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Introduction
The entrepreneurship ecosystem literature is gaining traction in the academic record (Fetters et al., 2010; Isenberg, 2011; Motoyama and Knowlton, 2017; Hornsby et al., 2018) and generally focuses on the actors in a given ecosystem and their interconnectedness (Mason and Brown, 2014). Although the role of universities in these ecosystems is increasingly taken into consideration (Rice et al., 2010; Vanevenhoven and Liguori, 2013; Brush, 2014), there has been little investigation into the potential of university-based entrepreneurship ecosystems (U-BEEs) when considering social entrepreneurship. Rideout and Gray (2013, p. 333) claim, “most of the reviews of studies in this area (U-BEE) highlight concerns about the adequacy of this research”. By engaging the motif of the ecosystem, borrowed from biological science (Moore, 1993), this paper attempts to address this concern by exploring a university-based social entrepreneurship ecosystem (U-BSEE) theoretically and empirically. Two broad definitions are at play here, with different implications. First, Cohen’s (2006, p. 3) definition of entrepreneurial ecosystems as “an interconnected group of actors in a local geographic community committed to sustainable development through the support and facilitation of new sustainable ventures” implies that venture creation is the focus of entrepreneurial ecosystems. However, when considering the social factors of entrepreneurial ecosystems (namely that organizations and civil society do not always need another new venture to solve an issue), it stresses the relationship dynamic between organizations in the ecosystem. Here it is critical to, secondly, cogitate Peltoniemi and Vuori’ (2004) definition of a business ecosystem, that is:
[…] to be a dynamic structure which consists of an interconnected population of organizations. These organizations can be small firms, large corporations, universities, research centers, public sector organizations, and other parties which influence the system. (p. 13)
In this paper, the two perspectives are integrated to define and explore a U-BSEEs: an ecosystem in which higher education institutions (HEIs) serve as the conduit to foster social entrepreneurship and its education in the local or regional community. Moreover, it examines the perception of an ecosystem concept that is defined by engagement not only with traditional actors and stakeholders in higher education such as for-profit firms, local government organizations, financial organizations and local institutions but also with students, educators, nonprofit organizations, the environment and the local community to...