ABOUT THE PROJECT
WHO IS THE ESII?
The project
ESII is a two-years transnational project co-financed by the European Commission in the framework of the Erasmus + Programme, KA2 Strategic Partnership in the field of Vocational Education and Training.
Specific aim of the project is to spread and promote in Europe a new professional curriculum, namely the European Expert in Social Innovation incubation (ESII).
In different contexts in Europe, there are professionals dealing with social innovation incubation, although a common training path is missing and the profession of ESII is not recognized. The present project intends to develop A FREE ONLINE TRAINING COURSE to become ESII.
Rationale
Social innovation processes rely on the inventiveness of citizens, civil society organisations, local communities, businesses and public servants and services. They are an opportunity both for the public sector and for the markets, so that the products and services better satisfy individual but also collective aspirations. But this inventiveness needs to be directed and guided towards market-relevant initiatives, to become social businesses, i.e. enterprises with a positive social impact.
Who can offer this guidance and facilitation service?
The European ESII, a professional in virtual incubation, that provides expert consulting and tailored services to help social entrepreneurs and innovators build the skills, strategies and networks they need to succeed.
USER INTERACTION
The direct target group includes all existing incubators, chambers of commerce, consultants and business support service providers, as well as students in business and economics, which will benefit from a free training course to help them acquire skills and competences recognised at European level for the experts in social innovation incubation.
Indirect target groups are all the stakeholders that may exploit the outcomes for training activities and internal staff professional development: VET providers, universities, local authorities, traditional businesses (that may be interested in creating links and synergies with social enterprises).
SOCIAL INNOVATION
Although there are several definitions of the concept, social innovation initiatives all stand on a common ground: that of addressing social needs and issues through innovative means. (VINNOVA 2014)
We provide here some definitions:
“We define social innovations as new ideas (products, services and models)
“We define social innovations as new ideas (products, services and models) that simultaneously meet social needs and create new social relationships or collaborations. In other words, they are innovations that are both good for society and enhance society’s capacity to act”
Robin Murray, Julie Caulier-Grice, Geoff Mulgan – The Open Book of Social Innovation
“We define social innovations as new ideas (products, services and models)
of new ideas (products, services and models) to meet social needs and create new social relationships or collaborations. It represents new responses to pressing social demands, which affect the process of social interactions. It is aimed at improving human well-being.
Social innovations are innovations that are social in both their ends and their means. They are innovations that are not only good for society but also enhance individuals’ capacity to act. They rely on the inventiveness of citizens, civil society organisations, local communities, businesses and public servants and services. They are an opportunity both for the public sector and for the markets, so that the products and services better satisfy individual but also collective aspirations. Stimulating innovation, entrepreneurship and the knowledge-based society is at the core of the Europe 2020 Strategy.
Social innovation describes the entire process by which new responses to social needs are developed in order to deliver better social outcomes”.
“Even more simply, a social innovation is an idea that works for the public good”
“Even more simply, a social innovation is an idea that works for the public good”
“Social innovations are new solutions (ideas, products, services, models, markets, processes etc.) that simultaneously meet a social need (more effectively than existing solutions) and lead to new or improved capabilities and relationships and better use of assets and resources. In other words, social innovations are both good for society and enhance society’s capacity to act.” (The Young Foundation 2012)
As this definition implies, social innovation overlaps with, but is not the same as, social entrepreneurship.
This definition has been adopted by the TRANSITION project, which aims to support social innovations coming from a range of sources, including new ventures led by social entrepreneurs as well as innovations based within existing organisations, or delivered through strategic partnerships, voluntary initiatives or campaigns. To learn more, click here.
“Social innovation is about developing new ideas to tackle social problems or
“ Social innovation forms the core of social entrepreneurship driven by the
need to address a social (and environmental) problem being addressed in an innovative and entrepreneurial way, with an objective to create and sustain social and economic value. Such value creating activity can occur in and across organisations with a wide range of stakeholders. Social innovation is based on strategic collaboration of stakeholders in order to meet social challenges… Social innovation lies at the heart of social entrepreneurship, which aims to address unmet social needs of a community in an innovative and entrepreneurial way”
Social innovation from a social incubation perspective: What is it and why it matters?
Katerina Nicolopoulou, Muhammad Nouman, and Mine Karatas-Ozkan – School of Management, University of Southampton
“A social innovation is a novel solution to a social problem that is more
effective, efficient, sustainable, or just than current solutions. The value created accrues primarily to society rather than to private individuals”
SOCIAL ENTERPRISE
LATEST POSTS
ESII Events: Social Innovation Toolkit
On 13th July 2017, Make a Cube3, Sistemi Infortmativi Confindustria and Eurocrea Merchant hosted a multiplier event in Milan: Social Innovation Toolkit – Tools for Social Innovators. The event was aimed at introducing ESII Project and the tools of its e-lear...
ESII project platform is up and running
Do you want to become the next European Expert in Social Innovation Incubation? ESII project platform is now up and running! The brand new distant training space is an open source platform, a content management learning platform tool, fully customisable, inter...
ESII project partners meeting in Galway
On 27th and 28th February 2017, ESII project partners met in Galway, hosted by the Irish partner WestBic. The consortium focused on the revision of the web platform. Each and every single module of the platform has been reexamined in order to make the con...
OUR TEAM
Our team comes from 5 different European countries and 7 organisations promoting the project.
Contact us to learn more and be involved!

Silvia Farina
Eurocrea MerchantSilvia.farina@eurocreamerchant.it

Gianluca Coppola
Eurocrea MerchantGianluca.coppola@eurocreamerchant.it

Antonella Tozzi
Eurocrea MerchantAntonella.tozzi@eurocreamerchant.it

Javer Riano
Fondo Formación Euskadijavier.riano@ffeuskadi.net

Stefano Arciprete
Sistemi Formativi Confindustrias.arciprete@confindustria.eu

Milen Dobrev
Ruse Chamber of Commerceprojects@rcci.bg

Mia Abouri
University of GreewichM.L.Abouri@greenwich.ac.uk

Alberto Muscari Tomajoli
Make a Cubemuscarito@makeacube.com

James Donlon
WestBICjdonlon@westbic.ie