Over the past few weeks, SPOON has taken its first steps in Braunschweig, launching a series of introductory meetings that brought together local stakeholders committed to shaping the city’s emerging Citizen Science Lab (CSL). These encounters marked the start of a common effort to build a community around sustainable food systems and solutions to avoid waste.

Organised by our partner, University of Arts Braunschweig – Institute for Design Studies (HBK), the meetings introduced SPOON’s vision and opened a lively space for dialogue among representatives of community food initiatives, neighbourhood centres, local authorities, and the hospitality and food service sector.

Discussions led to connections and ideas on how to inspire more sustainable ways of living and eating. Participants exchanged stories and perspectives, showing a genuine commitment to engage their own communities and keep the conversation growing.

These first exchanges planted the seeds of a local community that will continue to shape and strengthen the Citizen Science Lab through shared learning, creativity, and collective action.

Cover picture by Samuel Yongbo Kwon on Unsplash

Dear reader,

The SPOON journey is blending ideas, people, and action across Europe.

Across our six pilot regions, Citizen Science Labs have started their experimental activities. Citizens, researchers, and local partners are coming together to explore new ideas for fairer and more sustainable food systems. What started as plans and conversations is now turning into real collaboration on the ground.

In this edition, we invite you to meet our pilot cities and the people behind them. These local spaces are where communities come together to test ideas, exchange experiences, and discover new ingredients for change.

At the same time, a lot of work has been happening behind the scenes. Thanks to the collaboration and dedication of partners across the project, the first results of our research are now beginning to come together.

Read on to discover the latest updates and get a taste of what is already cooking across Europe!

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Food systems account for up to 37% of global greenhouse gas emissions, while millions of Europeans still face food insecurity. Addressing these challenges requires structured, locally grounded solutions that actively engage citizens.

The SPOON project has released its Handbook for the Implementation and Replication of Citizen Science Labs and Behaviour Change Interventions, providing a practical guide to designing and deploying Citizen Science Labs (CSLs) across six European pilot regions.

The methodological framework, developed by project partner SFC, combines Citizen Science and Living Lab approaches into a centralised yet adaptable model aligned with the project’s objectives. The handbook presents the specific focus areas and challenges of the six CSLs, offers step-by-step guidance for implementation, and details strategies for stakeholder engagement, behavioural change interventions, and coordination among project partners.

Designed to support both implementation and replication, the document serves as a roadmap for regions aiming to transform their food systems into healthier and more sustainable communities.

The full handbook is now available for download.

Photo credits: Oleksandr Gamaniuk on Unsplash