This book explores the Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) in Latin America. It highlights the challenges and possibilities for the countries of this region, and analyzes the evolution of the Social Economy’s processes in order to ascertain its implications and social dimensions. The text also deals with solidarity alternatives in the capital market and the emergencies that occur in order to humanize the capitalist system.

Education programs in social entrepreneurship helps to create and fill jobs devoted to developing the local economy, which has become a dual transfer strategy by which a virtuous circle occurs between a retrofitted educational system based on social entrepreneurship, and vocational students who are highly entrepreneurial. The Handbook of Research on Social Entrepreneurship and Solidarity Economics focuses on practical experience and theoretical models for popularizing the concept of social entrepreneurship as a critical element of economic growth. Emphasizing the ways in which social entrepreneurship benefits developing regions, small and medium enterprises, and low-income communities, this handbook of research is a pivotal reference source for professionals, academics, and graduate-level students in the fields of economics, business administration, sociology, education, politics, and international relations.

In the absence of a widely accepted and common definition of social enterprise (SE), a large research project, the "International Comparative Social Enterprise Models" (ICSEM) Project, was carried out over a five-year period; it involved more than 200 researchers from 55 countries and relied on bottom-up approaches to capture the SE phenomenon. This strategy made it possible to take into account and give legitimacy to locally embedded approaches, thus resulting in an analysis encompassing a wide diversity of social enterprises, while simultaneously allowing for the identification of major SE models to delineate the field on common grounds at the international level. These SE models reveal or confirm an overall trend towards new ways of sharing the responsibility for the common good in today’s economies and societies. We tend to consider as good news the fact that social enterprises actually stem from all parts of the economy. Indeed, societies are facing many complex challenges at all levels, from the local to the global level. The diversity and internal variety of SE models are a sign of a broadly shared willingness to develop appropriate although sometimes embryonic—responses to these challenges, on the basis of innovative economic/business models driven by a social mission. In spite of their weaknesses, social enterprises may be seen as advocates for and vehicles of the general interest across the whole economy. Of course, the debate about privatisation, deregulation and globalised market competition—all factors that may hinder efforts in the search for the common good–has to be addressed as well. The second of a series of four ICSEM books, Social Enterprise in Latin America will serve as a key reference and resource for teachers, researchers, students, experts, policy makers, journalists and other categories of people who want to acquire a broad understanding of the phenomena of social enterprise and social entrepreneurship as they emerge and develop across the world.

This book focuses on the role of subsistence entrepreneurs in creating social and sustainable business opportunities on the global marketplace. Subsistence entrepreneurs use scarce resources to create new business opportunities, often in developing or emerging economies. In addition, subsistence entrepreneurship is increasingly being used as a way to facilitate market entry for small and medium-sized business enterprises that focus on collaborative innovation. The interdisciplinary contributions gathered here will expand readers’ understanding of the nature and characteristics of subsistence entrepreneurs, as well as the challenges they face. The central connection between subsistence, sustainability and social entrepreneurship is also explored.

Social and Solidarity Economy in Cuba examines the role of Social and Solidarity Economics (SSE) amidst national change in Cuba. Depicting both challenges and opportunities, this book makes a strong and sustained case for solidary and socially responsible practices in Cuba.

In recent years, much mainstream development discourse has sought to co-opt and neutralize key concepts relating to empowerment, participation, gender, sustainability and inclusivity in order to serve a market-driven, neoliberal agenda. Critical development studies now play a crucial role in combatting this by analyzing the systemic changes needed to transform the current world to one where economic and social justice and environmental integrity prevail. The Essential Guide to Critical Development Studies takes as its starting point the multiple crises – economic, political, social and environmental – of the dominant current global capitalist system. The chapters collectively document and analyze these crises and the need to find alternatives to the system(s) that generate them. To do so, analyses of class, gender and empire are placed at the centre of discussion, in contrast to markets, liberalization and convergence, which characterize mainstream development discourse. Each contributor supplements their overview with a guide to the critical development studies literature on the topic, thereby providing scholars and students not only with a precis of the key issues, but also a signpost to further readings. This is an important resource for academics, researchers, policymakers and professionals in the areas of development studies, political science, sociology, economics, gender studies, history, anthropology, agrarian studies, international relations and international political economy.

The De Gruyter Handbook of Social Entrepreneurship serves as a one-stop shop for nascent and established scholars and practitioners alike who seek to quickly gain a broad familiarity with the current state of research in social entrepreneurship. Part 1 reviews and discusses the historical scholarly foundations of the field, followed by a more in-depth treatment of newer research, while Part 2 examines the broader ecosystem in which social entrepreneurship takes place. In Part 3, the handbook explores infrastructural considerations such as organizational culture, values, processes, business models and mindsets that affect social entrepreneurship. Finally, in Part 4 the handbook analyzes social entrepreneurship from the individual social entrepreneur’s perspective. Faculty, research-oriented graduate students, think tanks, and government agencies who seek an overview of recent research in the field of social entrepreneurship will benefit from this essential addition to the literature. In addition, practicing social entrepreneurs, intrapreneurs in corporate settings, and non-governmental organizations interested in social entrepreneurship can use this handbook as a resource to inform their approaches to the development of social ventures, how they support social entrepreneurs, and the ways in which they can foster conditions to support a thriving social entrepreneurial ecosystem.