Title: Social Entrepreneurship as a Solution for Youth Scope of the problem

Title: Social Entrepreneurship as a Solution for Youth


Scope of the problem:
One of the primary problems associated with youth's lack of social entrepreneurship is the limited number of sustainable livelihood options available to them. Due to inadequate entrepreneurship training, many young people are unable to start businesses or participate in socially responsible ventures. Consequently, there is a rise in unemployment which could have long-term negative consequences for individuals and society. A recent study by Soros Kazakhstan, for instance, revealed that issues related to environment and ecological conditions held only the third place in the list of themes of interest for young people.

A further challenge is the absence of community-driven solutions for landscape resilience and climate change mitigation. Engaging and empowering local communities is vital in implementing effective and sustainable environmental solutions. In the context of landscape resilience and climate change mitigation, an integrated approach that includes environmental and social factors is necessary. In this context, the aforementioned study showed that only 21.4% of the 100 respondents in polls, 2 focus groups, and 10 in-depth focus groups expressed their interest for solving social issues using entrepreneurial activities. The results further support the overall observation when looking at how financial gain still constitutes the prevailing motivation for young people. That is, it indeed showcases the issues with engaging and motivating the youth in Kazakhstan for socially significant endeavors.

Moreover, there is a lack of connection between landscape resiliency initiatives and climate change and entrepreneurship education for youth. This means that young people are often not equipped with the knowledge and skills needed to effectively contribute to and benefit from these initiatives. In turn, this limits their potential for innovation and social entrepreneurship. The study also indicates that such barriers are considered to be hard to overcome for potential young entrepreneurs in general.

Finally, outdated and under-resourced education further compounds these issues. Without access to quality education that is relevant, engaging, and well-resourced, young people are less likely to develop the skills, knowledge, and attitudes needed to become successful social entrepreneurs. This includes everything from curriculum and pedagogy to extra-curricular programming, teacher training, technology, supplies, and facilities. In order to decrease this gap, the research participants pointed out to the importance of establishing a separate support program. They suggest it would allow the youth to access both the information on specific aspects of areas of interest (healthcare, education, environment) as well as to have knowledge about, for example, how to launch such enterprises with an emphasis on financial and administrative matters.