Two major presentations in Bogotá

Section: Management including Cross-Project Activities

Ttwo similar presentations at

• Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Nov. 18, 2013, and
• "FORO DE INNOVACCIÓN SOCIAL" at Cosubsidio (Social Security Organisation)

Abstract:

Research and training in social innovation

Josef Hochgerner, Centre for Social Innovation, Vienna

The technology-oriented innovation paradigm does not cover the full range of innovations necessary to cope with societal transitions in the 21^st century. Fundamental changes require the inclusion of social innovations in a paradigm shift of existing innovation systems: The most urgent and important innovations in the 21^st century will take place in the social field. The new innovation paradigm is essentially characterised by the opening of the innovation process to society. Alongside companies, universities and research institutes, citizens and customers become actors of innovation processes. They not only have a share in social affairs as such, but preserving and expanding the innovative capacity of companies, the public sector, and society at large.

In recent years social innovation became a sort of hyped issue in politics, business and science. However, there is still widespread uncertainty regarding what social innovations are, how they come into being, and what can be expected from them. Thus research projects and programmes, and organisations that implement measures in education and training aim at closing such gaps.

To shed light on developments in Europe, social innovation research under the European Framework Programme for Research, the recently established European School of Social Innovation (ESSI), the academic course of study M.A. in Social Innovation, some other training activities and support measures to facilitate social innovation projects in practice will be in the focus of my presentation.

ESSI is an umbrella organisation of institutions working in the area of social innovation, a platform to create coherence of developments, making them publicly visible and interconnected. This involves seminars, workshops and conferences as well as the international cooperation of universities and providers of continuing education, in order to improve professional qualification in social innovation on post-secondary, tertiary, and post-graduate levels. One outstanding example is the studies M.A. in Social Innovation of the Danube University Krems (Austria). Other universities and polytechnics run or are about to start similar programmes as well as offering vocational training.

An overview of meanwhile numerous research projects on issues of social innovation includes information about a large endeavour to study social innovation world-wide, based on a global mapping of social innovation which aims to identify social and cultural variations of social innovation in major world regions. Some additional promotion and support activities on EU and national levels will be highlighted, including funding schemes, social innovation competitions and awards which are available in the form of European, national and corporate initiatives.

Authors: Hochgerner (external Senior Strategic Advisor), J.

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Tags: social innovation, training