Bravely for Innovation: A Program for Educating Social Innovators in the Visegrad Countries

The project is co-financed by the governments of Czechia, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia through Visegrad Grants from the International Visegrad Fund. The mission of the fund is to advance ideas for sustainable regional cooperation in Central Europe.

https://www.visegradfund.org/ 

The primary issue of the Bravely for Innovation project is the limited implementation of social innovation in the V4 countries.

In this era of a risky society - characterized by rapid social change and increasingly multifaceted problems - the role of social innovations is increasing. The implementation of social innovations is mainly carried out by non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in partnership with other entities. Intersectoral cooperation in post-socialist V4 countries is hindered by a relatively low level of social capital and the insufficient resources of NGOs, including their limited human resources.

To address the limited implementation of social innovation in V4 countries and the lack of academic programs dedicated to social innovation, the Bravely for Innovation project will develop a 20-hour online course tailored to the real challenges faced by NGOs in the V4 region.

Achieving the main goal of the project will be possible through the following actions:

1. Experts will assess NGOs' needs and design training program for social innovators.
2. At least 60 students will participate in a 20-hour training program.
3. During the training program, students will work in groups to design prototypes of social innovations that address real-world problems identified by NGOs.
4. The training program will undergo extensive evaluation.
5. Recommendations for training social innovators will be disseminated.
6. The Social Innovations Forum will be held, providing a space for the integration of students, NGOs, and experts from the V4 countries.

The project's uniqueness stems from several factors.

• First, it will establish a network of cooperation between partner universities, NGOs, and experts.

In the V4 countries, such a broad group of activists interested in implementing social innovations does not yet exist. The creation of a network of cooperation increases the chances of implementing innovations in local communities.

• Second, the project reaches back to the grassroots and aims to increase the number of social innovations in each V4 country by educating young activists.

This education will equip them with the knowledge, competencies, and skills necessary to implement social innovations in NGOs. This will be achieved through a unique online training course. 

• Third, training for social innovators will be tailored to the actual needs of NGOs and students, taking into account the specific needs of NGOs from V4 countries.

A detailed diagnosis of these needs is planned.

• Fourth, the training program will be disseminated to all entities interested in social innovation, and all developed elements of the training program willbe available.

Online guides will also be produced describing the training of social innovators in connection with the activities of V4 NGOs in implementing social innovations.

• Fifth, a Social Innovations Forum will be organised.

The Forum will serve to integrate NGOs from theV4, social innovators, and researchers dealing with the implementation of social innovations. It will also present an innovative training program for social innovators, and students will show prototypes of social innovations.

• Project coordinator (Poland)

Center of Social Innovation of the University of Lodz

Contact details: Katarzyna Zajda

E-mail: katarzyna.zajda@uni.lodz.pl 

 

• National coordinator (Slovakia)

Slovak University of Agriculture in Nitra

Contact details: Danka Moravčíková

E-mail: danka.moravcikova@uniag.sk 

 

• National coordinator (Hungary)

Institute of Applied Social Sciences of Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences (University of Miskolc)

Contact details: Kinga Szabó-Tóth

E-mail: kinga.szabo.toth@uni-miskolc.hu 

 

• National coordinator (Czechia)

Prague University of Economics and Business:

1. Faculty of Finance and Accounting

Contact details: Katarína Krpálková Krelová

E-mail: katarina.krelova@vse.cz 

 

2. Faculty of Management

Contact details: Kateřina Berková

E-mail: katerina.berkova@vse.cz 
 

The Bravely for Innovation project was designed with care for the environment, in accordance with the principles of sustainable development included in the Visegrad Fund Green Guidelines.

The project includes activities that help reduce the project's environmental impact, such as: 

1. Project management:
   • All project team meetings will be held online, with the aim of, among others, reducing the carbon footprint;
   • Publications will be published online;
   • The Social Innovations Forum will be organized online;
   • No project activity requires the purchase of additional materials or equipment;
   • The project will be promoted digitally.
2. Substantive activities:
   • The training programme offered to students - future innovators - will include sustainable development issues;
   • The project's outcomes will be included in a publication promoting, among others, sustainable development issues.

Center of Social Innovation of the University of Lodz:

E-mail: cein@uni.lodz.pl 

 

Coordinator of the Bravely for Innovation project:

Katarzyna Zajda

E-mail: katarzyna.zajda@uni.lodz.pl