Inspiring Innovation in Investment: a Creative Councils Learning Exchange

On 15 December 2011, NESTA and IPPR North hosted the first of a series of Creative Councils Learning Exchanges.  The event brought together Creative Councils and other local authorities to hear from three international speakers, who shared their experiences of innovation in investment vehicles:

• Katherine Freund, Independent Transportation Network (ITN) America - founded an older people's community transport programme that works on a cash and credits system, that used public funding as venture capital, to create a self sustaining system.
• Steve Rothschild, the Minnesota Human Capital Bond - pioneered using a state bond to fund social enterprises working in preventative intervention on a payment by results basis.  The approach includes an accreditation and loan fund for participating social enterprises.
• Gorka Espiau, Social Innovation Park, Basque Country, Spain - a key player in the creation of a partnership between local authorities and DenokInn (a social innovation agency) to create a "social silicon valley" by providing a systematic infrastructure for identifying new projects and supporting public/ private/ non-profit collaborations.

You can read more about their projects here:

• iTN America
• Social Innovation Park
• Human Capital Bond

If you'd like to learn more about the Learning Exchanges or the Creative Councils programme, please contact Katy Bentham at katy.bentham@nesta.org.uk.