FEAST - Community involvement - OUTCOMES AND INSIGHTS FROM CO-DESIGN WORKSHOPS IN FEAST LIVING LABS

This report presents the outcomes, insights and reflections from a series of co-design workshops conducted within four FEAST Living Labs—Leuven, Oxfordshire, Ghent and Tuscany—aimed at developing community-driven solutions that support healthier and more sustainable food choices. The workshops applied a structured methodology based on participatory design, integrating exercises such as timeline reflection, cognitive mapping of bottlenecks and qualities, and solution pathway development. Across contexts, participants collaboratively explored how food behaviours and environments have evolved, articulated their “dreams” for better food futures, and identified barriers and opportunities across micro, meso and macro levels of the food system.

In Leuven, mothers of primary-school children highlighted a desire for enjoyable, healthy, sustainable food as a social norm, especially in schools. Their reflections stressed increasing exposure to unhealthy food marketing, affordability issues, and limited healthy school offerings. Bottlenecks were mainly situated at the meso level, while qualities centred on emerging school initiatives and greater availability of vegetarian options. Suggested solutions included nutrition education as a standard school subject, improved regulation of unhealthy food marketing, and digital tools to increase knowledge. In Oxfordshire, parents of young children prioritised access to affordable fresh produce, opportunities for community growing, time to cook from scratch, and reduced waste. Bottlenecks were more often at the micro level, including limited skills, fussy eating, convenience pressures and high food prices. Participants identified positive household practices such as modelling good eating behaviours and waste reduction. Key solutions included a free recipe and advice app, community gardens, cooking classes, better promotion of local support services and initiatives to connect farmers and residents.

The workshops in Ghent engaged professional stakeholders from food-related organisations operating in disadvantaged neighbourhoods. Their shared dream centred on fair food access and stronger community connection through food. Bottlenecks arose from fragmented service provision, pricing barriers and limited visibility of available food support. Solutions focused on improving communication between providers, experimenting with solidarity pricing models, developing shared calendars or food guides, and strengthening collaboration with the City of Ghent. In Tuscany, regional health professionals used the workshop to plan the sustainable continuation of a paediatric nutrition clinic. Bottlenecks included bureaucracy, limited communication, insufficient staffing, and lack of a broader prevention culture. Solutions emphasised strengthening communication channels, building strategic partnerships, integrating the clinic with screening programmes, and advocating for its inclusion within long-term health system planning.

Across all sites, the workshops were valued for fostering dialogue, revealing hidden challenges, and generating actionable ideas. Reflections highlight the importance of adapting the workshop design to participants’ needs, creating space for deeper action planning, and ensuring accessibility of concepts and materials. The findings underscore the value of co-design for tailoring interventions to diverse community contexts and for empowering both citizens and professional stakeholders in shaping healthier, more sustainable food environments.