Social entrepreneurs create a business or a non-profit organization to alleviate a social problem—violence, poverty, drug abuse, environmental problems—and the goal is not to create a market, but to ameliorate the social conditions. Examples of well-known social entrepreneurship include the Grameen Bank, Oxfam and Participant Productions. The Skoll Foundation has stated that, “Social entrepreneurs pioneer innovative and systemic approaches for meeting the needs of the marginalized, the disadvantaged and the disenfranchised – populations that lack the financial means or political clout to achieve lasting benefit on their own” (What is a Social Entrepreneur?, http://www.skollfoundation.org/aboutsocialentrepreneurship/whatis.asp).

The Social Entrepreneur Revolution examines the history of social entrepreneurship and profiles individual social entrepreneurs, such as Anita Roddick, Jamie Oliver and Pierre Omidyar. The book then suggests the qualities that make a good social entrepreneur—creativity, focus, strength of your social motivation, or commitment—and asks the reader to determine just how strong their drive is to become a social entrepreneur. The author also surveys the social entrepreneurship landscape to determine seven types of social entrepreneur: business, citizen, public sector, corporate, environmental, philanthropist and latent. There are also wide-ranging social problems—housing, security, poverty, the environment—that can be addressed by social entrepreneurs. This means that, taking into account one’s background and motivation, there is a role for any ‘practical idealist’ within social entrepreneurship.

There are a few weaknesses in the book, including the emphasis on ‘stars’ (such as Jeff Skoll and Bob Geldof) who use their fortunes to become entrepreneurs. Also, the majority of the social entrepreneurs featured in the book are from the UK or the US. However, name recognition does make it easier to research some of the entrepreneurs and their causes. Search for them on the TED site, http://www.ted.com/. Readers can find more information at the Canadian Social Entrepreneurship Foundation, http://www.csef.ca/, or the Canadian Centre for Social Entrepreneurship, http://www.business.ualberta.ca/CCSE/.

The book as a whole is a great introduction to the possibility of social entrepreneurship as a career. It includes an extensive list of resources and would complement other recent books on the subject, such as Practical Idealists and Making a Living While Making a Difference.