The Open Works project was inspired by the innovative work of hundreds of people who are finding new and ingenious ways to reshape the society and communities in which they live. 

A living prototype system was built in order to test the idea that a density of this new type of activity would have positive social, environmental and economic impact. This was done in West Norwood, London, in 2014/15, in partnership with Lambeth Council.

The Open Works team co-created a network of 20 practical projects with 1000 local residents. These projects were inspired by ideas from across the world that offered the potential to support a new and more sustainable way to live our everyday lives.

These 20 projects created new and engaging opportunities for sharing knowledge, spaces and equipment; for families to work and play together; for bulk cooking, food growing and tree planting; for trading, making and repairing and for suppers, workshops, incubators and festivals.

Role: Project lead, 2014-2015

Skills: Systems design, theory of change, developmental evaluation, project and venture models, idea incubation, rapid prototyping, community building, space design, civic branding, communications, collaborative partnerships.