--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: at a societal level there is a surprising…" description: "\"“at a societal level there is a surprising shortage of institutions designed to judge what really works and which ideas deserve to be backed with resou..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da4/geoff-mulgan-7252_ideas-socially_at-a-societal-level-there-is-a-surprisin_2928667.jpg" --- # at a societal level there is a surprising shortage of… ![“at a societal level there is a surprising shortage of institutions designed to judge what really works and which ideas deserve to be backed with resources. Markets play this role for commercial ideas. But ideas that could be socially valuable often struggle to find support, even when there is…” quote by Geoff Mulgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da4/geoff-mulgan-7252_ideas-socially_at-a-societal-level-there-is-a-surprisin_2928667.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da4/geoff-mulgan-7252_ideas-socially_at-a-societal-level-there-is-a-surprisin_2928667.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da4/geoff-mulgan-7252_ideas-socially_at-a-societal-level-there-is-a-surprisin_2928667.jpg) > ““at a societal level there is a surprising shortage of institutions designed to judge what really works and which ideas deserve to be backed with resources. Markets play this role for commercial ideas. But ideas that could be socially valuable often struggle to find support, even when there is strong evidence that they work.”” [Geoff Mulgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoff-mulgan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Society lacks institutions to evaluate and fund effective social ideas; markets only judge commercial ideas. **In simple terms:** There are few bodies to test and fund social ideas. Key Takeaway Create mechanisms to assess social impact. Themes social impact evaluation funding innovation Mood critical optimistic Type policy innovation When to use this quote - Non‑profit grants - government pilots - impact labs Key Concepts Policy design impact assessment Questions to Reflect On - What criteria should evaluate social ideas? - How to ensure unbiased funding? A Different Perspective Implementation can be costly and politicized. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet ## Related quotes > [It is irrational to charge high prices for socially valuable innovations as this guarantees that they will be underutilized. 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At its best, capitalism rewards creators, makers and providers: the people and firms that create valuable things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoff-mulgan/understanding-capitalism-is-in-some-ways-simple-at-its-best/) [Geoff Mulgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoff-mulgan/) > [By international standards, many of the U.K.'s policies for civil society are exemplary. However, there are concerns about constraints on civil liberties - particularly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoff-mulgan/by-international-standards-many-of-the-u-k-s-policies-for-civil/) [Geoff Mulgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoff-mulgan/) > [Bangalore has become a centre for healthcare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoff-mulgan/bangalore-has-become-a-centre-for-healthcare/) [Geoff Mulgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoff-mulgan/) > [The idea of entrepreneurship applies as much in politics, religion, society and the arts as it does in business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoff-mulgan/the-idea-of-entrepreneurship-applies-as-much-in-politics-religion/) [Geoff Mulgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoff-mulgan/) > [Deeper fulfilment is rather different from the happiness of seeing a good film or watching your team win at football, and it doesn't come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoff-mulgan/deeper-fulfilment-is-rather-different-from-the-happiness-of-seeing-a/) [Geoff Mulgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoff-mulgan/) > [With a fractured sense of self, we come to depend on what people feed back to us - often mediated through social networks -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoff-mulgan/with-a-fractured-sense-of-self-we-come-to-depend-on-what-people-feed/) [Geoff Mulgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoff-mulgan/) > [Predation is part of the everyday life of capitalism, in sectors as mainstream as pharmaceuticals, software and oil - where people's money, their data,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoff-mulgan/predation-is-part-of-the-everyday-life-of-capitalism-in-sectors-as/) [Geoff Mulgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoff-mulgan/) > [As a civil servant in charge of the government's Strategy Unit, I brought in many people from outside government, including academia and science, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoff-mulgan/as-a-civil-servant-in-charge-of-the-government-s-strategy-unit-i/) [Geoff Mulgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoff-mulgan/) > [Systems governed by only one set of rules are more vulnerable than those with variety.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoff-mulgan/systems-governed-by-only-one-set-of-rules-are-more-vulnerable-than/) [Geoff Mulgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoff-mulgan/) > [States which used to communicate directly to their citizens now do so through the media, where their messages are reshaped by the logics of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoff-mulgan/states-which-used-to-communicate-directly-to-their-citizens-now-do-so/) [Geoff Mulgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoff-mulgan/) > [Teenagers learn best by doing things, they learn best in teams and they learn best by doing things for real - all the opposite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoff-mulgan/teenagers-learn-best-by-doing-things-they-learn-best-in-teams-and/) [Geoff Mulgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoff-mulgan/) > [Even many of the teenagers who feel confident on navigating the web simply don't have the skills needed to 'write and create' digital tools,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoff-mulgan/even-many-of-the-teenagers-who-feel-confident-on-navigating-the-web/) [Geoff Mulgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoff-mulgan/) [Explore all 93 Geoff Mulgan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoff-mulgan/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“at a societal level there is a surprising shortage of institutions designed to judge what really works and which ideas deserve to be backed with resources. 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