One definition of an entrepreneur is “someone who undertakes significant projects or activities to find better ways of doing things” (Chahine, 2023:5). As a type of entrepreneur, what is distinctive about social entrepreneurs is that their missions entail bringing about social change through creating social value, not just private value.   
Social entrepreneurship refers to the diverse efforts to meet social and environmental challenges by pioneering effective and sustainable solutions to social problems through innovating products, services, methods, processes, networks, and systems (Chahine, 2023:7)  Social enterprises are often hybrid organizations, mixing social with commercial strategies and leveraging community, societal, and market mechanisms. (For some examples, visit https://www.ikeasocialentrepreneurship.org/ ) 

This course seeks to provide students with the foundation for understanding social entrepreneurship and for becoming social entrepreneurs.  We will discuss and deploy concrete tools for: identifying problems and the complex socio-economic ecosystems they are embedded in; engaging with and collaborating with the problem’s stakeholders; developing innovative solutions; and organizing strategically and practically for sustained endeavors to address social and environmental challenges.  

Attendance is mandatory in all units that are held in presence mode on campus as well as in all synchronously held online units of the course. Justified and pre-announced absences of no more than 20% of the mandatory teaching hours will be tolerated.

This course combines individual and group performance components as it looks at the goals, underpinnings, and workings of social entrepreneurship. It will meet 5 times for 4 hours, with a 6th meeting for a written final exam .  Class meetings will comprise a combination of rigorous plenary discussion on assigned materials and team break-out activities (including research on particular social problems, social enterprise ecosystems, and selected social enterprises).  Student teams will present discuss three presentations on three topics as explained in the breakdown of performance components.  Students should come to class having read assigned materials.  Before each class, students will submit answers to study questions on the assigned materials. 

Please note that it is not permitted to use artificial intelligence (AI) especially “ChatGPT” in our SBWL courses. In specific sessions the use of AI may be scheduled. This will be explicitly announced by the course instructor.

1.       Individual level performance components:
   a.      Written responses to study questions – one each for class meetings on March 13, March 20, April 1 and April 10 (6% each for an aggregate of 24% of final grade)
   b.     Written final on May 22 (26% of grade)
2.       Team level performance components: written project components and in-class presentations
   a.      Initial problem statement: an articulation of understanding and vision for better alternatives (10% of grade)
                   i.     A theoretically and empirically sound understanding of the underlying causes  and the societal mechanisms that sustain or exacerbate the societal problems that most concern them;
                  ii.     An exploration of your team’s vision for a better world;
   b.     Model for Change and Business Model/Mission Model Canvases of one social enterprise in a chosen problem domain (15% of grade) 
   c.      Analysis of a single social entrepreneurship ecosystem and the comparative assessment of the models for change and business model/mission models of two enterprises in that ecosystem, with assessment of strengths
           and weaknesses from a potential funder’s perspective (25% of grade)

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