SOCIAL INNOVATION TOWARDS SUSTAINABILITY:
EMBRACING CONTEMPORARY CHALLENGES FOR REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT
This event was postponed due to the Covid-19 outbreak. The workshop changed to a webinar format (28 Sept – 2 Oct 2020). Participation is free of charge for the audience, limited to the capacity of the virtual room. Check details in the dedicated website (program section).
WEBINAR 28 Sept – 2 Oct 2020
Contemporary societies are facing permanent social, economic and ecological turbulence. Social innovation starts from the willingness to transform ideas into action in order to respond to problems and contribute for solutions where public policies fail in providing effective answers. Despite the fragmentation of the field, Regional Science has been an important catalyst for social innovation research by paying attention to territorial innovative responses towards emerging social needs.
It is in this context and with these premises that the 25th APDR workshop Social Innovation Towards Sustainability: Embracing Contemporary Challenges for Regional Development is developed. In fact, its main objective is to discuss the state of the art of social innovation in Regional Science and the contemporary challenge for sustainability while promoting the reflection and knowledge-sharing on social innovation practices connected with sustainability and regional development. It also intends to stimulate an inter-sector dialogue among researchers, activists, local, regional and national policy makers, associations, non-governmental organisations, practitioners of social innovation and social entrepreneurs and contribute to the visibility of social innovation as a central topic for the transformation of society towards a more sustainable future.
The workshop is organised by APDR – Portuguese Association for Regional Development and CES - Centre for Social Studies of the University of Coimbra, with the support of CinTurs - Research Centre for Tourism, Sustainability and Well-Being of the University of Algarve. This workshop also benefits from the support of the Atlantic Social Lab project, co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) through the INTERREG Atlantic Area Cooperation Program (EAPA_246/2016).
The workshop was originally organised to take place on 16th April 2020 at the Faculty of Economics, University of Algarve (Faro, Portugal) but was postponed. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the event is held online, in a webinar format version, starting from the 28th of September until the 2nd of October 2020.
The first day of the workshop is dedicated to the opening session while from the 29th of September to the 1st of October, the presentation and discussion of the main themes will take place. The topics of discussion, among others, regard social innovation, micro-scale innovation, transformative innovation, sustainability transitions and community-based sustainability projects. These topics are divided into five main categories that correspond to parallel sessions. Namely, the subjects are classified into the following sections: i) tourism and territorial renewal; ii) spaces for sustainable social innovation; iii) learning for social innovation; iv) social innovation and communities; and v) regional dynamics.
The last day of the workshop integrates a focus group discussion about “The Transformative Potential of Social Innovation for Regional Development”. This focus group is developed by the Atlantic Social Lab project, co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) through the INTERREG Atlantic Area Cooperation Program (EAPA_246/2016) and it is intended to be a participatory session whose objective is to promote a multi-level and multi-sectoral discussion on the importance of social innovation for regional development. It will count with the presence of different organisations that have a pivotal role in the economic and social development of the Algarve region, including winners of the Partnerships for the Impact of the Portugal Inovação Social (Portugal Social Innovation) contest. Some final considerations will then close the event, making space for reflection.
It is in this context and with these premises that the 25th APDR workshop Social Innovation Towards Sustainability: Embracing Contemporary Challenges for Regional Development is developed. In fact, its main objective is to discuss the state of the art of social innovation in Regional Science and the contemporary challenge for sustainability while promoting the reflection and knowledge-sharing on social innovation practices connected with sustainability and regional development. It also intends to stimulate an inter-sector dialogue among researchers, activists, local, regional and national policy makers, associations, non-governmental organisations, practitioners of social innovation and social entrepreneurs and contribute to the visibility of social innovation as a central topic for the transformation of society towards a more sustainable future.
The workshop is organised by APDR – Portuguese Association for Regional Development and CES - Centre for Social Studies of the University of Coimbra, with the support of CinTurs - Research Centre for Tourism, Sustainability and Well-Being of the University of Algarve. This workshop also benefits from the support of the Atlantic Social Lab project, co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) through the INTERREG Atlantic Area Cooperation Program (EAPA_246/2016).
The workshop was originally organised to take place on 16th April 2020 at the Faculty of Economics, University of Algarve (Faro, Portugal) but was postponed. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the event is held online, in a webinar format version, starting from the 28th of September until the 2nd of October 2020.
The first day of the workshop is dedicated to the opening session while from the 29th of September to the 1st of October, the presentation and discussion of the main themes will take place. The topics of discussion, among others, regard social innovation, micro-scale innovation, transformative innovation, sustainability transitions and community-based sustainability projects. These topics are divided into five main categories that correspond to parallel sessions. Namely, the subjects are classified into the following sections: i) tourism and territorial renewal; ii) spaces for sustainable social innovation; iii) learning for social innovation; iv) social innovation and communities; and v) regional dynamics.
The last day of the workshop integrates a focus group discussion about “The Transformative Potential of Social Innovation for Regional Development”. This focus group is developed by the Atlantic Social Lab project, co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) through the INTERREG Atlantic Area Cooperation Program (EAPA_246/2016) and it is intended to be a participatory session whose objective is to promote a multi-level and multi-sectoral discussion on the importance of social innovation for regional development. It will count with the presence of different organisations that have a pivotal role in the economic and social development of the Algarve region, including winners of the Partnerships for the Impact of the Portugal Inovação Social (Portugal Social Innovation) contest. Some final considerations will then close the event, making space for reflection.
KEYNOTE SPEAKERS
CALL FOR PAPERS
Contemporary societies face structural challenges that lack effective and transformative responses. These problems can be seen not only as alarming issues but also as opportunities for the implementation of new forms and methods to answer existing needs. In this context, the issues of the need for a transition to more sustainable (social, economic and environmental) models are becoming more prominent and increasing their space in academic and strategic discussions. Greater importance has been given to innovative micro-scale initiatives that seek to address these challenges. Discussions around social innovation, grassroots innovation and transformative innovation are examples of this. There are examples from around the world of good community-based practice and from civil society organizations. Nevertheless, recognition of these practices by policy makers and governance bodies is critical to the their scalability. This workshop aims to contribute to this discussion, not only at the academic and strategic level but also at the level of real and practical examples of practices being developed in the field.
We invite researchers, activists, public officials and social entrepreneurs to submit proposals for contributions to the workshop. Submissions might be based on formal research or on concrete activist, community or public policy initiatives.
We are particularly interested in proposals related of these thematic fields:
- On innovation: studies, reflections and examples about innovation (s) that, particularly, are concerned to emphasize sustainability and regional development, such as: social innovation, grassroots innovation, transformative innovation, among others;
- On transformation: studies, reflections and examples focused on sustainability transitions, multi-level perspective, transferability and scaling-up, and their relationships with innovation and regional development;
- Doing It: Examples of real-world practices in developing innovation practices that address social and environmental needs, such as: sustainable intentional communities (ecovillages), smart-cities, eco-cities, cities in transition, transition movements, living laboratories, NGOs, territorial and local development agencies, public policies, among others, that may instigate regional development.
The event also integrates a focus group discussion, in Portuguese, about “The Transformative Potential of Social Innovation for Regional Development”. This focus group is developed by the Atlantic Social Lab project.
We invite researchers, activists, public officials and social entrepreneurs to submit proposals for contributions to the workshop. Submissions might be based on formal research or on concrete activist, community or public policy initiatives.
We are particularly interested in proposals related of these thematic fields:
- On innovation: studies, reflections and examples about innovation (s) that, particularly, are concerned to emphasize sustainability and regional development, such as: social innovation, grassroots innovation, transformative innovation, among others;
- On transformation: studies, reflections and examples focused on sustainability transitions, multi-level perspective, transferability and scaling-up, and their relationships with innovation and regional development;
- Doing It: Examples of real-world practices in developing innovation practices that address social and environmental needs, such as: sustainable intentional communities (ecovillages), smart-cities, eco-cities, cities in transition, transition movements, living laboratories, NGOs, territorial and local development agencies, public policies, among others, that may instigate regional development.
The event also integrates a focus group discussion, in Portuguese, about “The Transformative Potential of Social Innovation for Regional Development”. This focus group is developed by the Atlantic Social Lab project.
Financial support
@APDR