This 2013 NESTA report is about the many ways in which people are creating new and more effective answers to the biggest challenges of our times.
Key findings:
- Social innovation has moved centre stage over the last decade, as existing structures and policies have found it impossible to crack some of the most pressing issues of our times.
- Social innovation is distinct from other forms of innovation. As a result, it often requires its own processes, metrics, models and methods.
- The methods for social innovation should be a common property, and should evolve through shared learning. Chances of it being successful will increase if we can share our experiences and quickly reflect on what works and what doesn’t.
The Open Book of Social Innovation is part of the Social Innovator series, which looks at ways to design, develop and grow social innovation.
It describes the methods and tools for innovation being used across the world and across different sectors – the public and private sectors, civil society and the household – in the overlapping fields of the social economy, social entrepreneurship and social enterprise. It draws on inputs from hundreds of organisations to document the many methods currently being used around the world.