Building Capacity for Innovation and Systems Change: Innovation Fellowship Pr...The Rockefeller Foundation
Achieving The Rockefeller Foundation’s goals to build resilience and advance inclusive economies requires moving beyond traditional approaches to problem-solving. New ways
of thinking and working are needed in order to have impact at scale. The Rockefeller
Foundation Global Fellowship Program on Social Innovation was designed to enable
leaders to innovate in order to address the underlying causes of complex social and
environmental challenges. With two successive cohorts of Fellowships now complete and
a third underway, the timing is right to reflect on what the Foundation is learning about
building individual and institutional capacity to innovate and drive systems change.
The concept and the practice of Impact Investing—or the placement of capital with
intent to generate positive social impact beyond fi nancial return—have grown and
matured signifi cantly over the past fi ve years. In 2008, the Monitor Institute took stock
of the emerging industry and characterized it as being on the precipice of passing from
a stage of “uncoordinated innovation” into one of “marketplace building.” Since 2008,
the Rockefeller Foundation has sought to help build that marketplace as well as hold
it accountable for its social and environmental impact goals. We have helped to build
networks, develop social impact ratings and reporting standards, cultivate new and
larger intermediaries and contribute to research and enabling policy environments.
“Industry building” is not often the remit of foundations, but our rationale for doing
so was clear: a functioning impact investing industry has the potential to complement
government and philanthropy by unlocking signifi cant resources to address the world’s
most pressing problems and to improve the lives of poor and vulnerable people.
Four years later, and as part of our commitment to learning and accountability within
the Foundation and to our partners and stakeholders, we undertook an independent
evaluation of our work in this arena. In March 2012, we presented to our Board the
results of this evaluation, undertaken by E.T. Jackson and Associates. It highlighted
a number of early successes and remaining challenges, many of which will shape our
activities in the months and years to come. As part of its evaluation, E.T. Jackson also
undertook a global scan of impact investing activity over the past four years so that
we could assess our progress in relation to the evolution of the broader fi eld. We
believe the results of the scan will also be informative for a number of other current
and future industry participants, and we are proud to contribute it to the growing
body of evaluative knowledge and research in this fi eld.
It is clear from our evaluation and scan, and from the growing body of research on
impact investing, that there exists great momentum and inspiring leadership in this
dynamic fi eld. More signifi cantly, there are promising signs here that together we can
play an important role in bringing about a more sustainable, resilient and equitable
future for humankind. We are honored to work with all of you on this journey.
Extensive research report of trends, forecasts and impacts for the social investment and development sectors in Africa. Challenges, opportunities, impact and return on investment
The purpose of this guide is to introduce a promising approach to surfacing insights and supporting innovative thinking within a field in order to explore new and better paths to impact.
Building Capacity for Innovation and Systems Change: Innovation Fellowship Pr...The Rockefeller Foundation
Achieving The Rockefeller Foundation’s goals to build resilience and advance inclusive economies requires moving beyond traditional approaches to problem-solving. New ways
of thinking and working are needed in order to have impact at scale. The Rockefeller
Foundation Global Fellowship Program on Social Innovation was designed to enable
leaders to innovate in order to address the underlying causes of complex social and
environmental challenges. With two successive cohorts of Fellowships now complete and
a third underway, the timing is right to reflect on what the Foundation is learning about
building individual and institutional capacity to innovate and drive systems change.
The concept and the practice of Impact Investing—or the placement of capital with
intent to generate positive social impact beyond fi nancial return—have grown and
matured signifi cantly over the past fi ve years. In 2008, the Monitor Institute took stock
of the emerging industry and characterized it as being on the precipice of passing from
a stage of “uncoordinated innovation” into one of “marketplace building.” Since 2008,
the Rockefeller Foundation has sought to help build that marketplace as well as hold
it accountable for its social and environmental impact goals. We have helped to build
networks, develop social impact ratings and reporting standards, cultivate new and
larger intermediaries and contribute to research and enabling policy environments.
“Industry building” is not often the remit of foundations, but our rationale for doing
so was clear: a functioning impact investing industry has the potential to complement
government and philanthropy by unlocking signifi cant resources to address the world’s
most pressing problems and to improve the lives of poor and vulnerable people.
Four years later, and as part of our commitment to learning and accountability within
the Foundation and to our partners and stakeholders, we undertook an independent
evaluation of our work in this arena. In March 2012, we presented to our Board the
results of this evaluation, undertaken by E.T. Jackson and Associates. It highlighted
a number of early successes and remaining challenges, many of which will shape our
activities in the months and years to come. As part of its evaluation, E.T. Jackson also
undertook a global scan of impact investing activity over the past four years so that
we could assess our progress in relation to the evolution of the broader fi eld. We
believe the results of the scan will also be informative for a number of other current
and future industry participants, and we are proud to contribute it to the growing
body of evaluative knowledge and research in this fi eld.
It is clear from our evaluation and scan, and from the growing body of research on
impact investing, that there exists great momentum and inspiring leadership in this
dynamic fi eld. More signifi cantly, there are promising signs here that together we can
play an important role in bringing about a more sustainable, resilient and equitable
future for humankind. We are honored to work with all of you on this journey.
Extensive research report of trends, forecasts and impacts for the social investment and development sectors in Africa. Challenges, opportunities, impact and return on investment
The purpose of this guide is to introduce a promising approach to surfacing insights and supporting innovative thinking within a field in order to explore new and better paths to impact.
National Disaster Resilience Competition's Resilience Academies - Emerging In...The Rockefeller Foundation
In 2015 The Rockefeller Foundation partnered with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to launch the National Disaster Resilience Competition (NDRC)
Resilience Academies. Recognizing the salient need to infuse resilience thinking into HUD’s NDRC, these Academies were established to expose state and local governments to new approaches for protecting and promoting the long-term well-being and safety of their communities. A recent independent evaluation of the Academies has provided instructive insights about what works in efforts to build innovative resilience capacity.
A successful philanthropic initiative depends not just on the strategy pursued – but also on how that strategy is implemented. Implementation considerations can vary significantly based on the shape of an initiative – starting a new organization can look very different than investing in a portfolio of existing organizations. This report looks at four “models” for implementing initiatives. These don’t represent an exhaustive set of potential models to pursue, or even the most high potential models. Rather, these are four examples of models, each of which has significant potential for impact when chosen wisely and executed well. The report outlines the considerations involved in choosing to pursue each of these models and findings on how to implement them, drawn from real-world experience.
The information in this brief is drawn from a case study of the JLN conducted by Mathematica Policy Research in consultation with the THS team and the Evaluation Office of The Rockefeller Foundation. The study, completed in 2016, was undertaken to assess the extent to which the JLN had achieved its goal of becoming a country-driven, sustainable network helping to advance progress toward universal health coverage in low- and middle-income countries.
Demand for evaluation services is growing in the impact investing industry. Yet, much of the evaluation community remains unaware of the industry and its performance assessment requirements. This paper proposes five channels, or doorways, through which professional evaluators can learn about and engage with the field of impact investing.
This presentation follows on our previous work from measuring the impact and return on investment of social, community, enterprise development programs. This presentation provides evidence of our work, our methodology and the impact that we measure of development practices. Our impact assessment methodology was developed for Africa, by Africa and is aimed at practitioners from both the investment and development fraternity.
The Stakeholder Engagement tool helps ensure that the appropriate stakeholders in decision processes have been identified and involved.
Tool: https://www.cpc.unc.edu/measure/publications/ms-11-46-e
Webinar Recording: http://universityofnc.adobeconnect.com/p99y8bhnosx/
This presentation follows on previous (2013,2014,2015) presentations and provides an overview of the latest trends as well insight into the future for social, community investment and development practitioners in South Africa.
Impact investing involves “investors seeking to generate both financial return and social and/or environmental value—while at a minimum returning capital, and, in many cases, offering market rate returns or better.” The Rockefeller Foundation’s Impact Investing Initiative has sought to address the “lack of intermediation capacity and leadership to generate collective action” that was constraining the small but rapidly growing impact investing industry.
Carried out in 2011, the evaluation of the Initiative aimed to evaluate the relevance, rationale, effectiveness, influence and sustainability of the Initiative through document review, portfolio analysis, interviews with more than 90 impact investing leaders based in 11 countries, participant observation at industry events, and organizational assessment. The external evaluation team also conducted a scan of the impact investing industry’s evolution over the past four years (summarized in a companion report).
Given the rapidly changing and emergent nature of the impact investing field, the Evaluators were asked to frame their findings for the Initiative in the context of findings for the field as a whole, to help guide the recommendations for the Foundation and for leaders in the field more broadly.
Scientists and activists concerned about the future of human society and the planet have pointed to the urgent need for what they term sustainability transitions (Clark 2001; Raskin et al. 2002). In other words, due to the complex, systemic, and interrelated nature of the serious social, economic, and environmental problems confronting us, we need entirely new forms of solutions. Clearly, we humans must learn to think differently about our complex world and to work together in unusual and very strategic new ways. We need to more fully see and understand the systems within which we all exist so that we can learn to identify and create conditions for social innovation.
Sustainability of Donor Project on Decentralization and Governance Reform in ...Ridho Fitrah Hyzkia
International Public Service Forum 2018, data, governance, government, indonesia, learning, government ,governance ,reformasibirokrasi ,indonesia ,reformasi birokrasi ,analis kebijakan ,policy, pelayanan publik, kementerian, pemerintah, ASN, pegawai negeri sipil, lembaga, government officer, dynamic governance, budaya kerja, aparatur sipil negara, pns, tata kelola, pelayanan prima, masyarakat
Presented by Dr. Nelson Gitonga, Insight Health Advisor, Kenya during Regional AIDS Training Network (RATN) 12th General Council Meeting held in Mombasa, Kenya from 24th - 29th June 2013
Pathways to Innovation | Strategic DoingEd Morrison
Pathways to Innovation represents a bold initiative to redesign engineering education in the United States. Led by Stanford University and managed by Venturewell, Pathways uses Strategic Doing, an agile strategy discipline pioneered at Purdue. This two page summary outlines the remarkable progress through August 2015.
Funding options for social initiatives - A joint presentation by Social Capital Partners, Enterprising Nonprofits, Potluck Cafe, and Developmental Disabilities Association
National Disaster Resilience Competition's Resilience Academies - Emerging In...The Rockefeller Foundation
In 2015 The Rockefeller Foundation partnered with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to launch the National Disaster Resilience Competition (NDRC)
Resilience Academies. Recognizing the salient need to infuse resilience thinking into HUD’s NDRC, these Academies were established to expose state and local governments to new approaches for protecting and promoting the long-term well-being and safety of their communities. A recent independent evaluation of the Academies has provided instructive insights about what works in efforts to build innovative resilience capacity.
A successful philanthropic initiative depends not just on the strategy pursued – but also on how that strategy is implemented. Implementation considerations can vary significantly based on the shape of an initiative – starting a new organization can look very different than investing in a portfolio of existing organizations. This report looks at four “models” for implementing initiatives. These don’t represent an exhaustive set of potential models to pursue, or even the most high potential models. Rather, these are four examples of models, each of which has significant potential for impact when chosen wisely and executed well. The report outlines the considerations involved in choosing to pursue each of these models and findings on how to implement them, drawn from real-world experience.
The information in this brief is drawn from a case study of the JLN conducted by Mathematica Policy Research in consultation with the THS team and the Evaluation Office of The Rockefeller Foundation. The study, completed in 2016, was undertaken to assess the extent to which the JLN had achieved its goal of becoming a country-driven, sustainable network helping to advance progress toward universal health coverage in low- and middle-income countries.
Demand for evaluation services is growing in the impact investing industry. Yet, much of the evaluation community remains unaware of the industry and its performance assessment requirements. This paper proposes five channels, or doorways, through which professional evaluators can learn about and engage with the field of impact investing.
This presentation follows on our previous work from measuring the impact and return on investment of social, community, enterprise development programs. This presentation provides evidence of our work, our methodology and the impact that we measure of development practices. Our impact assessment methodology was developed for Africa, by Africa and is aimed at practitioners from both the investment and development fraternity.
The Stakeholder Engagement tool helps ensure that the appropriate stakeholders in decision processes have been identified and involved.
Tool: https://www.cpc.unc.edu/measure/publications/ms-11-46-e
Webinar Recording: http://universityofnc.adobeconnect.com/p99y8bhnosx/
This presentation follows on previous (2013,2014,2015) presentations and provides an overview of the latest trends as well insight into the future for social, community investment and development practitioners in South Africa.
Impact investing involves “investors seeking to generate both financial return and social and/or environmental value—while at a minimum returning capital, and, in many cases, offering market rate returns or better.” The Rockefeller Foundation’s Impact Investing Initiative has sought to address the “lack of intermediation capacity and leadership to generate collective action” that was constraining the small but rapidly growing impact investing industry.
Carried out in 2011, the evaluation of the Initiative aimed to evaluate the relevance, rationale, effectiveness, influence and sustainability of the Initiative through document review, portfolio analysis, interviews with more than 90 impact investing leaders based in 11 countries, participant observation at industry events, and organizational assessment. The external evaluation team also conducted a scan of the impact investing industry’s evolution over the past four years (summarized in a companion report).
Given the rapidly changing and emergent nature of the impact investing field, the Evaluators were asked to frame their findings for the Initiative in the context of findings for the field as a whole, to help guide the recommendations for the Foundation and for leaders in the field more broadly.
Scientists and activists concerned about the future of human society and the planet have pointed to the urgent need for what they term sustainability transitions (Clark 2001; Raskin et al. 2002). In other words, due to the complex, systemic, and interrelated nature of the serious social, economic, and environmental problems confronting us, we need entirely new forms of solutions. Clearly, we humans must learn to think differently about our complex world and to work together in unusual and very strategic new ways. We need to more fully see and understand the systems within which we all exist so that we can learn to identify and create conditions for social innovation.
Sustainability of Donor Project on Decentralization and Governance Reform in ...Ridho Fitrah Hyzkia
International Public Service Forum 2018, data, governance, government, indonesia, learning, government ,governance ,reformasibirokrasi ,indonesia ,reformasi birokrasi ,analis kebijakan ,policy, pelayanan publik, kementerian, pemerintah, ASN, pegawai negeri sipil, lembaga, government officer, dynamic governance, budaya kerja, aparatur sipil negara, pns, tata kelola, pelayanan prima, masyarakat
Presented by Dr. Nelson Gitonga, Insight Health Advisor, Kenya during Regional AIDS Training Network (RATN) 12th General Council Meeting held in Mombasa, Kenya from 24th - 29th June 2013
Pathways to Innovation | Strategic DoingEd Morrison
Pathways to Innovation represents a bold initiative to redesign engineering education in the United States. Led by Stanford University and managed by Venturewell, Pathways uses Strategic Doing, an agile strategy discipline pioneered at Purdue. This two page summary outlines the remarkable progress through August 2015.
Funding options for social initiatives - A joint presentation by Social Capital Partners, Enterprising Nonprofits, Potluck Cafe, and Developmental Disabilities Association
4th Wheel aims to aid implementation staff in implementing social projects, conceptualizing program design, developing outreach and marketing plans, forming partnerships, engaging employees based on core competencies, and assessing their organisational impact. Currently we offer training programs on program design, implementation and impact evaluation methodologies and techniques at all organisational levels, with a special focus on field staff whose role is crucial, as they have regular engagement with beneficiaries and have to report to the management.
We offer a broad-range of consultancy and training services to ensure that stakeholders are equipped to conceptualize and implement social programs that are impactful, measurable and sustainable.
Identify present & future urban challenges. Use design thinking to prototype solutions. Develop leadership to bring them back to your context. Register now!
Identify present & future urban challenges. Use design thinking to prototype solutions. Develop leadership to bring them back to your context. Register now!
Illustration of some of the emerging approaches used by Peduli's partners to promote social inclusion and how they are affecting beneficiary groups.
This publication is written in English, Bahasa Indonesia version will be uploaded soon.
Social Innovation & Open Innovation - Coaching Material for Social Entrepreneursikosom GmbH
Definition of Social Innovation, Open Innovation and Co-Design in Social Business contexts. This slide is part of the project "CE-RESPONSIBLE " by Interreg Central Europe. Hear the presentation at www.net4socialimpact.eu
Organisations are increasingly realising the power of networks to create the greatest impact for society. Working collaboratively with a network of partners can increase your reach, generate efficiencies and stimulate innovation.
Yet, approaches to working in networks vary widely and each approach has a unique set of associated challenges. In our latest Briefing Paper, Aleron brings together the insight of expert practitioners in the field to bring clarity to the complex area of network working in the social sector.
Organisations are increasingly realising the power of networks to create the greatest impact for society. Working collaboratively with a network of partners can increase your reach, generate efficiencies and stimulate innovation.
Yet, approaches to working in networks vary widely and each approach has a unique set of associated challenges. In our latest Briefing Paper, Aleron brings together the insight of expert practitioners in the field to bring clarity to the complex area of network working in the social sector.
Diseño del reto: ¿ómo generar oportunidades de empleo de calidad en la economía verde para colectivos excluidos del mercado laboral en Oyón-Oion, Sestao y Urretxu (Euskadi)?
We are celebrating our eighth anniversary and on each anniversary we try to share what we have learned by being constantly exposed to innovations from all over the world and in very different spheres
Complim 8 anys i en cada celebració intentem compartir allò que hem après en estar constantment exposats a innovacions de tot el món i en àmbits molt diversos.
Cumplimos 8 años y en cada celebración intentamos compartir aquello que hemos aprendido al estar constantemente expuestos a innovaciones de todo el mundo y en ámbitos muy diversos.
Sessió de formació per al tercer sector social sobre els Bons d'impacte socialUpSocial
UpSocial i l'Àrea de Drets Socials de l'Ajuntament de Barcelona organitzem una sessió de formació sobre els Bons d'Impacte Social i la seva possible aplicació a Barcelona.
La sessió està dirigida al Tercer Sector Social perquè analitzarem casos de referència i els reptes per a la implantació a Barcelona
RECODE, una iniciativa liderada per McConnell Foundation, i UpSocial estan investigant com les institucions postsecundarias canadenques podrien adaptar-se per abordar de manera més adequada les necessitats de la comunitat.
RECODE, una iniciativa liderada por McConnell Foundation, y UpSocial están investigando cómo las instituciones postsecundarias canadienses podrían adaptarse para abordar de manera más adecuada las necesidades de la comunidad.
RECODE, an initiative lead by McConnell Foundation, and UpSocial are researching how Canadian post-secondary institutions could adapt to more adequately address community needs.
ACSI és una iniciativa per donar resposta a reptes socials amb innovacions provades i catalizar la transferència d'innovacions exitoses entre ciutats europees. Les cinc ciutats sòcies (Atenes, Barcelona, Lisboa, Rotterdam i Estocolm) han treballat juntes en la identificació de les respostes més eficients i escalables, per després explorar individualment la seva implantació local. Aquest one-page explica com funciona el projecte.
ACSI es una iniciativa para dar respuesta a retos sociales con innovaciones probadas y catalizar la transferencia de innovaciones exitosas entre ciudades europeas. Las cinco ciudades socias (Atenas, Barcelona, Lisboa, Rotterdam y Estocolmo) han trabajado juntas en la identificación de las respuestas más eficientes y escalables, para luego explorar individualmente su implantación local. Este one-page explica cómo funciona el proyecto.
ACSI is an initiative to address social challenges with proven innovations and catalyse the transfer of successful innovations among European cities. The five partner cities (Athens, Barcelona, Lisbon, Rotterdam and Stockholm) have searched together for the most efficient and scalable responses and then explore individually their local implementation. This one-page explains how the project works.
Jennifer Schaus and Associates hosts a complimentary webinar series on The FAR in 2024. Join the webinars on Wednesdays and Fridays at noon, eastern.
Recordings are on YouTube and the company website.
https://www.youtube.com/@jenniferschaus/videos
This session provides a comprehensive overview of the latest updates to the Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards (commonly known as the Uniform Guidance) outlined in the 2 CFR 200.
With a focus on the 2024 revisions issued by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), participants will gain insight into the key changes affecting federal grant recipients. The session will delve into critical regulatory updates, providing attendees with the knowledge and tools necessary to navigate and comply with the evolving landscape of federal grant management.
Learning Objectives:
- Understand the rationale behind the 2024 updates to the Uniform Guidance outlined in 2 CFR 200, and their implications for federal grant recipients.
- Identify the key changes and revisions introduced by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in the 2024 edition of 2 CFR 200.
- Gain proficiency in applying the updated regulations to ensure compliance with federal grant requirements and avoid potential audit findings.
- Develop strategies for effectively implementing the new guidelines within the grant management processes of their respective organizations, fostering efficiency and accountability in federal grant administration.
Understanding the Challenges of Street ChildrenSERUDS INDIA
By raising awareness, providing support, advocating for change, and offering assistance to children in need, individuals can play a crucial role in improving the lives of street children and helping them realize their full potential
Donate Us
https://serudsindia.org/how-individuals-can-support-street-children-in-india/
#donatefororphan, #donateforhomelesschildren, #childeducation, #ngochildeducation, #donateforeducation, #donationforchildeducation, #sponsorforpoorchild, #sponsororphanage #sponsororphanchild, #donation, #education, #charity, #educationforchild, #seruds, #kurnool, #joyhome
Jennifer Schaus and Associates hosts a complimentary webinar series on The FAR in 2024. Join the webinars on Wednesdays and Fridays at noon, eastern.
Recordings are on YouTube and the company website.
https://www.youtube.com/@jenniferschaus/videos
Donate to charity during this holiday seasonSERUDS INDIA
For people who have money and are philanthropic, there are infinite opportunities to gift a needy person or child a Merry Christmas. Even if you are living on a shoestring budget, you will be surprised at how much you can do.
Donate Us
https://serudsindia.org/how-to-donate-to-charity-during-this-holiday-season/
#charityforchildren, #donateforchildren, #donateclothesforchildren, #donatebooksforchildren, #donatetoysforchildren, #sponsorforchildren, #sponsorclothesforchildren, #sponsorbooksforchildren, #sponsortoysforchildren, #seruds, #kurnool
Jennifer Schaus and Associates hosts a complimentary webinar series on The FAR in 2024. Join the webinars on Wednesdays and Fridays at noon, eastern.
Recordings are on YouTube and the company website.
https://www.youtube.com/@jenniferschaus/videos
A process server is a authorized person for delivering legal documents, such as summons, complaints, subpoenas, and other court papers, to peoples involved in legal proceedings.
Presentation by Jared Jageler, David Adler, Noelia Duchovny, and Evan Herrnstadt, analysts in CBO’s Microeconomic Studies and Health Analysis Divisions, at the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists Summer Conference.
ZGB - The Role of Generative AI in Government transformation.pdfSaeed Al Dhaheri
This keynote was presented during the the 7th edition of the UAE Hackathon 2024. It highlights the role of AI and Generative AI in addressing government transformation to achieve zero government bureaucracy
2. ACSI started from the idea that social innovation processes aimed
at improving people’s life can be accelerated by identifying
evidence-based innovations, and sharing the knowledge in order
to inspire social innovation agents towards local adaptation and
implementation.
Implementation
May 2016 – July 2019
UpSocial has developed the methodology,
coordinated the process, conducted the
research, and supported the agents
involved to explore the adaptation.
Participant cities
Collaborator
The project
Accelerating Change for Social Inclusion (ACSI)
2
Funders
3. Learnings
3
How to better catalyse existing solutions into local implementations?
Adapting existing innovations is more
efficient than designing new responses
to social challenges from scratch
Cities and organisations are constantly
experimenting with new approaches to
solve pressing social needs. Instead of
starting from scratch, the experience of
supporting social-innovations transference
confirms the power of adapting and
adopting evidence-based models to tackle
social challenges. Transference processes
require intensive analysis and adaptation
efforts but save time and dedication by
avoiding ‘reinventing the wheel’.
However, the ability to learn from existing,
proven innovations is not the only condition
needed to catalyse innovations within a
local ecosystem.
Cities need to activate their local
ecosystems in order to boost
innovation capacity
Local stakeholders still face multiple
barriers when adapting and adopting
existing social innovations: lack of time,
funding, human resources, political
changes and organisational inertia, among
others. In order to mitigate these factors, a
wider spectrum of committed local
stakeholders should be involved in the
process from the very beginning in order to
leverage their knowledge and innovation
capacity.
Cities can act as a unique ecosystem
activator. This role would require a strong
initial leadership, proactivity and a great
use of convening power to engage key,
committed stakeholders in a joint effort to
tackle common social challenges.
This entails going beyond the role of
facilitators in order to help other players
take the lead in the adaptation and
implementation, i.e. prioritising challenges
and innovations, facilitating meetings,
making connections, organising events and
providing different types of in-kind support
to the different projects.
Moreover, making a small initial economic
contribution to the implementation of the
selected initiatives might help legitimise
projects and encourage co-financing.
4. Learnings
4
How to better catalyse existing solutions into local implementations?
Alignment of expectations and a clear
role definition within a continuous
process
The engagement at early stage of a variety
of key actors from different sectors
increases the chances of a successful
implementation. Consequently, all the
potential needed roles (such as funders,
implementers, facilitators, disseminators
or referrers) should be distinctly identified
and engaged since the beginning in order to
avoid confusion as to expectations.
With this purpose, engagement could be
articulated in a working group with the
initial objective of defining an agenda and a
set of shared goals. This would allow a
deeper diagnosis of the local needs and
would guide the following steps, in which
new relevant actors would be invited to
engage in a continuous way.
Two essential ingredients are needed to
turn matches into implementations:
leadership and commitment. In order to
achieve this, players not only should
participate with the ambition to facilitate
adaptation and first steps, but also to
implement innovative solutions. For this
reason, they should be engaged in the
process since the very beginning.
Opening up the challenge definition to a
variety of stakeholders would lead to the
identification of levers of change related to
the drivers that mobilise them. This
requires for highly specific challenges. The
broader they are, the more generalist are
the agents convened at the beginning.
Under these circumstances, by the time
innovations are supposed to be
implemented, key players might not be in
place and would have to join the process
later, hindering their sense of ownership.
This emphasis on early, long-term
involvement also aims to foster
commitment among a variety of local
stakeholders. Having them on board in all
the project’s phases might help create a
sense of ownership and enabling exploring
local implementation of innovations that
are more aligned with their organisations’
scope of action, interests and strategic
priorities. Presumably, this would enhance
their interest in achieving good results and,
in turn, increase implementation chances.
From matching to ownership
Matching an innovative solution with a
group of capable, interested local players
that include all the profiles needed for
implementation is not enough to overcome
the initial barriers to adaptation.
5. Learnings
5
How to better catalyse existing solutions into local implementations?
Standarised information and transfer
model systematisation
Standarised information of an innovation
becomes a powerful tool to evaluate it
potential impact on a different context,
facilitating better decision-making.
It also encourages innovators to reflect on
the strengths and weaknesses of their
models, which acts as a driver for the
systematisation of existing knowledge, the
articulation of transference models and the
activation of impact measurement
strategies.
Recognising these issues and integrating
tools for analysis hopefully will result in
clearer, stronger value and service
proposals that will encourage local
counterparts to implement the selected
innovations.
Social innovation takes time
Transformation processes cannot be
cooked using a microwave oven: long
simmering is needed.
Various reasons for this long-term
approach to social innovation are on the
demand side: different actors need to be
aligned, have a shared understanding of
the challenge, common agendas have to be
built, as well as trust, commitment and
capacity.
Other reasons can be found on the offer
side, as not all the innovators have
developed mature approaches to
scalability. Most of the models have been
proved in their original context, but present
different degrees of experience and
success in terms of transference. Thus,
identifying and consolidating sustainable
scaling models is still a challenge for many
innovators .
Knowledge systematisation and
exchange
Transferring social innovations to
accelerate social change cannot be
delinked from knowledge generation.
The process itself becomes a very valuable
and demanded source of learning,
inspiration and exchange for all actors
involved.
Activities organised all along the processes
often work as meeting platforms or
networking spaces in which traditional
players, but also very different
stakeholders that are not used to working
together, find opportunities to interact.
These are, in the end, ways of
strengthening local, national, and
international social innovation ecosystems.
6. UpSocial
6
Solving social challenges through innovation
Social
Unemployment, early-school abandonment,
child poverty or the transition towards
more environmentally-friendly cities are
some of the challenges driving our action
towards more effective responses.
UpSocial measures its success by
evaluating the social outcomes generated
by the innovations it seeks to adapt, adopt
and scale.
Effective, sustainable and scalable
This is why UpSocial concentrates its
energy in finding and designing innovations
that have strong evidence of impact. These
solutions should also be sustainable,
capable of generating sufficient value and
income to implement them. Finally, we
demand innovations to respond to the
whole dimension of the need. In other
words, they should be able to scale up and
inspire a solution to the challenge in its
entire dimension.
Innovation
With increasing social needs and
inequalities, and with decreasing resources
to respond to them, it is imperative to find
more efficient, effective, fair and
sustainable solutions. Then, the challenge
is to take them to scale. UpSocial focuses
precisely on fostering innovation by
researching worldwide the best social
innovations and helping them to scale and
to be implemented in different locations.
Multidisciplinary and international
team
With this vision, a group of social
entrepreneurs with a long trajectory
created UpSocial in 2010. The team,
together with a network of well-selected
specialists, allows UpSocial to create
efficient teams around each project and
initiative.
7. Accelerating Change for Social Inclusion(ACSI)
Learnings
October 2019
www.upsocial.org
www.innovations.upsocial.org
@UpSocialBCN