Sixteenth International Conference on Environmental, Cultural, Economic & Social Sustainability

Abstract

Pressing global challenges such as growing resource scarcity, financial crisis, inequality and rising mental health problems call for cross-cutting solutions that embody links between economy, environment, and society. This is where mission-driven social enterprises, which address social needs and help to create healthy and inclusive communities, deserve recognition as important vehicles for social and environmental sustainability. When viewed through the lens of circular economy - the new transformative paradigm, which views waste as a resource and is quickly gaining momentum across diverse research fields - social enterprises can form linkages between sustainable resource use and social inclusion. This paper reports the preliminary theoretical and empirical findings of a research project aiming to elucidate the social sustainability dimension of circular economy through studying social enterprises in Hull (UK), Graz (Austria) and Santiago de Chile (Chile). The research investigates the potential of social enterprises to magnify their social impact by incorporating circular economy principles into their activities, and/or upscaling their circular activities in areas such as food, housing, textile, and furniture. Drawing upon the literatures on diverse economies and alternative economic spaces, the research challenges a dominant capitalist narrative framing efforts to develop the circular economy. Using social networks theory, it then identifies how activities delivered by social circular enterprises and their networks, can be organised in such a fashion as to benefit marginalized communities, whilst delivering environmental objectives. The research further presents social enterprise partnerships and networks as people-centered accelerators facilitating a transition towards more inclusive and socially sustainable circular economy.