Social Innovation Relay: Transformative Impact

How many times have you left a conference or workshop, thinking it’s a pity not to be able to connect more deeply and share experiences and knowledge with the people you met? We invite you for something new: an experimental set up in which we combine a face-to-face thematic workshop, with an online learning relay in which participants will activate each others knowledge and networks to crowdsource input for each others challenges.

On the 15^th of November our first Social Innovation Community (SIC) Learning Relay kicks off with a full day workshop focusing on the topic of Transformative Impact. The ability to understand, report and communicate about impact is an increasingly relevant yet often underdeveloped competency. The workshop & relay will address this learning need, and focus on how social innovation can increase it’s transformative impact: it’s ability to challenge, alter and/or replace dominant institutions and structures.

We offer a different type of learning. Moving from reactive learning that many face during the development of Social Innovation, towards reflective and reflexive learning.  Zooming out with a systems thinking lens and zooming in: deepening the learning capacity of yourself and your initiative.

Join us this November for an innovative Learning Relay designed to boost the transformative impact of your initiative and network!

Format & Programme

The relay will start with a kick-off workshop on the 15th of November. It will combine informative & inspiring lectures with work sessions in which you will practice with a number of tools. During the workshop you will get to know the other participants, deepen your learning question and form smaller groups before embarking on the learning relay.

The relay period consists of 4-5 rounds of one week, in which each group provides input to the learning question of one of the participants in their group. At the end of the relay period each person has given help to all her/ his group mates.

Introductory webinar: 6th Nov 2017, from 15-16.30 CET

Kick-off Workshop: 15th Nov 2017

Relay period: 15th Nov – 13th Dec 2017

Online Closure: 17-Jan-2018

During the relay you will be encouraged to organise a ripple effect activity. For instance, co-organising a webinar in collaboration with SIC partners, applying one of the participatory tools to your initiative, or another type of intervention.

Learning outcomes

The Social Innovation Learning Relay aims to boost the transformative impact of your initiative and network and will help you to:

• Gain new knowledge & skills with regard to transformative impact
• Strengthen the story behind your initiative or project
• Apply newly acquired knowledge & tools in a peer-to-peer learning environment
• Develop system awareness and see how your initiative relates to larger social change processes
• Establish new connections at a personal level & with other social innovation networks and initiatives

What do you bring in?

• Motivation & curiosity to be part of an experimental learning format
• Communication: share experience, knowledge and network
• Participation: in workshop and final skype session
• Action: organise a ripple effect activity during the two month period of the relay
• Time investment during relay: +- 4 hours a week during 4-5 relay rounds.

What we will provide

We will provide theoretical framing and content during the kick-off workshop and a fertile ground to spark continued interactions and knowledge exchange. We will also provide an online platform to showcase your initiative and learning process, access to people in networks of SIC partners and support during the relay (reflection and suggestions).

Apply

If you would like to take part in the relay, we kindly request you to apply via the online application form. You will be asked to provide a learning question that you want to bring in during the relay and motivate why you want to join. We will make a selection of (max 25) participants based on these applications.

Application deadline: Nov 1^st  2017

Organisation

The first relay is organised by DRIFT as part of SIC (Social Innovation Community). SIC is a Horizon 2020 Programme funded project, and run by a consortium of 12 leading organisations across Europe. SIC will run from February 2016- 2019. Find out more at: https://www.siceurope.eu/

A series of relays

The Social Learning Relay on Transformative Impact is part of a series of three (separate) Relays, each with a different thematic focus, location, and group of participants.

Relay #1 – Impact: kick-off workshop 15th of November 2017 in Rotterdam, the Netherlands

Relay #2 – Experimentation: kick-off workshop March 2018 in Zagreb, Croatia

Relay #3 – Funding: kick-off workshop September 2018 to be determined.

If you have any questions please dont’t hesitate to get in touch with Marijke de Pous via: transitionacademy@drift.eur.nl or +31 (0)649869542.