What is CivicLAB?

CivicLAB is based at the University of Derby, a UNESCO City of Life Long Learning and home to World Heritage Sites. It has been designed to support academics, creative and cultural industry professionals and freelance creatives to share their insights on research and practice through a place-based approach to knowledge generation. There have been three CivicLAB Conferences, hosted by the University of Derby in partnership with Derby Theatre, Derby Community Trust and Artcore. 

The CivicLAB is led by Dr Rhiannon Jones, Associate Professor (Civic) at the University of Derby. CivicLAB is located centrally to the University's core business, within the Provost of Learning and Teaching. The work of CivicLAB supports the six academic themes, with close alignment to Cultural and Creative Industries. It is an interdisciplinary group that cuts across research and innovation, and teaching and learning. 

Established in late 2020, it has created opportunities for 1763 staff, students and external stakeholders and members of the public. We have designed and led 35 research sessions, developed eight projects, delivered two sold-out symposiums with 100% satisfaction rates. It has a core membership of ten staff from academic and professional services with representation from all four colleges and the postgraduate research community driving activity. 

The CivicLAB provides a thinking space to bring together participants from academia, creative and cultural industry, third sector and freelance practitioners. This is done through presentations, keynotes, workshops, networking sessions. Together, we will discuss approaches to building civic practice, research and community capacity as a means of addressing long-standing social issues. 

The programming of CivicLAB is designed to explore the following themes: 

CivicLAB is a driver for change through participation and collaboration. It also emulates the University's promise as an institution to deliver projects, programmes and research that support our commitment as a civic institution. Providing an opportunity to hear from world-leading experts, industry professionals, practitioners, theorists and academics - and time to learn together and network as colleagues. 

CivicLAB is an agent to drive positive societal change, to increase civic impact, and connect universities, stakeholders and communities together. To this end, we have invited three specialists to deliver keynotes, each will attend to the challenges and opportunities of civic and community-based practice; through the lens of creative place making. 

Keynote speakers have included:

Our public facing programming helps CivicLAB to explore the relationship between higher education institutions working with communities on co-produced activities at both the hyper-local and global. 

As a civic university, we are committed to supporting Derby and Derbyshire, our place, our people and its rich and diverse community. And to understanding what civic engagement really means - by enacting and enabling imaginative communities to flourish and support creative cultural ecosystems and strategies to grow. 

Get in touch

CivicLAB would be delighted to welcome you here, to get to know you, your work and your vision to build an inclusive, social and civic future. For more information about CivicLAB please get in touch at: civic@derby.ac.uk

CivicHUB

If you would like to find out more about our Civic Agreement and Goals please visit the CivicHUB - our one-stop for all things Civic and the best place to find out about all the fantastic projects and initiatives we're involved in. 

 CivicHUB

Events

The Third CivicLAB Annual Conference took place in Derby, a UNESCO City of Life Long Learning and home to World Heritage Sites. This conference had been designed to support academics, creative and cultural industry professionals and freelance creatives to share their insights on research and practice through a place-based approach to knowledge generation. This event was the third CivicLAB Conference, hosted by the University of Derby in partnership with Derby County Community Trust and Artcore.

The CivicLAB is led by Dr Rhiannon Jones, Associate Professor (Civic) at the University of Derby.

The two-day conference explored this through a series of presentations, keynotes, workshops, networking sessions and an (optional) community meal. 

The conference setting provided a thinking space to bring together participants from academia, creative and cultural industry, third sector and freelance practitioners.

Together, discussions took place in relation to approaches to building civic practice, research and community capacity as a means of addressing long-standing social issues. 

'Designing for Civility and Cultural Impact' - 7 - 8 July 2022, Derby, UK

CivicLAB Symposium called for participation from practitioners and academics who centre their research and teaching practice on participatory culture, creative dialogue and experiential design for social impact.

CivicLAB Symposium explored, discussed and reimagined the value of creative practice to the public sphere with a special theme on ‘Designing for Civility and Cultural Impact’. The Symposium explored how we build civic communities and how practitioners and academics create the conditions in which those communities can sustainably develop, innovate, and thrive within the social, economic, environmental, health, wellbeing and cultural challenges of the 21st century.

The online Symposium: CivicLAB presents the work of researchers, artists and creative industry colleagues from across the UK, including international colleagues from Venice, Finland, USA. Speakers were from European Cultural Academy, Tate Exchange, Derby County Community Trust, Derby Theatre, Derby Cathedral, University of Manchester, East Street Arts, Space and Place Lead, Council for Higher Education Art and Design (CHEAD), Fashion Academics Creating Equality (FACE), University for the Creative Arts, Cumulus Association, University of Swansea, Mighty Creatives, University of Nottingham, University of Derby.

Each speaker focuses on participatory culture, creative dialogue and experiential design for social impact. Questions asked include: How do we build communities (Manzini, 2019) and how can we create the conditions in which those communities can sustainably develop, innovate and thrive within the social, economic, environmental and cultural challenges of the 21st century?

Researchers and practitioners in the LAB amalgamate a diverse span of creative practices and perspectives across the arts and social sciences to contribute to this burgeoning field of enquiry; interrogating, extending and redefining the value of creative practice to the public sphere.

  • Welcome address by Vice-Chancellor Professor Kathryn Mitchell, CBE DL, University of Derby
  • Keynote by Dr Cara Courage, an independent arts and placemaking researcher and publisher.
    Cara is the author of Arts in Place: The Arts, the Urban and Social Practice (Routledge, 2017), the co-editor of Creative Placemaking and Beyond (Routledge, 2018), and editor of The Routledge Handbook of Placemaking (Routledge, 2021). She is also taking up a new role at MOCAD and former Head of Tate Exchange and Interim Co-Director, Learning and Research, Tate

CivicLAB Symposium convener: Dr Rhiannon Jones 
CivicLAB Symposium steering group: Professor John Steel, Dr Daithí McMahon, Jade Murden

To find out more about the 2021 Symposium, visit: 

Conference image of woman in crowd clapping

CivicLAB Annual Conference 2024

Find out more about the eventFind out more about the event
  • A speaker at the CivicLAB conference
  • The presentation screen for the conference
  • Four people sat underneath the screen at the CivicLAB conference
  • A speaker presenting at the CivicLAB conference
  • The screen at the CivicLAB conference
  • Looking at the screen in the CivicLAB conference
  • A group of people stood talking at the CivicLAB conference
  • Looking over the venue of the 2023 CivicLAB conference

Creative placemaking with young people: the role of justice and protest

A S.H.E.D / CivicLAB panel in partnership with the National Justice Museum

Chaired by Matt Hawthorn, co-lead of CivicLAB Research Group at the University of Derby, the focus of this discussion is on the role of creative placemaking, the importance of co-design and innovation as an approach to engage young people with museums, civic pedagogy, design, artist and cultural practice, and issues around protest and justice.

This project is led by Dr Rhiannon Jones supported by National Justice Museum and Arts Council England.

Find out more about Protest S.H.E.D

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Our civic and public engagement team

You can contact us for advice, or to find out more about how to get involved or to support our work. We also support business development and training and offer a wide range of opportunities.

Meet our civic and public engagement teamMeet our civic and public engagement team