SCALEDEM aims at unlocking the uptake of democratic innovations born in R&I actions, in particular stemming from EU-fundedprojects. This is achieved by developing a scaling infrastructure, including policy roadmaps and an actionable Compass for scaling democratic innovations, based on a Grounded Theory of Scaling. SCALEDEM helps researchers, practitioners, and policymakers assess opportunities and barriers for scaling democratic innovations along four dimensions: scaling high (impacting laws and policy), out (impacting greater more and new people), deep (impacting cultures and identities) and in (impacting processes' quality). SCALEDEM starts by analysing innovative solutions developed in R&I projects on the issue of citizen participation and engagement in democratic governance, in particular Horizon projects whose end date is after January 2023, to develop a Theory of Scaling. Following a collaborative and interdisciplinary translation process in its Translation Hub, SCALEDEM deploys two ambitious Scaling Grounds in the forms of Twinning and Pilot Programmes. The Scaling Grounds test and encourage the uptake of democratic innovations by new end users, scaling the societal impact of those solutions further. SCALEDEM establishes iterative feedback and capacity-building mechanisms to support the replicability and adaptability of solutions in new operational environments and actionability of theoretical solutions. In parallel, SCALEDEM involves and nurtures a global community of end users. It leverages strategic partnerships with relevant R&I projects, initiatives, and networks, notably the Network for innovative solutions for the future of democracy, to overcome the fragmentation of knowledge, identify opportunities to increase synergies for capacity-building actions to policymakers, practitioners and researchers, and expand the societal and political impact of EU-funded research inthe EU and countries from GlobalEurope.

Climate change is one of the most critical issues to tackle today as it is foreseen to have detrimental social, environmental and economic impacts in the near future. The last climate change events, such as flooding in Germany and Belgium in both Continental and Atlantic regions, heat waves and lack of water in both Mediterranean and Boreal regions, show that the policymakers, experts and stakeholders' actions are not enough, and a 360º citizens engagement is urgently needed. Therefore, we need to learn from the good experience in citizens' engagement in climate change action and build up citizens` supporting infrastructure for climate adaptation measures to help the 150 European regions and local communities to resist. Climate assemblies and Living labs are considered as sustainable and reasonable tools to stimulate deliberative democracy in climate policymaking. The ambition of the current project is to support a transformation to climate resilience by offering an innovative problem-oriented climate adoption Toolbox, co-designed together with stakeholders by applying a values-based approach, design thinking methods and citizen science mechanisms. It is expected that the use of the Toolbox will anticipate possible tensions, points of controversy and dilemmas vis-a-vis the adaptation to resilience - therefore enabling empowerment and engagement strategies that produce a society "resilient by design". In addition, CLIMAS will include the empirical component for testing this Toolbox and formulating scientific-based guidelines for policymakers on how to shift Climate Assemblies from technically based deliberations that belong to climate change experts to multi-stakeholders deliberations based on solving the dilemmas from a bottom-up, more societal and value-based perspective. CLIMAS outcomes will positively influence policy development and awareness-raising process and offer sustainable strategies to enhance the acceptance of citizens' led decisions by policymakers.

The aim of the oPEN Lab is to identify replicable, commercially viable solution packages enabling the achievement of positive energy neighbourhoods within existing urban contexts that are seamlessly integrated into the local energy system as an active micro-energy hub, and to test these technologies and package as an integrated solution at neighbourhood scale. Three open innovation living labs in the cities of Genk (BE), Pamplona (ES) and Tartu (EE) will test combinations of different close-to-market ready technologies and services and study their performance as a unique operating system. Focus is on demonstrating innovations in an integrated approach combining sustainable design tailored to the local context, seamless industrial renovation workflows, renewable energy generation combined with energy storage systems, urban service facilities and smart operation, life cycle thinking and circularity, and this across the whole value chain, targeting the whole life cycle of the building and its neighbourhood, in view of scaling up and wide replication. A user driven and participatory approach with the neighbourhood?s community will be rolled out for a holistic and positive energy vision for the neighbourhood, going beyond citizen awareness raising activities. oPEN Lab is a unique collaboration aligned with the Open Innovation quadruple helix model where a) industry (SMEs, large companies, start-ups and scale-ups in both construction and energy value chains), b) government (local public administration), c) academia/RTOs and d) civil participants (end users, NGOs) work together to co-create and drive structural changes that will result in high TRL levels, with great focus on exploitation of results and wide replication.