Recently I came across a fascinating essay by Bill Drayton, CEO of Ashoka: Innovators for the Public“—the global association of ‘social entrepreneurs’. ‘Everyone a Changemaker: Social Entrepreneurship’s Ultimate Goal’ (PDF download here) describes the important role of innovators in tackling social problems. It struck me that City of Sanctuary groups around the country are taking just this ‘entrepreneurial’ approach to social change—by taking initiative in our own communities and encouraging other people and organisations to join us. Drayton argues that this process of accepting personal responsibility for initiating social change, and developing and sharing the skills we need to do it effectively, is in itself a hugely important contribution to our society’s future well-being:
‘The most important contribution any of us can make now is not to solve any particular problem, no matter how urgent energy or environment or financial regulation is. What we must do now is increase the proportion of humans who know that they can cause change. And who, like smart white blood cells coursing through society, will stop with pleasure whenever they see that something is stuck or that an opportunity is ripe to be seized. Multiplying society’s capacity to adapt and change intelligently and constructively and building the necessary underlying collaborative architecture, is the world’s most critical opportunity right now. Pattern-changing leading social entrepreneurs are the most critical single factor in catalyzing and engineering this transformation.’
Drayton describes successful social entrepreneurship as a process that multiplies the number of people who are confident to become ‘changemakers’ in their communities. The role of a social entrepreneur is to inspire and encourage people to adopt a new approach to social needs, and to take responsibility for action in their community. By becoming active in their communities they acquire new experience and confidence as changemakers, and they are able to pass these skills on to others.
‘Consequently, the entrepreneur presents his or her idea to the local community in the most enticing, safe, understandable, and user-friendly ways possible.’
City of Sanctuary initiatives are a good example of this process at work, it seems to me. The challenge for all of us is encouraging local people to take responsibility for welcoming people seeking sanctuary in their own communities and workplaces. By inspiring, motivating and supporting people to take the initiative in this way, and gaining skills and confidence to become changemakers in our communities we are also contributing to a healthier, more resilient society.
