The Case for and against Social Entrepreneurship

Making a case for social entrepreneurship is something I have been personally doing for the past 7 years, from the day I discovered what social impact was and how many things were wrong in the world! In particular, what always strikes me the most is the vast discrepancies in between what is said or written in the law/ statutes/ declaration/ etc. and what is happening in societies all over the world.

An example is the Universal Declaration of Human Rights stipulated by United Nations, which states:

1. “Article 1: All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.
2. Article 2: Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.
3. Article 3: Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.”(Un.org, 1948)

The latter was created and drafted after World War 2 in an effort to make countries commit to peace and voted in favour by almost all the (back then) UN member countries. Today, it is the most translated document in the world (Guinness World Records, 2017).

Yet, how much social impact/ progress is being achieved?

• A least one of every three women globally will be beaten, raped or otherwise abused during her lifetime (The United Nations Development Fund for Women, 2003).
• Nearly 1/2 of the world’s population live on less than $2.50 a day. More than 1.3 billion live in extreme poverty — less than $1.25 a day. 1 billion children worldwide are living in poverty (World Bank, 2016).
• Only half of the world’s working-age women are in the labor force, compared to 77 percent of working-age men (United States Department of Labor Dol.gov, 2016).
• After being arrested, African-Americans are 33% more likely than whites to be detained while facing a felony trial in New York (Quigley, 2012).

The picture of social progress is definitely not as encouraging.

The excuse could be as E. Posner wrote that “the central problem with human rights law is that it is hopelessly ambiguous” or that progress takes time, or that capitalism has proved to be a rather destructive system to live by.

The Case for Social Entrepreneurship…

That is where social entrepreneurship comes in, defined as:

1. “identifying a stable but inherently unjust equilibrium that causes the exclusion, marginalisation, or suffering of a segment of humanity that lacks the financial means or political clout to achieve any transformative benefit on its own;
2. identifying an opportunity in this unjust equilibrium, developing a social value proposition, and bringing to bear inspiration, creativity, direct action, courage, and fortitude, thereby challenging the stable state’s hegemony;
3. forging a new, stable equilibrium that releases trapped potential or alleviates the suffering of the targeted group, and through imitation and the creation of a stable ecosystem around the new equilibrium ensuring a better future for the targeted group and even society at large” (Martin, R. and Osberg, S. 2007).

This logical process is where social entrepreneurship “is born”, as a practical way to tackle this social challenges affecting people all over the world. Its mission/ purpose? To positively impact society, unlike capitalism. The case for social entrepreneurship comes by acknowledging the fact that there is a “gap in the market nowadays, and that the current key players in society (mainly being institutions, governments, nonprofits, and businesses) have proved to be incapable to bring to the world innovative solutions free of a profit driven etiquette and motive. The gap in the market is then for wishful social change believers to fill with businesses with a social impact, time efficient, impact driven, sustainable, and scalable solutions!

An example? Microlending programs like Kiva help women start and sustain their own businesses and get out of poverty through powerful tools. Visit Ashoka Foundation to find out many more!

References

Dol.gov. (2016). Women’s Bureau (WB) — Data & Statistics. [online] Available at: https://www.dol.gov/wb/stats/stats_data.htm [Accessed 22 Nov. 2017].

Guinness World Records. (2017). Most translated document. [online] Available at: http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/most-translated-document/ [Accessed 20 Nov. 2017].

Martin, R. and Osberg, S. (2007). Social Entrepreneurship: The Case for Definition. Stanford Social Innovation Review. [online] Available at: https://ssir.org/articles/entry/social_entrepreneurship_the_case_for_definition [Accessed 19 Nov. 2017].

Posner, E. (2014). The case against human rights. The Guardian. [online] Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/news/2014/dec/04/-sp-case-against-human-rights [Accessed 22 Nov. 2017].

Quigley, W. (2012). RACISM: THE CRIME IN CRIMINAL JUSTICE. [online] Loyola University New Orleans COLLEGE OF LAW Law.loyno.edu. Available at: http://law.loyno.edu/sites/law.loyno.edu/files/Quigley.pdf [Accessed 22 Nov. 2017].

UN.org. (1948). Universal Declaration of Human Rights. [online] Available at: http://www.un.org/en/universal-declaration-human-rights/ [Accessed 21 Nov. 2017].

United Nations Development Fund for Women. 2003. Not A Minute More: Ending Violence Against Women. Available at http://www.unifem.org/resources/item_detail.php?ProductID=7 . [Accessed 20 Nov. 2017].

World Bank. (2016). Overview. [online] Available at: http://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/poverty/overview [Accessed 20 Nov. 2017].