Increasingly, we are becoming aware of the need for all sectors and members of society to try and have a positive rather than a negative impact on their community and the planet. Every day, there are 'ominous' updates on the gravity of wicked problems such as climate change, growing inequalities, wars, lack of fair and sustainable access to food, healthcare etc. that require complex, cross-sector solutions to be tackled. Established institutions and strategies to address these social and environmental issues seem to be 'too little, too late'. For this reason, in the past twenty years, new approaches have been tried and adopted to generate and sustain positive impact. Among these are social innovation, social entrepreneurship and, increasingly, the catalysis of systems change.
This online, interactive day school aims to introduce these three approaches and some of the tools and insights to adopt them. During the day, we will explore together what impact, social innovation, social entrepreneurship and systems change mean and how they are enacted, through both theoretical definitions and practical examples. We will also reflect on the strengths and limitations of each of these approaches and you will have the chance to reflect on which approach, among them, might make most sense for you or your organisation, given the impact you would like to realise.
After having introduced and explore these approaches during the morning, the afternoon will have a more 'workshop' feel. We will work on tools, such as stakeholders mapping or the Theory of Change, that can support the realisation of impact through any of the approaches discussed; we will review common challenges that hamper the realisation of the desired impact, and ways to prevent or manage them; and we will reflect on ways for both you and your organisation to understand if you are achieving your desired impact. The day will end with an inspirational note through the testimony of a social entrepreneur generating impact and dealing with some of the challenges discussed.
Please note: this event will close to enrolments at 23:59 BST on 27 September 2023.