Innovation for inclusion

On February 3, 2023, the Great Night of Solidarity Innovation took place, co-organized by Handicap International, IRIIG and Dynergie.

This 3-part event aims to support projects (products or services) with a positive impact, designed by and for inclusion. For the past 4 years, the 3 brands have been working together with a common goal: to make innovation a lever for development that meets the challenges of inclusion.

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Employees, students, inventors, whatever the status, all project owners are invited to participate.

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For this 4th edition, more than 300 participants gathered at the Campus Numérique de Région, in Lyon, Dynergie's historical city. The event was structured around three challenges: fablife, the hackathon and the call for projects.

‍A"call for projects" challenge organized by Dynergie

The challenge call for projects, organized by Dynergie, aimed to honor organizations that work daily for a more inclusive world by developing innovative solutions.

_{The role of the experts? To source innovative and inclusive projects and offer them personalized support to help them grow during this adventure. Dynergie has put its core business at the service of solidarity, by mobilizing innovation experts throughout the adventure. Whether it was for innovation financing opportunities, the development of innovative activities, the structuring of roadmaps, advice on commercial strategy or pitch coaching, the entire range of skills of the consultants were called upon.}

In this context, we organized two coaching sessions with the teams, during which we looked at the issues identified in advance. Our team of experts was present to bring a new perspective to the projects, to unblock certain points, and to give a boost to their key issues.

The hackathon and Fablife: individuals and students united around solidarity innovation

The Nuit de l'Innovation Solidaire also showcased student projects through a hackathon organized by IRIIG, which brought together over 100 students from 7 different schools and 3 companies around the theme of "Love and Disability". Teams took advantage of 24 hours of collective intelligence to come up with innovative solutions to improve relationships between people with disabilities. This event, which brought together students and corporate employees, was an opportunity to share skills, ideation and collaborative energy.

For the first year, the Fablife competition has joined the Night of Solidarity Innovation for a joint prize-giving ceremony during this major event, unique in France. With 25 years of existence, this challenge honors the inventions of individuals who improve the daily life of people with disabilities. The 3 winning projects of the competition are: the shower support kit, a self-service tray holder and a hand-cranked key-turner.

A moment of meeting and sharing between candidates

Out of the 10 candidates pre-selected for the project challenge, the Emoface project won the "Grand Prix du Génie", and the A.N.T.S association's gym won the "Prix coup de coeur du jury". The two winners now have the opportunity to continue Dynergie's personalized support to help them in their development.

Beyond the expertise in innovation, it is the creation of opportunities that Dynergie's support has made possible. Innovation is achieved through meetings and sharing of experiences that create synergies between stakeholders. The coaching days organized by Dynergie were an opportunity for the candidates to get to know each other. Much more than a competition, the project challenge enabled the teams to gain visibility and find fellow travelers to join forces against exclusion. " Exchanges with peers allow a mirror effect and lead us to reflect on our points of improvement" says Patricia Gros, President of Handishare and participant in the challenge. The candidates came out of this adventure as winners and all of them have 

"NIS gave me a rich experience, meeting fabulous people with great projects. To see that solidarity still exists. I am pleasantly surprised and touched to see so many young people struggling to find solutions to different issues related to disability." Magali Guizien representative of the AutonaBee project.

A mission that reflects deep-seated values

This adventure allowed Dynergie to put its innovation expertise at the service of a solidarity event and to fully realize its ambition to be a lever of change to build a better world.

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"What impressed me the most was the human intelligence of the project leaders, they are not entrepreneurs, but thanks to their experience, they feel invested in a cause that they defend wholeheartedly" testifies Lou Grazia, Dynergie coach of the challenge teams.  

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Dynergie's mission is to be at the service of useful innovation, as illustrated by its concrete commitments to innovative companies working towards a more desirable future.