Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

In development circles, there is now widespread consensus that social entrepreneurs represent a far better mechanism to respond to needs than we have ever had before--a decentralized and emergent force that remains our best hope for solutions that can keep pace with our problems and create a more peaceful world. David Bornstein's previous book on social entrepreneurship, How to Change the World, was hailed by Nicholas Kristof in The New York Times as "a bible in the field" and published in more than twenty countries. Now, Bornstein shifts the focus from the profiles of successful social innovators in that book--and teams with Susan Davis, a founding board member of the Grameen Foundation--to offer the first general overview of social entrepreneurship. In a Q and A format allowing readers to go directly to the information they need, the authors map out social entrepreneurship in its broadest terms as well as in its particulars.Bornstein and Davis explain what social entrepreneurs are, how their organizations function, and what challenges they face. The book will give readers an understanding of what differentiates social entrepreneurship from standard business ventures and how it differs from traditional grant-based non-profit work. Unlike the typical top-down, model-based approach to solving problems employed by the World Bank and other large institutions, social entrepreneurs works through a process of iterative learning--learning by doing--working with communities to find unique, local solutions to unique, local problems. Most importantly, the book shows readers exactly how they can get involved. Anyone inspired by Barack Obama's call to service and who wants to learn more about the essential features and enormous promise of this new method of social change, Social Entrepreneurship is the ideal first place to look.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

• Acknowledgments (p. xi)
• A Note on Terms (p. xv)
• Introduction (p. xvii)
• Part I Defining Social Entrepreneurship (p. 1)
• What is social entrepreneurship? (p. 1)
• When did it emerge as a global movement? (p. 7)
• Who are the pioneers? (p. 13)
• What does a social entrepreneur do? (p. 20)
• What are social entrepreneurs like? (p. 26)
• What is the difference between social and business entrepreneurship? (p. 30)
• What are the differences between social entrepreneurship and government? (p. 34)
• How is social entrepreneurship different from activism? (p. 37)
• What is the relationship between social entrepreneurship and democracy? (p. 41)
• Part II Challenges of Causing Change (p. 48)
• What are the main financial constraints? (p. 48)
• How do social entrepreneurs finance organizations and enterprises? (p. 50)
• Can the field attract and cultivate talented workers? (p. 57)
• How do social entrepreneurs evaluate their impact? (p. 61)
• What is the difference between scale and impact? (p. 67)
• What's stopping social change? (p. 70)
• Part III Envisioning an Innovating Society (p. 75)
• How is social entrepreneurship changing minds? (p. 75)
• How could schools nurture social innovators? (p. 81)
• What is being done at the university level? (p. 86)
• What can governments do to engage more successfully with social entrepreneurs? (p. 91)
• How is social entrepreneurship influencing business? (p. 99)
• Can philanthropy be more effective? (p. 108)
• How will the field of social entrepreneurship influence journalism? (p. 115)
• How can individuals prepare themselves to participate in the field of social entrepreneurship? (p. 120)
• Appendix A (p. 129)
• Selected Bibliography (p. 133)
• Index (p. 141)

Reviews provided by Syndetics

CHOICE Review

Bornstein (How to Change the World: Social Entrepreneurs and the Power of New Ideas, 2004) and Davis (social entrepreneur) provide an excellent introduction to social entrepreneurship, which has grown into a global movement addressing many of the world's most dogged problems and is changing how people think of social transformation. Part 1, "Defining Social Entrepreneurship," clarifies what social entrepreneurship is, what social entrepreneurs are like, and what they do. The authors explain how it differs from what government, business, and activists do, and they elucidate the relationship between social entrepreneurship and democracy. The second part of the book, "Challenges of Causing Change," discusses financial constraints, attracting and cultivating talent, evaluating impact, and other factors that can derail social change. The book concludes with a focus on envisioning an innovative society. It discusses how social entrepreneurship is changing minds; how schools might nurture social innovators; what governments can do to engage more successfully with social entrepreneurs; how social entrepreneurship influences business; how philanthropy can be more effective; how social entrepreneurship will influence journalism; and how individuals can prepare themselves to participate in social entrepreneurship. Although their coverage is somewhat eclectic, the authors have created a sine qua non for the field. Summing Up: Essential. Lower-division undergraduate through professional collections. C. Wankel St. John's University, New York

Author notes provided by Syndetics

David Bornstein is the author of The Price of a Dream and How to Change the World. His articles have appeared in the Atlantic Monthly and the New York Times. He lives in New York City.
Susan Davis is the founding President CEO of BRAC USA and a founding board member of the Grameen Foundation.