Real-world labs, also known as living labs, are transdisciplinary research formats. In those formats academic, public, and private parties collaborate on the development and implementation of solutions for grand social and environmental challenges, especially by developing and testing technology designs or policy interventions in real-world settings. Due to their methodological peculiarities at the intersection of science and society, real-world labs come with ethical challenges that differ from those in more traditional research formats. Hence, the need was identified to develop ethics guidelines which address the specifics of transdisciplinary and participatory research in real-world labs.

In 2022, an interdisciplinary team of members of the Academy pf Responsible Research, Teaching, and Innovation (ARRTI) and Karlsruhe Transformation Centre for Sustainability and Cultural Change (KAT) at KIT began working on ethics guidelines for real-world labs. In the course of this project, two documents were developed which address ethical challenges in real world labs from different, complementary angles: “Reflection Guidelines for Responsible Research and Innovation in Real-World Labs” and a “Code of ethics for Real-World Labs for Sustainability”.

Reflection Guidelines for Responsible Research and Innovation in Real-World Labs

The “Reflection Guidelines” are a catalogue of questions, structured along ethically relevant fields of action in real-world lab research, which shall help real-world lab practitioners to systematically and independently reflect on ethical challenges in their specific real-world lab environment. It is written for a broad audience of real- world lab practitioners and is not limited to real-world labs with specific normative orientations.

Real-world lab practitioners are invited to contribute to the further development of the Reflection Guidelines by giving feedback.

Contact for more information and feedback: Dr. Elisabeth Does.

Code of Ethics for Real-World Labs for Sustainability

The “Code of Ethics for Real-World Labs for Sustainability” addresses a specific community, namely Real-World Labs with an explicit and strong commitment to sustainability transformation as their central normative orientation. It was developed in strong collaboration with the Real-World Labs of Sustainability Network. The aim of this Code is to provide a common ethical foundation for this community, explicated in a set of values, and hence offer guidance for all who participate in real-world laboratories in their everyday decisions and actions.  

Real-world lab practitioners are invited to contribute to the further development of the Code of Ethics by giving feedback. More information can be found here.

Contact for more information: eMail.