The capacity for innovation within academia needs to be expanded so that research findings, knowledge, and expertise can benefit society. With the Social Impact Lab, Örebro University is a pioneer in Sweden when it comes to strengthening knowledge of methods and approaches for social innovation within academia. Now, more universities are following suit. Forum for Social Innovation Sweden made this collaborative effort possible.
Innovation at Swedish universities tends to be skewed toward technical idea development. To broaden innovation capacity and ensure that research results, knowledge, and expertise from a wide range of fields benefit society, changes are needed not only in structures and processes but also in the culture and attitudes within academia. The mandate of innovation offices in Sweden is not governed by the Higher Education Act and is interpreted differently. Furthermore, their organization and governance differ.
In 2017, Örebro University received funding from the Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth to finance a new innovation program designed to help strengthen innovation in social issues and social sustainability. In later stages, both Vinnova and the County Administrative Board contributed funding to develop what has since become the Social Impact Lab.
“We wanted to encourage innovation across more research groups and fields of study and attract more women by broadening our recruitment efforts for the innovation offices,” says Åsa Allard, Executive Director and Innovation Advisor at Örebro University Holding AB and founder of the Social Impact Lab.
Consolidating operations through evaluation and training
After seven years, Örebro University’s Innovation Office has decided to pause the Social Impact Lab in 2024 in order to evaluate the program and share its approach with more higher education institutions through a training course on the Social Impact Lab for innovation advisors. Surveys of Social Impact Lab participants reveal their opinions on the program and what they are satisfied with. The group itself, continuity, and meeting in person are key factors in the program.
New innovation program launched at Malmö University
Over the years, Örebro University has received requests from several universities for a training program on how to expand academic support for innovation. In April, a training program began with nine innovation advisors and participants from Malmö University, Lund University, Linnaeus University, Uppsala University, Umeå University, and Luleå University of Technology.
Forum for Social Innovation Sweden us to generate interest in a training program. Together with my colleague Åsa Allard, we held a workshop at SNITTS’s ‘Innovation by Collaboration 2023’ conference, and in April we launched a training program that concluded in August, when a network for continued learning and the exchange of experiences—for former participants—was formed,” says Katarina Wetter Edman, researcher, innovation advisor, and regional manager for Forum for Social Innovation Sweden Örebro University.
This year, a sister program to Malmö University’s Social Impact Lab, the Societal Impact Lab (SIL), was launched at Linnaeus University; recruitment is currently underway for a similar initiative there; and Umeå University is also considering launching a program focused on social innovation.
Several challenges in developing ideas for social innovations
Technological innovations are often based on a traditional growth paradigm. There are several stakeholders who support these types of innovations, and it is easier to secure funding for technological innovation than for social innovation. There is also an internal challenge within academia and among researchers in fields such as the humanities and social sciences. In these research fields, there is less familiarity with using concepts such as innovation and entrepreneurship. This research group has clear motivations centered on creating societal value; this often occurs in collaboration with the public sector rather than through their own companies.
“We can see that many of those who enter our innovation process don’t have the same approach to their field or the necessary support. We need changes in processes, culture, and behavior,” says Katarina Wetter Edman.
The program is group-based and grounded in service design
Initially, Örebro University was able to fund researchers’ time using funds from the Innovation Office. During the first four years, researchers received funding for one full day per week to participate in the idea development program. Since 2021, researchers have been responsible for their own time in the one-year program, where participants meet for 2.5 hours per week. Six to eight people participate in each session. Region Örebro County funds time each year for a number of affiliated researchers to participate in the program
To participate in the Social Impact Lab, researchers submit their ideas and describe the societal challenge they address and how they promote social sustainability. The program is based on the Five Disciplines of Innovation model, developed by the Stanford Research Institute, and also draws on service design, change theory, and entrepreneurship theory. During the program, researchers collaborate with practitioners, users, and others to explore needs and prototype various solutions with the goal of developing new innovative ideas. The hope is to help improve society’s capacity to address the shortcomings experienced by individual citizens, groups, or stakeholders. With growing social divides and failing welfare systems, innovation is needed in the public sector, not least.
Several ideas have been developed and are in use today in society
Researcher Anna Duberg, who participated in the Social Impact Lab, has developed “Dance for Health,” a research-based and cost-effective method that complements school health services’ efforts to promote mental well-being among young people. The innovation has been adopted by 100 municipalities and contributes to cost-effective care. Another example is Safewards, developed by researcher Veikko Pelto Piri, which is a preventive program and set of materials designed to counter threats and violence in inpatient psychiatric care. Safewards is currently used in five regions. A third example is Kristina Collén’s Alma Model, a comprehensive educational concept for the entire school system focused on girls with autism and ADHD, where Kristina has developed everything from children’s books, a theater performance, and lectures to a method for collegial collaboration.
Interest in and understanding of social innovation have grown
So what has the Social Impact Lab initiative achieved overall? Although no formal impact assessment has been conducted yet, the organizers can point to several outcomes of the program. A total of 44 researchers have participated in the Social Impact Lab, 66 percent of whom are women. The research fields most strongly represented are health sciences and medical sciences, as well as the humanities, education, and social sciences, along with behavioral, social, and legal sciences.
But has the view of innovation changed as a result of the Social Impact Lab at Örebro University? It is more difficult to measure the effects; deeper and longer-term studies are needed here. The Innovation Office believes that greater interest and understanding of these needs and types of ideas and innovations have been generated within the university. Another outcome is that it has served as a cost-effective training program for learning about idea development processes. Researchers who have participated in the program also mention that they use methods covered in the program both in teaching and when preparing research grant applications.
Text: Lotta Orban
Want to know more?
Learn more about the Social Impact Lab at Örebro University
Learn more about the Societal Impact Lab at Malmö University
Learn more about Dance for Health at
Learn more about the Alma Model and listen to the podcast *Obruten mark* Episode #11 / “The Alma Model – Living with Autism and ADHD” with Kristina Collén
Be sure to check out the podcast "Obruten mark" as well
Episode #13 / “How to Reform Inpatient Psychiatric Care” with Veikko Pelto-Piri
Episode #10 / “Malmö University in the Spotlight” with Charlotte Ahlgren Moritz
Episode #7 / “Academia and Researchers in Society” with Anna-Karin Andershed and Amy Loutfi