Multi-disciplinary innovation for social change - Training school

The COST Action SHIINE – Multi-disciplinary innovation for social change, is hosting its first training school at the Technological University of the Shannon (TUS) in Limerick City, Ireland.

In an increasingly complex and rapidly changing world, traditional disciplinary approaches to the framing and resolution of social and economic problems deliver ever diminishing returns. Discussions abound, therefore, about how best to educate and prepare graduates for complex challenges facing communities and societies in the 21^stcentury.

Knowledge Alliances between Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), private or social enterprises, civil and voluntary organisations and statutory agencies aim to foster innovation, entrepreneurship, creativity, employability, knowledge exchange and/or multidisciplinary teaching and learning. These partnerships are becoming increasingly necessary and relevant. Academia has coined the term ‘quadruple helix’ to reflect this form of collaboration between various stakeholders to tackle societal challenges. The changing nature of contemporary society highlights that social issues are often highly complex and multifaceted.

The aim of this training school is to demonstrate, through the adoption of Multi-Disciplinary Innovation (MDI) methods, how we can respond to social problems with a design-led approach which has a problem-oriented ethos, supporting positive social change and the development of public policy discourse.

The training school will apply the Multi-Disciplinary Innovation methodologies to a case study location, specifically the North Regeneration area of Limerick City. This location comprising of the communities of Moyross, Ballynanty and King’s Island, has recorded very significant levels of socio-economic deprivation across multiple decades. The root causes for this deprivation stem from low education attainment rates; high unemployment rates; and high proportion of lone parents. Furthermore, a significant proportion of the housing stock is owned by the local authority / municipality. These communities were primarily built in the 1960s /1970s and very little social infrastructure was provided initially. In the 1990s / 2000s, these communities witnessed significant challenges associated with high rates of poverty; anti-social behaviour; and drug misuse / dealing. In response to these challenges, various actors including higher education institutions; local authority; Irish state; community and voluntary sector; social enterprise; and private sector have worked collaboratively in order to develop sustainable solutions to counteract the challenges faced by the communities within the Limerick North Regeneration Area.

The training school will cover the following theoretical concepts through a series of lectures (offered from a multi-disciplinary lens):

• Quadruple Helix
• Social Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship
• Multi-Disciplinary Innovation
• Community Planning and Socio-Economic Profiling

Furthermore, participants at the training school will participate in problem-solving workshops and associated fieldtrip to community and voluntary groups; social enterprises; and private enterprises / industry within Moyross. The TUS Mid-West Campus is situated within this community, thereby enabling training school participants to walk between the various different settings.

More information about this tranining school, how to apply, etc. are available on the event's webpage.

Applicants are requested to submit a completed application form and send their CV by 15 April 2022 to Dr Shane O’Sullivan. All enquiries can be forwarded to Dr O’Sullivan, SHIINE Training School Co-ordinator and Lecturer in Community Development at TUS.