About Innovation North
Who We Are
Innovation North is a community of researchers and practice partners who are co-creating a new approach to innovation. We are fuelled by the belief that we can create a future where businesses and society thrive together.
The Lab has co-created the Compass, which guides corporate innovators to solve complex problems by generating novel, actionable ideas. The research team is now validating the Compass with practice partners in Innovation Projects. The tools and resources generated through our activities are available in the Knowledge Hub.
Innovation North will become a global social movement that seeks the good of all, for today and for tomorrow.
Our Founder
Dr. Tima Bansal has been thinking about business sustainability for the past 30 years. A globally recognized, award-winning researcher, her work has targeted the interplay between business strategy and sustainability, connecting theory with action.
Tima has always been a strong advocate of the concept of sustainable development — that the needs of the present should not compromise the needs of future generations. Considered a pioneer in this field, she has led initiatives that shape the business school curriculum, as well as the management discipline.
Led by this philosophy, at Innovation North, we believe that business success does not have to compromise society’s well-being. They are interdependent.
Our Beginning
In 2003, Tima founded the Network for Business Sustainability, which links researchers and managers to challenge current ideas of sustainability, and in 2005, she founded the Ivey Centre for Building Sustainable Value. She was the Executive Director for both of these initiatives until 2020 and 2021 respectively.
In October 2019, Tima invited senior leaders, academics, and world-renowned systems innovators to ‘innovate the innovation process.’ This launched the Lab’s quarterly gatherings, which continue to happen both virtually and in-person until 2024.
