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Lessons and Challenges in Implementing a Social Innovation Policy: The Experience of the Inspire Program in Santa Catarina, Brazil

Thu, July 18, 2:00 to 3:30pm, TBA

Abstract

This study systematizes and analyzes an experience of articulation of teaching, research, and transfer involving a partnership between the University and the government of Santa Catarina in the implementation of a public policy to support social innovation in the state: the Santa Catarina Social Innovation Program - Inspire. This program emerged from an applied research project conducted from 2021 to 2023, initially in partnership with the State Department of Economic Development (SDE). The project was funded by UDESC and the Foundation for Research and Innovation Support of Santa Catarina (FAPESC).
Building on the prior experience of the Social Innovation Observatory of Florianópolis (established in 2017 at UDESC), a methodology was adopted that prioritizes "public investigation" processes and collaborative, applied, and engaged research (Alperstedt; Andion, 2017; Magalhães; Andion; Alperstedt, 2020) for the development of the program. It´s target audience was managers and staff of 11 innovation centers in the state and the program was structured into four main axes:
1) Training: Conducting the Social Innovation Journey from February to December 2022 for participants from 11 Innovation Centers in the state of Santa Catarina.
2) Research: Mapping social innovation ecosystems in the municipalities where the centers are located;
3) Knowledge: Co-building a collaborative platform for the co-production of information and knowledge within the network of centers;
4) Actions: Developing social innovation projects that address the main challenges faced by the cities participating in the Journey.

In this work, we aim to describe the trajectory of the program and the lessons learned, as well as to outline the challenges in developing a public policy that promotes the culture and practice of social innovation. This analysis goes beyond traditional discussions and practices related to innovation and social innovation, which are often characterized by a traditional Schumpeterian perspective (Cajaibe-Santana, 2014; Lévesque, 2014; Montgomery, 2016), focusing more on economic, technological, and social entrepreneurship dimensions. Grounded in a pragmatic perspective of research and intervention, this work seeks to explore the political embeddedness of social innovations, viewing them as real-world experiments in public arenas and ecosystems capable of influencing public policies, governance dynamics, and territories, promoting greater justice, democracy, and sustainability (Andion et al, 2017; Andion, Alperstedt, and Graeff, 2019 and 2020; Andion, 2023).
Given this broader issue, this article aims to systematize the experience of implementing a state public policy and analyze it, in order to extract lessons learned, challenges, and advances that may inspire other experiences and studies aimed at promoting social innovation in Brazil and other countries.

References

ALPERSTEDT, G; ANDION, C. Por uma pesquisa que faça sentido. Revista de Administração de Empresas. v. 57, n. 6, p. 626-631, 2017.

ANDION, C; RONCONI, L; MOARES, R.L; GONSALVES, A.K.R; SERAFIM, L.B.D. Sociedade civil e inovação social na esfera pública: uma perspectiva pragmatista. Revista de Administração Pública, [s.l.], v. 51, n. 3, p. 369-387, jun. 2017.

ANDION, C., ALPERSTEDT, G. D., GRAEFF, J. F. Social Innovation Ecosystems and Cities: Co-Construction of a Collaborative Platform, In Howaldt, J. et al. (Eds.) Atlas of Social Innovation. (2nd Volume: A World of New Practices). Dormunt: TU Dormunt University, 2019.

ANDION, C; ALPERSTEDT G.; GRAEFF, J. Ecossistema de inovação social, sustentabilidade e experimentação democrática: um estudo em Florianópolis. Revista de Administração Pública. São Paulo, v.54, n.1, p.181-200, 2020.

ANDION, C. Social Innovation, Experimentalism, and Public Governance: An Ethnographical Approach to Study Public Arenas in the City. BAR, Brazilian Administration Review, v.20, n.2, 2023.

CAJAIBE-SANTANA, Giovany. Social innovation: moving the field forward. A conceptual framework. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, v. 82, p. 42-51, 2014.

LÉVESQUE, Benoît. As inovações sociais podem contribuir para transformações, mas isso não é tão evidente. Revista Ciências em Debate, v. 1, n. 2, p. 179-199, 2014.

MONTGOMERY, Tom. Are Social Innovation Paradigms Incommensurable? Voluntas: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations, v. 27, p. 1979-2000, 2016.

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