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Sustainable entrepreneurs operating in protected areas face distinctive barriers that place additional emphasis on the need to build legitimacy. To date, how they do this has not been entirely explored. This paper addresses this need through an exploratory study of sustainable entrepreneurs in a transnational protected area. The results indicate that sustainable entrepreneurs in protected areas face barriers that can be broadly classified as cognition spanning, locale and sector-related barriers. The findings highlight that a key way sustainable entrepreneurs overcome these distinctive barriers is by building legitimacy through activism. Activism became instrumental in building legitimacy with varied stakeholders and actors. This is all geared towards overcoming barriers during the sustainable entrepreneurship process. The findings add to existing literature on the role of legitimacy building in sustainable entrepreneurship by detailing the different forms of legitimacy and how they are built through activism. The paper concludes with propositions about the conditions necessary for sustainable entrepreneurs to build legitimacy in fragile socioecological contexts through activism.

Purpose: This study aimed to analyze how the career-building process of sustainable entrepreneurs occurs from the perspective of sustainable careers and how the influential factors in their career decisions are related to the dimensions and characteristics of sustainable careers. Design/methodology/approach: This is a qualitative study carried out by analyzing three Brazilian entrepreneurs’ life stories. Subsequently, the data were submitted to narrative analysis using the Atlas.ti software and then interpreted using sustainable career’s dimensions and characteristics. Findings: The study corroborates the literature on entrepreneurship, sustainability, and careers, shedding new light on the career decision process of sustainable entrepreneurs from the assumptions of the sustainable career perspective. We identified the emergence of influential categories as a disorienting dilemma, the importance of agency and meaning dimensions and the career coherence with values, quality of life, and self-fulfillment. In addition, sustainable entrepreneurship appears to be in line with the ideals of decent work, allowing for individual well-being, matching life and career values, and long-term employability. Originality: The sustainable career perspective offers an innovative, dynamic, and systemic perspective to understanding the professional trajectories of sustainable entrepreneurs, considering their learning along their trajectory, crossing different social spaces, experiences, and creations, which allow them to improve the adaptability necessary for the sustainability of their careers. RESUMO Objetivo: Este estudo teve como objetivo analisar de que forma ocorre o processo de construção de carreira de empreendedores sustentáveis na perspectiva teórica de Carreiras Sustentável e como os fatores influentes em suas decisões de carreira estão relacionados às dimensões e características da Carreiras Sustentável. Desenho/metodologia/abordagem: Trata-se de um estudo qualitativo realizado a partir da análise das histórias de vida de três empreendedores brasileiros. Posteriormente, os dados foram submetidos à análise de conteúdo por meio do software Atlas.ti e interpretados a partir das dimensões e características da Carreira Sustentável. Resultados: O estudo corrobora a literatura sobre empreendedorismo, sustentabilidade e carreiras, lançando luz sobre o processo de decisão de carreira de empreendedores sustentáveis a partir dos pressupostos da perspectiva de Carreira Sustentável. Identificou-se a emergência de categorias influentes como dilema desorientador, a importância das dimensões de agência e significado e a coerência da carreira com valores, qualidade de vida e autorrealização. Além disso, o empreendedorismo sustentável parece estar alinhado com os ideais de trabalho decente, permitindo o bem-estar individual, combinando valores de vida e carreira e empregabilidade de longo prazo. Originalidade: A perspectiva de Carreira Sustentável oferece uma perspectiva inovadora, dinâmica e sistêmica para compreender as trajetórias profissionais de empreendedores sustentáveis, considerando seu aprendizado ao longo de sua trajetória, atravessando diferentes espaços sociais, experiências e criações, que lhes permitem aprimorar a adaptabilidade necessária para a sustentabilidade de suas carreiras.

This research analyses the effects of psychological resilience and subjective norms of university students in this region on their perceived social support and on their intention to undertake sustainable businesses, as well as assessing the effect of perceived social support on their sustainable entrepreneurial intention

As the digital revolution accelerates and expands in the business world, governments must transform the workforce experience to drive the economy and align it with the changes of the future. In this paper, an innovative and advanced methodological approach for assessing the composite relational dynamics supporting innovative and sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystems is investigated. This research uses the hierarchical decision model (HDM) to construct a generalized ecosystem assessment framework for entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystem strategies to increase the adoption of innovation in sustainable entrepreneurship. The research focuses on the policies and strategies generating all kinds of innovations and propose a model with a comprehensive set of measures to help policy and strategy development.

For research as well as policymakers aiming at fostering multilevel transitions toward sustainability, there is a clear need to better understand the transformative role and relevance of startups as newcomers in the market. The existing typologies of sustainable entrepreneurship and green startups have been derived from theory and are conceptual or anecdotal in nature. The lack of validity and generalizability is a major research gap, as the existing typologies do not provide a sufficient basis for policy decisions on how to promote which type of entrepreneurship to effectively support specific transition policies. Against this backdrop, we investigate the research question: Does the transformation orientation differ among startups, and if so, how can they be clustered as basis for sustainability transition policy? Based on a sample of 1674 startups and cluster analysis, the paper makes three important contributions: First, we provide a differentiated perspective and empirical data on the transformation orientation of newcomers. Second, we provide an empirically founded taxonomy of the transformative orientation of startups and contribute to theory‐building of transformative entrepreneurship. Third, we test the assumption inherent in most existing frameworks that there exists a high‐potential subgroup of startups. Our results confirm the existence of a clearly distinguishable subgroup with a particularly high transformation orientation, which we label as "sustainability transformers." In terms of transition strategies, policymakers can build on our findings to adjust public funds and support programs in favor of specific subgroups such as sustainability transformers.

Addressing global sustainability challenges requires a mainstreaming of business models for sustainability (BMfS) in mature industries. However, the presence of an already dominant mainstream business model in an industry tends to hold back BMfS. This article investigates how new types of BMfS can become generally accepted and widely adopted in an industry. It presents a qualitative study of the mainstreaming of BMfS in the Dutch electricity industry. The findings show that this process depends on entrepreneurs’ capacity to (1) incorporate alternative institutional logics into the design of BMfS to achieve optimal distinctiveness and (2) to directly alter the dominant institutional logic of the industry to make it more conducive to BMfS. Furthermore, successful BMfS act as anomalies that indirectly alter the industry’s dominant institutional logic. Anomalies support a self-reinforcing loop that accelerates the mainstreaming process. We integrate these findings into a dynamic model of the mainstreaming of BMfS.

This study aims to measure and investigates the mediating effect of business incubators (BIs) and the influence of training programs, capital support, and networking services on sustainable entrepreneurship growth (SEG). A mediated conceptual model is constructed to simplify the effect and influences of variables taken in this study. A quantitative research method is employed on a sample size of 567. A survey questionnaire was used as an instrument to collect data from incubator centers and entrepreneurs. The method of bootstrapping, partial least squares (software 3.2.8) Algorithms, and structural equation models were used. In findings, the positive and significant influence of networking services, capital support, and training programs were identified on SEG. Also, the relationship between networking services, capital support, training programs, and SEG was mediated by BIs.

Addressing the sustainability crisis requires innovative approaches such as sustainable technological entrepreneurship. The case of Estonia, as an example of a twin (digital and green) transition, is examined. We explored Estonian entrepreneurs’ perceptions of challenges and opportunities related to the green transition. The data were collected via an online survey from 532 Estonian companies, focus groups, and individual semi-structured interviews with 42 experts. Survey data were analyzed using proportional odds logistic regression, and interview data were examined using thematic analysis. Based on the interview findings, the main perceived entrepreneurial opportunities related to green transitions were increasing production efficiency and favoring taxation for green products and services. The main challenges included losing competitive advantage, coping with crises, and the need for long-term planning and significant investments. Survey findings revealed that too much pressure only from politicians and a lack of innovation might increase the likelihood of perceived company cost increases. More pressure from other stakeholders and increased innovation were associated with higher odds of viewing the green transition as an opportunity. This study provides valuable insights into the perceptions of Estonian entrepreneurs regarding the challenges and opportunities of the green transition and contributes to their categorization.

The present research proposes a theoretical framework for a thrivable entrepreneurial ecosystem in which thrivability is a novel entrepreneurship approach that embeds a comprehensive view in which sustainability is ‘the way to walk’ rather than the goal to reach. A thrivable entrepreneurial ecosystem aims to create prosperity through ecosystem resource (re)generation and transformation to define long-term economic goals. The framework is applied here to address the grand challenge of sustainable development in wineries. A local wine ecosystem in Italy is employed as a case study supported by mix-method-based, in-depth data collection (survey and interview). Results from the study support the idea that organizations can collaborate in a thrivable entrepreneurial ecosystem as a unique entity respectful of nature, driving economic viability of both firms and territories by improving quality of life, and caring for natural resources and local communities. This novel entrepreneurial approach may represent a turning point for facing increasingly grand business challenges.

Several previous research had conducted to identify factors that have a significant impact on SMEs' sustainable behavior. But unfortunately, there has not been a single study that explores the influence of these factors in an ongoing pandemic condition. Our study tried to describe the level of effectiveness of the contribution and ability of competitive advantage factors and corporate culture in improving the SMEs sustainable behavior. The results of this study can be used for better SME development strategies, especially in conditions where pandemics such as COVID-19 are still ongoing. This research was conducted using a sample of 194 SMEs in the province of South Kalimantan-Indonesia. Sampling took by a purposive sampling technique and an online questionnaire as a research instrument. Data analysis techniques are using SEM by testing the construct validity and reliability, influence testing, path analysis, and contribution effectiveness analysis. This study found that competitive advantage had no significant effect on sustainable behavior, while corporate culture has a substantial impact on SMEs' sustainable behavior. The total direct impact and effectiveness of the contribution given by the corporate culture factor are more significant (79%) compared to the competitive advantage factor (21%).

Research Background: Climate change poses a core threat to the current and future welfare of society. Sub-Saharan Africa is particularly susceptible to challenges associated with climate change, most of which are bound to have large-scale societal impacts. Fortunately, Grand Challenges (GCs) can also enable opportunities for sustainable entrepreneurship to emerge. As entrepreneurs work in larger interrelated ecosystems, it is noteworthy to explore the utilization of ecosystems to develop sustainable ventures that address GCs. Current research has not addressed the interplay between external enablers and entrepreneurial ecosystems, especially in the Sub-Saharan context. The focus of this study is to explore how sustainable entrepreneurs acted on GCs in the pursuit of venture opportunities, and how ecosystems were utilized to foster the development of entrepreneurial agents and their ventures. Research Purpose: The purpose of this research is to identify how GCs facilitate sustainable entrepreneurship in Sub-Saharan Africa, given the interaction between entrepreneurs, their ecosystems, and climate change-associated GCs. Method: The research paradigm for this study follows critical realism. Meaning, we question the nature of reality as inherently multilayered and align with epistemic relativism. An explorative interview-based study was adopted for our methodology. We sampled our interview candidates purposively through the formation of several criteria. In total, we collected data from 20 semi-structured interviews through online platforms. We analyzed our data by interpreting principles of thematic analysis and the theory- building approach, to connect empirical themes to theoretical constructs. Conclusion: The results for this study show that sustainable entrepreneurs act on a wide variety of GCs. Within ecosystems, we noticed that sustainable development, cultural belief systems, educational infrastructure, governance, and resource accessibility influence the potential for ecosystems to develop. Specifically, we adopted three dimensions in which these pillars have influences: the entrepreneurial, communal, and structural level. The findings indicated that the scope of external enablers is fluid due to ecosystem interactions. Moreover, opacity and agency-intensity of enabling mechanisms can be reduced by developing entrepreneurial ecosystems. We also noted that entrepreneurs themselves can take on the role of ecosystem-builders. Our findings revised current understandings of sustainable entrepreneurship and redefined the concept to create a more inclusive label.

Sustainable entrepreneurship can contribute to sustainable development by seeking synergies between social, environmental and economic outcomes, turning market failures into commercial opportunities. However, institutional conditions often act to obstruct sustainable entrepreneurs. While policy is instrumental in shaping conditions for entrepreneurship, how policy can best support sustainable ventures specifically is under-researched. This study uses a novel crowdsourcing approach with multiple actors in the sustainable entrepreneurship ecosystem to explore how policy can create conditions conducive to sustainable entrepreneurship. An emergent multi-level policy framework outlines six mechanisms by which this may be achieved: resource prioritisation, competency building, sustainable market creation, networked sharing, collaborative replication, and impact valuation. These mechanisms enable three interconnected policy objectives: enterprise creation, system transformation, and impact reorientation. The study thereby makes four main contributions to literature on sustainable entrepreneurship and policy. First, it reveals the importance of a ‘meso-level’ of policy that supports the sustainable entrepreneurship ecosystem, complementing micro-level supply-side and macro-level demand-side policies. Second, it proposes a policy focus not just on enterprises and how they are grown, but on sustainability-oriented innovations and how they are replicated. Third, it identifies the need for ‘impact re-orientation’ policies that track and optimise entrepreneurs' individual and collective triple-bottom-line impacts. Fourth, the study exemplifies a promising crowdsourcing method of co-creating policy.

Poverty reduction remains a burning issue globally and within the entrepreneurship discourse. This chapter reviewed the salient role sustainable entrepreneurship (SE) plays in the effort towards poverty reduction and the negative effects of underdeveloped institutions in resource-rich developing countries (RRDCs). Whilst there is extensive research about SE and the antecedents of poverty, there is a dearth of research exploring the impact resource curse hypothesis and aspects of entrepreneurial ecosystem (EE) on SE and poverty reduction, particularly in RRDCs, and the implications for socio-economic development. We found that the ease of doing business and the quality of institutions and political structure, are the two essential determinants of SE and poverty reduction in RRDCs. We develop agenda for policy and identify scope for future research.

This study investigates the influence of investors on the sustainability orientation of startups and the use of causation and effectuation approaches. The aim of the study is to gain a comprehensive understanding of how and why investors influence startups in their sustainability orientation, and what impact this has on the use of causation and effectuation decision-making logics. While there are several studies on how sustainability orientation affects the funding success of, for example, venture capitalists or crowdfunding campaigns, little is known about how startups deal with their sustainability orientation to attract new investors, or after they have found and collaborated with an investor. The question here is to what extent startups allow themselves to be influenced by investors in their sustainability orientation, i.e. whether they increase, maintain or decrease it. In order to explore this context, the following research question was formed: How does investor funding affect the sustainability orientation of startups, and how does this change the ongoing decision-making approach of startups? We chose to use a qualitative research method in which interviews were conducted with Swedish startups. The interviews included questions about participants' experiences, feelings, and perceptions of investor influence on their sustainability goals, as well as approaches to causation and effectuation based on the characteristics of the theory established in the theoretical framework. During the interviews with the startups, we looked at different funding sources such as venture capitalists, business angels and local investment companies, and also considered different rounds of funding such as seed and startup funding. The results of the study show that investors have an impact on the sustainability orientation of startups when there is a trade-off between the sustainability goals of the startups and the economic goals of the investors. In such cases, startups tend to neglect the environmental or social goals in order to enable the achievement of the investors' economic goals. This leads to a lower sustainability orientation and a stronger focus on economic objectives. With regard to the use of causation and effectuation logics, it can be seen that the startups influenced in their sustainability orientation switch from a causation logic before investor financing to an effectuation logic after investor financing in relation to the company's goals. All other examined characteristics of causation and effectuation, such as vision, strategies, conception of the product or service and the handling of uncertainty, do not indicate any changes. Finally, this study adds insights to the existing theory of causation and effectuation on how a change in sustainability orientation affects the use of causation and effectuation logic. However, the study also has limitations, which is why we suggest that future studies conduct the study again in a new setting, e.g. in a different country and with different startups, in order to validate the results against the limitations.

Rapidly increasing global environmental changes are causing disruptions in the natural environment and have resulted in emphasized importance of developing sustainable entrepreneurship to mitigate climate change. To do this, however, external conditions have been argued to stimulate new business opportunities, which have been reconceptualized as external enablers (Davidsson, 2015). This study will therefore investigate how combinations of external enablers can be understood and leveraged to facilitate new sustainable venture creation within one of the sectors with the potential to reverse climate change, the marine sector. Thus, the aim of this study is to assess the combinations of external enablers that facilitate venture creation within the marine sector. The study was conducted in accordance with the interpretivist approach, basing the data collection on multiple case studies. The case studies were based on secondary online data and semi-constructed interviews, where the data was later analyzed through a coding process according to Gioia et al., (2013). The study was set to follow an inductive approach. The empirical findings show that the prominent external enabler combinations for sustainable ventures within the marine sector are of the regulatory, economic and sociocultural types which have a complementary relationship and act in symbiosis. The symbiosis is in turn affected by climate change as a fundamental enabling factor for sustainable ventures.

«Зеленое» кредитование стимулирует развитие и функционирование экологических проектов, связанных с сельским хозяйством, возобновляемыми источниками энергии, экологически чистой промышленностью. Эффективное развитие системы «зеленого» кредитования в банках Российской Федерации поспособствует развитию частного сектора на новых условиях, то есть с максимальной сохранностью природных ресурсов и получением большего объема прибыли, нежели от традиционных проектов. При выдаче «зеленых» кредитов банковский сектор стремится поддерживать клиентов переходить к устойчивым решениям, поскольку сохранение ресурсов, создание энергосберегающих технологий определит будущие возможности государства. «Зеленые» кредиты также могут выдаваться для проектов крупных клиентов, которые соответствуют требованиям системы SEB. При выборе «зеленого» кредита для финансирования проекта, предприятие становится частью устойчивой системы управления. Наиболее актуальными направлениями при получении «зеленых» кредитов являются – возобновляемая энергия (солнечная, ветровая, энергия приливов, биоэнергетика; энергоэффективность – централизованное теплоснабжение или охлаждение; чистый транспорт – неископаемое топливо или гибридные транспортные решения; обращение с отходами – энергия из отходов и проекты по улавливанию метана, а также проекты по сокращению отходов за счет улучшения процессов; снижение выбросов – снижение выбросов твердых частиц, тяжелых металлов и диоксинов с помощью физических, химических, механических средств; устойчивое лесное хозяйство – лесохозяйственные проекты с сертификатом управления лесами или эквивалентной схемой сертификации; очистка воды и сточных вод – производство питьевой воды, очистка сточных вод, управление водными ресурсами., "Green" lending stimulates the development and operation of environmental projects related to agriculture, renewable energy sources, and environmentally friendly industry. The effective development of the "green" lending system in the banks of the Russian Federation will contribute to the development of the private sector on new terms, that is, with the maximum preservation of natural resources and obtaining more profit than from traditional projects. When issuing "green" loans, the banking sector seeks to support customers to move to sustainable solutions, since the conservation of resources, the creation of energy-saving technologies will determine the future opportunities of the state. Green loans can also be issued for projects of large clients that meet the requirements of the SEB system. When choosing a "green" loan to finance a project, the enterprise becomes part of a sustainable management system. The most relevant areas for obtaining green loans are - renewable energy (solar, wind, tidal energy, bioenergy; energy efficiency - district heating or cooling; clean transport - non-fossil fuel or hybrid transport solutions; waste management - energy from waste and projects for methane capture as well as waste reduction projects through process improvement abatement – reduction of emissions of particulate matter, heavy metals and dioxins through physical, chemical, mechanical means sustainable forestry – forest management projects with a forest management certificate or equivalent certification scheme; water and wastewater treatment – potable water production, wastewater treatment, water management, Экономика и предпринимательство, Выпуск 1 (150) 2023, Pages 333-335

Sustainable entrepreneurs have increasingly faced challenges in achieving triple-bottom-line objectives. The study portrays frugal innovation as a source to foster sustainable entrepreneurship to move the debate beyond discussing the challenges of sustainable entrepreneurship. As such, we investigate how sustainable entrepreneurship with frugal innovation can tackle social and environmental challenges in the context of a developing country. An inductive approach with multiple case-method is used in this study. The results show that entrepreneurship based on frugal innovation leads to several social outcomes, such as female empowerment, improved quality of life, and access to affordable healthcare for low-income customers as well as environmental outcomes, such as sustainable products and production techniques. Furthermore, sustainable entrepreneurship creates new markets in developing countries and promotes inclusive growth. Our research reveals that sustainable entrepreneurship if based on frugal innovation, serves dual purposes. It enables businesses to make a profit and contribute to solving societal problems simultaneously. Juxtaposing with frugal innovation, we expand the field of sustainable entrepreneurship by shifting the debate from barriers to potential sources and enablers. Based on the findings, we provide implications and future research directions. 2023 The Authors Open Access funding provided by the Qatar National Library. Scopus

Sustainability transition has gained more interest in academic research. However, it has rarely been studied specifically from a firm-level perspective. Therefore, this study aims to understand and learn from the firm-level perspective to contribute to firm- and system-level understanding. The case study of insects as food and feed industry is interesting in a niche and challenging market or to understand the overcoming activities of those facing barriers, whether the overcoming of customer acceptance, uncertainty of the market, and the regulations of eating insects as just been approved by the European Commission in recent years. Moreover, the study of insects has been widely focused on entomology, such as species, and nutrition. It is beginning to be studied in the food sector in Western countries, recently. Therefore, this research will contribute an in-depth understanding of the firm-level in the edible insect industry, especially in the business section in Sweden. This research contributes to the understanding of entrepreneurs' sustainable business models in different time periods, which could be shaped by barriers and opportunities. The barriers found in this study are similar to previous studies of the insect industry in other countries, except for customer acceptance, which seems to be different in Sweden. The customer issue that stands out here is finding the niche group of customers and the niche product that suits these early adopter customers. I also found the importance of entrepreneurial activities in relation to the development of the technological innovation system (TIS). The actors or entrepreneurs are the catalysts for the development of the TIS in the uncertain industry, since every single movement of the entrepreneurs leads to the dynamics of the system, such as a lobbying activity to overcome the regulatory barrier.

We live in an era defined by attempts to grapple with an ever-expanding array of grand societal challenges (GCs). These challenges comprise transformational social and environmental issues, such as environmental degradation and global pandemics, and the critical barriers toward addressing them. If research ought to prioritize addressing questions that are 'worth answering,' then GCs should not just be a topic of interest for researchers, but the focus of and motivation behind most scholars' research agendas. Management research in particular can and should focus on addressing GCs by examining how individuals, organizations, and societies can and/or do make sense of, navigate, and respond to these sorts of challenges. Critics of business-as-usual often characterize businesses as major contributors to or sources of GCs. However, some businesses instead en-deavor to help address GCs, by reconceptualizing these challenges not as intractable problems but as entrepreneurial opportunities waiting to be tackled, and by developing and/or promoting solutions-oriented and socially responsible in-novations. By asserting their role as key actors in efforts to address GCs, these entities are reorienting perspectives on the almost 50-year-old question, "what is the business of business?" This work consists of three studies, each of which examines a different facet of the ways in which organizations engage with GCs, while addressing internal and external threats. In an attempt to provide a comprehensive and holistic organiza-tional perspective on a topic as large, complex, and characterized by uncertainty as GCs, the core thesis that undergirds these studies is multi-faceted, employing diverse theories drawn from several distinct streams of scholarly literature and discourse, and grounded in both qualitative and quantitative data. Ultimately, though, this work aims to set forth novel and unconventional perspectives on GCs and efforts to address them through management research.

Recent research has highlighted the ability of entrepreneurs to create sustainable impact and bring about the change required for solving today’s social and environmental challenges. It has also been pointed out that existing entrepreneurship training programs need to be transformed to effectively promote individuals in tackling these challenges and contributing to sustainable development. To address this matter, I developed a training course on sustainable entrepreneurship that builds on an action-oriented entrepreneurship training program (Student Training for Entrepreneurial Promotion (STEP)), which has been shown to increase short- and long-term entrepreneurial actions among students in various contexts. I integrated sustainability as a crosscutting theme into the training program to empower individuals to identify sustainable business opportunities and manage the increasing complexity of sustainable ventures. Pilot studies in Uganda and South Africa show promising results, indicating that STEP Sustainability (STEP S) can increase students’ sustainability-oriented and entrepreneurial mindsets.

The emergence of the fourth industrial revolution (4IR) poses the risk of bringing about a new wave of disparities due to changed employment patterns and a global economic environment that is experiencing rapid transformation. Automation and so-called «thinking machines» are displacing humans in a variety of professions and functions, which in turn is causing businesses to reevaluate the competencies they seek in prospective workers. The main goal of sustainable economic participation in the 4IR is to harness the localized economic potential by promoting innovation to all its growth aspects. This is accomplished via a unified approach to development rather than a «one size fits all» solution. To that aim, small, micro, and medium-sized enterprises (SMMEs) is one of the most crucial pillars that support the economy. As a result, sustainable entrepreneurship in the context of the 4IR was approached in this research as an outcome-based local initiative that that was addressed by key stakeholders. The fundamental purpose of this study was to analyze the factors that led to the successful identification and utilization of local resources, ideas, and skills by entrepreneurs in order to stimulate economic growth and development in the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR). The aim of this study was to evaluate the problems faced by company owners and the impact that provincial and national government aid had on their ability to continue operations. In this study, qualitative research technique and an exploratory research methodology were employed. The 12 SMMEs comprising the study's population are located in the eThekwini area of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The participants in the study were not selected by chance, but rather on the basis of a predetermined criterion aimed at senior management. Semi-structured interviews constituted the entirety of the data collection. The data was analyzed via NVivo and thematic analysis. This research has contributed to the subject by presenting a business sustainability strategy for SMMEs, with the aim of enhancing the performance and growth of these firms in an uncertain digital realm., Поява четвертої промислової революції (4IR) створює ризик спричинити нову хвилю диспропорцій через зміну моделей зайнятості та глобальне економічне середовище, яке зазнає швидких змін. Автоматизація та так звані «мислячі машини» витісняють людей у різноманітних професіях і функціях, що, у свою чергу, спонукає підприємства переоцінювати компетенції, яких вони шукають у майбутніх працівників. Головною метою сталої економічної участі в 4IR є використання локального економічного потенціалу шляхом сприяння інноваціям у всіх аспектах зростання. Це досягається за допомогою єдиного підходу до розробки, а не універсального рішення. З цією метою малі, мікро- та середні підприємства (МСП) є одним із найважливіших стовпів, які підтримують економіку. Як наслідок, до сталого підприємництва в контексті 4IR у цьому дослідженні підходили як до місцевої ініціативи, що ґрунтується на результатах і до якої зверталися основні зацікавлені сторони. Фундаментальною метою цього дослідження було проаналізувати фактори, які призвели до успішного виявлення та використання підприємцями місцевих ресурсів, ідей та навичок для стимулювання економічного зростання та розвитку під час Четвертої промислової революції (4IR). Мета цього дослідження полягала в тому, щоб оцінити проблеми, з якими стикаються власники компаній, і вплив допомоги провінційного та національного уряду на їх здатність продовжувати діяльність. У цьому дослідженні використовувалися методика якісного дослідження та дослідницька методологія. 12 малих і середніх підприємств, які входять до складу досліджуваної групи, розташовані в районі eThekwini в Квазулу-Натал, Південна Африка. Учасники дослідження були відібрані не випадково, а скоріше на основі заздалегідь визначеного критерію, орієнтованого на вище керівництво. Напівструктуровані інтерв'ю склали весь збір даних. Дані аналізувалися за допомогою NVivo та тематичного аналізу. Це дослідження внесло свій внесок у цю тему, представивши стратегію сталого розвитку бізнесу для малих і середніх підприємств з метою підвищення ефективності та зростання цих фірм у невизначеній цифровій сфері.

Purpose This study aims to analyze the challenges startups face in implementing business models for sustainability. In particular, the research question of this study is: How do the challenges faced by startups affect business models for sustainability in the context of an emerging country? Design/methodology/approach Startups are increasingly incorporating ways to thrive in a competitive environment with innovative sustainable business models, a key factor for competitive advantage and corporate sustainability. This paper analyses startups’ challenges in adopting business models for sustainability through a case study in two startups, using the sustainable value exchange matrix (SVEM) tool through workshops, to carry out the diagnosis of these challenges. Findings The barriers and challenges of business models for sustainability in startups were found in different categories, where the main barriers are linked to the institutional category, the organizational and the market and sales culture. Thus, the authors concluded that there is a need to reformulate public policies and to have greater participation of the actors involved. Research limitations/implications The main limitation of the research is the number of case studies (only two), which makes it difficult to generalize the results. Practical implications The research presents two major contributions. First, through the case studies, it is possible to verify that the barriers and challenges in business models for sustainability have relevance for startups. The second contribution is the adaptation of SVEM in conducting the debate by incorporating the barriers and challenges in value creation and delivery system. Social implications This study contributes to the business models for sustainability literature to better understand the challenges startups face in practice and can serve as insights to help overcome them. As this is an empirical study, the information gathered can help create metrics and public policies to achieve the United Nations sustainable development goals. Originality/value The present research has as originality the analysis of the challenges in startups in implementing business models for sustainability and their relationships with the value proposition, capture and creation, as well as and delivery (adapted to the challenges found in the literature) applying the SVEM tool proposed by Morioka et al. (2018).

PurposeThis study aims to introduce a new framework for environmental entrepreneurship education.Design/methodology/approachThe authors test their environmental entrepreneurship framework using a Trash-to-Treasure experiential learning activity. The authors observed student entrepreneurs coordinate entrepreneurial efforts in a real-life context and collaborate with stakeholders across campus to achieve project goals. Grounded in action learning and action research frameworks, the authors describe how theory can be used to inform pedagogical practices and transform any sustainability event into problem-based innovative learning.FindingsThe authors report on two key outcomes: increased campus sustainability and contributions to entrepreneurial education and sustainability education. The authors conclude that student-run environmental businesses are win–win projects that truly integrate the three pillars of sustainability (people, profit, planet). The authors provide valuable teaching resources so that this project or similar campus greening initiatives could be implemented at any institute of higher education.Originality/valueDespite the recognized critical need for innovative workers that have an ethical and sustainable mindset, there has been relatively little research into the intersection of environmental and entrepreneurial education. This report provides a toolkit for educators to implement similar projects at their institutions.

The social economy (SE) has raised strong interest in recent years. Due its intrinsic characteristics, which prioritize collective benefit and influence local development, SE has been viewed as spe...

PurposeThis research explores causal combinations (personal traits, external factors and self-fulfillment) that could provide holistic views leading to sustainable start-ups via data collected from Taiwanese entrepreneurs.Design/methodology/approachThe authors employ five-point Likert scale measurements in the questionnaires and fuzzy-set/Qualitative Comparative Analysis (fsQCA) for the investigation.FindingsThe study finds four types of sustainable entrepreneurs. Conservative resilient entrepreneurs have an absence of both openness and neuroticism. Conservative achieving entrepreneurs have an absence of openness and the presence of conscientiousness. Conservative-hired entrepreneurs have an absence of both openness and unemployment. Lastly, conservative opportunistic entrepreneurs exhibit an absence of openness and the presence of business opportunity.Originality/valueThe results add to the authors’ knowledge and understanding of the entrepreneurship literature and also offer implications for people who are interested in entrepreneurship as well as to policymakers wanting to promote new start-ups.

This case tells the story of the start-up Essento, which develops, produces and markets insect-based foods, and the nascent sustainable entrepreneur behind the company. Essento contributed significantly to shaping the legal basis for the consumption of edible insects in Switzerland and rises to the challenge of creating an entirely new market and lacking customer acceptance.

This paper reports on a research project aimed at exploring how designers can activate and sustain entrepreneurial ventures within regional textile communities in the Philippines and the UK. The mi...

Purpose Anchored on the natural resource-based view and stakeholder theories, this study aims to investigate the mediating roles of sustainable supply chain management and green radical product innovation (GRPI) in the link between sustainable entrepreneurial orientation (SEO) and sustainability performance. Design/methodology/approach The comprehensive research model developed in this study is empirically tested by using data garnered from 248 managers of Ghanaian small and medium-sized enterprises. Partial least square structural equation modeling is applied as the methodological technique to test all the hypothesized relationships. Findings Results of the study indicate that SEO has a direct significant positive impact on environmental performance and social performance but not financial performance. However, through sustainable supply chain management and GRPI (both mediating variables), SEO tends to have significant impact on all sustainability performance dimensions (environmental, financial and social performance). Originality/value This study offers fresh empirical evidence by developing a unified research model that validates the specific mediation role of sustainable supply chain management between SEO and green radical product innovation, as well as the mediating roles of both sustainable supply chain management and GRPI between SEO and sustainability performance dimensions.

This qualitative study focuses on the factors that motivate grassroots ecopreneurship at the base of the pyramid (BoP). Our study is anchored by the research question, “How are grassroots ecopreneurs at the BoP of Kenya motivated?” The participants were mainly drawn from beneficiaries of a multinational Non-Governmental Organization. Using a grounded theory approach, we conducted 12 qualitative case studies, 10 focus groups and 2 interviews, recording 61 participants. We triangulated data sources through data collected from primary and secondary sources, such as archival documents and archival interviews. Extant research suggests that grassroots ecopreneurs (GEs) at the BoP primarily engage in necessity-driven ventures. However, this study demonstrates that GEs’ motives to launch new ventures appear to be multifaceted and simultaneous (not linear or sequential). We also observed an interlinkage of environmental and economic motives in GEs who diversified their investments into related and unrelated areas. Our findings also indicate that GEs at the BoP developed socio-ethical motives-the GEs’ concerns toward other members of the community-and a desire to create social value beyond private value. All these motives contributed to the GEs establishing and sustaining viable businesses.

As an important livelihood strategy choice to promote the sustainable development of themselves and regions, returnees’ entrepreneurship has played a vital role in the governance of all-level Chinese local governments since the 21st century. The policy attention reflects the importance that the local governments attach to this issue, and the evolution process also reflects relevant policies’ internal rules and characteristics. Based on this, this paper, taking 242 policy texts related to returnees’ entrepreneurship issued by local governments from 2000 to 2021 as the research objects, uses grounded theory and social network analysis in order to explore the policy attention evolution from the aspects of time, space, specific policy domains and cooperative relationship among policy subjects. Finally, this research finds the main conclusions as follows: (1) The policy attention evolution on time dimension has the characteristic of synchronism, different levels and “reciprocal U”. (2) The policy attention evolution on space dimension is closely linked to “pull” and “push” forces of local population flow and has neighborhood effects. (3) The policy attention evolution on specific policy areas will gradually spread and diversify with the change in local governance environment and stage goals. (4) The evolution trend of collaborative social network among policy objects has the characteristic of “loose-central-loose”.

Entrepreneurship has been viewed as an opportunity for economic development and changing economic scenario in global markets. Women are viewed as a reservoir of entrepreneurial talents, so they can be growth engines in novel markets. Previous studies have considered entrepreneurship as the most effective way towards the economic empowerment of women. Female students engaged in entrepreneurial education have been addressed persistently, while what transforms them in an education process is still unclear. Considering the transforming global economy and its influence on higher education, this study aims to detect female students transforming entrepreneurial competency, mindset, and intention into sustainable entrepreneurship. Using a self-compiled survey, we targeted 752 female students to investigate their entrepreneurial competency, mindset, and intention. SPSS and AMOS were used to transform the data for interpretation. We assumed that the impact of female student’s entrepreneurial competency could be modified by an entrepreneurial mindset and result in entrepreneurial intention. To detect this causal relationship, this study employed reliability, factor, structural equation modeling (SEM), and bootstrapping analyses to verify the evidence. The result of the SEM confirms that the female students’ entrepreneurial competency will, through their entrepreneurial mindset, impact entrepreneurial intention. With bootstrapping, 5000 samples were collected, and it was demonstrated that the measure constructs were still reliable in the model. This study found that there is a mediation effect between entrepreneurial competency and entrepreneurial intention. The entrepreneurial mindset plays a crucial role in the transformation process. Without an entrepreneurial mindset, entrepreneurial competency cannot exert a significant effect on entrepreneurial intention. The findings can help reinvent related entrepreneurial education in higher education.

This community service activity aims to develop entrepreneurship following the village's potential, namely catfish and hydroponic cultivation, often known as 'aquaponics'. One of the residents of Sampora Village, namely Pak Ali, has been engaged in catfish hatchery cultivation for many years and has become a pioneer in developing catfish cultivation to other Sampora villagers. This mentoring activity is an entrepreneurial assistance activity for catfish hatchery for Sampora villagers. The results of this activity are expected to be a productive sustainable entrepreneurship activity.

The need for entrepreneurial sustainability is as important as the entrepreneurship category itself. By transferring competencies in a sustainable entrepreneurship framework, entrepreneurship education can make a significant contribution to the effectiveness of businesses, especially for start-up entrepreneurs. This study analyzes the essential competencies of students in the development of sustainable entrepreneurship. The main purpose of this research project is to study and explain the dimensions of sustainability entrepreneurship competencies among agricultural students. The results showed that seven key dimensions play a role in shaping sustainable entrepreneurial development competencies: systems thinking competence (STC), embracing diversity and interdisciplinary (EDI), foresighted thinking (FTC), normative competence (NC), action competence (AC), interpersonal competence (IC), and strategic management competence (SMC). While increasing, it was also found that STC plays an important role in explaining the relationship between sustainability and entrepreneurship.

Salt is one of the basic needs of Indonesian society. The salt production areas in Indonesia reach 37.4 thousand hectares, but the potential areas are merely around 53.2%. People's salt production has only been able to meet the need for households' daily consumption, while the industrial need is met from imports. The people's salt production needs to be increased to maintain the sustainability of salt farmers' business. Salt farmers require training about the strategies to improve the quality of salt production, manage finished products, and run the salt business independently. Studies on the analysis of the sustainability of people's salt business, particularly in terms of entrepreneurship aspect, are limited. Therefore, this present study analyzes the sustainability of people's salt business entrepreneurship with three triple bottom line criteria: people, planet, and profit. This study aims to formulate the framework of business strategies suitable for the condition of the salt business. The framework is constructed from the factors synthesized from the literature on previous studies. The results of this study are expected to be implemented by the government and business actors in making a decision and setting policies to determine the strategies for maintaining SMEs' salt business sustainability. This study applied the Analytical Network Process (ANP) method to determine the rating of the factors contributing to the continuity of the SMEs' salt business. The factors underlying sustainable entrepreneurship were identified from the literature studies based on the triple bottom line concept adapted to the conditions in Madura. The criteria of people include collaborative development, risk seizing, and innovative thinking, while the requirements of the planet cover eco-friendly packaging and waste controlling. Profit was seen from the aspects of government policy and unsettled finance. Then, the TOPSIS analysis was applied to analyze strategies based on the highest performance score. The results of data analysis show that government policy has the highest score as an alternative, and implementation of an e-supply chain is the strategy with the highest-ranking performance score.

Developing the concept of sustainable entrepreneurship from upper echelons theory and resource-based view theory, this research explores the impact of sustainable entrepreneurship among small and medium-sized enterprises. Sustainable entrepreneurship pursues a motivating approach to the economic, social, and environmental objectives of the society. The purpose of the study is to delve into the influencing factors of sustainable entrepreneurship among SMEs. The research is based on a quantitative approach via survey to address the sustainable entrepreneurship among SMEs (e.g., Punjab) in Pakistan. Data were obtained from 330 employees working in manufacturing SME’s. Additionally, structural equation modelling (SEM) was tested to examining the hypothesized relationship. The results confirm a positive effect of sustainability orientation and entrepreneurial orientation on sustainable entrepreneurship and the moderating effect of entrepreneurial knowledge was found significant. Moreover, the results confirm a negative effect of entrepreneurial bricolage on sustainable entrepreneurship, and the moderating effect of the entrepreneurial knowledge was found to be insignificant. However, these researches carry-out the context of entrepreneurial bricolage acts as a moderator in sustainable entrepreneurship research. Based on the findings, this research provides implications for the policymakers to promote sustainable entrepreneurship to facilitate new markets and getting the foremost advantage of sustainable development in SME’s.

International audience; Sustainable entrepreneurship is becoming an increasingly established topic within the entrepreneurship literature. The phenomenon of businesses incorporating social and environmental agendas within their core activities has gathered an increasing academic interest. However, few empirical studies have explored the stage of opportunity identification in the sustainable entrepreneurship process in a more systematic manner, even more so in non-Western contexts such as India. We structure our analysis using a framework situated in the conventional entrepreneurship literature and the literature on National Business Systems (NBS). We conduct a qualitative study to explore the motivations of Indian sustainable entrepreneurs in two sectors: sustainable energy and ethical clothing. While we find that the conventional entrepreneurship based framework provides crucial insights to understand opportunity identification within sustainable entrepreneurship, we alsoobserve a number of features unique to sustainable entrepreneurship in the Indian context—including the personal backgrounds of the participants as well as prioritization of motivational factors. Importantly, we find notable within-country variation in the contextual factors that appear to shape motivational dynamics. In the words of one participant, “there are many Indias” rather than one monolithic approach to sustainable entrepreneurship in India.

Evaluation and comparison of businesses in various industrial, service, and agricultural clusters is a suitable way for determining the equivalence of their position in relation to each other if the evaluation tool can generalize and deploy in various ranges. In terms of diligence of firms and businesses trying to help the occurrence of sustainable development purposes, it is necessary to have a standard and simple tool that can be realized and used by commercial firms easily. The current article, using a qualitative method and investigating the documents and substantive concepts and open and in-depth interviews, has provided a tool for evaluation and comparison of businesses and organizations from the perspective of three dimensions of sustainable development. Services or agriculture has become easily possible, moreover due to the generalizability of its tools and items by being based on standard business literature, the ability to compare businesses in an out-cluster way has been provided, and this helps policymakers to understand the current situation and examine the desired cluster to cluster and larger which accordingly, the comparison of businesses within any industrial or service or agricultural cluster are easily possible moreover due to the generalizability of their tools and items the ability to compare out-cluster businesses is provided due to the establishment on standard business literature too. Such an issue helps policymakers survey the current and desired situation in a cluster to cluster and macro-ones. Moreover, the research findings indicate that future businesses and the future of companies depend on changing the paradigm to sustainable entrepreneurship.

Despite growing literature on sustainable entrepreneurship, little is known currently about students’ intentions to engage in sustainable entrepreneurship in Nigeria. Based on the theory of planned...

This study seeks to identify and measure the association linking sustainable entrepreneurship and social innovation, through corporate social performance as a mediating variable. To assess the research model, five determinants of sustainable entrepreneurship are identified which can generate social innovation. The hypothesis test is based on a quantitative approach in which data was gathered through a questionnaire distributed to 180 SMEs in Saudi Arabia. The study applies a structural equation model in order to verify the relative importance of corporate social performance, alongside its mediating effect. The results demonstrate a mediating effect from corporate social performance between sustainable entrepreneurship extrinsic motivation and sustainable entrepreneurship outcome as determinants, and social innovation. This mediating effect seems to be less important for other determinants such as knowledge resource acquirement. The results define a critical pathway for social innovation in order to facilitate its definition and try to operationalize the process of its generation. In fact, this study provides an operationalized approach for social variables.

RESUMO Entendendo o consumo como um instrumento de construção de sentido, este trabalho busca analisar expressões de consumo que reclamam para si o status de manifestação política a partir do processo de crítica e justificação presente nessas relações. A partir de uma incursão de inspiração etnográfica, debruça-se sobre os discursos de atores conectados a um núcleo de empreendedorismo sustentável localizado em Vitória, no Espírito Santo. Emergem dessa análise estratégias críticas, voltadas ao reposicionamento dos atores no interior de seus campos de atuação, que indicam um questionamento de natureza corretiva do modelo de desenvolvimento capitalista. ABSTRACT Understanding consumption as an instrument of meaning construction, this work seeks to deepen the analysis of expressions of consumption that claim for themselves the status of political manifestation, considering the process of criticism and justification present in these relations. Through an observation with ethnographic inspiration, The Politicization of Consumption as an Actancy Qualifying Resource in a Group of Sustainable Entrepreneurs in Vitória Metropolitan Region (ES, Brazil) focuses on the speeches of actors connected to a center of sustainable entrepreneurship located in Vitória/ES. The critical strategies emerged from this analysis are aimed at repositioning the actors within their fields of action, indicating a questioning of the model of capitalist development with a corrective nature.

Sustainable development is present in almost every aspect of today’s life. The European Green Deal is characterized by a holistic approach that covers both energy sectors and other spillovers for European Union countries. Implementing the European Green Deal requires many different activities in three main areas. In the countries of the European Union, policies are being implemented to reduce the negative impact of economic activity on the natural environment, because it also affects human health and may even threaten the vitality of some populations. In this article, the research conducted was aimed at identifying actions taken by businesses in order to implement the guidelines of the European Green Deal and the factors hindering and motivating the implementation of eco-changes. It is a program that should be implemented in countries and visible in the activities of enterprises. However, what is its real impact on the pro-ecological and pro-social activities of enterprises? Answers to the listed questions were obtained on the basis of the opinion of an inter-national group of professionals. The study is international, and is a comparative analysis. Operational activities undertaken by businesses in order to implement the guidelines of the European Green Deal and of environmental protection, as well as factors hindering and motivating the implementation of environmental changes, were identified and then verified in the study.

This special issue of the Journal of the International Council for Small Business (JICSB) originated after conferences and seminars organized by entities such as Smartly and IPAG and builds on an o...

COVID-19 has reshaped the way people interact on a basic human level, and with that the way we do business. Although the pandemic has brought innumerable hardships and challenges to the business wo...

Sustainable entrepreneurs can play an important role in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted by the United Nations in 2015, by promoting inclusive economic development, generating i...

The Apennines (also known as Marsican) brown bear is a critically endangered subspecies of the European brown bear, with only an estimated 50–60 individuals remaining in the wild. The bear is endem...

Although the existing literature supports the relationship between chief executive officers' (CEOs') sustainability orientation (SO) and entrepreneurial behaviour, empirical studies exploring how SO drives firm environmental performance (FEP) are lacking. In addition, the potential moderating effects of firm-level factors on this relationship are less understood. We contribute to filling this gap by examining the moderating effects of political connections and financial slack on the relationship between SO and FEP. Using data obtained from 297 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Ghana, our results reveal that SO is positively related to FEP. In addition, our results show that the effect of SO on FEP is negative when firms have stronger financial slack and when firms are highly politically connected.