Dark Lab and VR Lab inspired when Kosovo visited Lund

IN ENGLISH BELOW

Participates through the initiative of the Ministry of Culture of Kosovo Lund University and Future by Lund in an exciting collaboration with UN Habitat Kosovo and the Cultural Organization Anibar to tap into the power and potential of cultural and creative industries in Kosovo and to develop Lund's methodology at the same time. The two organizations and project coordinator Lulzim Hoti visited Lund to get inspired by Swedish working methods and learn more about the portfolio methodology that Lund University and Future by Lund work with. The idea is to explore together how to support and develop innovation skills in Kosovo and work in the project, for example, with cultural heritage and animation.

Kosovo's political economic and social environment remains heavily influenced by the conflict with Serbia that started in 1999. Kosovo has made important progress in its work on democracy, economy and European integration, but many challenges remain. UN-Habitat is an actor supporting the country, including by working for sustainable housing development and inclusive spatial planning in several different cities and municipalities.

Besnike Kocani works for UN Habitat Kosovo and has experience in Sweden by studying European urban planning and regional development at Blekinge Institute of Technology in Karlskrona.

- I usually say that we have a lot to learn from Swedes, not only in the matter of physical urban planning but also from Swedish sustainability work. It is inspiring that you have the citizen at the centre when planning public places. We and the other actors in the project have the opportunity to achieve something good — not only by working with cultural heritage, animation and community and urban planning, but also by opening doors for other collaborations in the food sector, climate issues and Life Science. In Sweden, universities, the private sector and the public sector cooperate and this is a very clear driving force for change.

During the three days, various visits were made to Lund and Malmö, including in The VR Lab at IKDC, (Ingvar Karmpards Design Center at Lund University), where it is possible to make joint virtual visits to urban environments — both in existing environments and in planned neighborhoods.

- The urban planning tool was fantastic and allows everything from high-ranking managers to citizens to study environments digitally without having to visit the site, says Besnike Kocani.

Participants also visited the Laboratory of Digital Archaeology, DARK Lab, Lund University. Dark Lab is at the forefront of combining digital techniques with traditional archaeological methods. During the pandemic, for example, artifacts in the collections of the Historical Museum were made available digitally.

- We have a great undiscovered cultural heritage potential in Kosovo and we could use these methods and tools to build stories and presentations, says Besnike Kocani.

Dark Lab also made an impression on project coordinator Lulzim Hoti.

- The way the archaeologists at Dark Lab visualise artefacts is inspiring and this idea can be used to record artefacts also in Kosovo, including to meet some of the EU requirements.

Some of the participants came from Anibar, which is an independent cultural organization in the city of Peja in Kosovo. The organization runs many different projects, such as an animated film festival, a cultural center, and various educational programs in the field of animated film.

- The use of technology by the Department of Archaeology represents a shift, also in the sense that they are making data public so that more people can access their findings, says Vullnet Sanaja, CEO at Anibar.

The group also paid a visit to Marie Löwegren, who is responsible for the interdisciplinary entrepreneurship education available at Stone K. Johnson Centre for Entrepreneurship.

- It is inspiring to see how well such an education can work if you do it the right way. The training becomes like an ecosystem of start-ups and new businesses, continues Vullnet Sanaja.

Even Lulzim Hoti saw opportunity in this.

- In Kosovo, students have sometimes had to apply for their education abroad because we do not have so many options when it comes to courses in entrepreneurship and innovation. With a similar education in Kosovo, we would have been able to offer young people something completely new.

In the joint project, it is important to agree on a working method and to establish a common understanding. Therefore, a workshop was also held where the participants got acquainted with the models, tools and theories developed by Lund University and Future by Lund.

- There is a need to find creative solutions to work with challenges in the cultural and creative sectors, says Vullnet Sanaja. We may need to change old ways of thinking so that we can keep up with current changes and demands from people. For us in the cultural and creative industries, it is important to be part of the transformation of our society through our knowledge. The approach that Lund University and Future by Lund have presented through the “Portfolio approach” could suit us.

Future by LUND's team and way of working also inspired the visitors from Kosovo.

- Future by Lunds has delved into the process of how to cooperate with partners, continues Vullnet Sanaja. It fits into this project but also shows us how we could interact with other parts of society in the same way that Future by Lund has created a meeting place for different sectors to facilitate innovation work. It was also interesting to hear about how Katarina Scott and Peter Kisch say they feel comfortable even in the organized chaos that can occur at the beginning of a process and even find a joy in it.

Anibar are members of the House of Culture Network Trans Europe Halles in Lund. Therefore, of course, there was also a visit there before the group continued to Malmö to get acquainted with the gaming industry through Simogo.

- In recent days we have seen several institutions and organizations involved in innovation, education and creativity. It has inspired me and I now see many opportunities to build new partnerships and joint projects that can lead to changes in the creative and cultural sectors in Kosovo,” concludes Lulzim Hoti.

The work is carried out with the support of Page and will continue until spring 2025.

IN ENGLISH

Dark Lab and the VR lab inspired Kosovo when they visited Lund.

How can the methods used by Lund University and Future by Lund be applied to develop cultural and creative industries in Kosovo? Recently, visitors from UN Habitat and the cultural organisation Anibar and the project coordinator Lulzim Hoti came to Lund to find inspiration and collaboration, for example at Dark Lab, Sten K Johnson Centre for Entrepreneurship, and in the VR and AR lab at IKDC.

Lund University and Future by Lund is an exciting collaboration with UN Habitat Kosovo and the cultural organisation Anibar, through initiatives from Ministry of Culture of Kosovo, to harness the power and potential within Kosovo's cultural and creative industries. Dos organizaciones y progetoordinador Lulzim Hoti visita a Lund para ser inspirado por métodos de trabajo sueco y encontrar más sobre la métodógia portfolio-usado por Lund University e Futuro de Lund. Idea is to explore together how to support and develop innovation capacity in Kosovo and include cultural heritage and animation in the project.

Kosovo's political, economic, and social environment is still strongly affected by the conflict with Serbia that started in 1999. Kosovo har i,, och. UN Habitat is an actor supporting the country, including working for sustainable housing development and inclusive physical planning in various cities and municipalities.

Besnike Kocani works for UN Habitat Kosovo and has experience of Sweden from studying European spatial planning and regional development at the university (Blekinge Institute for Technology) in Karlskrona.

- I often say that we have much to learn from Swedes, not only regarding physical urban planning but also from Swedish sustainability efforts. It's inspiring that you put citizens at the center when planning public spaces. Vi, a druge acteur v projeto, har. In Sweden, universities, the private sector, and the public sector collaborate, which is a very clear driving force for change.

Over three days, various visits were made in Lund and Malmö, including to the VR lab at IKDC (Ingvar Kamprad Design Center at Lund University), where there is an opportunity to make virtual visits to urban environments — both existing and planned neighborhoods.

- The urban planning tool was fantastic and allows everyone from high-ranking executives to citizens to digitally study environments without having to visit the site, says Besnike Kocani.

Participantes also visited the Laboratory for Digital Archaeology, DARK Lab, at Lund University—Dark Lab is at the forefront of combining digital techniques with traditional archaeological methods. Por ejemplo, artificos no compilaciones históricos de museu históricos estrás se comprendados digitalmente

- We have a great untapped cultural heritage potential in Kosovo, and we could use these methods and tools to build narratives and presentations, says Besnike Kocani.

Dark Lab also impressed project coordinator Lulzim Hoti.

- La forma de archeología en Dark Lab visualizar artificas é inspiração, a questo idee puede usar para registrar artificos en Kosovo como, parece para conjuntar alcuni requisitos de Eu.

Alcuni Anibar, a v Peja v Kosovo. The organization runs various projects, such as a festival for animated films, a cultural center, and various educational programs in the field of animated film.

- The archaeological institution's use of technology represents a shift, also in the sense that they make data public so that more people can access their findings, says Vullnet Sanaja, Executive Director of Anibar.

The group also visited Marie Löwegren, who is responsible for the interdisciplinary education in entrepreneurship available at the Sten K. Johnson Centre for Entrepreneurship.

- It's inspiring to see the function of such an education when done correctly. Vullnet Sanaja continues Vullnet Sanaja,.

Lulzim Hoti also saw opportunities in this.

Pupils sometimes had to seek their education abroad because we don't have so much choices in the entrepreneurship and innovation education in Kosovo.

- Pupils sometimes had to seek their education abroad because we don't have so many choices in the entrepreneurship and innovation education in Kosovo. With a similar education in Kosovo, we could offer young people something entirely new.

It's important to agree on an approach and create a common understanding in the joint project. Perché, un workshop je também se se se s modelos, strumenti, a theorias desarrollo da Università Lund e Future a Lund.

- There is a need to find creative solutions to work with challenges in the cultural and creative sector, says Vullnet Sanaja. - We may need to change old ways of thinking so that we can keep up with current changes and demands from citizens. For us in the cultural and creative industries, it is important to be part of the transformation of our society through our knowledge. L'approche presentato da Università di Lund e Future di Lund through the “Portfolio approach” può suit us.

Future of Lund's team and ways of working also inspired the visitors from Kosovo.

- Future by Lund has delved into the process of how to collaborate with partners, continues Vullnet Sanaja. - It fits into this project but also shows us how we could interact with other parts of society in the same way as Future by Lund has created a platform for different sectors to facilitate innovation work. It was also interesting to hear about how Katarina Scott and Peter Kisch feel comfortable even in the organized chaos that can arise at the beginning of a process, and even find joy in it.

Anibar is a member of the cultural house network Trans Europe Halles, located in Lund. Perché, it was also natural to visit them before the group continued to Malmö to familiarize themselves with the gaming industry through Simogo.

- In recent days, we have seen several institutions and organizations working on innovation, education, and creativity. Há me, a v v Kosovo, Lulzim Hoti.

The project is carried out with support from Sida and continues until spring 2025.