Mission: Digital Innovation Foundation (DIF) is a non-profit organization incorporated in Québec, Canada. It is seeking “charitable public foundation” status given its focus on education and research, as per Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) policies. Its mission is to support community-based and intra-organization change agents seeking to accelerate digital transformation and innovation across all sectors of society, economy, and geography. Online communities are being developed with partners, including with Intracubator, to serve as a marketplace for change agents to sell their services and raise funds directly to reach self-sufficiency.
Roles: Our primary role is to raise funds from private donors and provide research grants to faculty and graduate scholarships to students, partnering with change agents to develop innovative digital solutions. A second mandate is to professionalize the digital innovation community by helping professional associations and higher education institutions develop digital innovation certifications and degree programs. Our third priority is to directly support public sector initiatives aimed at democratizing digital innovation.
Scope: Digital Innovation as a concept builds upon the definitions of ISO 56000 Standards on Innovation Management. Innovation is any “new or changed entity, realizing or redistributing value”, implemented through “all types of innovations, e.g. product, service, process, model and method, ranging from incremental to radical” (please see sections 1.2 and 3.1.1 of ISO 56000:2020 Innovation Management – Fundamentals and Vocabulary). Digital implies the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) of all kinds, ranging from intangible to tangible, and touching on value creation for end-users in any context and at any scale-reach.
Grants and Scholarships: Once fundraising has reached a critical mass, applications will be solicited from faculty and graduate students. Projects and attribution will comply with Government of Canada guidelines for research ethics, candidate selection, interdisciplinary evaluation, and financial administration.
Get Involved: DIF is in launch phase and more news will be posted on this page in 2022 as we progress toward our first fundraising campaign. Please contact our CEO, Stéphane Gagnon, for any questions or interest in collaborating: [email protected]