European Social Innovation Competition: 2022 edition kicks off

The Commission launched the 10^th edition of the European Social Innovation Competition (EUSIC) – the challenge prize. The EUSIC, supported by the European Innovation Council (EIC) under Horizon Europe, recognises social innovation projects that shape the local innovation ecosystem and promote game-changing innovation.

This year’s challenge concerns ‘the future of living, innovation for affordable and sustainable housing districts’. The theme fulfils the objectives of the New European Bauhaus movement: to re-invent our current way of living to meet the goals of the European Green Deal.

Mariya Gabriel, Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth said:

Social innovation is an efficient approach for meeting the numerous societal challenges. The European Social Innovation Competition has been supporting over a decade the potential of social innovation projects, encouraging a crosscutting innovation and creating an environment for social entrepreneurs and leaders of change.

Social innovation represents an opportunity to transform our economies for a greener, more participative and sustainable Europe closer to citizens.

Launched in 2013 in memory of social innovation pioneer Diogo Vasconcelos, the European Social Innovation Competition – challenge prize - features three awards of €50,000 each for the best socially innovative projects designed to change the world for the better.

The competition is open to social innovators from EU Member States and countries associated to Horizon Europe. Independent experts will evaluate social innovation applications considering different criteria including degree of innovation and sustainability. Learn more about the award  and eligibility criteria.

You can also find further details and exceptions in the Rules of contest.

The Competition is open for applications until 17 May 2022 (17:00:00 CET).

Apply for the 2022 challenge

Background

This tenth edition of the European Social Innovation Competition is supported by the European Innovation Council (EIC) under Horizon Europe.

The European Social Innovation Competition aims at stimulating the potential of social innovation to provide solutions to societal challenges that we face and to foster sustainable and inclusive growth in Europe. It will directly support ideas best illustrating this rationale. It will engage people, businesses and start-ups in a large range of sectors, as well as universities, engineering schools and civil society organisations thereby creating new connections, sources of sustainable growth and meaningful job opportunities.

The prize attracts a great number of applicants each year. Past editions topics were the following: Skills for tomorrow - Shaping a green and digital future (2021), Reimagine Fashion (2020), Challenging Plastic Waste (2019), Re:think Local (2018), Equality Rebooted (2017), Integrated Futures (2016), New Ways to Grow (2015), The Job Challenge (2014), and New forms of work (2013).

EUSIC is one of the four EIC Prizes granted under Horizon Europe, the EU's research and innovation framework programme. While the European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency manages the prize, the independent experts assess the applications.