Abstract:

Nowadays, universities have a relevant role in society. They articulate strategic actors, foster social innovation and contribute with sustainable growth of vulnerable sectors.

The purpose of this qualitative study is to explore the scope for expanding and improving the social commitment among university, private sector and local government in order to attain the sustainable development goals. The idea is to concentrate on a specific stakeholder through a long-term social program. In this context, the aim is to determine whether these alliances converge into a strong network to solve problems.

The target group for this research was La Union-Duran, a human settlement of extreme poverty of Guayas-Ecuador, located nearby a shrimp processing plant which is supporting this inquiry as part of its corporate social responsibility. To start, the undergraduate students of Geology Engineering from ESPOL prepared an updated cartography to delimit the sector. Once the cartography was finished, dwellings were numbered. Simultaneously, 36 undergraduate students of Economics and Business Administration careers of the Faulty of Social Sciences and Humanities received training in two workshops given by ESPOL professors to carry out the socioeconomic diagnosis. The project included the participation of undergraduate students of the Audio-visual Design Career from ESPOL. Their main task was to prepare a video of the activities of the project. Also, Psychology undergraduate students and professors from State University of Guayaquil carried out an intervention focused on community empowerment.

The methodology of this study is Participatory Action Research (PAR), a systematic collection and analysis of data for the purpose of taking action and making changes by generating practical knowledge. Hence, university professors and undergraduate students are involved in real situations with the community to interchange information, produce transformation and achieve sustainable development.

The techniques used to gather information were: the population census, focus groups, field observations, interviews and meetings’ minutes.
The socioeconomic diagnosis highlighted educational, economic, social and environmental problems that the target community needed to solve. However, the participation of the Social Sciences and Humanities careers was not enough to find solutions. Therefore, it was necessary to invite other careers of ESPOL, four higher education institutions and local government to join the project in collaborative knowledge networks and yield a significant impact in the community.

These collaborative interactions have pioneered and interdisciplinary social program which seeks to solve La Union basic needs such as jobs, water, transportation education, health and security. Through polyvalent knowledge, we have reached synergy among theoretical, practical and interdisciplinary implications. This innovation required a shift from a mono helix to triple helix knowledge production model under different societal conditions. As a result, this program has interconnected 16 careers, 5 higher education institutions, 1 private company and 1 local government. This proposal of more than 20 projects that require active participation of the community. Currently, 4 projects have already started. These projects seek for the productive inclusion of women, water exploration, population empowerment and the search of inclusive business financial support in La Unión.

Keywords:

Social innovation, sustainable development, polyvalent knowledge, triple helix model, Participatory Action Research (PAR).