On 29th June 2022 in Varna, Bulgaria the Sofia Development Association organized a seminar that aimed to create a step-by-step model of the completion, structure and key components of a brand new competence centre for social innovation in Bulgaria.
The seminar is part of the “Social Innovation Plus – Competence Centres (SI PLUS)” project, which is funded by the European Commission, the European Social Fund and the European Programme for Employment and Social Innovation.The event was held in The Social Teahouse, a local partner of SDA in this particular project.
More than 20 people from different Bulgarian cities gathered to discuss and debate ideas on the creation and structure of the centre, among them members of non-governmental organizations, people with an academic background, representatives of the Varna Municipality and other members of the public administration in Sofia, Veliko Tarnovo, Gabrovo and Varna. Representatives from the Foundation for the Technical Development of the Industry – Hungary, a partner organization on the project, also joined the event as part of the peer learning activities and shared their experience in supporting social innovation and building networks of stakeholders from the quadruple helix for setting up Social Innovation Competence Centre.
Denitza Lozanova, SI PLUS project manager, presented a study that observes similar organisations throughout the EU and also conclusions on the subject of implementation of different social innovations. Csaba Novak, director of international affairs, and Tamas Szenttamási, social innovation expert at the Foundation for the Technical Development of the Industry – Hungary, presented a research in the field of social innovation, support policies and practices in Hungary.
SI PLUS has a duration of 24 months as a whole and includes institutions from countries with diverse levels of economic development and different experiences of social innovation.
The project is funded by the EUROPEAN COMMISSION, European Social Fund and European Programme for Employment and Social Innovation.