Rippling: How Social Entrepreneurs Spread Innovation Throughout the World

Part 3

Using Market Forces to Create Social Value

This section explores three innovative ways of bringing the business and social sectors together to create sustainable partnerships that tackle huge social problems impacting large numbers of people. Far different from corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs, these partnerships create a hybrid adaptation that establishes a profitable business for the sole (soul) purpose of supporting, fueling growth, and sustaining a social purpose.

Profit is not a dirty word—if profits are recycled back into the business or used to sustain or increase employment or wages and provide access to opportunities for those who are marginalized, impoverished, or in temporary need. In many cases, profits placed ...