Innovation and social entrepreneurship gains new national emphasis CONNECT Consortium

CONNECT is an Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship project led by Casa do Impacto, the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Hub of Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Lisboa (SCML), Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, and Universidade Católica Portuguesa, which come together to promote innovative solutions to the greatest social and environmental challenges.

The investment exceeds 618 thousand euros, with 80% coming from public funding through the Portugal Social Innovation Mission Structure and 20% provided by social investors, such as the Lisbon City Council, the GALP Foundation and the Santander Foundation.

CONNECT consists of a Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship (IIES) project, the result of a consortium composed of Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Lisboa (SCML), NOVA University of Lisbon and the Catholic University of Portugal (through the Yunus Social Innovation Center of Católica-Lisbon). With an expected duration of 36 months until November 2027, CONNECT is driven by Casa do Impacto (CI) which assumes a leading role of the consortium in the implementation and development of the project. The three institutions assume a leading role in the social innovation ecosystem in Portugal and, through this initiative, reinforce their mission to contribute to a sustainable future, promoting innovative solutions with a positive impact.

With the main objective of promoting the transfer of knowledge between academia and civil society in the fields of social innovation and impact entrepreneurship, CONNECT is based on three basic goals: improving incubation and acceleration processes, developing new training models and expanding the dissemination of knowledge to strengthen the social innovation ecosystem in Portugal and the impact of organizations and startups incubated in CI.

In this sense, the programs that will be promoted by the SCML incubator and the two partner Universities involve ensuring the application of scientific knowledge to optimize methodologies and tools in the incubation and acceleration processes of CI and the Social Innovation ecosystem, the implementation of new training programs that strengthen social organizations and expand their scalability and sustainability, and the analysis of sector data to transform experience on the ground into applicable knowledge that can be replicated by other incubators and accelerators.

CONNECT is a commitment to social transformation and innovation, based on the belief that positive impact is only possible through collaboration between academia, civil society and the business sector. This initiative aims to be a reference for the construction of a robust, collaborative, capable and financially sustainable impact entrepreneurship ecosystem, capable of ensuring a more informed, fair and egalitarian future for all.

CONNECT will directly benefit entrepreneurs, managers and collaborators of social organizations, students, researchers and university professors. Indirectly, the impact will be felt across impact entrepreneurship hubs, social innovation incubators and ecosystem stakeholders. The projects developed will focus on housing and mobility, mental health, sustainability, circular economy, social and community cohesion, employment and social inclusion. Casa do Impacto, the coordinator of the initiative, has the support of the expertise of Universidade Nova de Lisboa and Universidade Católica Portuguesa (through the Yunus Social Innovation Center of Católica-Lisbon), for the implementation of the planned activities. The articulation between these entities will ensure the application of innovative methodologies that promote the creation of scalable and sustainable solutions to contemporary social and environmental challenges.

By 2027, the Consortium expects this project to impact more than 380 participants, consolidate 33 incubation, acceleration and training processes, and involve 6 institutions in innovation and social experimentation initiatives.

This initiative arises within the scope of the Call for Applications No. LISBOA 2030-2024-16 – Centers for Impact Entrepreneurship, supported by the Lisbon 2030 Regional Program/Portugal Social Innovation Mission Structure (EMPIS) with a total investment of 618,255.29 euros, 80% of which comes from public funding and 20% provided by social investors, such as the Lisbon City Council, the GALP Foundation and the Santander Foundation.

About Casa do Impacto: Founded in 2018, Casa do Impacto is a hub led by Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Lisboa whose mission is to boost a new generation of entrepreneurs who are developing business models with a positive socio-environmental impact, aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The space integrates offices, coworking, training and experimentation activities, and investment programs.

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