The Scottish Community Development Centre is working in partnership with Glasgow School for Business and Society at Glasgow Caledonian University, on an EU Funded project, The Atlantic Social Lab: Atlantic cooperation for the promotion of social innovation (ASL).

The project is co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) through the INTERREG Atlantic Area Cooperation Program. It will enable SCDC to engage with eighteen partner organisations located around the Atlantic coastlines of the UK, Spain, Portugal, France, and Ireland.

The Atlantic Social Lab will involve citizens, social enterprises and organisations from the third and public sectors in developing and promoting innovative solutions to societal challenges in four areas:

1. Social innovation and welfare services: Assessing creative and socially innovative solutions for the delivery of welfare services to reduce pressures currently faced by existing providers;
2. Social innovation and active public engagement: Implementing newer methods of citizen engagements (e.g. participative budgeting; open decision-making systems) with the aim of increasing the active involvement of citizens in democratic decision making;
3. Green inclusive economy: Identifying good examples of existing efforts to promote environmentally-friendly neighbourhoods;
4. Social economy and social responsibility in the private sector: Strengthening the social economy and increasing social responsibility within the private sector to drive the engines of social innovation.

SCDC are sharing examples of community engagement and Participatory Budgeting initiatives with the eighteen European partners involved in this innovative project.  One to watch

References:

Community Development Alliance Scotland. (2018). Retrieved from https://mailchi.mp/b5f5dfaf8ef9/cdas-bulletin-november?e=%5BUNIQID%5D