Food Systems in Transition – Participatory, Open Citizen Research for Sustainable Nutrition

The Citizen Science Labs (CSLs) in the SPOON project form a network of territorial communities connecting diverse local stakeholders through participatory methodologies, enabling them to act as researchers who co-create, implement, and evaluate context-specific knowledge and interventions. The project addresses the diversity of food-related behaviours and motivations in each territory while enabling the cross-analysis of data collected across territories. The diversity of players in the urban ecosystem presents a major challenge for conventional one-size-fits-all policy and innovation approaches. CSLs respond to this complexity by providing structured spaces for dialogue, collective learning, and co-design, in which capacities, opportunities, and motivations of different stakeholders can be identified and translated into actionable solutions.

The effective deployment and replication of CSLs relies on a set of core pillars:

1. Clear organisational structures, timelines, and goals for iterative cycles.
2. A shared thematic focus that mobilises and brings the community together.
3. Identification of obstacles and risks for implementation and tools to avoid or solve them.
4. Tailored recruitment strategies ensuring both sufficient numbers and diversity.
5. Long-term engagement mechanisms based on belonging, commitment, and informal interaction.
6. Robust co-design processes that support the collaborative generation of knowledge.
7. The implementation and evaluation of interventions directly in the territory, linking evidence generation to real-world change.

The primary innovation of the CSL model lies in the integration of citizen science and living labs, combining bottom-up knowledge production with participatory experimentation and impact-oriented territorial innovation in real-world environments. This methodological approach does more than democratising knowledge; it ensures that solutions are built upon needs, experiences, and priorities of the people that will use them.

Many research and innovation initiatives working on healthier and more sustainable food systems rely on citizens sharing food-related personal data (e.g. purchasing habits or food
behaviours). In practice, participation is often limited because people have concerns about privacy, trust and the effort required to collect and share data. This reduces the availability and quality of data needed to design effective solutions.

Within the SPOON project, an EU-level literature review and focus groups conducted in six Citizen Science Labs (CSLs) (Germany, Greece, Italy, Belgium, Spain, Slovenia)were used to
identify the main barriers and enabling conditions for sharing food-related personal data. The findings show that barriers include privacy concerns, lack of trust in organisations Handling the data, perceived loss of control, and the time and effort required for data collection.
Unclear information about how data will be used and limited perceived benefit also reduce willingness to participate.

The research also shows that citizens are willing to share data when the purpose is clearly linked to research or public-interest goals, when trusted organisations are involved, and when they retain control over their data. 
Transparent communication, clear consent procedures, visible data-protection measures and simple, low-effort data-collection tools significantly increase participation. Providing feedback and showing how the shared data contributes to improving food systems further strengthens engagement.

For stakeholders applying these principles can increase participation rates and improve better-targeted interventions. Implementing transparent governance and user-friendly tools may require initial organisational and technical effort, but can lead to stronger trust, higher engagement and more effective solutions.

SPOON promotes sustainable consumption patterns while supporting access to sufficient, healthy and affordable food. It engages citizens as researchers in Citizen Science Labs (CSLs), combining citizen science and Living Labs. Through this bottom-up approach, citizens co-create research tools and provide data for scientists to analyse needs, motivations and opportunities. This evidence enables Quadruple Helix actors to co-design Behavioural Change Interventions to influence consumer behaviour and support long-term food system transformation, tested in real-life settings in six European territories.

Braunschweig, Germany: coordinated by the Braunschweig University of Art, this CSL focuses on food waste perceptions, fresh produce prices and the gap between consumers and producers.
Thessaloniki, Greece: led by the Municipality of Thessaloniki, this CSL redesigns food behaviours towards a zero-waste model, addressing processed food consumption and unequal access in low-income areas.
Turin, Italy: coordinated by the City of Turin and Rete delle Case del Quartiere, this CSL improves food aid services for vulnerable groups while reducing the stigma linked to surplus food.
Bruges, Belgium: coordinated by Bruges Food Lab, this CSL tackles “food swamps”, where unhealthy options dominate, by strengthening food literacy and sustainable choices.
Valencia, Spain: coordinated by Valencia Innovation Capital, this CSL builds on the city’s agricultural heritage to inform evidence-based policies for healthy food access, focusing on food-insecure populations and households supported by social services.
Pomurje Region, Slovenia: coordinated by the Innovation Technology Cluster, this CSL explores how field-to-shelf traceability influences purchasing behaviour, helping bridge the rural-urban divide and strengthen the regional agri-food economy.

Grounded in local expertise and lived experience, SPOON develops a scalable model for sustainable nutrition as a collaborative achievement.