Social Innovation: Driving Force of Social Change
The SI-DRIVE Project (2014-2017), funded within the 7th Framework Programme of the EU, aimed at deepening our knowledge about Social Innovation as a driver of social change. This knowledge helps to underpin policy actions of the EU, of other international organisations and of policymakers. The understanding of the concept and framework of social innovation leads to better designed and targeted policy support measures, and to more effective implementation and upscaling of social innovations.
SI-DRIVE has resulted in:
- A better understanding of the relationship between policy and social innovation;
- A better understanding of how social innovations can have an important role in societal transformations;
- Clear evidence of the importance of policy support for social innovation;
- Recommendations for policymakers at the national, EU and global levels, taking into account the policy context.
Based on the developed theoretical framework and the empirical results the experts and partners of SI-DRIVE (25 partners from all over the world and 13 high-level advisory board members) elaborated main policy recommendations summarised in the declaration. The recommendations pertain to advances in our understanding of social innovation, in supporting and resourcing social innovation initiatives, and in measuring and governing social innovations. The recommendations are addressed to all actors with an interest in stimulating social innovation.
The empirical basis of SI-DRIVE:
- more than 1,000 mapped social innovations all over the world,
- more than 80 in-depth case studies,
- the results of 14 conducted policy and foresight workshops in seven policy fields (education and lifelong learning, employment, environment and climate change, energy supply, transport and mobility, health and social care, poverty reduction and sustainable development),
- the recommendations of two International Policy Round Tables.
The Young Foundation led the work looking at social innovation in the policy field of health and social care, as well as contributing to the theoretical work and global mapping.
