Week 1 Reflection Journal

Social innovation is the result of the intentional work of people trying to make positive change by addressing the complex problems of our world. It is a process, product, or program that profoundly changes the way a system operates. It reduces the vulnerability of the people and environment in that system, helping it grow more resilient. Essentially, where we live and how we function is a product of the systems we create. We have natural and manmade systems each with their own issues and how they operate, learning how to function in these systems is the goal. Each system works best if all systems work in sync with each other. Social entrepreneurship means different things to different people, but are essentially "change agents" in the social sector. This means they do this by "Adopting a mission to create and sustain social value (not just private value),recognizing and relentlessly pursuing new opportunities to serve that mission, engaging in a process of continuous innovation, adaptation, and learning, acting boldly without being limited by resources currently in hand, and exhibiting heightened accountability to the constituencies served and for the outcomes created." (Dees, J., "The Meaning of Social Entrepreneurship") Both social entrepreneurship and social enterprise are popular ways in which people are trying to make a positive change and improve our world; but they are limited in their efforts unless they can collaborate and work together with many different sectors to support and instigate the change. I loved the video about the Ballard center and didn't even know it existed until watching this. The most poignant part that stood out to me was that every 6 seconds a child dies of hunger. This is something that is so foreign to me and really hurt my heart. I was so inspired by the food scraps business because the thought of children going hungry while we throw away tons of food was sickening to me. Even though the project doesn't feed children or effect them personally, it helps to see others coming up with ideas to help the world. Social innovation is more prevalent today because I think we have more resources and more ways to communicate around the world to help know about and understand the problems of different areas and societies. I also think people also tend to realize the oppportunities to help others are not few and far between. No matter what your circumstance is, there are ways to help others and societies. Social innovation is an inspiring venture that leads to inspiring others. There are more ways to get help with social issues, like funding from big corporations, grants, even legislation. People around the world are starting to notice the need for social innovation, not only for the health of people, but the health of the world and our environment. Social innovation is more prevalent because the need is more apparent. As our world progresses and changes, especially technologically, we will see even more need and use of social innovations.