Social entrepreneurship involves the application of business practices to the pursuit of social and/or environmental mission. It brings the mindset, principles, strategies, tools and techniques of entrepreneurship to the social sector, yielding innovative solutions to the vexing problems facing society - poverty, hunger, inadequate housing and homelessness, unemployment and under-employment, illiteracy, disease, environmental degradation, etc. It finds solutions where government and private sector efforts have not.

This intriguing field has captured the imaginations of thousands of business and public administration students around the world, leading to the creation of hundreds of courses and programs of study to meet this burgeoning demand. Yet, there are few, if any, textbooks that offer a comprehensive treatment of this subject. Instructors are forced to cobble together reading materials from multiple sources, creating a hardship for professors and students, alike. This book is aimed at addressing this problem.