The Institute for Social Entrepreneurship in Asia (ISEA) is a learning and action network set up by social enterprises and social enterprise resource institutions to catalyze knowledge creation, capacity development and movement-building for social entrepreneurship in the region.
The past two decades have witnessed a flowering of wealth-creating organizations with a development purpose, or what are now called social enterprises.
The best of these social enterprises are creating new benchmarks for wealth creation and distribution and enabling the poor and marginalized to become effective market players. Social enterprises are also leading the way in developing and transforming markets towards equitable and sustainable development.
However, management of enterprises with a “multiple bottom line” is an art that has yet to be mastered by many development players that enter the market arena. At the same time, the leaders and actors of this unfolding phenomenon of social entrepreneurship are in need of a learning and action network dedicated to evolving the theory and practice of transforming markets in the service of people and the environment.
The Institute for Social Entrepreneurship in Asia (ISEA) envisions a critical mass of social and development entrepreneurs and enterprises making a difference for the poor and marginalized in the markets of Asia, and creating innovative pathways towards equitable and sustainable development.
ISEA is committed to harnessing the intellectual, human, social and financial capital in Asian societies in building a learning community and a nurturing environment for the advancement of social entrepreneurship in the region.
ISEA aspires to be a leading resource institution nurturing a broad-based learning and action network on social entrepreneurship and enterprise development in Asia. ISEA seeks to synergize and enhance knowledge creation, learning exchange and capacity development among social enterprises and their resource institutions to catalyze the consolidation of what is currently a fragmented social enterprise sector in the region.
ISEA also seeks to build bridges and interfaces between the social enterprise sector and the business community towards creating new models and benchmarks for pursuing social responsibility in the markets of Asia.
ISEA strives to develop a common understanding of social enterprises and their role in promoting social equity and sustainability, towards advancing a movement for social entrepreneurship in the region.
ISEA is pursuing the following major objectives: