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ABSTRACT
Social entrepreneurship is not new, but has gained greater visibility and recognition in recent years due to its growing worldwide impact. As in the case of business entrepreneurship, social entrepreneurship starts with an entrepreneur who has a novel idea, an innovative product or service, a creative approach to solving a perceived problem, a new business model, and/or a previously untried approach to product or service delivery. However, social entrepreneurship differs from business entrepreneurship because it is after sustainable solutions to societal problems and aims at social change rather than market expansion. It is, therefore, seen more as an agent of change than a profit-seeking enterprise. This paper explores the characteristics of social entrepreneurship, and the factors that make a difference in its success or failure. It also sheds some light on what a social entrepreneurship is and what it is not. Finally, it examines the missions and contributions of six successful social entrepreneurships: The Grameen Bank of Bangladesh, ADAPT of Egypt, BRAC of Bangladesh, Instituto de Pesquisas Ecologicas of Brazil, the Aravind Eye Care Hospitals of India, and Televerde's Prison Call Centers of the United States. The impact of the first four has spread beyond their countries of origin, either through the geographic expansion of their operations or the application of the same concept or business model by social enterprises in other countries.
Keywords: Social entrepreneurship; business entrepreneurship
CHARACTERISTICS OF SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIPS
Due to the varying definitions and descriptions of social entrepreneurship, a recent article on the subject asked: Will me real social entrepreneur please stand up? According to some, the term applies to any out-of-the-box effort that focuses exclusively on solving societal problems, be they social, educational, economic, or environmental. Others view social entrepreneurship from the perspective of establishing a social enterprise that will introduce an innovative approach to deal with a social problem. Based on the all inclusive first definition, reformers who lead a movement for a social cause would be categorized as social entrepreneurs. This group would include historic figures like Suzan B. Anthony, who fought for the rights of women; Vinoba Bhave, who called for the redistribution of land to help poor Indians; Jean Monnet, who led the rebuilding of the French economy after World War II; and...