The story of Social Innovation

Though social innovations have been occurring throughout the history of mankind, there has not been enough interest to trigger mapping out the occurrence of social innovations or how the phrase has evolved in modern times. Our offset has been that though social innovations are not new to the world, an increased amount of people, institutions and companies around the world are starting to look for ways to become more sustainable towards the environment and/or their stakeholders. Without knowing it, these initiatives that arise under titles like social entrepreneurship, user- driven innovation or corporate social responsibility, are in truth aiming towards creating social innovation.

Understanding the concept of SI and actively using the term can give social action and contribution more power. It can help to create a larger awareness in society around imbalances and challenges that need to be dealt with, and it can be a trigger for more people to strive for creating positive change.

In order to further understand what SI can be, see the outline of past innovations below. They are listed according to:

• Innovation
• Time of origin
• Initial place of origin

In order for it to be socially innovative and not just innovative it needs to answer a need or create new value in society, so we encourage you to think about what need, if any, did these innovations respond to?

Which of these things do you take for granted in your everyday life?