When you look at innovation stripped down to its bare essence it is something we have been doing since the beginning of human existence. The definition of innovation can be related to creating something that is novel (in novare = introducing something new). It is however only been about hundred years that it is seen as a central value of society. When the term innovator first really came into existence in the sixteenth and seventeenth century it was a swear word for someone who was conflicting with the order, tradition and linearity of that society. While it then was mainly used in terms of religion and politics that changed in the nineteenth and twentieth century when it became a label for technological development and progression. Since then it has been hyped in literature, the academic world and associated with terms like creativity and originality. Innovation has become a slogan.

This indicates that, in all those years, innovation has gone beyond its purpose. The government wants to stimulate innovation within companies by, for example, investing in science- and technology education (innovation requires knowledge) and intellectual property (protect ownership). The main goal of this, eventually, is to lead to product innovation and improve the competitive power of a country and stimulate economic growth. It is however not with solely economic growth that we are going to solve the problems we face in nowadays society. Besides, the past years of crisis have only majorly slowed down the process of dealing with challenges like aging, obesity, food shortage and climate change.

It is time that a new model of innovation starts changing our ideas about policy making, prosperity and genuine progress. With this I aim for a type of innovation that focuses on self-empowerment and new forms of ownership, responsibility and sharing. Not with designs and services like ‘Uber’ and ‘Airbnb’ that only make profit from bringing supply and demand together, but with true sharing of skills and values in a multidisciplinary network than can operate contextually and use the creativity of individuals that is already present in society. Not with claiming ownership and isolation of ideas but with an open-source approach and a permanent self-directed learning attitude.