Une fois n’est pas coutume, je vais publier un article en anglais. Tout simplement du fait que je vais devoir intervenir lundi prochain à la conférence de Madrid du réseau EUCLID NETWORK. Je vais très rapidement produire une version française de cet article pour les francophones, c’est promis !
« Innovation » may mean :
– a new way to do an action / to produce a product
– a new action / a new product
– a new way to do a new action / a new way to produce a new product.
As a former industrialist, I have participated in this process for products, but also services.
As a social economy actor, I fear we just keep to this very broad définition for « social innovation », mixing up what social innovation and service innovation are. This is why I would like to give my view on this very important subject, to be sure we are also innovative in the way we define « social innovation » !
To me, « social innovation » is about a solidarity based service or product innovation having strong social impact for the common good, and developped with the (central) participation of citizens.
Let’s take every element, which I must insist are all necessary.
1. Solidarity based service or product innovation
I think that we can’t limitate « social innovation » to « innovations in the field of social services ». It’s more about having a « positive social impact » which can be from the product / service itself or through the way citizens are part of the process of developping the innovation. I’ll come back to this Citizen participation critérium.
A social innovation, in my point of view, has as a principle, a solidarity component, a social cohésion component. To produce coffee in a social promotion orientation is part of this « solidarity » component at an international level.
2. Strong social impact for the common good
Innovations by traders on a financial product have had strong impact, but we all know (now !) that it was not ment as a way to contribute to the common good, but a way to preserve profit for each actor in the financial chain, with a disastrous global result !
A second very important criterium about « common good » is the not for profit orientation of the innovation. A social service developped to make a profit will, at a point of time, change to adapt to the criteria of profit and loose its « common good priority ». Therefore, as far as I see it, a « social innovation » can’t be developped as profit oriented. Which does’nt mean a for profit actor can’t be part of it, but this actor would accept to a strong limitation of the profit, that profit being secondary to common good.
3. Development with the (central) participation of citizens
Last but not least, participation of citizens in the « social innovation » process is central. An individual innovation is a « entrepreneur’s innovation », which is well known, as is well known « corporate innovation », based on a collective effort of the employées of a company, with possible outside help (cf. State research). But the place of citizens in these processes is marginal or inexistant.
A « social innovation » means a very strong impulse and participation of the citizens and especially beneficiaries. This can be done through :
– participation to the innovation development of beneficiaries
– strong implication of the citizens in the governance of the innovation process, incl. governance of the organization.
Taking in account all these éléments, one can note that traditional « social economy » is at the core of the process. My meaning is not a défensive one, but an OFFENSIVE one : WE NEED SOCIAL INNOVATION, as defined above, TO PREPARE A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE FOR HUMANITY.
Therefore I would invite States, local authorities and companies to think together with traditional third sector structures to develop these « social innovations » TOGETHER. We all need to join forces to complement individual and corporate service and product innovation with « social innovations » !
Construisons des Ponts ! 
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