European Social Innovation Competition 2021: Impact Prize focuses on measurable progress from Reimagine Fashion semi-finalists
- ›EISMEA launched the European Social Innovation Competition Impact Prize 2021, a €50,000 award for the semi-finalists of the 2020 Reimagine Fashion competition.
- ›The prize will go to the project judged to have delivered the most significant social impact over the previous 12 months.
- ›Eligibility is restricted to the 30 semi-finalists from the 2020 Competition; applicants must submit an Impact Report documenting progress and measurement methodology.
- ›Applications were open from 21 June to 6 August 2021 with support webinars on impact and impact measurement provided to participants.
- ›A judging panel will evaluate submissions on theory of change, impact measurement methodology and demonstrated results and will make recommendations to EISMEA which will choose the winner.
European Social Innovation Competition 2021 Impact Prize: emphasis on measurable social results
The European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency, known as EISMEA, opened the European Social Innovation Competition Impact Prize 2021 on 21 June 2021. The prize awards a single sum of 50,000 euros to the project among the 2020 semi-finalists judged to have generated the most significant social impact during the past year. The 2020 Competition carried the theme Reimagine Fashion and focused on improving the environmental and social footprint of the European fashion economy. The Impact Prize is explicitly designed to reward not only progress but credible methods of impact measurement.
Who is eligible and what the prize rewards
Eligibility is limited to the 30 semi-finalist projects selected in the 2020 European Social Innovation Competition. The Impact Prize is not a fresh open call for new ideas. Instead it is a follow up that asks last year’s semi-finalists to document how their proposals have translated into concrete advances over the preceding 12 months. The evaluation will place particular weight on the quality and clarity of applicants' theory of change, the robustness of their impact measurement methodology and the results they can demonstrate.
| Item | Detail | Deadline or timing |
| Prize amount | EUR 50,000 | Awarded to one winner |
| Eligible applicants | 30 semi-finalists from the 2020 Reimagine Fashion Competition | Pre-defined cohort |
| Application window | Impact Report submission | Open 21 June 2021 to 6 August 2021 at 12:00 CEST |
| Support to applicants | Webinars on Impact and Impact Measurement | During the application period |
| Selection criteria | Theory of change, impact measurement methodology, demonstrated results | Assessment by 2021 Impact Prize Judging Panel |
| Winner announcement | Winner announced with Challenge Prize results | End of 2021 |
How the process works
EISMEA invited the 2020 semi-finalists to prepare and submit an Impact Report. That report is the primary input for the 2021 Judging Panel. The panel will analyse submissions and prepare recommendations for EISMEA. The agency will take the final decision on the winning project based on the panel’s report. During the entry period EISMEA also offered targeted support in the form of webinars to help participants craft clearer and more rigorous impact reports.
Context: Reimagine Fashion and the Competition's intent
The Social Innovation Competition is an ideas competition sponsored by the European Innovation Council. It intentionally focuses on social and environmental outcomes rather than purely technological novelty. The 2020 theme Reimagine Fashion invited projects that could change behaviour and reduce the environmental and social harms associated with the fashion industry. EISMEA positions the Competition as a pipeline that helps innovators move from a proposal on paper to implemented solutions. The Impact Prize is a mechanism to test whether that pipeline produced measurable results in practice for the 2020 cohort.
What the Impact Prize support offers and what it does not
EISMEA offered help during the application window through webinars focused on impact and impact measurement. This support is intended to improve the quality of submissions and to raise the standard of reporting across the cohort. The prize does not, however, broaden eligibility beyond the 2020 semi-finalists. It is not a general funding call and it does not replace traditional grant or investment processes offered under other EIC or Horizon Europe instruments.
Critical considerations and likely evaluation challenges
Placing impact measurement at the centre of an award is a welcome step but it brings methodological and practical challenges. Organisers must rely on self reported data submitted by small projects that often face resource constraints. That raises predictable risks including selective reporting and difficulties in establishing causal attribution of outcomes to specific interventions. Short time frames complicate claims of sustained behavioural change in sectors like fashion where systems, supply chains and consumer habits are entrenched.
Another point to bear in mind is the narrow eligibility. Restricting the prize to last year’s semi-finalists creates a focused test of the support system but also limits comparability because the cohort is small and preselected. The judging process therefore needs to be transparent about evidence standards used to compare projects with different starting points and scales. The announcement indicates that the panel will look at the clarity of theory of change and the rigour of measurement but it does not publish benchmark thresholds or a public scoring rubric.
Practical next steps and contact information
Applications were open from 21 June 2021 and closed on 6 August 2021 at 12:00 CEST. EISMEA promised to announce the winner at the end of 2021 together with the Challenge Prize winners for that year. The organiser provided a contact address for inquiries about the Social Innovation Prize which is info@socialinnovationprize.eu. More information was signposted on the Competition pages for both the Impact Prize and the Challenge Prize Skills for Tomorrow — Shaping a green and digital future.
Final observation
The Impact Prize represents a deliberate move by the EU innovation ecosystem to reward measurable social outcomes. That is a positive signal because funders and policymakers increasingly demand evidence of impact rather than aspiration alone. At the same time meaningful assessment requires clarity about evidence standards and, ideally, independent verification. Observers should watch how EISMEA and the judging panel handle issues of attribution, verification and comparability across diverse projects. The success of this initiative will depend as much on the methodological standards applied as on the headline prize amount.