Oct 21, 2026
Local Policy Labs turn Living Library evidence into local recommendations on gender equality and migrant inclusion.
On Wednesday 21 October 2026, the seven partners of COTAF (Connected Towns for a Shared Future) will each host an online Local Policy Lab on gender equality and migrant inclusion. In Emilia-Romagna, the event is organised by Fondazione Yunus Italia ETS with UPI Emilia-Romagna and the Province of Modena.
One morning, seven Local Policy Labs
COTAF is a European project co-funded by the EU Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values (CERV) programme under the Networks of Towns strand, and it brings together partners in seven countries. Over the past months the partners have run Living Library events in their territories, where citizens met “Living Books”, people who agreed to share their personal experience of gender inequality, migration and inclusion. Those conversations brought out concrete problems that local institutions, employers and organisations are in a position to address. The Local Policy Labs are the moment in which the project turns that evidence into practical recommendations.
A Local Policy Lab is a facilitated working session in which people with different responsibilities in the same territory look at the same evidence and agree on what should change, who should act and what can realistically start within six to twelve months. The discussion starts from the findings of the first twelve COTAF Living Library events rather than from general descriptions of national policy, and the proposals are meant to fall within the actual competences of municipalities, provinces, regions, companies and community organisations. Every session addresses both gender equality and migrant inclusion, reading them through the lenses of non-discrimination and intersectionality.
All seven Labs take place on the same morning, from 10:00 to 13:00 CEST, with each partner adjusting to its local time. They run online, one event per territory, in the local language. The morning is divided into three consecutive one-hour focus groups, and each focus group brings together a single category of stakeholders, so that people who share a similar type of responsibility can talk about the levers they actually control.
Institutional and public stakeholders, such as municipalities, provinces, regions, public bodies and universities
The private and philanthropic sector, including employers with diversity and inclusion, CSR or sustainability functions, cooperative banks, foundations and donors
Civil society, from NGOs and associations to community hubs, schools, active citizens and networks
Participation is by invitation.
Project facilitators will guide participants to link what is on the ground and why it matters, to what already exists, what is missing, what could change, who should act and what can begin in the next six to twelve months.
Each group will agree on a few priority recommendations, each with a responsible actor, a first step and an indicator to tell whether the action has made a difference. Because the questions and the recommendation template are identical in every territory, the results of the seven Labs can be compared with one another.
After 21 October, each partner will translate its recommendations into English and share them with the consortium. They will be brought together in the consolidated WP23 report, which will be published so that participants, local administrations and all interested stakeholders can see what emerged in each territory and how the proposals compare across countries.
The report is also the basis for the next step of the project. In 2027 the COTAF Transnational Policy Lab (WP24) will gather partners from all seven countries to discuss these recommendations together, and the stakeholders who take part in October will be invited to follow and contribute to that discussion.
Over time, the recommendations can also support new projects, funding opportunities and the transfer of COTAF approaches to other territories.
Co-funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.