In rapidly evolving societies, and to deal with the urgency and increasing complexity of challenges, scientific research and innovation have a key role to play to inform decisions and invent solutions which satisfy local needs. Collective intelligence plays a prominent role in this process. Researchers, entrepreneurs, NGOs and users may strengthen the societal impact of research programmes by liaising with society, defining priorities, questions and forms of action together.
To sustain this momentum, in a spirit of sharing knowledge and skills, IRD created the Innovation Campuses in 2016.
An innovation campus is an open physical location where research is conducted in partnership with civil society and economic stakeholders, by sharing skills and expertise to respond to social challenges. It is a research, training, awareness raising, experimentation, meetings, support and incubation site.
2018 saw the Soil, Knowledge, Flavours Laboratory (“LAB3S”) begin its activities as part of Bondy’s campus of innovation for the planet. A series of creativity workshops were organised in the areas of ecology and urban agriculture on the one hand, and food on the other.
In parallel, several workshops intended to raise Bondy pupils’ awareness of urban ecology were repeated on the Campus. New training modules and “Campus discovery” and “science/entrepreneurship awareness” courses were developed in partnership with Bond’Innov.
The development of the LAB3S’s activities was also accompanied in 2018 by the initiation of the maturation phase of the “ANRU+” innovation programme for which Est-Ensemble was selected in partnership with IRD in July 2017. This project enabled the launch of two complementary studies on the economic models of future Campus infrastructures (Experimental farm, FoodLab, FabLab, etc.) and programming for building renovation.
The end of 2018 was marked by the equipment and inauguration of the FabLab, known as “CoFab in Bondy”. This innovative platform equipped with digital manufacturing tools allows the laboratories present on the Campus to conduct research and set up joint projects with other socio-economic players, such as the Bond’innov incubated companies (e.g.: development of innovative micro-sensors).
Relationships with the Bond’innov innovative start-up incubator were strengthened. An IRD-Bond’innov framework agreement was signed during the VIVATECH Show to facilitate and foster future collaboration.
Several events such as the Maquis des sciences and an Agritic Hackathon were organised under the umbrella of the Ouagadougou Innovation Campus.