The Social Inovation Index

The newly published Social Innovation Index, thought up by Give What You’re Good At, presents ten new thought-provoking ideas (put forward by the general public) to “fix broken Britain”. The index, UK's first ever social innovation index, also features a list of ten UK organizations pioneering social innovation, providing insider advice on where to access start-up funding and advice for your social venture.

Not one country has a serious strategy for social innovation remotely comparable to the strategies for innovation in business and technology. The aim of the Index is to breathe life into the indefinite concept of social innovation and to encourage real people to take their first steps towards social venture.

The index received over 70 ideas for ameliorating social conditions in Britain. Allison Odgen-Newton, Head of Social Enterprise London, short-listed the ten featured. Entries ranged from how to access to finance for small businesses, to upcycling factories employing out of work design graduates and even installing wind turbines on the London underground.

Whether or not you think Britain is broken there are social problems that we can all agree need  to be fixed quickly, like ageing population, black holes in the public coffers and decreasing social mobility.

Thinking can lead to hundreds of ideas and, ultimately, real-world solutions that create better outcomes for people. Ami Bloomer, creator of the Social Innovation Index believes ‘we need to change the language of social innovation in order to convince real people to get involved. Social Innovation cannot be government led – it has to come from the experiences and ideas that shape our everyday lives, in short it must come from real people’.

To read more:  http://www.socialinnovationeurope.eu