Technical Notebooks 07 - Entrepreneurship and Social Innovation

At a time when we are experiencing an unprecedented pandemic situation, with global repercussions still difficult to assess in all its dimensions, the profound economic crisis and its social consequences pose challenges never before imagined. In this scenario, the focus on Entrepreneurship and Social Innovation gains particular importance, reinforcing the pioneering vision of the Misericórdia de Lisboa which, in Portugal and over the last decade, has been investing in this area through its Department of Entrepreneurship and Social Economy (DEES). 
Stimulating creativity and innovation in view of new business solutions that add social value – in a logic of environmental sustainability and the promotion of equal opportunities – are the central focuses of DEES's work. In October 2018, with the founding of Casa do Impacto, this mission gained more strength with the reception of the first social entrepreneurs. Located in the Convento de São Pedro de Alcântara, Casa do Impacto has been functioning as a true hub of social innovation through which more than 1.5 million euros have already been invested, translated into support for over 170 impact projects. According to a logic of strengthening the entrepreneurial capacity of local communities and in view of promoting self-employment, the rigor of training is prioritized, aimed at creating new business models in which the value of social innovation translates into the creation of benefits for society as a whole.

Coordination: DIRECTOR Edmundo Martinho; ASSISTANT DIRECTOR Maria Margarida Montenegro; SUB-DIRECTOR Samuel Esteves; EDITORIAL COORDINATION Dora Santos Rosa; TECHNICAL COORDINATION Inês Sequeira

Authors: Alexandra Lima (Director of the Social Innovation and Knowledge Transfer Unit (UISTC)) • Filipe Almeida (President of the Mission Structure Portugal Social Innovation) • Gustavo Freitas (Director of the Social Investment Unit (UIS) – (DEES)) • João Pedro Góis (Lawyer – Social Investment and Innovation Unit (UIS) – (DEES)) • Nuno Comando (Director of the Capacity Building and Incubation Unit (UCI) – (DEES))

Review: Patrícia Oliveira Teixeira, Ancestra
Illustrator: Cristina Cascais

Year of publication: April 2021
Editor: Editorial Center of the Santa Casa da Misericórdia of Lisbon
ISBN: 2184-612X