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Table 2. Industrial state problems and solutions for sustainable development(adapted from Ashford, 2004).
Industrial State Problems
The fragmentation of the knowledge base
leads to a myopic understanding of
problems and the creation of insufficient
single purpose or narrowly-focused
solutions.
Inequality of access to economic and
political power
Tendency to govern industrial systems
using old ideas
Market failure to correctly price the
adverse consequences of industrial activity
Market failure to deal sensibly with social
and environmental problems that span long
time horizons, which pricing and markets
are inherently incapable of solving.
Solution
Adopt an integrative (or transdisciplinary)
approach to the creation of solutions and
innovations to environmental and social
problems and apply the precautionary
principle when the negative impacts of a
human activity are uncertain or unknown.
Establish mechanisms for democratic, fair
and participatory governance
Stimulate technological, institutional,
organizational, and social innovations
Internalize the external environmental and
social costs
Transcend markets and implement farsighted
and integrated government policies.
By following this table, this section presents its argumentative interpretation on how a
social innovation as a business model and tool could facilitate transformation towards
sustainable development:
Social innovations could be viewed from an integrative (or trans-disciplinary) approach
towards solving environmental and social problems by developing widely-focused
solutions and more systemic and integrative approaches.
Social innovations could develop more flexible mechanisms for democratic and
participatory governance.
Social innovations have a high potential to stimulate innovation within different areas:
technological, institutional, organizational, etc. Indeed, it could be argued that the
emerging development of social innovation is social innovation by itself.
Social innovations may address the externalization of environmental and social costs.
Social innovations have a high potential to transcend markets and support far-sighted
and integrated policies, since solving trans-national social and environmental problems
requires new and effective approaches and innovative solutions.
Nevertheless, social innovation is viewed as the new innovation paradigm since it serves as
a gateway of innovation for the society. As a new paradigm it presupposes the potential
capacity to create a steady flow of social innovations, and it serves as an important
contributor to the overall social and ecological resilience (Westley, 2008). Alongside
businesses, universities, NGOs, citizens and customers become relevant participants of the
innovation processes. In turn, innovation becomes a general social phenomenon and
increasingly influences all walks of life. Social innovation stimulates the ripple effect within
the production, availability, and consumption of public goods based on particular normative
and culturally contingent context (Alex Nicholls and Alex Murdock, 2012).
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