The analysis of the social innovation ecosystem carried out by the PEnCIL project was aimed at exploring the attitudes of different stakeholders towards social innovation and mapping social innovation in Lithuania.

Creating an enabling environment for the development of social innovation requires:

(1) a detailed and thorough analysis of the needs, priorities and capacities of different stakeholders and

(2) their accumulation in a clear strategy and action plan to foster innovation across the country.

This study was carried out in three phases:

The social innovation ecosystem, as understood in this study, consists of:

This analysis focused on the needs, priorities and opportunities of different stakeholders. The results of this study were used to better understand the processes taking place in the social innovation system, to explore how different organisations from all sectors are developing social innovation in the face of current challenges, to summarise the visions of stakeholder groups, and to explore their needs and expectations.

The analysis of the social innovation ecosystem carried out by the PEnCIL project has led to the formulation of Recommendations to improve public policy decisions on social innovation and its effectiveness, a strategy and an action plan for a National Competence Centre for Social Innovation.

The proposed vision of the National Competence Centre for Social Innovation: The Socially Innovative Community 2030.

Social innovation differs from other innovations in that its main objective is to create social change. Compared to the general concept of innovation, social innovation has the additional motivation of a social mission and social values. Hence, when monitoring the development of social innovations, their impact can be measured in terms of common social indicators: happiness index, poverty index, exclusion index, etc.

The proposed mission of the National Competence Centre for Social Innovation is: To be a leader and partner in initiating the development of social innovation and the implementation of new initiatives in Lithuania. The National Competence Centre for Social Innovation’s vision is supported by the following strategic objectives:

1) to promote social innovation in Lithuania by developing new ways of solving community problems;

2) to develop a conscious society that is able to deal with the interactions of its members in an innovative way.

The proposed activities for the National Competence Centre for Social Innovation:

• Ecosystem monitoring
• Policy recommendations
• Networking
• Competence development
• Dissemination of good practice
• Mediation
• Methodological support
• Implementation of EU-funded projects on social innovation

Prepared documents

• Strategy for a National Competence Centre for Social Innovation
• Action plan for boosting social innovation