In terms of RURBANIVE, the ICCS-SMAS team deploys a set of mobility-related scenarios tailored for the town of Lemgo (Germany), with a particular focus on the Innovation Campus Lemgo (ICL), the city of Lemgo in general and how it is connected with its surrounding cities such as Lage, Detmold etc.

The real-world impact of alternative mobility strategies is modelled through a comparison of a baseline scenario—where most people rely heavily on private cars—with several enhanced mobility scenarios. These include increased public transport frequency (especially during evening hours), redesigned bus routes to better serve the campus and residential areas, especially during critical hours, and ehnancing transport solutions such as park-and-ride schemes with last-mile options via walking or cycling, to constrain even more the already limited usage of private cars inside the Old City center.

Each scenario integrates demographic overlays and behavioural models, enabling planners to better understand current commuting patterns, accessibility gaps, and environmental effects. The tool also incorporates feedback loops via digital surveys and pilot interventions, capturing people’s willingness to adopt new modes of transport and highlighting key drivers of behavioural change.

Once validated, the model provides local authorities, campus administrators, and transport operators with an evidence-based dashboard to support sustainable, cost-effective mobility planning.
Students, pupils, and academic staff of ICL benefit from a more reliable and flexible transport system that matches their study and work schedules, particularly during evening hours when current services are limited.
Residents may also be encouraged to shift away from car-only habits through improved alternatives.
Local authorities and mobility stakeholders can use the results to co-design a more inclusive, efficient transport network that reduces congestion while reinforcing Lemgo’s identity as a smart and sustainable innovat

In terms of RURBANIVE,  ICCS-SMAS team deploys some mobility-related scenarios tailored for the needs of the city of Trikala (Greece) and its surrounding rural areas. The real-world impact of alternative mobility strategies is modelled, via a comparisomn of a baseline scenario—where most residents and visitors rely on private cars—with several enhanced mobility scenarios. These include improved public transport frequency, redesigned bus routes, and integrated multi-modal options where users park on the city outskirts and walk or cycle into the centre. Each scenario is enriched with demographic overlays and behavioural assumptions, allowing local planners to visualize and understand traffic patterns, accessibility levels, and environmental metrics. The tool integrates feedback loops through online surveys and on-site trials, capturing user satisfaction and readiness to switch transport modes.  Once validated, the model provides municipalities and mobility operators with a dynamic dashboard to assess the real-world feasibility and sustainability gains of future investments. People with limited mobility within the city can access the public transport stops more easily and reach their destination more directly. Tourists benefit from smoother, more intuitive access to central attractions without needing to navigate local parking constraints, improving their overall experience and likelihood of return. Older residents in nearby villages gain visibility in the planning process through data-driven assessments of rural transport coverage, helping to justify route expansions or on-demand shuttle services that keep them connected to healthcare, markets, and community hubs.

The first tangible outcome is the launch of COC-Tool #1, a stand-alone desktop application designed to assess emotional engagement with landscapes (specifically, the Pasiegos Valleys in Burgos, Spain).
Using a standard laptop webcam, the tool monitors the facial gestures of potential visitors as they view landscape photographs, while also capturing their spoken reactions. A neural network module evaluates facial expressions in real time, and a lightweight NLP engine analyzes the emotional content of spoken keywords.
A final one-to-five-star Likert rating is explicitly given by the participant at the end of each session, reflecting their personal emotional response to each image or clip. 
The collected ratings will later serve as key inputs to calculate the affective value of each landscape, once the full suite of cognitive computing tools developed by CARTIF under the RURBANIVE project is completed.

Added value for end-users
• Tourism operators can rank imagery, refine brochures and design itineraries around the highest-scoring scenes, lifting click-through and booking rates.
• Destination managers can overlay star ratings on a map to target signage, viewpoint upgrades and maintenance where visitor impact is clearly greatest, maximising tight budgets.
• Regional policy makers and heritage bodies can attach these data-driven scores to grant files and investment proposals, justifying projects with measured public interest rather than subjective opinion.

Fostering rural-urban entrepreneurial synergies through the Startup Village framework. Under the RURBANIVE project, AgriFood Lithuania (AFL) addresses the disparities between urban and rural areas emerging from insufficient local engagement and empowerment. AFL initiative targets Kėdainiai town and district – an area currently hindered by traditional, low-innovation business models and town-focused development policies, limiting rural economic growth and social wellbeing. To tackle this issue, a Startup Village framework will be elaborated and appraised in Kėdainiai by applying the principles of co-creation among local rural-urban stakeholders.

This innovative rural ecosystem model (Startup Village) will facilitate the development of stronger entrepreneurial relations with urban areas and contribute to the local wellbeing. Most importantly, the co-creation workshops will bring together a broad range of stakeholders who will be given the opportunity to contribute to the local development model. The co-design of a novel model will establish shared authorship and responsibility, resulting in strengthened local engagement, empowerment, and territorial awareness.  

The documented development and the implementation of the Startup Village model and co-creation workshops will offer the flexibility to replicate it in other regions. Expected entrepreneurial benefits for local actors include:

- increased knowledge of new business models, markets, and product development;
- strengthened strategic partnerships among businesses, the public sector, science institutions, and local communities;
- access to local resource mapping data;
- widened networking opportunities.

Everyday thousands of kilos of stale bread, used cooking oil and bruised fruit leave Vienna as “waste”. The Circular Economy says that there is no such thing as waste!
RUE-3 flips that loss into valuable resources for multiple local and/or regional stakeholders.

What’s in it for you?

• Flow map – a Sankey diagram shows resource flows in and out of the focus region for three locally relevant resources, so you can spot potential gaps and plan pick-ups.
• Potential innovation pathways – based on the material flow analysis of localy relevant resources, circulat innovation pathways are identified.
• Pathway analysis -- Holistic multi-criteria assessment of the innovative pathways to compare and assess options considering environmental, economic and social contexts, ensuring longterm sustainability.
• Match-making tool to find residual waste streams and potential conversion / re-valorisation pathways – type your resource into the free BioBASE Compass, gain insight into the cascading of raw resources.

Main added value
✓ Information on the material flows of residual biomass steams or regional relevant materials and the potential re-valorisation of these otherwise waste-streams = potential income streams instead of disposal fees.
✓ Enable the re-valorisation of residual biomass-streams by connecting waste producers and innovators = win-win for multiple stakeholders.

In the framework of the RURBANIVE project, in Milos island (Greece), we explore solutions and develop tool for preserving ecosystems through ecosystem and biodiversity restoration. Leading by IMERYS we explore sustainable development by combining nature-based solutions, innovative technologies, and community engagement. Based on a series of co-creation workshops, through hands-on sessions and digital tools, participants will discover the practical methods for restoring Mediterranean garrigue ecosystems affected by quarrying activities.

Key expected results 
1.    reintroduction of native plant communities, 
2.    improved biodiversity, 
3.    creation of multifunctional landscapes that combine ecological restoration with productive agriculture and tourism

For farmers and local practitioners, this approach offers direct benefits: restored land can support drought-resilient plants, promote eco-tourism, and enhance the value of local products. Integrating restoration with agriculture reduces costs, improves soil health, and opens new revenue streams. Immersive tools like the AR app also help raise awareness and support better land-use decisions. Practitioners can apply these insights to make their land more resilient, attractive, and economically viable, contributing to a thriving rural-urban connection.

Workshops and digital learning platform. A part of an effort to achieve the objective of enhancing logistics and shorten the value chain is a series of workshops and online courses organized by Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague, Czech Republic (CZU) for a variety of stakeholders and held in Food Processing Training Centre at its premisses. The aim of the workshops is to actively engage participants in both physical and virtual activities so that they can benefit from a practical understanding of issues related to the benefits of short value products, food traceability and transparent prices. The activities focus on modern food processing technologies that can help farmers and local producers shorten the journey of food products from production to direct sale on the farm or at local markets.
The workshops cover the processing of various products – bakery, milk processing, ageing of beef, and beer brewing. Workshops bring together representatives from public authorities, academia, research institutions with agri-food producers. A set of on-line courses is being developed based on the workshops that is provided to the stakeholders via digital platform. 
CZU develops and implements a digital learning platform that aims to function and serve as a socially driven digital hub that connects a wide range of stakeholders across the agri-food value chain to support the shortening of value chains. The intention is to move from a digital marketplace, which currently dominates the state-of-the-art digital platform related to the short value chain, to a hub enabling broad social engagement, where stakeholders can obtain better information and education/training on the shortening of value chains and logistics, as well as on the certification processes of agri-food products.
These activities aim to foster co-creation among stakeholders, strengthen communication between rural-urban domains which should enhance the value chain shortening.

Significant progress has been made to support rural-urban collaboration through the design and coordination of co-creation workshops across all RUCLs. AUA played a central role in engaging RUCL leaders, holding one-on-one meetings, and providing tools and guidance to ensure that the workshops are relevant and effective. Each RUCL developed a tailored co-creation plan, supported by a comprehensive toolkit including a co-creation guide, simplified preparation instructions, workshop reporting, consent templates and participant satisfaction surveys. These resources enable leaders to organize focused, productive workshops that respond to real-world needs. The process has been significantly complemented by the systematic mapping, recruitment and engagement of relevant stakeholders in the RUCLs.
To support effective monitoring, a shared calendar of workshop dates, a KPI tracking tool, and a task deadline file were also developed. Additionally, based on the literature review, a capacity-building guide was provided with topic ideas tailored to each RUCL to inspire local training initiatives. RUCL leaders can propose and plan their sessions using the provided input template.
This approach fosters the development of practical solutions tailored to local needs, while promoting collaboration and knowledge sharing for lasting impact and continued growth.

Community Store is a digital platform developed within the RURBANIVE project to foster collaboration between rural and urban communities across Europe. It connects diverse stakeholders, enabling the exchange of ideas, resources, and innovative practices to promote mutual learning and cooperation. Through tools for online communication, discussion, and co-creation, the platform helps bridge gaps between rural and urban areas, supporting social connectivity and collective problem-solving.

Users can access recommendations, share local knowledge, and participate in joint activities. Rural communities may showcase local products, sustainable farming methods, crafts, or eco-tourism initiatives, while urban actors contribute technological know-how, educational content, and services that benefit rural areas.

The platform includes interactive features like forums, shared workspaces, and a resource library. It is supported by the Community of Practice Suite, which guides users in identifying collaboration opportunities and building impactful partnerships. Immersive technologies such as virtual and augmented reality allow users to explore remote communities and initiatives, strengthening empathy and engagement.

Community Store is closely linked to physical Rural/Urban Co-Creation Labs (RUCLs), which serve as pilot grounds for the digital collaborations. These Labs, located in diverse EU regions, ensure that solutions are grounded, scalable, and context-sensitive. This combined digital-physical model boosts the sustainability and relevance of rural-urban innovations.

Rural-urban communities are complex systems containing a multitude of processes and relationships. As such, they can react in unexpected ways to the introduction of innovative solutions, potentially leading to negating or even reversing the intended impact. The successful development of innovations in such systems requires the ability to continuously move between perspectives, build collective learning, and connect specific actions to the systemic transformation.

The RUSIF is a framework that aims at supporting actors to do exactly this. In the RURBANIVE project the overarching vision is to build sustainable well-being economies in connected rural-urban communities, and the RUSIF aims at connecting innovations towards this systemic vision.

More specifically, the framework is aimed at supporting actors to:

1. Map, explore and reflect on their current system/community, the relations, stakeholders, structures and processes that it contains, and what a future vision of their system as a well-being economy would contain.

2. Identify and prototype different opportunities for implementing innovations, focusing on pathways from the current system to the future vision.

3. Observe and evaluate how the system responded to the interventions from (2) and how the  lessons learned require an update of the initial map and understanding (1) for the next iteration of prototyping and refinement of the pathways.

The RUSIF will be developed together with the users/actors in the communities, and will focus on combining theoretical knowledge with contextual knowledge and experience. The RUSIF will all be available in the RURBANIVE Practice Suite at the end of the project.