A Campus Resource
The University of Iowa’s Office of Sustainability and the Environment has launched a new website showcasing the university’s living labs— spaces across campus and the surrounding community that support hands-on learning, research, and teaching beyond the traditional classroom.
Living labs embrace the university’s natural and built environments as assets for experiential education while offering additional benefits to mental health, well-being, and community connection.
The newly launched website, available at https://living.lab.uiowa.edu/, features six current living labs:
Macbride Nature Recreation Area
Ashton Prairie
Roots of Medicine Garden
Biology Building Courtyard
Miyawaki Forest
Lagoon Shelter House
Each site includes detailed descriptions, photos, and assignment ideas tailored to help educators across disciplines design place-based learning experiences outdoors. The website also invites students, faculty, and community members to propose additional living lab sites and share ideas to enhance existing spaces.
“This project really brought to life how many opportunities there are on campus to learn outside in meaningful ways,” said Audrey Hoey-Kummerow, a sustainability science major and living labs intern who helped develop the site. “We hope the website makes it easier for students and faculty to connect with these spaces and get inspired to use them.”
A Testament to Collaboration
The website was developed in collaboration with the Living Labs Working Group, a cross-disciplinary cohort supported by the Obermann Center for Advanced Studies. Over the past year, the group conducted an extensive literature review, surveyed students and stakeholders, identified and assessed new learning spaces, and partnered with several campus, community, and external partner groups to develop site recommendations and designs. The Living Labs Working Group’s efforts laid the groundwork for the new site, which serves as a hub for the university’s growing network of learning environments. The Obermann Center’s platform provided the structure and visibility necessary for cross-campus collaboration and innovation, lending legitimacy and support to this initiative. See the press release about the Working Groups work here.
Whether planning a field trip, launching a research initiative, or simply exploring the natural world, the Living Labs website provides the tools to deepen engagement with the environment in meaningful, educational ways.
About the Office of Sustainability and the Environment
The University of Iowa Office of Sustainability and the Environment supports sustainability education, engagement, and action across campus. Through collaborative initiatives like the Living Labs project, the office advances environmental learning and community connection by integrating sustainability into everyday academic experiences.
With questions, contact sustainability@uiowa.edu
