Riga Stradiņš University

The Social Sciences Research Centre at RSU advances cutting-edge research to address the profound social, political, and economic challenges facing Latvia, Europe, and beyond through excellence in collaborative, transdisciplinary social science.

In our team, we combine landscape design and sociological research to study human–nature interactions, urban regeneration, and sustainable transitions. Our expertise includes participatory GIS, living labs, citizen science, and qualitative/quantitative social research, with a strong focus on community engagement, just transition, and inclusive planning.

We are especially interested in projects on urban brownfields, green and blue infrastructure, circular urban economies, and 15-minute city concepts, where design and social sciences can be integrated to co-create transformative, future-proof solutions.

We have experience in both European and national funding projects, publish actively on urban and rural landscape issues, and maintain an extensive international network. We are also organisers of the upcoming European Society for Rural Sociology Congress (ESRS 2025) in Riga.