Enzo Mingione, University of Milan-Bicocca.Social innovation facing the challenges of globalization:

tensions and illusions.

4ème COLLOQUE INTERNATIONAL DU CRISESLa transformation sociale par l’innovation sociale

Les 3 et 4 avril 2014 / April 3 and 4, 2014Université du Québec à Montréal

1. An interpretation frame centred on the double movement: commodification versus the destruction and reconstruction of social bonds.

2. Social innovation as a response to change in industrialized societies after welfare capitalism institutional assets.

3. Social innovation versus increasing social inequalities.

Methodological frame of analysis based on the double movement: the process of destruction and reconstruction of social bonds and social relations.

Long and short term path-dependency

features used in adaptation

Social institutions

transformationsand persistence

Impact of the marketization wave

at particular points in history

The 3 areas of institution building:ReciprocityRedistributionMarket cooperation

Great regime transformations

versus

Continuous more or less important adaptations

The main points of the double movement interpretation

1. Give the priority to the understanding of the dynamic aspects over the diversity of capitalism.

2. Commodification as a process that dismantle the traditional social bonds (disembedding). From this point of view it is a powerful form of emancipation from traditional social bonds and forms of oppression (alternative interpretation in respect to the triple movement suggested by Nancy Fraser).

3. The process of reconstructing social bonds – riembedding and social innovation also – is important in order to explain social change and behaviour in terms of agency.

4. The institutional building is creating new forms of domination: the political and bureaucratic traps (Weber) are particularly evident now.

5. Innovative agencies are in the middle of tensions created by globalized

commodification and the oppression of the political/ bureaucratic trap.

High class divisionsWorking class representation

Employment stability: Breadwinners Vertical integrationLarge corporations

Stable omogeneous nuclear families as redistribution institutions

High gender divisionsSpecialized housewives

Home caring specialization

National welfare statePensions, health, education

Hegemonic nation state controlover economy

Standardized citizenship rights

ConsumersismUnequal exchange

Monopolistic control of technologies High growth rate

The institutional balances of the Golden Age of welfare capitalism

Area of redistribution - state

Area of marketcooperation

Area ofReciprocityfamily

Area of redistribution: state and politics

Area of market institutionscooperation logics

Area of reciprocityfamily, kinship, community

Crisis of welfare capitalism: social inequalities and weakening

of social rightsNew international division of labourMarketization wave based on global,

information, knoweldge

Fiscal and legitimation difficulties of the nation state. Welfare reforms. Liberalization of services.

Declining national standards/GovernanceThe bureaucratic trap.

Vertical disintegration of firmsGlobal industrial relocationCost of row materials out of controlSecond industrial divide / tertiarizationInformational and knowledge divideEterogeneity and instability of employment = end of breadwinnerNew transnational migrants

Second demografic transition:Longevity versus decreasing birth and marriageDecreasing importance of nuclear familiesMismatch between informal demand and supply of careEterogeneity and instability of households and life-cycles

Horizontal subsidiarity and increasing importance of third sector at local scale

Deindustrialisation,

restructuring

Populationaging

Increasinghouse prices

Female labourmkt participation

Non-traditionalchoices/families

Residential andspatial patterns

Intenseimmigration

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Local welfare demand

Deindustrialisation,restructuring

Populationaging

Increasinghouse prices

Female labourmkt participation

Non-traditionalchoices/families

Residential andspatial patterns

Intenseimmigration

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Local welfare demand

The double movement challenges livelihood and welfare balances and social rights.

Trends of change:

Individualization

Destandardization

Instability

Social inequalities

Cuts in public expenses and privatization.

The local level and social innovation initiatives become important.

The trends of change towards fragmented individualized societies

Tendences 1. Individualization

2. Destandardization

3. Fragmentation of the welfare risks.

1. Innovations of welfare in order to produce more articulated and more efficient protections: local, active, social investments, second welfare. Empowering initiatives social innovation.

2. Decline of public reponsibility. Austerity, cuts in the public expenses and services, privatization, competition, new management.

Increase in the social and territorial inequalities. Deficit in the social citizenship rights. Discriminations against week or less mobilized groups.

Tensions between costs and cuts

The diversity of social innovation initiatives

Alter the impact of commodification:

Social responsibility of firms

Direct relations between consumption and production

Time banks and solidarity exchanges

Social economies

Empower disadvantaged unrepresented populations:

Communication and information networks

Representation and participation initiaves

Community, cultural, art, expressions initiatives

Urban restructuration and innovative smart cities

The conditions to make social innovation practices instruments to contrast social discrimination and

exclusion.

1) Preserve and update a strong national and supra-national institutional regulatory framework oriented to ensure minimum levels of protection.

2) Effective and balanced redistribution of resources and responsibilities from central authorities towards local bodies and organizations.

3) Political determination to combat the discrimination of minorities and vulnerable groups mobilized at all levels.

4) Favour the diffusion of knowledge, professional capacities, solidarity, cooperation and open culture to accept diversity.

The impact of the crisis and the perspectives for the future

The crisis make social innovation more necessary in order to extend support and protection to increasing numbers of disadvantaged populations.

The cut of social expenditures and the austerity politics make social innovation more difficult to promote and support.

Last resort solidarity initiatives increase the competition among the poor and disadvantaged for scarce resources.

In order to promote positive perspectives social innovation should be accompanied by a strong political mobilization in favour of public responsibility against inequalities, discrimination, exclusion.