During July 2024, fifteen members of the Gasol Foundation research team settled in the Espai BETA of Coboi lab to carry out an intensive scientific residency. This initiative is part of the shared project between the foundation and Coboi lab to promote spaces for concentration, collaborative research and knowledge transfer within an experimental and entrepreneurial ecosystem.
The ad hoc residency had as its main objective to generate useful scientific evidence supporting the promotion of healthy habits and the reduction of childhood obesity, two central axes of the foundation’s mission. The stay also allowed them to explore synergies that can appear when an international entity coexists with other local agents in a public innovation space such as Espai BETA.
Coboi lab assumed the role of host and facilitator throughout the process, promoting daily coexistence between the scientific team of the foundation and the other residents, such as young entrepreneurs. This coexistence was observed and documented to collect qualitative indicators on the impact of the environment on the work processes and knowledge creation. The daily meetings with the Coboi team allowed them to refine the use of the space and identify opportunities for improvement and added value.
Among the prominent participants of the residency we find figures such as Santi F. Gómez Santos (global director of research), Genís Según Mercader, Paula Berruezo Torres, Sílvia Torres, Jan Ródenas and Gisela López, each with key responsibilities within the research structure and programs of the foundation. During the stay, we also had the intervention of Helmut Schöeder, member of the Advisory Board of the foundation, who offered a capsule of knowledge on how to write a scientific article, providing useful tools to systematize the results.
The researchers highly valued the work environment and the possibility of leaving the usual space to rethink their own methodologies and enrich them with an external perspective. These types of experiences, as they expressed in their assessments, favor creativity, connection with the environment and the emergence of new ideas .
This stay has not only been useful for the scientific objectives of the foundation, but has also allowed Coboi lab to test its Espai BETA model as a place of public innovation that connects knowledge, policies and citizen experimentation. The assessments collected will allow us to continue improving this residency format, which will be consolidated in future projects.
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