In our fifth episode, Gorgi Krlev and Dominik Domnik discuss what it takes to foster innovation that benefits society. We delve into what social innovation is, and what role public policy and specific funding instruments play for the growth of the sector. Gorgi is an assistant professor of sustainability at ESCP Paris. He has conducted a study comparing and assessing approaches from 10 different countries to support social innovation. Dominik works for LMU’s Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center. He has previously worked for a foundation and a family office and set-up his own social business. They discuss the rationale for factoring in the long-term benefits for society when investing into innovative solutions to societal problems, whether you are a policy maker or an investor. We also address jargon and how to bridge cultural differences between the private sector, the public sector, and civil society to jointly promote social innovation.

Links

• Gorgi conducted the study “Financing Social Innovation” on behalf of SEND, the German Social Entrepreneurship Network.

Examples mentioned by Gorgi and Dominik:

• Portugal Social Innovation is a government initiative aimed at stimulating the social investment market in Portugal. It mobilizes around EUR 150 million from the European Social Fund through 4 financing instruments: capacity building for social investment, partnerships for impact, social impact bonds, and the social innovation fund.
• Power Up Scotland develops early stage social businesses through investment, business support and cross-sector partnerships. It has been launched by Big Issue Invest in partnership with the Scottish Government and the University of Edinburgh.
• The Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra received an endowment capital fund of approximately 84 million euros from the Bank of Finland and the Finnish Parliament. Sitra’s work is funded by the returns from its capital. Investments up and running and underway include Social Impact Bonds (SIB), e.g. with a focus on Type 2 diabetes prevention.

For feedback on the show or to suggest guests for future episodes, contact us at scifi@esmt.org