Innovation in strategic planning: Social innovation and co-production under a common analytical framework.

The article examines social innovation and co-production within a unified analytical framework to explore new opportunities for fostering innovation in strategic urban planning. It conceptualizes these processes as mutually reinforcing elements that create "trading zones," defined as intermediate spaces facilitating interaction and exchange between diverse actors, which can institutionalize co-production and scale social innovation over time. The case study of Bologna, Italy, illustrates how the city's long-standing participatory governance and specific policy instruments—such as the Regulation on Collaboration for Urban Commons and the Urban Innovation Plan—have established stable collaborative infrastructures (e.g., Neighbourhood Labs) that integrate community initiatives into strategic planning. While highlighting successes in linking grassroots activism with institutional frameworks to produce public innovation, the article also discusses challenges including risks of conflict institutionalization, uneven social capital distribution, and political dynamics that may concentrate power or limit inclusivity. Overall, the study suggests that combining social innovation and co-production in strategic planning can transform governance practices, but requires sustained political will, institutional support, and attention to socio-spatial inequalities.