This study examines young people’s involvement in regional sustainability transformation processes based on a real-world experiment in a community of 5700 inhabitants on the southern outskirts of city of Vienna, Austria. The eight-month experiment aimed to explore methods and tools for transdisciplinary co-creation with youth, the impact of structural conditions on their participation and the effects of their integration. Findings highlight the crucial roles of topics relevant to youth, a trusted intermediary like a youth worker, and structural conditions such as political support and resource allocation in enhancing youth engagement success. Collaborative decision making with policymakers and direct communication were also key to effective participation. The real-world experiment laid the groundwork for future participatory methods and had an impact on youth–community relations. It affirmed the role of youth in regional development, with effects that extended beyond the immediate scope of the experiment in terms of time, space, and topic.

本研究基于奥地利维也纳市南郊一个拥有 5700 名居民的社区的真实实验，探讨了年轻人参与区域可持续转型过程的情况。这项为期八个月的实验旨在探索与青年跨学科共同创造的方法和工具、结构条件对他们参与的影响以及他们融入的效果。调查结果强调了与青年相关的主题、青年工作者等值得信赖的中介以及政治支持和资源分配等结构性条件在提高青年参与成功方面的关键作用。与政策制定者的协作决策和直接沟通也是有效参与的关键。现实世界的实验为未来的参与方法奠定了基础，并对青年与社区的关系产生了影响。它肯定了青年在区域发展中的作用，其影响在时间、空间和主题上都超出了实验的直接范围。