Social Innovation Reflection 1 - Wary

 I have begun my Social Innovations class with BYU-Idaho. 

I wasn't sure what to expect and still after reading and watching the intro videos and articles, I'm not clear on what this has to do with my Child and Family Advocacy certificate. Perhaps it is meant to connect me to resources and an innovative mindset. 

I was instructed to watch a few videos - but they were mostly inspirational music and images of inspirational people. 

One video had more information in it than that, but I still wasn't stirred to any action. But that's very likely just my personality. I try to avoid that which other people hype. I refused to read Harry Potter until years after it was released and the hype had died down for a while (right before the movie rights were acquired and the hype started back up). These videos felt like hype to me. 

I understand the value of emotionally charged music and quick-cut images to ignite a feeling of excitement that mimics passion, but I am wary of such things.  So I'm working really hard to tell my brain that social innovation isn't the same as, say, Vine, Marvel, Snapchat, Game of Thrones, or Lost. Social innovation has a purpose - a worldwide vision and drive to improve our communities and the world for the better. 

So why do I feel a resistance to it?  Why do I distrust it? 

Does my political ideology balk at welfare strategies that give without teaching self-reliance? 

Do I mistrust the intentions and therefore discount the results? 

Do I doubt my own intentions and project that onto the actions of these social innovators? 

These and more are possibilities. 

I hope - and assume - that as I learn more, I will have my view clarified and my heart opened to the positive influence such passionate entrepreneurs and innovators can bring to the world. 

Now, as for the prompt - why is Social innovation more prevalent today? 

The idea of Social Innovation has only "been around" and discussed since the 1960's, but has taken off in the last 20 years, so I'm going to say that it is more prevalent today because of media, travel, money and PR. We have more access to the suffering, the civil inequalities, the crimes and laws of peoples and countries that used to be outside of common knowledge.  Travel has increased our ability to go to these places and money allows us to do more about it. Media allows us to know more, share more, rally more support (and funds) and follow through on the plan of action. The need for positive public relations encourages companies to have at least one charitable limb of their corporate animal. 



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