HeaLIQs 4 Cities
Healthy Lifestyle Innovation Quarters for Cities and Citizens

Challenge

HeaLIQs 4 Cities promotes interaction between citizens, local academia, SMEs and government. They will meet in Lifestyle Innovation Quarters (LIQs), which are open for an established time period during big physical activity events. In the LIQs, citizens engage in lifestyle assessments, test innovative products from SMEs and engage in community programmes. All of the activities focus on learning about a healthy lifestyle in an approachable setting. LIQs will enable lifestyle mapping and assist in the work of scouting for successful lifestyle approaches in the EU.

Solution

In 2018 HeaLIQs 4 Cities aims to increase public visibility of regional R&D in the area of Healthy Living and Active Ageing by inviting citizens to engage in a Lifestyle Innovation Quarter. These LIQs are temporary fora established at a central location in the city during a big public event, such as an organised running event. The LIQs enable citizens to test and co-develop innovative products of local SMEs, to get informed on HLAA-related programmes run by local governments and to receive academia supported lifestyle checks with personalized lifestyle advice.

The two LIQs will be established in Groningen, Netherlands, and Coimbra, Portugal, two cities/regions that were deemed “Reference Sites for Active and Healthy Ageing”. This recognition, given by the European Commission, highlights a region’s successful integration of academia, industry, government and the end-user communities – the quadruple helix. The 2018 activity will target visitors of the University games EUSA 2018 (20-22 July at Alma Shopping, Praça Vida +) in Coimbra and the Healthy Ageing Week & 4-Mile Run of Groningen (6-14 October). In both events, the LIQs will enroll the citizens in physical activity, healthy lifestyle assessments and technology use/development in exhibition booths and living labs.

Objectives, Activities and Results expected / achieved

The expected and measured outcomes of HeaLIQs 4 Cities can be divided in:
1. how we expect the activity to promote regional outreach towards specific citizens;

2. how the individual visitors experienced the activity.

We expect that during public events with a community and healthy scope (i.e. sport events with athletes and their relatives as supporters) are good venues to engage also with less healthy and active individuals about lifestyle issues. To confirm the LIQ (Lifestyle Innovation Quarter) has such an effect, post-activity analytics on data obtained in the LIQ will be performed: general and lifestyle related parameters (part of the HLAT) allow stratification of the visitors. Thereafter, we will perform (literature) research on how this differed from other regional/national open prevention programmes, for example like offered at the general practitioner. A great outcome of the activity would be if we reached those citizens that are being missed in standard prevention programmes; those who would benefit the most of adhering a healthy lifestyle. We expect that after a visit to the LIQ, the citizen will have learned about various R&D activities in the region. Furthermore, the citizen has learned how healthy his lifestyle is compared to visitors of the same age.

Achieved Outcome:
• Programme Exchange - 4.

The Healiqs4Cities activity was fully and succesfully executed over the course of 2018 in line with the planning of the original business plan. Within the activity we have succesfully developed, established and executed the concept of Lifestyle Innovation Quarters, open accessible for that bring (regional) innovation in active and healthy ageing to the city and its citizens. The concept was piloted during sport and outreach events in Coimbra (Praca Vida+; 20-22 July) and Groningen (Healthy Living Room; 6-14 Oct.). Over the course of both events we were able to provide in depth personal healthchecks to over more than 500 individuals. Furthermore, in parallel to the personal health check the LIQs also hosted broader programs that included public health lectures, thematic SMEs gatherings and exhibitions, 'signing' moments by healthy ageing officials, healthy food tastings, and physical exercise workshops. Via these broader programs the activity actively engaged many more citizens.