Today, “innovation” is attracting the interest of policy-makers, not only as a driver of economic growth or a tool to overcome economic crisis, but as a means to solve social problems. In sum, this trend may induce a new paradigm of innovation, moving from the traditional linear perception of innovation into a more concerted way of conceiving innovation. Fostering innovation to address social challenges and mobilizing science, technology, and innovation calls for collaboration among multiple stakeholders, including universities, research institutes, private companies, government, and civil society and leads to the value creation for the society as a whole. Social challenges are the issue for everyone without a border. Thus, we need to look ahead and work to find solutions comprehensively. Motivated to gain more insights into the factors that determine success and failure in our efforts, this session will highlight elements and good practices that support a more systematic approach for policy implications, looking into barriers and incentives designed to address social challenges as well. Panelists will identify projects that gather social entrepreneurs and researchers to develop and demonstrate technologies and show the possibility of solving environmental issues by fostering the dissemination of wooden houses and forest revitalization. These co-evolutive approaches, which involve reciprocal adaptation, will also be discussed.