Phebe Dudek currently works as Policy Officer Innovating Cities at the European Commission. Her work consists of developing R&I policy to promote cities as actors of open innovation and as labs of co-design and co-creation. She recently launched the Multi-level third space for systemic urban research and innovation in collaboration with the JRC and Waag Society. Prior to joining the European Commission she worked as lead research scientist at the MIT Urban Metabolism Group in the USA where she co-founded the African Urban Metabolism Network. Before that, she worked as urban designer and architect in Belgium.