Creating Systematic Change: The Role of Social Entrepreneurship in Circular Economy

Circular economy and social entrepreneurship are gaining recognition as the solution for social and environmental challenges from academia, industry, and policymakers around the world. However, how the two concepts come together and contribute to sustainability requires more empirical study and data. This paper, therefore, discusses the role of social entrepreneurship in the circular economy and how they lead the way to sustainable development. Through analyzing the cases from the Social Enterprise World Forum (SEWF) and its network, three circular practices that realize circularity were identified, including circular products, circular services, and circular ecosystem building that contributes to developing novel models, prolonging the lifespan of materials and products, and increasing public awareness and participation. Furthermore, while the circular economy approach provides alternative ways for economic and environmental concerns, social entrepreneurs who emphasize social inclusion compensate for the shortage of social aspects in the circular economy. Hence, this paper proposes the “social entrepreneurship + circular economy” framework that combines the strengths of both concepts that can create triple value—societal, environmental, and economic—to achieve systematic change.