What better way to close OpenLivingLab Days 2026 than by stepping beyond the conference rooms and experiencing innovation in the places where it actually happens? On 2 October, OLLD26 participants can choose from seven field visits across Belgium, offering different perspectives on Living Labs, experimentation, research, collaboration, and culture in practice.
In Antwerp, participants can discover how art, nature, and healthcare intersect at Middelheim Museum through the Bypass Project. Developed through co-creation with healthcare professionals, children, and young people from psychiatric care, artists, city representatives and local communities, the initiative shows how Living Lab principles can contribute to wellbeing and social connection. The experience will combine an introduction to the project with a mindful walk through the museum’s open-air sculpture park.
Also in Antwerp, the Antwerp Innovation Walking Tour will take participants through different dimensions of the city’s innovation ecosystem. From global health at the Institute of Tropical Medicine to digital and smart-city innovation at The Beacon and human-centred design and prototyping at Antwerp Design Factory, the tour will demonstrate how collaboration across sectors can translate ideas into societal and economic value.
For participants looking to explore Antwerp through a cultural lens, a visit to the Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp (KMSKA) offers a different experience. Bringing together seven centuries of art, KMSKA combines an internationally renowned collection with scientific research, conservation and artistic innovation. Its conservation studio, Artists in Residence programme and Museum Garden provide another perspective on how culture, research and creativity can interact.
Beyond Antwerp, the programme opens the doors to Living Lab environments working across very different sectors and societal challenges.
At Thomas More in Geel, LiCalab and several Centres of Expertise will introduce participants to interdisciplinary innovation spanning health and wellbeing, sustainable biomass and chemistry, and energy. From biomechanics and prosthetics to VR, wearables, greenhouse horticulture and algae cultivation, demonstrations will show how research and co-creation can respond to real-world needs.
In Ghent, participants can visit imec’s Societal Imagineering Lab at De Krook, where emerging technologies are explored through co-creation, experimentation and engagement in real-life settings. The visit will introduce the COMON Urban Living Lab and offer insights into Ghent’s wider innovation ecosystem and its approach to inclusive, impact-driven technological innovation.
Those interested in the future of agriculture can travel to Roeselare to experience Living Lab Inagro & Agrotopia. Participants will discover Europe’s largest rooftop greenhouse alongside real-life, pilot-scale test sites addressing agricultural challenges. The visit will also highlight how collaboration between different stakeholders and the quadruple helix approach can help translate research into more sustainable agricultural practices.
Finally, at ILVO Living Lab Animal Husbandry in Merelbeke-Melle, participants will get a first-hand look at experimental farm infrastructure and collaborative research in animal husbandry. The programme includes experimental animal housing facilities as well as the new ILVO Feed Pilot, dedicated to the production of precision feeds.
Seven visits, different sectors, and different perspectives, but one shared opportunity: to move from discussing innovation to experiencing it first-hand. Whether your interests lie in technology, health, agriculture, design, art or culture, the OLLD26 field visits offer a final opportunity to connect with practitioners, discover inspiring environments and take new ideas home with you.
By Mariem Chakroun – International Project Manager