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As part of this project, scientific support is being provided for the development of a climate assessment tool for the municipality of Sankt Poelten (Lower Austria).

Project duration: 12/2025 - 06/2026

Contract research project, in cooperation with the Municipality of St. Pölten, Department of Urban Planning

Further information: Project database, opens an external URL in a new window

Over 40% of Austrians live in rural areas. Rural regions and small towns are becoming increasingly important as a place of residence and business. However, being mobile in rural areas involves a high degree of self-organisation, which is reflected in a comparatively high affinity for cars. This situation simultaneously harbours great potential for innovative mobility services that focus on sharing rather than owning.

As a regional mobility laboratory for rural areas, land.mobil:LAB addresses these challenges. Based in Waldviertel (Lower Austria), the LAB focuses on specific areas (including flexible public transport) and supports innovation projects on their way to realisation. The establishment of a mobility laboratory specialising in rural mobility offers a special opportunity to support mobility innovations that arise from the specific needs of the population in the focus region.

With the RU7 department of the state of Lower Austria and the Interkomm Waldviertel association, the land.mobil:LAB has important strategic partners for administrative innovation and the transfer of mobility solutions to relevant stakeholders. The state of Lower Austria is currently focussing on the nationwide roll-out of on-demand transport ("Flex-ÖV") in coordination with "classic" scheduled services. This top-down approach by the public sector is combined with the strong self-organisation potential of rural communities through the LAB’s processes.

The research landscape on rural mobility lags far behind that in urban areas. The aim of land.mobil:LAB is to close the gap between research and practice and to act as an instrument for research-led mobility innovations in rural areas. The analytical and planning procedures in the LAB follow a multi-method approach: a mobility panel enables the mobility behaviour of residents to be researched. Accessibility analyses can be used to identify priority areas with high transformative impact potential in the mobility sector and define requirements for innovation projects. land.mobil:LAB accompanies innovation projects from project genesis to implementation and evaluation. The projects are localised along three innovation perspectives that were developed with stakeholders in the exploratory phase: (a) New mobility modes, (b) Dynamic mobility purposes and (c) Actors with innovation potential.

On the one hand, land.mobil:LAB supports the implementation of complementary mobility offers that have already been tested and can be replicated, and on the other hand, it actively contributes to the transfer of findings from its own activities in the Waldviertel pilot area to other regions in Austria. The land.mobil:LAB therefore sees itself (a) as an accelerator of the mobility transition in rural areas, (b) as an incubator for innovative mobility solutions and (c) as a multiplier of ideas and findings.

Project duration: 08/2024 bis 07/2029

Research funding project, funded by the FFG, in cooperation with the state of Lower Austria and the association Interkomm Waldviertel.

Further information: Project database, opens an external URL in a new window | Website, opens an external URL in a new window

© future.lab

The landuni project, funded by the state of Lower Austria (2022–2024) and implemented by TU Wien’s Faculty of Architecture and Spatial Planning, has already been recognized as a best-practice model. The follow-up project, landuni 2.0, will run for three years and aims to strengthen Austria’s rural areas as spaces for innovation and quality of life. It does so by identifying and closing research gaps while bringing hands-on research and teaching directly to local communities.

Around 56% of Austria’s population lives in rural areas. Despite their importance for residents, the economy, and tourism, these regions receive comparatively little attention in academic research. Funding for research and planning is often limited, and local administrations frequently lack expertise—particularly in planning and construction. landuni 2.0 seeks to change this perspective: it reimagines rural areas as hubs of innovation. By connecting science, practice, local communities, businesses, and administrations, the project fosters practical, scalable solutions to pressing challenges. A key element is the use of "Living Labs" and participatory Citizen Science methods, allowing local and regional stakeholders to actively engage in shaping their future.

landuni 2.0 is built around four main pillars: (1) Researching on, with and in rural areas, (2) Teaching and learning in rural contexts, (3) Developing the landuni network and its locations, (4) Public outreach and dissemination

A major opportunity lies in expanding collaborations with national and international research partners and integrating new fields of study. The project’s anchor is the educational center in Drosendorf, which was at risk of vacancy in 2021, along with the municipality of Drosendorf-Zissersdorf. Moving forward, the initiative aims to expand its regional presence even further.

Project duration: 01/2025 - 12/2027

Research funding project, funded by the province of Lower Austria.

Further information: Project database, opens an external URL in a new window | Website, opens an external URL in a new window

The STICS consortium brings together 24 international partners from all key industries that promote and drive innovation. The common goal is to create a dynamic innovation environment in Slovakia, improve the efficiency of local authorities, and remove barriers between different needs and perspectives. This creates space for new and completely original solutions.

Project duration: 04/2025 - 09/2027

Funded by the EU NextGenerationEU through the Recovery and Resilience Plan for Slovakia under the project within the Smart Transformational and Innovation Consortium Slovakia (STICS) No. 09I02-03-V01-00011.

Further information: Project database, opens an external URL in a new window | Website, opens an external URL in a new window