Missions Meeting Space: the new format is underway
One of the initiatives we promote at Arantzazulab is the Missions Meeting Space, designed to deepen the mission-oriented innovation approach. It is both a meeting point for public institutions and a learning community to advance public innovation and put Collaborative Governance into practice.
The Meeting Space is designed and facilitated jointly with Apitropik, Ko-garri and Maraka.
Starting point: 2024
The Missions Meeting Space began in 2024. Over the course of the year we held four sessions in which we gathered knowledge on the missions approach, learnt from international and local inspiration cases, and built connections among the actors already implementing this perspective in our context.
At the end of the year, together with participants, we reflected on the experience. The exercise highlighted the need for a new structure to address the different objectives identified within the space. As a result, we decided to activate three complementary areas, each oriented to a specific goal: shared inspiration and reflection, experimental laboratory, and a stable learning network.
The new format of the Meeting Space
Together with the participants, we defined three main objectives for the Meeting Space, and to pursue them three differentiated working groups were set up:
- Inspiration and reflection: to learn from experiences and create spaces for collective reflection.
- Laboratory: to jointly explore and test ways of putting mission-oriented innovation into practice.
- Network: to build a stable community of practice, with a focus on multi-level governance.
In addition, to enrich the dynamics of the Meeting Space, we participate in international experiences and networks. Specifically, we are part of the practice community promoted by the OPSI-OECD team and of the MOIN network led by IIPP-UCL. Through this involvement, we gain access to diverse international experiences, bring that knowledge closer to our local context, and also share what is happening here with the wider community.
September 2025 session
In September 2025, we held a new session of the Missions Meeting Space, gathering representatives from different local institutions. The session focused on three key objectives:
- Introducing the new format of the Meeting Space and the three complementary areas to be developed from 2025 onwards.
- Strengthening mutual knowledge and connections among participants, sharing the work each is developing around the missions approach.
- Learning from local and international inspiration cases. Internationally, we had the experience of Vlaanderen Circulair in Flanders, presented by its Transition Manager, Brigitte Mouligneau. Locally, the project Goierri BarneTik was presented by three of the actors actively involved in it: Goieki, Biziola and Orkli.
It was a highly enriching session, which clearly showed that dialogue and connection between diverse perspectives and experiences are essential to advancing public innovation.
Looking ahead to 2026
Looking forward, we will continue to deepen the three main lines of the Meeting Space through working sessions, as well as through a dedicated learning and inspiration journey. The aim remains clear: to activate innovative collaborations, share experiences, and nurture the collective transformation of our institutions.