Researchers from the Tiresia research team, at Politecnico di Milano have been working with members of the City Science team to outline and analyze a governance model for the City Science Network. To conduct this research the Milan team, led by the Assistant Professor Federico Bartolomucci, conducted 20 interviews with researchers, administrators and directors from across the network. They also conducted a review of more than 70 documents for preliminary analysis, and presented a paper at the IRSPM2025 and the DataforPolicy 2025 conferences. In addition, the team is working to finalize a report with their findings to serve as a resource for existing and new City Science Labs, as well as a board game to facilitate discussions around the Lab’s governance practices. Results may also support other ecosystems around the world to learn from the City Science Network and replicate their practices.
The research overviews best practices of Social Innovation Ecosystems (SIEs) and proposes that the City Science Network operations are influenced and influence four interconnected layers: institutional environment, actors' agency, tools and gears, and outcomes. Finally, the team highlights best practices from their research and from their interviews and understanding of the current City Science Network nodes. They hope that this work will offer a framework to enhance impact generation, communications and potential funding.