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Overview
Sustainable Design-led Innovation (SDI) is a business support program aimed specifically at East of England small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). SDI aims to support SMEs in delivering early innovation in their business activities through sustainable design-led innovation practices.
The focus of the program is to help SMEs engage with early stage innovation, driven by the sustainability agenda, in order to achieve the following goals:
- Identify new business opportunities
- Strengthen your business brand
- Insulate a business against risks
- Develop innovation strategies
There are many drivers for a business to engage with sustainability, including customer expectations, regulatory requirements and resource shortages. We believe engagement also brings opportunities; for opening up new markets, differentiating your business offerings and providing customers with added value.
Sustainability and the Low Carbon economy are complex issues, which can leave businesses confused as how best to respond. Using simple pragmatic tools the SDI program helps identify what actions are relevant to each business, which work towards developing more sustainable business practices and offerings.
Led by Cranfield University and funded by the European Regional Development Fund(ERDF), the program collaborates with both leading academic and environmental organisations to offer comprehensive and complimentary business support.
The SDI program is delivered through several activities:
uses life cycle thinking and situation analysis to identify an innovation strategy that meets your business requirements.
bringing together sustainability experts, SME’s and support providers to promote discussion and networking around sustainable innovation.
provides access to a network of expert partners from across the region, to help a business address their real learning needs.
If your business is an SME (business with <250 employees, turnover less than €50m/annum, and not a subsidiary of a larger business) in the East of England and you are interested in understanding what opportunities and benefits Sustainable Innovation could offer, please contact:
Dr. Fiona Charnley:
f.j.charnley@cranfield.ac.uk
Justyna Spurtacz:
j.e.spurtacz@cranfield.ac.uk
Tel: 01234 750111 ext. 2140
