Download or read book The Business of Social and Environmental Innovation written by Verena Bitzer and published by Springer. This book was released on 2015-01-05 with total page 236 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the face of limited progress toward meeting Millennium Development Goals or addressing climate change and resource degradation, increasing attention turns to harnessing the entrepreneurial, innovative, managerial and financial capacities of business for improved social and environmental outcomes. A more proactive role for business in sustainable development is especially pertinent in sub-Saharan Africa, which has been plagued by conflict and poverty but shows signs of a brighter future as the world’s second-fastest-growing region. The book considers how the socio-economic context influences the objectives of social innovation and even our definition of what we mean by social innovation. Secondly, the book aims to show how social innovation initiatives emerge and fare in context of the limited ability of many African countries to provide public goods and services.

Download or read book Responsible Innovation written by Katharina Jarmai and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2019-12-03 with total page 101 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This Open Access book, Responsible innovation provides benefits for society, for instance more sustainable products, more engagement with consumers and less anxiety about emerging technologies. As a governance tool it is mostly driven by research funders, including the European Commission, under the term “responsible research and innovation” (RRI). To achieve uptake in private industry is a challenge. This book provides successful case studies for the implementation of responsible innovation in businesses. The importance of social innovations is emphasized as a link between benefits for society and profits for businesses, especially SMEs. For corporate industry it is shown how responsible innovation can offer a competitive advantage to adopters. The book is based on the latest insights from theory and practice and combines conceptual work with first-hand experience. It is of interest to innovation managers, entrepreneurs and academics. For academics, the book will provide a combination of analysis and discussion, and present recent learnings from first-hand interaction with entrepreneurs. For innovation managers and entrepreneurs, it will provide inspiration and better ideas about what responsible innovation can look like in practice, why others have “done it” and what the potential benefits might be. The book will thus serve the purposes of spreading the word about the responsible innovation concept among different audiences whilst making it more accessible to innovation managers and entrepreneurs.

Download or read book Social Learning about Environmental Innovations written by Julian C. Jamison and published by . This book was released on 2017 with total page 37 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Laboratory experiments were conducted to investigate how private and public information affect the selection of an innovation and the timing of adoption. The results shed light on the behavioral anomaly called the "energy-efficiency gap" in which consumers and firms delay adoption of cost-effective energy and environmental innovations. The subjects chose between competing innovations with freedom to select the timing of their adoption, relying on private signals and possibly observation of their peers. When deciding whether to make an irreversible choice between safe and risky technologies, roughly half the subjects delayed adoption beyond the time indicated by equilibrium behavior-confirming the behavioral anomaly found for environmental innovations. When they did adopt, the subjects gave proportionately more weight to their private signals than to the actions of their peers, implying they do not 'herd' on the latter. Nevertheless, when the subjects observed their peers' decisions, they did accelerate the timing of their adoption despite not necessarily imitating their peers. This result occurred even when the payoffs were statistically independent, as if observing prior adoptions exerted 'peer pressure' on the subjects to act. The experimental results suggest that rapid dissemination of information about peer actions can speed up the diffusion of environmental innovations and improve selection among competing technologies.

Download or read book Towards Environmental Innovation Systems written by K. Matthias Weber and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2005-02-11 with total page 370 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Here is a dialog among worldwide experts across disciplines concerning theoretical frameworks and practical experiences to guide research and policy "towards environmental innovation systems". The contributors explore new directions of research at the border of two research traditions: systems of innovation and environmental innovations. The text examines the four main components of environmental innovation systems: conceptual foundations, empirical experiences, strategic approaches, and experiences with policy instruments.

Download or read book Social Innovation in the Service of Social and Ecological Transformation written by Olivier De Schutter and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2021-10-14 with total page 110 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book explores how the State can play a role as an enabler of citizens-led social innovations, to accelerate the shift to sustainable and socially just lifestyles. To meet the twin challenges of environmental degradation and the rise of inequalities, societal transformation is urgent. Most theories of social change focus either on the role of the State, on the magic of the market, or on the power of technological innovation. This book explores instead how local communities, given the freedom to experiment, can design solutions that can have a transformative impact. Change cannot rely only on central ordering by government, nor on corporations suddenly acting as responsible citizens. Societal transformation, at the speed and scope required, also should be based on the reconstitution of social capital, and on new forms of democracy emerging from collective action at the local level. The State matters of course, for the provision of both public services and of social protection, and to discipline the market, but it should also act as an enabler of citizen-led experimentation, and it should set up an institutional apparatus to ensure that collective learning spreads across jurisdictions. Corporations themselves can ensure that society taps the full potential of citizens-led social innovations: they can put their know-how, their access to finance, and their control of logistical chains in the service of such innovations, rather than focusing on shaping consumers’ tastes or even adapting to consumers’ shifting expectations. With this aim in mind, this book provides empirical evidence of how social innovations, typically developed within "niches", initially at a relatively small scale, can have society-wide impacts. It also examines the nature of the activism deployed by social innovators, and the emergence of a "do-it-yourself" form of democracy. This book will appeal to all those interested in driving societal change and social innovation to ensure a sustainable and socially just future for all.

Download or read book Social learning towards a sustainable world written by Arjen E.J. Wals and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2023-08-28 with total page 537 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "This comprehensive volume - containing 27 chapters and contributions from six continents - presents and discusses key principles, perspectives, and practices of social learning in the context of sustainability. Social learning is explored from a range of fields challenged by sustainability including: organizational learning, environmental management and corporate social responsibility; multi-stakeholder governance; education, learning and educational psychology; multiple land-use and integrated rural development; and consumerism and critical consumer education. An entire section of the book is devoted to a number of reflective case studies of people, organizations and communities using forms of social learning in moving towards sustainability. 'This book brings together a range of ideas, stories, and discussions about purposeful learning in communities aimed at creating a world that is more sustainable than the one currently in prospect. ...The book is designed to expand the network of conversations through which our society can confront various perspectives, discover emerging patterns, and apply learning to a variety of emotional and social contexts.' From the Foreword by Fritjof Capra, co-founder of the Center of Ecoliteracy. 'Joining what is so clear and refreshing in this book with the larger movements toward a critically democratic and activist education that is worthy of its name, is but one step in the struggle for sustainability. But it is an essential step if we are to use the insights that are included in this book.' From the Afterword by Michael Apple, author of 'Educating the ""Right"" Way: Markets, Standards, God, and Inequality'."

Download or read book Innovations and Traditions for Sustainable Development written by Walter Leal Filho and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2021-10-16 with total page 496 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book highlights the vital necessity for combining sustainable development processes from different areas, with applications in areas such as science, education and production sectors. These sectors have previously been separated by linguistic and technological barriers. Breaking down these barriers will allow an interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary flow of information, leading to greater efficiency, and towards a more real resilient and sustainable economy development. This book fills in the gap in respect of publications addressing aspects of innovation and sustainable development and focuses on a range of areas, such as I. Gradual transition to innovative development; II. Continuity of technology in education, science and industry; III. Convergency directions, interdisciplinary relations in scientific research; IV. Digital technologies for sustainable development; V. Global trends and regional aspects of innovation and traditions in environmental management; VI. International legal regulations and environmental and economic relations among business communities. The publication fosters the global efforts towards taking better advantage of the many opportunities which innovation in specific areas may offer.

Download or read book Institutional and Social Innovation for Sustainable Urban Development written by Harald Alard Mieg and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2013 with total page 442 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Which new institutions do we need to trigger local and global sustainable urban development? Are cities the right starting points for implementing sustainability policies? If so, what are the implications for city management? This book reflects the situation of cities in the context of global change and increasing demands for sustainable development. Global environmental change is forcing cities to think about their possible futures. Common approaches to city governance, from top-down planning to participation, are no longer sufficient.

Download or read book Social Innovations in Education Environment and Healthcare written by Chandan, Harish Chandra and published by IGI Global. This book was released on 2024-07-17 with total page 476 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the 21st century, traditional approaches to societal challenges often fall short. The need for innovative solutions is palpable, grounded in the understanding that progress is contingent upon embracing change. Scholars, policymakers, and institutions grapple with the delicate balance between economic growth and social well-being. The dichotomy between technical and social innovations becomes apparent, necessitating a comprehensive understanding of their interplay. The urgency to bridge this gap, addressing societal needs while fostering economic prosperity forms the crux of the challenge. Social Innovations in Education, Environment, and Healthcare emerge as an illuminating solution. Authored by experts in the field, this book offers a compelling exploration of social innovation as the key to unlocking transformative change. By delving into the intricacies of ideation, collaboration, implementation, and value creation, the book provides a roadmap for scholars, policymakers, non-profit organizations, for-profit firms, and universities. It dismantles the barriers between developed and developing nations, advocating for a global perspective in the pursuit of inclusive and impactful social innovations.

Download or read book Innovation for Sustainable Development written by Jean-Yves Grosclaude and published by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI). This book was released on 2014-02-20 with total page 306 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Innovation has become the new buzzword across the globe. International organisations, governments, corporates, academia and society see it as the answer to the major economic, social and environmental transformations challenging the models of the 20th century. Innovations are occurring worldwide and alternative solutions to the existing problems are emerging in all sectors: electric cars, organic farming, renewable energy and e-learning are good examples. These alternatives can be ascribed with qualities such as decentralized frugal, flexible, smart and democratic, virtues that are lacking in conventional models. They are attributed with the potential to meet the overall global challenges such as climate change and the growing inequalities between and within countries. What is the real potential of innovation? Does the rapid deployment of innovations lead towards a more sustainable and inclusive society? Can innovations and the emerging alternatives replace conventional models? Beyond technologies, what institutional innovations are required to support sustainable development? A Planet for Life 2014 aims to answer these questions and explore innovation in all its aspects, through a series of texts written by international experts. The objective of this book is to analyse experiences from across the world and the role of innovation in a variety of areas of development such as urbanization, agriculture and food, the mobility of people and freight, education and the provision of water and energy to all.

Download or read book Social Ecology in the Digital Age written by Daniel Stokols and published by Academic Press. This book was released on 2018-01-02 with total page 435 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Social Ecology in the Digital Age: Solving Complex Problems in a Globalized World provides a comprehensive overview of social ecological theory, research, and practice. Written by renowned expert Daniel Stokols, the book distills key principles from diverse strands of ecological science, offering a robust framework for transdisciplinary research and societal problem-solving. The existential challenges of the 21st Century - global climate change and climate-change denial, environmental pollution, biodiversity loss, food insecurity, disease pandemics, inter-ethnic violence and the threat of nuclear war, cybercrime, the Digital Divide, and extreme poverty and income inequality confronting billions each day - cannot be understood and managed adequately from narrow disciplinary or political perspectives. Social Ecology in the Digital Age is grounded in scientific research but written in a personal and informal style from the vantage point of a former student, current teacher and scholar who has contributed over four decades to the field of social ecology. The book will be of interest to scholars, students, educators, government leaders and community practitioners working in several fields including social and human ecology, psychology, sociology, anthropology, criminology, law, education, biology, medicine, public health, earth system and sustainability science, geography, environmental design, urban planning, informatics, public policy and global governance. Winner of the 2018 Gerald L. Young Book Award from The Society for Human Ecology"Exemplifying the highest standards of scholarly work in the field of human ecology." https://societyforhumanecology.org/human-ecology-homepage/awards/gerald-l-young-book-award-in-human-ecology/ The book traces historical origins and conceptual foundations of biological, human, and social ecology Offers a new conceptual framework that brings together earlier approaches to social ecology and extends them in novel directions Highlights the interrelations between four distinct but closely intertwined spheres of human environments: our natural, built, sociocultural, and virtual (cyber-based) surroundings Spans local to global scales and individual, organizational, community, regional, and global levels of analysis Applies core principles of social ecology to identify multi-level strategies for promoting personal and public health, resolving complex social problems, managing global environmental change, and creating resilient and sustainable communities Underscores social ecology’s vital importance for understanding and managing the environmental and political upheavals of the 21st Century Highlights descriptive, analytic, and transformative (or moral) concerns of social ecology Presents strategies for educating the next generation of social ecologists emphasizing transdisciplinary, team-based, translational, and transcultural approaches

Download or read book Becoming an Innovative Learning Environment written by Noeline Wright and published by Springer. This book was released on 2018-06-02 with total page 155 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book traces how a new school, physically designed as a modern learning environment, has come into being in New Zealand. A key feature is how it designs its curriculum for future citizens. The book explores how flexible curriculum and assessment options support the provision of a well-balanced, coherent and future-oriented learning programme. It also illustrates how the school is implementing its vision and copes with being different from other schools which understand and embody the New Zealand Curriculum as well as the NCEA qualifications system in more traditional terms. School leaders’, teachers’ and foundation students’ thinking and perspectives about what it’s like to become a new school are highlighted and shed light on what is possible within an evolving education system.

Download or read book Climate Literacy and Innovations in Climate Change Education written by Ulisses M. Azeiteiro and published by Springer. This book was released on 2018-01-13 with total page 395 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book addresses the links between climate change and the threats it poses to sustainable development, from a distance education perspective. Discussing current trends and challenges in sustainable development education, climate literacy and innovations in climate change education, it contributes to the global debate on the implementation of education for sustainability. It also assesses the role that e-learning can play in this process, addressing pedagogical concepts as well as the wide range of technological options now available.

Download or read book Innovation and Scaling for Impact written by Christian Seelos and published by Stanford University Press. This book was released on 2017-01-04 with total page 257 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Innovation and Scaling for Impact forces us to reassess how social sector organizations create value. Drawing on a decade of research, Christian Seelos and Johanna Mair transcend widely held misconceptions, getting to the core of what a sound impact strategy entails in the nonprofit world. They reveal an overlooked nexus between investments that might not pan out (innovation) and expansion based on existing strengths (scaling). In the process, it becomes clear that managing this tension is a difficult balancing act that fundamentally defines an organization and its impact. The authors examine innovation pathologies that can derail organizations by thwarting their efforts to juggle these imperatives. Then, through four rich case studies, they detail innovation archetypes that effectively sidestep these pathologies and blend innovation with scaling. Readers will come away with conceptual models to drive progress in the social sector and tools for defining the future of their organizations.

Download or read book Social Innovation written by Thomas Osburg and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2013-06-04 with total page 334 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: ​Social Innovation is becoming an increasingly important topic in our global society. Those organizations which are able to develop business solutions to the most urgent social and ecological challenges will be the leading companies of tomorrow. Social Innovation not only creates value for society but will be a key driver for business success. Although the concept of Social Innovation is discussed globally the meaning and its impact on the development of new business strategies is still heavily on debate. This publication has the goal to give a comprehensive overview of different concepts in the very innovative field of Social Innovation, from a managerial as well as from a theoretical and social perspective. Over 30 leading thinkers in the field of Innovation, Strategic Management and Organizational Development give a well structured inside on the latest developments and progress in the field of Social Innovation. Thereby the authors not only develop a comprehensive and unique analysis on the state-of-the art of social innovation but also give practical advice and information to business leaders on how to apply the latest management thinking on Social Innovation to daily business decisions. This publication has the intention to become a milestone in the further development of the concept of Social Innovation as well as to further stimulate new business strategies necessary to overcome world most pressing social and ecological challenges.

Download or read book Sustainable Innovation written by René Jorna and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2017-09-08 with total page 407 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: HOW SUSTAINABLE IS INNOVATION? Problematically, most contemporary patterns of innovation in human social systems and organisations are not sustainable. This prevents people from learning effectively, from recognising and solving their problems, and from operating in sustainable ways. It is arguably why societies, businesses and industries around the world are so unsustainable. Sustainable innovation is a pattern of social learning and problem-solving that is, itself, sustainable. The sustainability of innovation, moreover, is linked to the sustainability of its outcomes, which manifest themselves in what people produce and do in the world. Sustainable innovation, then, is a necessary precondition for sustainability in how societies and organisations function – the ways they organise, the products and services they make, the energy and resources they use, and the wastes they produce. As challenges such as demographic pressures, ethnic tensions, terrorism, global poverty, pandemics and abrupt climate change force their way into mainstream politics and business, so we see growing interest in innovation, entrepreneurial solutions and, critically, issues such as how to ensure successful solutions replicate and scale. Sustainable Innovation aims to illustrate that shift. Instead of simply focusing on environmental and technological matters, it views and evaluates innovation-for-sustainability in terms of the human, social and management challenges and responses. It argues that a just, efficient and sustainable balancing of these elements is best achieved by the development of new knowledge, and by the evolution of better means both of embedding that emerging knowledge in organisations and institutions, and of managing the relevant flows of information, knowledge and wisdom. The book stresses that claims that a particular product, production process or service are sustainable usually assume that an appropriate balance has been achieved between people, planet and profit. However, calculating the sustainability of such things, let alone of complex systems such as enterprises or economies, can be impossible. Instead of "sustainability", the book favours the use of terms such as "making sustainable", emphasising that in dynamic operating environments organisational processes are changing constantly, whether or not they are under effective strategic control by management. Innovation, too, is dynamic by definition. Sustainable Innovation argues that there must be a constant focus on the triple bottom line of economic, social and environmental value creation during the innovation process. Sustainable innovation is a new challenge for organisations. It is a process that should permeate the whole organisation, in terms of its members, its tasks, its coordination mechanisms and its procedures. Waste or pollution should not be seen as the reason for further intervention downstream, but as an end-of-the-pipe effect, which could be organisationally cured upstream. Developed from the Dutch research programme "Knowledge Creation for Sustainable Innovation", this book presents empirical research and cases to develop a theory of sustainable innovation that is based on management of knowledge, knowledge and cognition and innovation approaches. Sustainable Innovation suggests that knowledge and innovation will be the key drivers of social and corporate sustainability in the years ahead. It will be essential reading for managers and researchers in areas such as sustainability, innovation, knowledge management and organisational learning.

Download or read book Resilience in Social Ecological Systems written by Marianne E. Krasny and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2013-10-18 with total page 219 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Resilience thinking challenges us to reconsider the meaning of sustainability in a world that must constantly adapt in the face of gradual and at times catastrophic change. This volume further asks environmental education and resource management scholars to consider the relationship of environmental learning and behaviours to attributes of resilient social-ecological systems - attributes such as ecosystem services, innovative governance structures, biological and cultural diversity, and social capital. Similar to current approaches to environmental education and education for sustainable development, resilience scholarship integrates social and ecological perspectives. The authors of Resilience in social-ecological systems: the role of learning and education present a wealth of perspectives, integrating theory with reviews of empirical studies in natural resource management, and in youth, adult, and higher education. The authors explore the role of education and learning in helping social-ecological systems as they respond to change, through adaptation and transformation. This book also serves to integrate a growing literature on resilience and social learning in natural resources management, with research in environmental education and education for sustainable development. This book was originally published as a special issue of Environmental Education Research.