How Social Enterprises Can Contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – A Conceptual Framework

In the recent 2015 report by Social Enterprise UK – Think Global Trade Social – it is argued that social enterprises have an important role to play in the achievement of the UN’s new sustainable development goals (SDGs). However, with 17 SDGs and no less than 169 associated targets, understanding how social enterprises can contribute to the achievement of these goals remains challenging, particularly given the diversity of social enterprise models that exist globally. This chapter contributes toward addressing this problem by introducing a framework for conceptualising how social enterprises can contribute to the SDGs, illustrated with global examples. The chapter begins by reviewing what has been written about social enterprises and the SDGs. This is followed by the development and presentation of the conceptual framework. Finally, conclusions and areas for future research on social enterprises and the SDGs are identified.