STREAM 17: CONCEPTUALIZING AND PRACTICING ACTIVISM IN SOCIAL INNOVATION

Description

With this stream, we are interested in exploring and troubling an understanding of social innovation as connected to the pursuit of social justice through activism. We define social justice as a process and a goal, which seeks the full and equitable participation of all in a mutually shaped society.

We are looking beyond defining and framing social innovation as individualized “virtuous citizenry” (Slee et al., 2013), and instead invite the questions, struggles, and experiences of conceptualizing and practicing social innovation as an endeavour of collective action.

Can social innovation be conceptualized and practiced in a way that is revolutionary? Is it possible to take up social innovation in a way that dismantles harmful and exclusive systems while avoiding cooptation by neoliberal governments? What is the role of social innovation in sabotaging and resisting capitalism in our institutions, communities, partnerships, and personal lives? What does social innovation mean and look like within political participation, radical direct action, and revolution? Can we consider sit-ins, boycotts, marches, mass protests, activist art, and social movements to be socially innovative? Does social innovation extend to abolition, emancipation, and liberation efforts? Importantly, how does exploring these questions influence pedagogy and praxis in social innovation?

We are particularly interested in this questioning as applied to working with and within higher education institutions (HEIs). How can an approach to social innovation, as oriented towards social justice activism, be accepted, valued, and embedded in the academic and strategic mandates of HEIs? And, how can this approach shape, challenge, or inform higher education and pedagogical practices? In this context, the ambiguity that marks theorizing and defining social innovation can be celebrated as it opens up the many opportunities to integrate social innovation in interdisciplinary ways into pedagogy and scholarship. Can this include the critical exploration of feminist, anti-racist, anti-capitalist, and decolonial social innovation?

As universities are inextricably linked to their neighbouring communities and environment, we extend this questioning to the praxis of community engagement and community development. What are the ways in which students, staff, faculty, and administrators can work in solidarity with communities to advance social justice? What unique contributions and resources can HEIs share, redistribute, or provide to communities to support organizing and mobilizing efforts? How do HEIs practice community engagement in differing sociopolitical and cultural contexts?

Alternatively, is it possible that social innovation, conceptualized and practiced as social justice activism, is too radical? Does this push the boundaries of how far social innovation can be stretched before it is no longer advantageous (e.g., profitable) for HEIs to include in academic curricula and programs?

We invite submissions ranging from artistic works to academic presentations that share struggles and/or practices in response to the posed questions in this call. We also invite an expansion of these questions and challenges to them. This includes the following formats:

• individual presentation (10 minutes)

• panel presentation proposal (60 minutes)

• artistic works (e.g., spoken word, poetry, multimedia, etc.)