Social Innovation Forum 2025

Europe faces social challenges that demand innovative solutions. While many promising initiatives exist, too few become policy standards and thus have a lasting, positive impact on the wider community. This panel will explore how to move from local pilots to systemic change. It will present how the EU supports the mainstreaming of social innovation through the European Social Fund+. It will discuss pathways for embedding social innovation into national policies and strategies. It will discuss the need for cooperation across sectors and authorities to increase the societal impact of social innovation and how to leverage policy frameworks to stimulate social innovation.

Objectives:
- Build a shared understanding of how to identify and address complex social issues through a systems perspective.
- Explore and co-develop practical, cross-sector strategies to enhance the systemic impact of social innovation and its integration into public policy.

Complex social challenges are systemic, dynamic, and multisectoral in nature, requiring collective, adaptive, and coordinated responses. These challenges cannot be addressed through simple or linear solutions; instead, they call for approaches that combine social innovation with active listening, cross-sector collaboration, and the integration of solutions into public policy.

This session will explore how societal challenges—and their root causes and effects—can be better understood through a systems lens, with examples of innovation at the systems level. Through interactive small-group sessions, participants will examine ways to identify complex challenges and collaboratively experiment with co-creating strategic responses. The session aims to foster collaboration and knowledge exchange among Social Innovation Community of Practice (SI CoP) members, with a focus on strengthening the systemic impact of social innovation.

Objectives:
This workshop will explore how robust and resilient societies are supported by effective social inclusion policies and services. The insights gathered will help shape the 2026 Work Programme of the ESF+ Community of Practice (CoP) on Social Inclusion. Key objectives include:
- Identifying ESF+ actions and projects that contribute to resilient societies and strong communities.
- Developing a draft outline for the 2026 Work Programme of the CoP.
- Exploring how ESF+ can contribute to shifting social inclusion approaches from a Care – Cure – Prevent logic towards a Prevent – Cure – Care logic.

The workshop will focus on the long-term impact of social inclusion initiatives. It will consider how reducing institutionalisation, providing affordable housing for all, and supporting children’s development are not only morally vital but essential for building vibrant communities and thriving economies. Participants will discuss how inclusive systems form the foundation for social cohesion, economic strength, and individual well-being.

Objectives:
- The workshop aims to explore the multi-level approach towards migrant integration needed to build resilient, cohesive communities that are invested in ensuring that everyone can be received respectfully and find their place in society.
- It will provide participants concrete examples on efficient funding issues, and identification of vulnerabilities as well as specific needs to reflect on and leverage for the future programming period.  

A 2-hour session aimed at Managing Authorities, Civil Society Organisations and innovators taking part at SIF2025. This hands-on experiential workshop reveals different levels of needs/activities. The Co-Creation Lab allows for multi-level governance approaches and partnerships to be tested in a short practice and therefore potential adaptability of programmes.

Objectives:
- Identify what skills will be needed in the future
- Discuss why this necessitates a deep restructuring of training systems
- Discuss and develop the key steps of this restructuring

This workshop focuses on how skills demand is expected to change and how skill formation systems can be developed in a way to enable swift adaptation to these changes. In a highly interactive scenario-based simulation exercise using design fiction, participants will be invited to reflect on concrete examples of job descriptions and will be encouraged to bring in their own experience to small group discussions about possible strategies to adapt training systems. We will aim to discuss especially the challenges related to up- and reskilling low-skilled and vulnerable groups.

Objectives:
- To share and discuss current strategies, action plans, and experiences regarding how various countries and organisations are preparing their material support systems for crises.
- To identify the key factors for ensuring the readiness, flexibility, and continuity of material support in times of crisis.
- To engage participants in identifying actionable steps and priority areas for strengthening crisis preparedness, with particular attention to the adaptability of measures to evolving target groups, needs, and contexts.
- To encourage dialogue among stakeholders to enhance collaboration and resilience in material support systems through the effective use of ESF+ and complementary initiatives.

This workshop will explore how material support systems can be designed to withstand and adapt to crises, while ensuring continued assistance for the most vulnerable groups. The discussion will focus on institutional and community preparedness, the adaptability of delivery mechanisms, and the potential for innovative solutions, with a particular emphasis on how the ESF+ can strengthen resilience and support coordinated responses across Member States. The session will provide a platform for sharing experiences, practical approaches, and reflections on ways to strengthen systems in response to current and future challenges.

Evaluation – Key Findings and Practical Examples from ALMA Network Members on Measuring Soft Outcomes:
The first part of workshop will present an overview on the work and discussions of the ALMA evaluation subgroup, offering concrete insights through the example of the Greek ALMA project alongside other approaches focusing on the evaluation of soft outcomes within the NEET target group. The session will conclude with an open space for collective discussion and exchange.

Evaluation – Successful Approaches to Impact Evaluation for NEETs from Outside ALMA:
Based on practical examples the second part of workshop will go beyond ALMA and will explore successfully implemented evaluation tools from different programmes and EU Member States measuring soft outcomes and distance travelled by participants. The session will also conclude with an open space for collective discussion and exchange.