DAV Public School Structure of Social Entrepreneurship Discussion & Responses

Reading from: Understanding Social Entrepreneurship: The Relentless Pursuit of Mission in an Ever Changing World
Chapter 4 Designing and Modelling A Social Venture

Media:

Theory of Change GSBI:

A New Paradigm: Toward a User-Centered Social Sector

https://ssir.org/articles/entry/a_new_paradigm_tow…

Listening to Those Who Matter Most

https://ssir.org/articles/entry/listening_to_those…

The Power of Feedback

https://ssir.org/videos/entry/homeless_shelter_use…

SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURS OF THE WEEK: FOOD AND AG

Matilda Ho

https://www.ted.com/speakers/matilda_ho

Sustainable Foods in China

Bagel Bejgl

Women’s empowerment

Good Nature Agro

Small Farmers

Part 1: WRITE 100 WORDS ON THIS WEEK’S READING AND/OR MEDIA EVENT

Write 100 words to tell our class your thoughts on this week’s reading and/or media events etc.

Discuss and consider how social problems can be addressed the social science method Design Thinking, social entrepreneurial thinking/approaches, and innovations provided by technologies.

Reference at least one reading, media event, or digital educational material for the week.

Part 2: Write at least 50 words per response to each fellow student for 100 words total.

Discussion Prompt:

1. In Listening to Those Who Matter Most, the Beneficiaries, I learned that, as a social entrepreneur, it’s important to learn the limitations of local infrastructures that could impact the beneficiaries you’re working with. I thought a great example of this was Bagel Bejgl’s Women’s Empowerment Talk. In Serbia, there is a strong lack of educational and economic opportunities for women who are survivors of trafficking and violence. Bagel Bejgl understood how the local infrastructure fell short of helping these women. So, their mission is “to improve the economic future of these women through the production/sales of bagels, delivering skill-building workshops, creating employment opportunities, and investing in the long-term support of survivors of violence” (Bagel Bejgl).

2. From Homeless Shelter Uses Feedback to Help Its Clients Regain Independence, it was very easy to see how meaningful it is to the beneficiaries when their voices are actively being recorded and their thoughts on the product or service are actually accounted for, rather just used as a suggestion. In Listening to Those Who Matter Most, the Beneficiaries, they explain that many organizations do not focus on what their beneficiaries want, but rather they focus on the wants and needs of those funding the operation. It is a very tough situation as the main purpose of social entrepreneurship is severely damaged when this occurs. Those who actually benefit from the product or service end up having their needs left on the back burner, which completely overlooks the main purpose of the organization. It is necessary to take into account the beneficiaries’ opinions to ensure that they are satisfied and excited to come back.

Part 3: Analytic Response to Readings, Media, and Social Entrepreneurship Exemplars for the Week.

500 words minimum including quotes you incorporate from the text.

Required: at least three (3) verbatim quotes from the reading with page numbers (no page numbers required for websites) or paraphrases of the speakers/media events with general time stamp for videos or date for “live events.”

Prompt: Provide an overview of what you have learned how the structure of social entrepreneurships can differ from traditional top-down organizations? What is different about designing a social venture than using the for-profit model? Can you do both at the same time: can you do well and do good (let’s hope the answer is YES)? Living in developed economies, we take for granted many kinds of infrastructure that are not universal. When seeking to meet local needs, what are different kinds of local infrastructures that need to be considered? Consider physical infrastructure: transportation (roads, highways, trucking, rail, shipping, aviation, etc.), power grids (gas, electric, solar, wind, etc.), water and sanitation (potable water, normative plumbing, sewage, etc.), telecommunications (internet, telephony, print services, postal service, etc.)? How do we need a deep understanding of local infrastructure capabilities and limitations in order to serve client needs? What did you find inspiring about the Social Entrepreneurs of the Week—what did they teach you about how solutions to social problems need to take into account local infrastructure?