In this short paper, we give an overview on how this major trend is unfolding and, specifically, how it affects cities. We take the following starting points: • Digitalization is a strong force that “happens” everywhere in the (urban) society. It has positive and negative effects – explored later in this paper –, which might be promoted or redressed by collective action or government intervention. Rejecting or denying it may come at high costs; • Digital technologies offer new tools and answers to address urban issues; • Digital technologies and their adoption bring a lot of new and unpredictable challenges; • Digital technologies raise several new ethical questions and dilemma’s regarding privacy, safety and security; • As in any other major societal transition, legal and institutional systems are not prepared for the digital age. Reality is always ahead of new regulation, resulting in constantly moving “grey areas” where it is unclear which rules (should) apply – think of how to deal with services like AirBnB or Uber.
MULTIFILE
While the concept of Responsible Innovation is increasingly common among researchers and policy makers, it is still unknown what it means in a business context. This study aims to identify which aspects of Responsible Innovation are conceptually similar and dissimilar from social- and sustainable innovation. Our conceptual analysis is based on literature reviews of responsible-, social-, and sustainable innovation. The insights obtained are used for conceptualising Responsible Innovation in a business context. The main conclusion is that Responsible Innovation differs from social- and sustainable innovation as it: (1) also considers possible detrimental implications of innovation, (2) includes a mechanism for responding to uncertainties associated with innovation and (3) achieves a democratic governance of the innovation. However, achieving the latter will not be realistic in a business context. The results of this study are relevant for researchers, managers and policy makers who are interested in responsible innovation in the business context.
Due to changes in technology and customer behaviour, entrepreneurial firms have to constantly innovate. Here, service innovation has appeared as a successful way to overcome the dead-end road of competition (Bouwman & Fielt, 2008). Thus, entrepreneurial firms are increasingly asked to develop competences to engage in digitally-enabled innovation processes for services as reflected in recent competence frameworks (European Commission, 2019). Consequently, universities need to update entrepreneurship education to these new demands through a multi-perspective research approach to co-research and co-design future entrepreneurship education.First, we aim at developing an up-to-date digital innovation process to enhance the limited scientific knowledge on the use of digital tools for innovation processes (Akaka & Vargo, 2014; Helmer et al., 2021). Second, we aim at developing digital platforms to enhance the engagement of industry in education and vice versa. Third, we aim at gaining insights to develop modern entrepreneurship course curricula in this context.
Energy transition is key to achieving a sustainable future. In this transition, an often neglected pillar is raising awareness and educating youth on the benefits, complexities, and urgency of renewable energy supply and energy efficiency. The Master Energy for Society, and particularly the course “Society in Transition”, aims at providing a first overview on the urgency and complexities of the energy transition. However, educating on the energy transition brings challenges: it is a complex topic to understand for students, especially when they have diverse backgrounds. In the last years we have seen a growing interest in the use of gamification approaches in higher institutions. While most practices have been related to digital gaming approaches, there is a new trend: escape rooms. The intended output and proposed innovation is therefore the development and application of an escape room on energy transition to increase knowledge and raise motivation among our students by addressing both hard and soft skills in an innovative and original way. This project is interdisciplinary, multi-disciplinary and transdisciplinary due to the complexity of the topic; it consists of three different stages, including evaluation, and requires the involvement of students and colleagues from the master program. We are confident that this proposed innovation can lead to an improvement, based on relevant literature and previous experiences in other institutions, and has the potential to be successfully implemented in other higher education institutions in The Netherlands.
In veel Afrikaanse landen zien we een inperking van de maatschappelijke ruimte (‘civic space’). Deze ruimte is cruciaal om in democratische staten transparantie, vrijheid van meningsuiting en verantwoording van bestuur te realiseren. In een steeds sterke digitaliserende maatschappij wordt toegang tot digitale middelen een mensenrecht. Daar waar regeringen proberen hun burgers en organisaties dat recht tot digitale informatievoorziening en –uitwisselingen te ontnemen komen de Sustainable Development Goals in het gedrang. Doel African Digital Rights Network (ADRN) wil inzicht verkrijgen in de stakeholders ne technologieën die betrokken zijn net het openen of onderdrukken van de online maatschappelijke ruimte (‘civic space’). Het netwerk beoogt bij te dragen aam empowerment van burgers om hun digitale mensenrechten uit te oefenen. Resultaten ADRN heeft een vergelijkende studie van 10 Afrikaanse landen uitgevoerd naar het gebruik van digitale technologieën voor het openen of onderdrukken van de online maatschappelijke ruimte (‘civic space’). Het project heeft onder andere geleidt tot de volgende publicatie: Mapping the Supply of Surveillance Technologies to Africa: Case Studies from Nigeria, Ghana, Morocco, Malawi, and Zambia Looptijd 01 mei 2020 - 20 april 2021 Aanpak ADRN organiseert een netwerk van onderzoekers, analisten, digitale rechtenorganisaties en activisten om de dynamiek van het openen en onderdrukken van de digitale maatschappelijke ruimte in kaart te brengen. Het netwerk bouwt op een interdisciplinaire onderzoeksaanpak o.l.v. het Institute for Development Studies, een vooraanstaand onderzoeksinstituut. Relevantie van het project Het onderzoek leidt tot aanbevelingen voor o.a. beleidsmakers en maatschappelijke organisaties ter bevordering van de digitale maatschappelijke ruimte. Daarnaast worden digitale tools en trainingsmateriaal gefaciliteerd voor het monitoren van ontwikkelingen en dreigingen van de digitale maatschappelijke ruimte. CofinancieringDit onderzoek wordt gefinancierd door UKRI - GCRF Digital Innovation for Development in Africa (DIDA)Meer weten? UKRI GCRF: African Digital Rights Network Website ADRN
Door producten en diensten inclusief te ontwerpen kunnen ontwerpers een belangrijke bijdrage leveren aan een inclusievere samenleving, waarin iedereen op eigen wijze kan participeren. In AID gaan negen mkb-ontwerpbureaus Afdeling Buitengewone Zaken (A/BZ), theRevolution, Design Innovation Group, Greenberry, Ideate, Keen Public, Muzus, Netrex Internet Solutions (Leer Zelf Online) en Vrienden van verandering) die rijke maar uiteenlopende ervaring hebben met inclusief ontwerpen op zoek naar antwoorden op de vraag hoe hun vermogen voor inclusief ontwerpen kan worden versterkt. Ze doen dit middels actie-onderzoek in hun eigen beroepspraktijk en door hun ervaringen te delen met onderzoekers, docenten en co-ontwerpers in een ‘learning community’.
