Sally Osberg of the Skoll Foundation said, “Social entrepreneurs … see opportunities where other people see hopeless failures.” I think she’s absolutely right. This viewpoint differentiates social entrepreneurs and organizations like the ARC Initiative from ordinary relief workers.
Sarvajal, a social enterprise maintained by communities in Rajasthan. (Further reading below) Source: Imagination for People
Social entrepreneurs see social problems as an outlet for change. I’d argue though, successful social entrepreneurs are not necessarily the ones changing the landscape. Instead, they’re providing the locals with the skills to invoke or sustain change how they want it. The ARC Initiative demonstrates this by training local business owners in poorer nations. They’re essentially saying, “Here’s a toolkit. Use this and build your business and community how you want it to be built.”
I’m not undermining the United Nations however. They have great incentives in place like the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), which is striving for sustainable change. What the United Nations lack, however, is innovation. It doesn’t matter if the United Nations is fully funded. The organization is too structured, change is too slow, and decisions are too dependent on the wealthier countries. Individuals aren’t given enough power to enact unconventional change, which is what social entrepreneurs do. Unusual but strategic ideas are what it’s going to take to break cycles and solve societal issues.
“Graduates” of UNDP’s Entrepreneurship Development Programme. Source: UNDP
In my opinion, the UNDP has immense potential IF it partners with social entrepreneurs. These ambitious, results-driven individuals are the ones who will create and follow-through with original solutions that can be sustained in the long run by those directly affected.
References:
Sources/Text Hyperlinks: http://skollworldforum.org/about/what-is-social-entrepreneurship/
http://www.sauder.ubc.ca/Global_Reach/ARC_Initiative
http://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home.html
Further reading (about social enterprises): Grameeen Bank, Sarvajal
Image Sources: http://imaginationforpeople.org/en/project/sarvajal/
http://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/ourwork/
povertyreduction/overview.html
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