On 24 June, Leuven hosted the first co-creation workshop with local stakeholders. The event was part of the first series of VARCITIES Co-creation workshops, taking place in June in all the Pilot Cities. The goal of the first series of workshops was to introduce the visionary solutions to the local stakeholders in order to validate and refine them collectively, before starting the co-design process.

The event took place online and it was attended by more than 20 participants in total.

The workshop started with a short introduction of the participants and the Leuven alderman Carl De Vlies delivered words of welcome. Karen Landuydt (Municipality of Leuven) gave an overview of VARCITIES and introduced the visionary solutions.

VARCITIES Visionary Solutions

1. Riverside urban living room linked to culture and heritage
2. Health trail with the “moving bench” and therapeutic sensory path for elderly
3. Smart solutions for lights, noise and bikes

What we learned from participants and local stakeholders (main inputs)

• Ensure links between the pilot area and the other neighborhoods of the city
• Guarantee adequate accessibility for people with reduce mobility
• Find a good balance between the various functions in the area
• Use technology also for health literacy
• Prevent the exacerbation of inequalities and the generation of new health inequalities in the city.