U-Space Living Lab
Funded by
Berlin Senate Department for Economics, Energy and Public Enterprises (SenWEB)
Client
Technical University of Berlin
Role of urban tactics
Public Engagement Strategy · Stakeholder Engagement · Dialogue Formats · Living Lab Facilitation
The Challenge
The U-Space Berlin Living Lab explores the potential of drones for transporting light goods in urban environments. The project investigates whether drone logistics can help reduce congestion, shorten delivery times and complement existing transport systems.
Beyond technical and regulatory questions, the project focuses on environmental impacts, potential risks and, most importantly, public acceptance. A key challenge is making a highly complex and often abstract topic understandable to residents while creating opportunities for meaningful dialogue before the technology is deployed at a larger scale.
The Tactic
As part of the project team at the Technical University of Berlin, urban tactics founder Simon Wöhr designs and facilitates public engagement processes that bring citizens' perspectives into the development of the living lab.
The objective is not only to inform residents, but to create an open dialogue about the opportunities, concerns and societal implications of low-altitude drone operations. To achieve this, the project develops accessible participation formats that communicate technical, environmental and regulatory issues in an understandable and transparent way.
Through workshops, public events, stakeholder dialogues and experimental engagement formats, local knowledge and public concerns are systematically integrated into the project.
The Result
The project is establishing a participatory framework that brings together technological innovation, regulatory requirements and societal expectations from the outset.
Rather than treating residents as passive observers, the process actively involves them in discussions about flight paths, environmental impacts, safety considerations and potential use cases. U-Space Berlin demonstrates how emerging urban technologies can be tested responsibly through transparency, structured dialogue and early stakeholder engagement.
