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Living Labs as Democratic Infrastructure: Co-producing Education Policy through Participatory Research

Rami, Justin orcid logoORCID: 0000-0002-2222-9995, Mallon, Benjamin orcid logoORCID: 0000-0002-8764-9712, Lalor, John orcid logoORCID: 0000-0003-0331-0170 and Eren, Ebru orcid logoORCID: 0000-0001-6098-0379 (2025) Living Labs as Democratic Infrastructure: Co-producing Education Policy through Participatory Research. In: Education Research Summit / National Education Convention 2025, 18th November 2025, Croke Park, Dublin, Ireland.

Abstract
This paper examines how Living Lab methodologies, developed through collaborative research–practice–policy partnerships in Ireland and Europe, can support the ambitions of the National Education Convention. It presents Living Labs as a democratic infrastructure for co-producing education policy and embedding learner and teacher agency within reform processes. Drawing on Irish case studies and DCU’s participatory research with the Department of Education, the paper outlines how Living Labs enable inclusive policymaking, iterative feedback between practice and policy, and scalable models for system change. Informed by participatory democracy and design-based implementation research, the findings highlight enhanced democratic competences, educator professionalism, and community inclusion. Living Labs are proposed as a sustainable, future-focused mechanism for bridging research, policy, and practice, offering a model for more democratic, resilient, and context-responsive education systems in Ireland.
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