Reimagining Social Innovation Funding for EU Missions
Join leading funders and investors from across Europe for a convening hosted by the Social Innovation Mission Facility with partners, The Commons Hub and Strategic Design Scenarios – bringing together key actors to explore how private and public capital can be catalytically combined to drive mission-oriented social innovation at scale.
We will have a dynamic panel discussion featuring voices from across Europe, examining:
- The trends and emerging models of financing social innovation already shaping the field
- How to increase flow of capital into EU Mission-aligned social innovation
- How philanthropic, public, and private capital can be combined for greater impact
- The role of investors and funders in shaping Europe’s social innovation ecosystem
Our aim is to create a space for honest dialogue, peer-to-peer connection, and forward-looking exchange.
Expect an energising atmosphere, plenty of room for conversation, and the chance to hear perspectives from across the field. Whether you’re already supporting the EU Missions or are curious about the future of social innovation funding, this is a chance to connect and leave with new ideas to take forward.
Speakers
The panel discussion will be moderated by Carly Wickham, EdelGive/SIX.
Amir Rizwan – London Social Ventures (UK)
Amir Rizwan is the outgoing Director of London Social Ventures and an independent impact investment consultant. He works with foundations and investors on strategy, governance, and how capital can be deployed to support early-stage ventures and inclusive economic growth. His work sits at the intersection of social innovation, investment, and ecosystem development, with a focus on how new venture models can address complex societal challenges. He has worked across the UK social investment ecosystem, including roles at Better Society Capital and Comic Relief, where he led the development of its social investment strategy, including the £7.5m Red Shed Fund. Amir holds board and investment committee roles with Social Investment Scotland and The Clothworkers’ Foundation and is a trustee of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. His work focuses on aligning investment approaches with mission, strengthening venture pathways, and addressing structural inequalities in access to capital.
Anne Snick – Club of Rome (EU Chapter)
Anne Snick is a systems thinker, philosopher, and independent researcher whose work sits at the intersection of sustainable finance, social innovation, and regenerative economics. She holds a PhD in Philosophy of Education, with a focus on ethics and epistemology, and has spent her career alternating between academic research and applied work in health, gender equality, social economy, and social innovation. Anne is a full member and Board member of the Club of Rome’s EU Chapter, and serves as an Ethics Expert in Research and Innovation for the European Commission. Her current work focuses on how finance and education — as two of the most powerful systemic drivers in society — can be redirected towards ecological and social sustainability. Anne brings a distinctive systems-level lens to questions of social innovation finance, arguing that social and environmental sustainability are fundamentally inseparable, and that meaningful change requires paradigm-level shifts in how we understand the purpose of money and capital.
Luisa Bernardes – Portugal Social Innovation
Luísa Bernardes is the Centro Region Representative and International Projects Manager at Portugal Social Innovation, with five years in the technical financing team and a background in the Simplification and Interconnection Unit of the Portuguese Agency for Cohesion and Development, where she served as Portugal’s EaSI National Contact Point and contributed to establishing National Competence Centres for Social Innovation. She draws on nearly two decades of experience in European and international partnerships – 13 years leading the Cooperation and International Relations Department at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Portugal’s Centro Region – and has been a longstanding member of the Enterprise Europe Network. She is also the founder of Mulheres Incomuns, a community dedicated to celebrating women’s success.
Pieter-Jan Van de Velde – Trividend
Pieter-Jan Van de Velde is a key figure in Belgium’s impact investing ecosystem, specializing in early-stage financing for social economy enterprises. As Investment and Fund Manager at Trividend, he transformed it into the leading early-stage investor in impact ventures in Flanders, managing over 50 direct investments, including subordinated and convertible loans as well as equity participations. He is also founding partner of the European Catalytic Impact Investing Fund ECIIF II. Pieter-Jan is committed to building impact financing ecosystems that offer an adequate financing mix to each impact venture to achieve its full potential. His expertise spans investment strategy, financial structuring, governance models and scaling mission-driven enterprises.
Event details
Date: 11 May, 2026
Time: 17.30 – 20.30
Location: Brussels near Central Station (Exact location available once registered)
Arrival from 17.30
Talk/discussion begins at 18.00
Register Your Interest
Whether you are a philanthropist, impact investor, or public funder, this is an opportunity to connect, collaborate, and help shape the next chapter of social innovation in Europe.
Places are limited and will be confirmed directly. We encourage early registration, here: https://luma.com/hudbvsbh
We look forward to welcoming you to Brussels.
