Social Innovation Labs
DEFINition
Intense meetings of diverse groups of people who are searching for break-through solutions to serious problems. Some labs run over days and others have ongoing gatherings and activities that last for years. Definition adapted from Social Innovation Primer.
Social innovation labs are also referred to as Design Labs or Impact Labs.
Resources
Design Thinking for Social Innovation
Learn the origins, the phases of, and how to apply design thinking to your work.
WISIR Social Innovation Lab Guide
History and guide to social innovation labs.
Follow the Rabbit: A Guide to Systemic Design
Look to this field guide for mindsets, workshops, FAQs, and methods of systemic design.
Labs for Social Innovation
by Kyriaki Papageorgiou
Alberta Examples
Edmonton Shift Lab
A collaborative effort to understand and address intersections of racism and poverty in Edmonton. Take a look at their toolkit for extensive resources and documentation.
AHS Design Lab
Helps health service providers use human centred design and design sprints to address messy problems.
Civic Innovation YYC
A place for Calgarians to share ideas on specific challenges or opportunities we are presented with as a city.
Energy Futures Lab
Building the energy system that the future requires through fellowships, knowledge sharing, and public engagement.
Future of Home - Disability Housing Solutions Lab
This project was launched to explore and co-design innovative homes as well as to support models that are inclusive of people with developmental disabilities. This project is a collaboration between several Edmonton based social innovation hubs.
The Social Impact Lab
By blending human-centred design practices with systems thinking, the Social Impact Lab creates opportunities, learning, and impact in the community.
Project Blue Thumb
Project Blue Thumb was a social lab working towards improved collective action on water quality issues in the Red Deer River watershed.
Creative Destruction Lab
This lab focuses on startup founders who pursue state of the art technological innovations across diverse industries and builds solutions applicable throughout the entire Ag value chain—from producer to plate, and develop transformational technologies for the energy industry.
Outside Alberta examples
Winnipeg Boldness Project
The Winnipeg Boldness Project is using social innovation tools to research and develop ideas, in order to improve outcomes for young children in the Point Douglas community area in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
Radius SFU
Radius builds solutions and supports leaders in service of systems change. Among other programs, Radius offers a First Persons Enterprise Accelerator Program.
MaRS Solutions Lab
From tackling urban inequality and youth unemployment to advancing affordable housing and shared mobility, we bridge public and private organizations to deliver inclusive innovation in Canada.