Society–The environment, mainly comprised of people, where we live.
Social–The feelings the people in the society hold and convey towards each other and other happenings of the society.
Now that the definition and difference between the two terms- society and social is clear, let us go a bit deeper about how they are intertwined.
We all know the saying:
Man is a social animal
And the society is made of people, more generalized as man. Hence, people make families and families make society. The well-being of a person directly depends upon the well-being of the people of the society and his social relations. More elaborately speaking, if a person aims to raise his standard of living, he or she will automatically work towards grooming the lifestyle of the family. People and their families climb up the societal ladder and thus the society progresses in terms of economy, health and moral conditions.
Going scientific, the mutual relationship between society and social impacts may be said to be directly proportional to each other.
Progress of Society is directly proportional to Social Well Being
The better the people are, the better will be the society and vice versa.
Through the never ending endeavors of people, the society has blessed us with yet another breed of entrepreneurs- “The Social Entrepreneurs”
Social entrepreneurship aims at being innovative and creative in ways such that it has a good and remarkable impact on the society. For a developing nation like India, where there is still a lot of scope for development to crawl in, social entrepreneurs are of utmost importance and can manage a good market as well. Wow! What else can a start-up wish for? 😉
Unlike conventional entrepreneurs, who mainly aim at making profit and earning the tag of having a successful start-up, social entrepreneurs make it a point to improve the cultural as well as societal conditions around them apart from economic conditions. The name itself-“social entrepreneurs” carry weight to their business.
They just do that extra to make it extraordinary.
Many people may confuse philanthropists, social activists and environmentalists as social entrepreneurs. They really are to some extent but not exactly a social entrepreneur. As David Borsntien says, social entrepreneurs are social innovators. They think new, implement it, make profit and benefit the society as well.
A social entrepreneur, contrary to an entrepreneur needs to adjust according to the needs of the society and not the rules. Breaking rules and making new, of course for the good is their main motto. They make or recreate new things depending upon the situations, demands and need. On that basis, they have can be broadly classified as:
The Leveraged Non-Profit
This particular category responds to social needs. Leveraged non-profits make innovative use of available funds, in order to impact a need. They use more traditional ways of dealing with issues. Undoubtedly, they are distinguished by their innovative approaches.
The Hybrid Non-Profit
This category is seen as an Angel by many, in times of need. Such organisations are different because they are ready to use profits to sustain its operations. By times of need, we may consider market failures or Government failures.
The Social Business Venture
These models are set up as businesses designed to create change through social means. Social business ventures evolved through a lack of funding—social entrepreneurs in this situation were forced to become for-profit ventures.
These were the types of social entrepreneurs that the world has till now discovered. Of course, there are more coming.
Here, we are presenting some social entrepreneurs who have shown the world the true meaning of social entrepreneurship:
Muhammad Yunus
It would be a sin if we talk about social entrepreneurship and do not mention him. Founder of Grameen Bank, this man was awarded a Nobel Prize in 2006. His organisation provides micro-credit loans to help people in situations of financial incompetency. Popularly known as the “Father of Micro-credit”, the main aim of his organisation is to help people in need, thereby relieving the society of its economic pressure.
Sanjit Bunker Roy
Indian social activist and entrepreneur Sanjit “Bunker” Roy has helped thousands of people in Asia and Africa learn vital technical skills and bring solar power to their sometimes villages. Founder of the Barefoot College, an organization whose main aim is women empowerment and teach illiterate women from poor villages. They aspire and motivate them for becoming future doctors, engineers, and architects. What’s more impressive is that each of the college’s campuses are solar powered and often built and designed by former students. His main aim was to do his bit in making a better society for the women, making them realise their value-in which he indeed succeeded.
Blake Mycoskie
Ever thought of a day where you don’t have shoes to wear owing to sickness or your injury? Difficult to imagine even! Unfortunately, such was the condition of small children in Argentina when Blake went there on a visit. Seeing their plight, he founded TOMS in 2006- an organisation that donates a pair of shoes to these needy children for every pair of shoes that is bought. That’s not the end of it! Of late, they have started giving away a pair of glasses or sight saving surgery for every pair of glasses that is sold. Now that’s a true social entrepreneur.
Reese Fernandez-Ruiz
Founder of Rags2Riches, she is not even thirty years old and already has a lot of accolades, including Schwab Social Entrepreneur of the Year 2013 to her name. They help the poor artisans around the world by providing them work. They create eco-ethical fashion and home accessories out of scrap cloth, organic materials and indigenous fabrics. Social entrepreneur for the world.
These are just a few from the never ending list of social entrepreneurs. The world has made and will continue producing such awesome people who are both economically and socially responsible-people called ‘social entrepreneurs’.
The true essence of social entrepreneurship has been well described in the following words by M. Yunus:
“When we want to help the poor, we usually offer them charity. Most often we use charity to avoid recognizing the problem and finding the solution for it. Charity becomes a way to shrug off our responsibility. But charity is no solution to poverty. Charity only perpetuates poverty by taking the initiative away from the poor. Charity allows us to go ahead with our own lives without worrying about the lives of the poor. Charity appeases our consciences.”
Let us know your views about social entrepreneurship and how is it a boon for the modern society by commenting below.
