The launch event for the eighth edition of the European Social Innovation Competition will be held on 12 February 2020. The competition will explore ideas for more sustainable and circular production, improved end of life stage, broader accessibility of sustainable and fair fashion, and socially-inclusive processes throughout the fashion value chain.

We're happy to invite you to attend the event and meet sustainable fashion entrepreneurs and social innovators from across the EU and Horizon 2020 associated countries.

The event will be held at the spectacular Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia, designed by the Valencia-born and internationally known architect Santiago Calatrava.

We will bring together innovators, entrepreneurs and policy makers for an afternoon of collective workshops, networking and talks on social innovation and sustainable fashion across Europe. We hope to spark ideas and solutions, support aspiring innovators, and explore new perspectives on the issues surrounding the fashion industry.

The event is free and is structured around a selection of inspiring speeches and a series of interactive, participatory workshops. The speeches will be made by representatives of the European Commission, local social innovators and previous winners of the European Social Innovation Competition, while the workshops will be hosted by sustainable fashion organisations and social innovators from across Europe.

Registration is open until 11 February 2020.

We hope that you will join us to help us champion the need for a more sustainable fashion industry and to inspire the next generation of social innovators and fashion entrepreneurs.

Agenda

14.30 - 15.00 | Registration and refreshments

15.00 - 15.05 | Welcome

15.05 - 15.10 | Introduction to the competition

15.10 - 15.25 | Creating social value in the fashion industry

15.25 - 15.55 | Welcome to the Social Innovation and Sustainable Fashion Fair

16.00 - 17.45 | Social Innovation and Sustainable Fashion Fair open

• Reimagine the lifecycle of fashion products - by Peterson Stoop
• Reimagine solutions for a more sustainable production - by Framiore
• The RECOVER way for sustainable textile consumption - by Recover
• Problems and solutions surrounding the fashion industry: open workshop focusing on real thematic problems and exploring solutions - by NESTA
• Design thinking and gamification within social innovation - by Jovesolides
• Application clinic - Get all your competition questions answered by members of the organising team!

17.45 - 17.55 | European Social Innovation Competition alumni speech

17.55 - 18.00 | Closing remarks and invitation to continued networking and drinks at the Social Innovation and Sustainable Fashion Fair

18.00 - 19.00 | Networking drinks and Social Innovation and Sustainable Fashion Fair

(A downloadable PDF of the agenda is available below).

Competition background

The European Social Innovation Competition is run by the Commission in memory of Portuguese politician Diogo Vasconcelos, whose work focused on social innovation. He addressed issues such as climate change, urbanisation, globalization and sustainable prosperity. During his career, Diogo worked with various governments across Europe and the Middle East, with the European Commission and the UN Alliance of Civilizations.

The annual competition calls on Europeans to come up with solutions to the problems affecting our society. Every year three prizes of €50,000 are awarded to the three best ideas that aim to tackle a social problem faced by communities across Europe. Previous editions have explored issues such as the challenge of plastic waste, turning local challenges into opportunities and creating more jobs for Europe.

Related links

European Social Innovation Competition 2020 launch event agenda 
The European Social Innovation Competition 2020 website