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To learn more about this year's Incubator Programme,  click here .



This call is very similar to the statement published by our partner  Euclid Network (The Hague),  which we fully support:



We have officially signed the Madrid Declaration calling for stronger recognition and funding of social innovation within the EU’s Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) for 2028–2034. By doing so, we have joined more than 80 organisations from across Europe that are advocating for this goal as part of a joint initiative coordinated by the European National Competence Centres for Social Innovation.

The Declaration was adopted on 5 May 2026 during the Mutual Learning Event of the European National Competence Centres for Social Innovation in Madrid, Spain — an event bringing together experts from 19 EU Member States working in the fields of social innovation policy and practice. The Declaration represents the strongest joint call to date from the European social innovation ecosystem: its signatories include public authorities, research institutions, social enterprises, civil society organisations, and national competence bodies.

The European Commission is currently negotiating the next Multiannual Financial Framework — the EU’s seven-year budget that will determine investment priorities from 2028 to 2034. In its current form, the proposal only addresses social innovation to a limited extent, despite its direct relevance to many of the package’s key priorities: quality employment, social inclusion, territorial cohesion, resilience, and the green and digital transitions.

The Declaration argues that this represents a structural imbalance — one that must be addressed while the future budget architecture is still being shaped.

The Declaration sets out five concrete demands. It calls on EU institutions and Member States to:

→ Explicitly recognise social innovation as a cross-cutting implementation approach within the MFF

→ Establish clear and transparent funding pathways through national and regional partnership plans as well as the EU Facility

→ Maintain and expand dedicated ESF+ funding for social innovation, experimentation, ecosystem infrastructure, and scaling

→ Strengthen the integration of socially innovative enterprises and approaches into competitiveness and research funding instruments

→ Provide sustainable structural support to National Competence Centres and intermediary organisations that effectively implement social innovation at scale

We have signed this Declaration because we believe that Europe’s most pressing challenges — including inequality, democratic fragility, demographic change, access to essential services, and the green and digital transitions — require social innovation more than ever as an alternative to standard approaches. They require the ability to experiment, learn from successful solutions, and build the infrastructure needed for these solutions to grow and achieve impact. This is exactly what social innovation provides. And it deserves a permanent, structural place in European investment policy.

You can access the Madrid Declaration and sign it here:

→  SIGN THE DECLARATION 

→  MADRID DECLARATION 



"Making our voices heard. " This statement perfectly captures the spirit of the Parliamentary Evening on the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+) in Kiel. The event was hosted by the State Association of Independent Welfare Organisations (LAG Freie Wohlfahrtspflege) and initiated by our KoSI cooperation partner  Diakonie Schleswig-Holstein , together with other social partners, including the German Trade Union Confederation (DGB Nord), the European Movement Germany, and the Jobcenter.

One message stood out clearly throughout the evening: the debate on the next EU budget is not merely a technical discussion about public finances—it is a political decision about Europe's future. It will determine whether the social dimension of Europe is strengthened or weakened.

The ESF+ is not a peripheral funding instrument. It is a cornerstone of social inclusion, labour market integration, and social cohesion—not least in Schleswig-Holstein.

The event was opened and moderated by Eka von Kalben, Chair of the Parliamentary Group of Alliance 90/The Greens in the Schleswig-Holstein State Parliament. She highlighted the close connection between European budget decisions and regional realities.

Some of the most powerful moments came from people directly affected by ESF+-funded projects. They shared how these initiatives had opened up new opportunities for them—whether by supporting their transition into vocational training, helping them overcome homelessness, or enabling them to build new perspectives for their lives.

At the same time, participants stressed that weakening the European Social Fund in the current negotiations—or shifting funding priorities towards competitiveness alone—would have immediate consequences for the most vulnerable members of society.

The message from the welfare organisations and their partners was therefore unmistakable: the ESF must not become a bargaining chip. It is an investment in democracy, social cohesion, and Europe's future.

The participation of representatives from all parliamentary groups in the Schleswig-Holstein State Parliament, as well as the three Members of the European Parliament representing Schleswig-Holstein—Delara Burkhardt, Rasmus Andresen, and Niclas Herbst—was widely seen as an important signal of political support.

As our KoSI cooperation partner Dr Grit Kühne from Diakonie Schleswig-Holstein concluded:



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In the middle of late autumn in rural Brandenburg, Germany - a time where silence usually sets the tone -, the tiny village of Stegelitz in the Uckermark region became a vibrant meeting place for European social innovators. From 17 to 21 November, eight social enterprises from Germany, Austria, and Estonia gathered in a renovated former school building to address a question of paramount importance to the EU today: How can social innovations be scaled up sustainably, even across borders? Organised by the European Social Innovation Alliance (ESIA) under the leadership of its member  Social Impact gGmbH , the ScaleUp Incubator 2025 brought together social innovators in the areas of inclusive employment and youth & adult education.



European diversity Four German teams did not have to travel too far:  Lern-Fair ,  EduGarden ,  HANZ  and  Café am Markt (Sonne im Herzen e.V.) . International guests were  Independo  from Austria plus the  Substitute Teacher Programme (ASÕP) ,  Sa Suudad  and the  School of Grief (Leinakool)  from Estonia (see the box below for more information). All of these social enterprises are already established in their respective markets or sectors and are now entering the next stage of development. For five days, Stegelitz was transformed into a laboratory for new ideas. During workshops, participants exchanged insights into their respective chances & challenges, reflected on their business models, discussed scaling strategies, and looked at the issue of financing & funding. The incubator created an environment in which national perspectives faded into the background, allowing the shared goal of driving social change to take centre stage. Experienced trainers from Social Impact relied on a simple yet effective principle: peer-to-peer learning, accompanied by coaching and expert input. The result was an unusually open and productive exchange.



A look at Europe's ecosystems and best practices for social innovation

What also made the incubator special was the density of external input. Experts from the ESIA network – Paul Thein from the  Ministry of Labour in Luxembourg/Social Business Incubator , Stefan Panhuijsen from  Social Enterprise NL  in the Netherlands, and Pirkko Valge and Aino-Silvia Tali from  Good Deed Foundation  in Estonia – provided insights into the respective national ecosystems for social innovation and social enterprises. Opportunities and challenges were highlighted and discussed with the participants. And once more it became clear that social innovation and social entrepreneurship are a European phenomenon – but that national ecosystems function very differently and that this should not be underestimated when scaling transnationally.

In addition, there were inputs on advocacy by lobbying expert Frank Schach from the  Brandenburg-Berlin Business Association , on investment readiness by Christoph Rohde from ESIA member  FASE , on EU funding by Norbert Kunz from Social Impact, and on impact measurement by Phillip Brandts from  Phineo . Some of the experts' presentations took place during a day trip to Berlin at the premises of the new  KiezLab . Jana Kausemann from  Jungen Tüftler:innen  gave the incubator participants a tour of the free-of-charge co-working and event space for non-profit organisations and initiatives. It provided a good impression of the very lively social innovation landscape in the German capital – and again showed the role that meeting & co-working places play in it. The day-trip in Berlin also included presentations of best practices from the social innovation landscape in Berlin and Germany. Jonas Hettwer presented the impressive scaling case of  Joblinge , Kyra Wider from the  Education Innovation Lab  showed how the think & do-tank is committed to the fundamental transformation of the German education system, and Jeanette Oechsl from Social Impact's  enterability  project spoke about more than 20 years of start-up consulting for people with severe disabilities .



More than an incubator

For the ESIA partner organisations, the incubator was also another opportunity for closer cooperation. Months of planning, calls and coordination culminated in a week that strengthened the cohesion of the ESIA network – and provided valuable insights for the next transnational incubator. Because one thing is already clear: there will be a second round in 2026. Stegelitz has shown that Europe is changing for the better when social innovators come together and cooperate across borders - even if they meet up in a tiny village in Brandenburg.

From 9 to 11 October, members of the European Social Innovation Alliance (ESIA) gathered for a study visit in Tallinn, Estonia. The aim of ESIA study visits is to gain first-hand experience of social innovation in each member country. Study visits to Germany, Luxembourg and the Netherlands are planned for 2025 - 2027. The study visit to Estonia was organised around the  Impact Day Festival 2024 . This is the largest sustainability festival in the Baltic States. This year, more than 170 speakers and thousands of participants from more than 30 countries took part in the festival. Impact Day is organised by ESIA member organisation Social Enterprise Estonia.



Social innovation – what’s in a name?



At a pre-festival event, the participants of the ESIA study visit listened to a panel discussion on the status quo of social innovation in Estonia. The panellists were Minna Harjo (Advisor of the Department of Citizenship Policy and Civil Society Department at the Ministry of the Interior), Mart Veliste (Head of Innovation Services at the Baltic Innovation Agency) and Triin Kübar (Research Assistant at the School of Governance, Law & Society at Tallinn University). The panel was moderated by Evelyn Valtin from the National Foundation of Civil Society (KÜSK). Apart from the Baltic Innovation Agency, the other organisations are all ESIA members.



The discussion started with the recurring theme of a common definition of social innovation. While there is agreement on the essence of what social innovation is, views differ when it comes to the details. Does social innovation always have to be disruptive (i.e. bring about radical, systemic change) or can it also be incremental? Does social innovation always have to be completely new in character, or should we rather focus on the scaling up the many social innovations that already exist in a different context? And does social innovation need to have a clear economic value and/or market potential?



Social innovation gains momentum in Estonia



Triin Kübar confirmed that a  mapping of the national social innovation ecosystem  published by the University of Tallinn in 2023 confirmed the lack of a common understanding of the topic in Estonia. There is currently neither a common definition nor a national strategy for social innovation. In general, the Estonian ecosystem is at an early stage of development - but there is a growing interest.



As the Tallinn University study points out: While in the past social innovation in Estonia was more of a societal evolutionary process than the result of a purposefully created environment, this has changed a) with the launch of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and b) with a generally increasing awareness of environmental and social problems in recent years. Finally, the study also highlights a strong link between social innovation and Estonia's digital economy.



Triin Kübar said during the panel discussion that so far social innovation in Estonia has been a bottom-up development by initiatives from different sectors and levels, but rather unconnected despite the relatively small size of the country. However, there are positive trends, such as a  broad agreement  signed in 2022 by 23 different organisations working in the field of social entrepreneurship and innovation, including ministries, universities, private sector partners and support organisations. In addition, based on the mapping study by the University of Tallinn, a process to develop a common vision for social innovation in Estonia was launched in 2023. It was led by the National Foundation of Civil Society (KÜSK) in cooperation with Tallinn University, Võrumaa Development Centre, Social Enterprise Estonia, the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Social Affairs - all ESIA member organisations. Representatives from the State Chancellery, the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of the Environment and the Network of Regional Development Centres also participated in the process. Stakeholders were able to contribute to the visioning process through seminars organised in different locations in Estonia. The resulting  Social Innovation Vision 2030  is considered a major achievement, inspired by Estonia's membership in the ESIA.



Cause for optimism



However, according to Triin Kübar, Estonia's political agenda is still lagging behind. In the mapping study, the University of Tallinn therefore made policy recommendations for social innovation: take advantage of Estonians' progressive mindset and willingness to innovate, foster institutionalisation, adopt impact-led policies, facilitate the strengthening of the social market, create conditions for increasing skills and capacities, and finally address rural backwardness.



Minna Harjo from the Ministry of the Interior then told the audience: When the Social Innovation Vision 2030 document was being developed, it became clear in the stakeholder dialogues that awareness of the term social innovation is still low in the public sector. It is under-resourced and barely features in existing public policy documents. Recent government budget cuts have not helped. In times of socio-economic crises, the narrative that social innovation needs time to show impact does not go down well with the various political stakeholders, stressed Minna Harjo.



Nevertheless, she concluded, the socio-economic challenges and crises, as well as the increasing number of initiatives from the European Commission (especially after the publication of the Social Economy Action Plan and the Council Recommendation on it), are bringing social innovation and the social economy more into the political spotlight. She also cited the example of the public sector innovation team  Innotiim , which is spreading design thinking, agile development and a culture of experimentation among civil servants in Estonia, thus promoting policy innovation as a form of social innovation. Overall, Minna Harjo's message was that getting social innovation on the political agenda is far from easy, but there are reasons for optimism. Financing matters (a lot)

Mart Veliste said that four years ago, when the Baltic Innovation Agency wanted to enter the field of social entrepreneurship as part of the SoFiMa project, it was difficult to find social enterprises in Estonia when using a search engine. Supported by Pirkko Valge, CEO of Heateo Sihtasutus/Good Deed Foundation, who was in the audience and whose organisation is one of the few impact investors in Estonia, Mart Veliste stressed that social entrepreneurs and social innovation initiatives in Estonia face real funding problems. The  OECD (2020)  also states that “social enterprises, particularly in the form of non-profit associations (amounting at as many as 93% of the total), and foundations do not have access to public business support programmes and financial schemes. A limited amount of public financing is available through the [ESIA member] ‘National Foundation of Civil Society’ (NFCS), which is the main public organisation which provides grants to civil society. However, the last few years have shown fast growth and increased interest from the side of investors to be active in this field." Nevertheless, Pirkko Valge concludes that you still have to be "either crazy or a believer" to start a social business in Estonia.



Learning first-hand about social innovation in Estonia



After the panel discussion, the ESIA study visit participants took a tour of the  Pohjala  creative area, where the Impact Day festival and pre-event took place. There was a great diversity and vibrancy of social initiatives and innovation in Estonia to see and feel. This was echoed in the afternoon when the ESIA study visit participants gathered in the shared offices of  Vivita  and ESIA member organisation  Good Deed Foundation . Vivita is a creativity accelerator for young people. The concept originated in Japan in 2018. Today, there are franchises in several countries around the world. According to the Vivita website, the aim is to "equip young people with 21st century skills and provide them with an environment that cultivates fearless exploration". By providing open, well-equipped creativity studios like the one in Tallinn, Vivita aims to foster critical thinking and learner agency - skills that are increasingly important in a time of change, when the future is harder to predict. Vivita's young innovators from diverse backgrounds are supported by a global network of experts and changemakers, as well as customised open source software and hardware.



ESIA member Good Deed Foundation was established in 2003. The NGO aims to launch and grow high social impact initiatives by supporting them over a period of 3-5 years - both financially (through two own funds) and in kind (consultancy, pro bono experts and volunteers). Central to this is the Nula incubator, which was established 20 years ago in partnership with the National Foundation of Civil Society (KÜSK), an ESIA member. Two NULA projects were presented in person to the ESIA study visit participants:



• The  Substitute Teacher Programme (ASÕP) : aims to alleviate teacher shortages and work overload. In a medium-sized Estonian school with about 500 students, about 200 lessons need to be covered every month. Organising substitutes is time-consuming, and preparing and teaching replacement lessons in addition to their main job increases teachers' workload and the risk of burnout. By providing high quality replacement lessons taught by motivated teachers, the project aims to reduce the time and effort required to organise replacements in schools. Half of the teachers in the programme have a teaching qualification or are studying to become teachers, and half have previous experience in leadership or youth work. In six years, more than 3,500 people have enrolled in the programme as substitute teachers; one in six has taught as a substitute and 75 have gone on to become regular teachers. Schools pay the substitute teachers according to the cost of the replacement lesson, and ASÕP receives a commission based on the number of replacement lessons. Since the COVID crisis, ASÕP has been working with the Ministry of Education and Research to coordinate substitutions and alleviate teacher shortages. The first teachers and schools joined the programme during the NULA incubation period. Now, an online platform will connect educational institutions and substitute teachers in real time.



•  Let’s Walk Together (Kõnnime koos) . It was launched in response to the fact that a fifth of Estonian adults are obese, a third of people of working age are active for less than 15 minutes a day, and almost half of all deaths are due to lifestyle-related health risks. Let's Walk Together runs community-based, guided walking groups across Estonia. Walking is one of the easiest ways to incorporate physical activity into daily habits and has a positive impact on mood and health. Once a week, Let's Walk Together organises a 45-60 minute walk at a moderate pace under the guidance of a group leader.



ESIA on the Innovation Stage at Impact Day



During the first day of the Impact Day Festival, the participants of the ESIA study visit also took to the stage. They spoke about the different (status of) national social innovation ecosystems in each country, the social innovation ecosystems in each country, the benefits of international partnerships like ESIA, and the difficulties of pitching social innovation to decision-makers. Each panellists also presented examples of social innovation in their respective countries:



• Pirkko Valge (CEO at Good Deed Foundation) presented the  World Cleanup Day , which originated in Estonia and has successfully expanded globally. World Cleanup Day is a global social action programme. It aims to tackle the global waste problem, including the problem of marine litter. World Cleanup Day includes litter clean-up and waste mapping activities in all time zones. It is held annually on 20 September and has become a UN holiday in 2024.



• Vanessa Schummer (Head of the Social and Solidarity Economy Department in Ministère du Travail Luxembourg) gave the example of  Clean Something for Nothing (CSFN) , which enables people to clean up nature through an innovative app. The community-driven platform encourages collaboration between individuals, communities and businesses.



• Iselien Nabben (Senior Advisor at Kennisland in the Netherlands) spoke about one of Kennisland's own projects - 'Onze Nieuwe School'. In 2015, Amsterdam called on its residents and stakeholders to submit their ideas for new schools, of which eventually 3 or 4 would actually be created. It was the first time that a municipality in the Netherlands had taken this approach. Kennisland was responsible for the incubator and the coaching of the school projects, with the support of educational experts and students of educational science.



• Norbert Kunz (Managing Director of Social Impact in Germany) presented the case study of  Auticon , which was founded in 2009 based on the founder's personal experience with an autistic son. It has grown to become the largest majority autistic company in the world, providing IT solutions using the special skills of neurodivergent talent.



This time, Minna Harjo (Advisor to the Department of Citizenship Policy and Civil Society at the Ministry of the Interior) was the moderator.



A pervasive sense of reciprocity

At the end of the study visit to Tallinn, the ESIA participants agreed that they had gained a much better understanding of the specificities of the Estonian social innovation ecosystem and its cultural, political and geographical context. At the same time, however, there was a pervasive sense of reciprocity. The opportunities for synergy and scaling were pervasive, and many ideas for transnational cooperation and collaboration were generated.