Hong Kong must nurture its social innovators
Kevin Au says the spillover effect of social innovation is potentially so beneficial that there is good reason to use public money to promote it
Social innovation can address needs and problems through novel solutions. We've seen how technological advancement can benefit society; it's time to ask whether social innovation can bring some of the same benefits.
In Hong Kong, discussions about solving social problems have centred on allocating more resources to the poor, but using public money to promote social innovation is discussed far less. Apathy continues to stop us from moving forward.
One problem is that policies don't go far enough to encourage innovation by social enterprises or schemes that have a big social impact.
At the same time, the public does not fully understand the spillover effects of social innovation and thus is sceptical of its benefits. Some still believe that public money, especially money used for social causes such as poverty reduction, should be allocated directly to the poor or non-profit organisations. They claim that giving money to well-to-do individuals for social projects may tilt the imbalance even further.
These opinions are based on a misunderstanding. Worsening income inequality has created bias against talk of spillover effects. People mistakenly see spillover effects as synonymous with trickle-down effects. But the two are not the same.
The trickle-down effect theory claims that giving a free hand to capitalists allows them to use their talent to create more wealth that benefits society. Yet, the reality is that many capitalists have used this freedom only to profit personally. Some even take away resources from the less capable and less connected. Thus, in reality, little wealth actually trickles down to those who really need it.
