, methods, partnerships and objectives of the upcoming projects
• Kick-off event & community launch (month 22-23): Official opening, activation of the general public, launch of communication and participation formats

🔵 Phase 3: Implementation of R&D (months 25-72)

Objective: Implementation and utilisation of five interdisciplinary research and development projects
Work packages:

• Start of R&D projects (month 25-30): Organisation of project teams, establishment of working structures and test conditions
• Prototypes & practical tests (month 36-48): Development, testing and validation of new products, processes or services in a real environment
• Validation & scaling design (month 48-60): Systematic evaluation of results, development of transfer strategies, scaling models
• Completion & market readiness (month 60-72): Preparation and publication of the results, transition to product development, market or policy design

Summary and outlook

The TSHN Living Lab "Governance & Tillage Techniques" combines innovative research, entrepreneurial thinking and social relevance in a pioneering real-world laboratory. It creates a professionally structured space in which interdisciplinary players work together on concrete solutions for regenerative agriculture and a sustainable soil economy - under real conditions and with measurable impact potential.

Thanks to its systematic structure, clearly defined work packages and transparent roadmap, the Living Lab offers all stakeholders orientation and opportunities for participation - from practical testing and scientific support to the political or commercial utilisation of the results.

The integrative nature of the Living Lab not only enables innovation, but also trust, cooperation and long-term impact. The decision in favour of structured membership, a targeted funding strategy and continuous further development has created a robust framework for tackling complex challenges together.

The TSHN Living Lab sees itself as a platform for transformation - open to ideas, concrete in its realisation and consistently oriented towards impact.