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RESEARCH PRODUCT

SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN THE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPEMNT CONCEPT

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Sustainable development constitutes a paradigm which is to respond to the risks of our times (environmental, social and economic ones). It is based on the necessity to use resources in a way which will not deprive future generations of them. Such a development seeks to improve the quality of life of the community while maintaining social equality, diversity and the wealth of natural resources. It can be perceived as a broader social change which Jeremy Rifkin called “the third industrial revolution”, and whose symptoms can be seen today. Within the scope of this concept, there is the social entrepreneurship that, through the market activities, focuses on the social mission. Such a mission may concern a number of issues, such as social re-integration, fighting exclusion, or environment protection. Taking into account the importance of human resources, the social capital and economic efficiency of these enterprises and simultaneously focusing on environmental efforts, constitute a practical dimension of the sustainable development in local communities. One of the social cooperatives operating in the Opole voivodship is a good example here.