Pop-Machina

The project draws from a number of cutting-edge technologies (factory-of-the-future, blockchain) and disciplines (urban planning, architecture) to find the areas more in need of intervention, reconfigure unused spaces and provide the support necessary to overcome scaling issues, a typical drawback of collaborative production. Furthermore, education providers and makers are brought together to exchange ideas on tailored training programmes, with a particular focus on the empowerment and the skill development of vulnerable groups. Business services are also offered to foster the production of promising circular innovations.

In each pilot area, Pop-Machina will gather evidence of the power of circular maker communities and demonstrate business-oriented collaborative production of products and services from secondary raw material or other sustainable inputs, based on the needs and preferences of the local stakeholders. A thorough impact assessment framework with increased scope (e.g. attention to social factors) will be co-designed with stakeholders after short basic assessment trainings and will be used in the assessment of the pilot work. Based on the findings, the project will feature a series of policy events to openly discuss the tax and legal barriers that hamper collaborative production in European cities.