Abstract:
After years of formalized international development efforts, the world continues
to face significant problems. Humanity's greatest challenges - poverty, hunger, disease,
and environmental degradation - remain prevalent and in some cases have even
worsened. One reason the world's social problems are so resistant is an ideological
failure to conceptualize a more inclusive economic order, one that values economic
progress along with social justice.
In light of this failure, innovative business models have emerged that create
transformational change by integrating social value and economic profit, often referred to
as social entrepreneurship. By questioning the structural and ideological boundaries that
limit the relationship between the public, private, and nonprofit sectors, this thesis argues for social entrepreneurship as a viable means to overcome the predominant belief that
economic and social progress are mutually exclusive goals.