The increasing visibility of the impact of various societal challenges, such as climate change, territorial disparity, income inequality and demographic change, has brought the role of innovation to the fore of academic and policy debates. Universities are increasingly expected to mobilise their resources to address these societal challenges through innovation, thereby contributing to regional development.
The complex nature of societal challenges, however, pushes universities to diversify the scope of innovation-related third mission activities. This requires moving beyond traditional regional engagement modes such as technology transfer and industry collaboration towards engaging with other types of innovation (e.g., social) and societal partners (e.g., municipalities and citizens) as well.
In what ways can universities contribute to solving local challenges? How do universities change with new expectations? Under what conditions can universities transform from the entrepreneurial to the engaged model?
What characterises the process by which research makes a difference in society? What must be present for research to be used in business or policy-making?
Agenda:
17:00: Welcome (Elisabeth Svennevik, SPARK Social Innovation)
17:05: Why SPARK Social Innovation? (Per Morten Sandset, Vice-Rector for Research and Innovation, UiO)
17:15: Presentation (Ridvan ??nar, Western Norway University of Applied Sciences)
17:45: Presentation (Magnus Gulbrandsen, UiO)
18:15: Discussion
18:40: Food and mingling
Ridvan ?inar. R?dvan ??nar is a social scientist with a special intere
st in innovation studies, regional studies and studies in higher education. He is employed at the Mohns Center for Innovation and Regional Development at the Western Norway University of Applied Sciences (HVL), on the project UniS4Vest (Role of universities in sustainable smart specialization in Vestlandet). He has been a candidate in the doctoral program Responsible Innovation and Regional Development at HVL. He has previously been a Marie Curie Fellow in the RUNIN project (The role of universities in innovation and regional development) in Portugal, supported by the European Commission.
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Magnus Gulbrandsen. Magnus Gulbrandsen is a professor at the TIK Centre for Technology, Innovation and Culture at the University of Oslo. He leads the OSIRIS Oslo Institute for Research on the Impact of Science. He is interested in how knowledge is produced and how it comes into use, including how this process is organised, mediated, managed and promoted in policy.