Social innovation variables

The increasing demand for innovative approaches to solve complex environmental, social and economic challenges is being met by individuals and organisations from all walks of life across the planet. A wealth of support mechanisms has emerged to accompany the growing activity of social innovators: these include diverse sources of funding, international sharing platforms, incubators, research programmes and networks. There are a number of stakeholders who already use a series of mechanisms to evaluate social innovation, most with a focus on a given initiative's potential for growth and long-term viability. The chapter describes them in the following four categories: investors, foundations and organisations, academic centres, and governments. It offers the five variables to cover both a results-oriented and a process-oriented perspective to provide a more holistic lens through which to observe different social innovations and better understand their potential. These five variables are: social transformation and impact, cross-sector collaboration, economic sustainability and long-term viability, innovation type, and scalability and replicability.