Living Labs and other participatory approaches applied to research on multiple environnemental exposures and chronic risks

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Participatory research in environmental health is still rare in France. The objectives of environmental health research, in general, can be very diverse (e.g.: identifying situations associated with risks estimating exposures and effects, testing the effectiveness of preventive actions) and related methods are diverse as well. Opportunities for greater implication of the civil society and related challenges differ at each step of research activities. These aspects need to be better known and shared collectively. The LILAS project aimed to 1) co-construct, among institutional researchers, academics and civil society representatives, a mutual understanding of the main problematics and research methods in environmental health, their stakes for different actors, but also the requirements, strengths and limitations of these methods 2) identify expected benefits and points of vigilance related to stronger degrees of participation as part of such environmental health research projects. METHODS: LILAS gathered institutional researchers, academics and civil society representatives interested in multiple exposures (chemical, radiological). Several meetings allowed to collectively identify different types of study (including environmental epidemiological studies) and reflect about the added value, limitations, and methodological principles related to the introduction of growing participation as part of such studies. An analysis matrix was co-created and filled by participants. RESULTS:For different types of studies (studies for assessment of environmental exposures, identification of their determinants, interventions on these exposures, development of sensors, quantitative risk assessment, environmental epidemiological studies, experimental research, studies on the health of ecosystems…), the matrix lists expected benefits for several categories of stakeholders, fundamental methodological principles and practical constraints, advantages and limitations related to the use of participatory approaches (such as the living lab one) or more “classical” approaches. CONCLUSIONS:LILAS has allowed, through a cross-acculturation process, to develop consolidated grounds for the co-construction of future participatory research projects on multiple environmental exposures. KEYWORDS: Key-words: Multiple exposures, participatory research, methods in environmental health research, Living Lab, co-creation,