Social finance for social enterprises: theory and practice to build a more inclusive society
The purpose of this project is to analyze approaches, methods and instruments of Social Finance (SF) helpful to support Social Enterprises (SEs) localized in some marginal territory of the EU (and especially in Sardinia). The project aims: 1) to contribute to the international academic debate on SF, with a focus on the role of SF for SEs through the analysis of the best practices useful for the improvement of the economic wellbeing; 2) to provide better theoretical and practical solutions, by designing tailored financial instruments for the SEs located in Sardinia with the aim to develop and to test efficient ways to reduce social exclusion and to promote social innovation; 3) to promote a permanent network between the involved parties with the aim to encourage new financial approaches for a more inclusive society. The relevance of this research project is confirmed by: i) the role of SF and SEs in the European agenda, in the academic debate, and in the challenges for financial systems; ii) the need to overcome the limits of the mainstream finance and to conceptualize a new finance approach able to be a good finance for a more inclusive society, iii) the multidisciplinary approach to the field of SF that involves both social innovation and social entrepreneurship. The innovativeness of the project is related to: i) the combined research approach (deductive/inductive) useful for exploratory studies; ii) the international approach to the topic of SF, that will be explored in collaboration with one of the leading international researcher in the field of SF and one of the most prominent researchers in the field of impact finance. The research activities will be developed through: i) the outgoing phase at Waterloo University; ii) the return phase at UNICA (Sardinia/South Italy). The project will allow the construction of a permanent Excellency Laboratory in Sardinia and will promote the development of SF and SEs in such marginal territory.