Ecosystem Building

Rationale

Social innovation does not happen in isolation — it thrives in ecosystems where actors, institutions, and resources are aligned around shared purpose. Yet across the globe, innovation ecosystems remain fragmented, underfunded, and siloed. Many countries lack formal structures to connect public agencies, social enterprises, academia, and communities in a sustained way. This objective seeks to strengthen the connective tissue of social innovation — strengthen cross-sectoral ecosystems of social innovation, creating environments where ideas can scale, partnerships can grow, and public value can flourish.

Key Insights

Moderate to low coordination

Ministries, NGOs, and social enterprises are frequently disconnected, with moderate to low coordination reported across sectors.

Multisector collaboration

Countries like Senegal, Serbia, and Iceland shared examples of promising multisector collaboration, but noted the absence of institutional memory or long-term governance structures.

National coordination mechanisms

Stakeholders emphasized the importance of incubators, accelerators, and national coordination mechanisms.

Community-driven mapping

Informal exchanges, peer groups, and community-driven mapping were cited as vital tools to understand and strengthen local ecosystems.

Proposed Actions

1. Map and Visualize National Ecosystems

GCSI will support countries in conducting collaborative mapping processes to:

Identify ecosystem actors, assets, and gaps;
Understand the role of institutions, informal networks, and anchor organizations;
Generate visual ecosystem maps and dashboards;
Use results to inform strategy, funding, and policy.

2. Strengthen Institutional Infrastructure

GCSI will provide technical and advisory support to:

Establish or formalize national coordinating bodies for social innovation.
Connect ministries across policy silos (e.g. finance, labor, digital, education);
Create inter-ministerial working groups and innovation task forces;
Promote the institutionalization of long-term innovation functions within public administration.

3. Support Capacity Building for Ecosystem Actors and Government Functionaries

Training and peer support will be oﬀered to:

Community-based organizations, municipal leaders, and innovation hubs;
Civil servants involved in design and implementation.
Funders and intermediaries interested in collaboration and systems thinking;
Youth leaders and informal actors entering the ecosystem.
Corporates working across the value chain

4. Enable Regional and Global Peer Exchange Platforms

GCSI will launch platforms and communities of practice that allow:

Informal sharing across objectives (not just formal events);
Regionally grounded but globally connected learning spaces;
Coordination on cross-border or diaspora-led innovation;
Rapid knowledge transfer during crises or reform windows

Expected Outcomes

Ecosystem maps completed in at least 10 countries, with visual outputs informing national plans.

Establishment or reinforcement of national coordination mechanisms in 5+ countries.

Hundreds of ecosystem actors trained or connected through peer-learning programs.

Measurable increase in multisector collaboration, innovation adoption, and public-private partnerships.

A shift from isolated innovation projects to resilient, adaptive ecosystems that enable long-term change.

Summary

Building ecosystems means building relationships between ideas, people, institutions, and visions. This objective positions GCSI as a catalyst for that alignment. By supporting infrastructure, connection, and collective capacity, we will move from innovation as an exception to innovation as a norm, embedded, supported, and sustained across time and systems.

Objective 7: Ecosystem Building