Our Methodology

The Living Lab Approach

How SchoolMedDiet works: a shared Living Lab methodology, co-creation with school communities,a common evaluation framework and cross-country benchmarking.

Participatory Innovation

Co-Creation Through Living Labs

At the core of SchoolMedDiet is the Living Lab: a participatory innovation ecosystem embedded in a real school. Rather than testing solutions on communities, we build them with communities. Students, teachers, parents, municipalities, farmers, SMEs, researchers and policymakers work side by side to co-design, test and refine Mediterranean-diet practices in everyday school life.

Cross-Country Learning

A Shared Framework,
Adapted Locally

Each national Living Lab is tailored to its own education system and local context, yet all four follow a common methodological and evaluation framework. This design enables genuine cross-country learning and benchmarking — what works in one setting can be understood, compared and adapted for another.

Five Project Phases

How the Project Unfolds

Design

Co-develop the methodology, learning content and shared performance indicators (KPIs)

Implement

Roll out the Living Labs in schools across the four countries

Empower

Deploy the AI Food Assistant and VR modules alongside classroom and extracurricular activities

Evaluate

Monitor dietary adherence and behavioural and environmental indicators through a shared framework

Transform

Pilot greener school-meal procurement and translate results into policy and replication tools