Social Enterprises and Sustainable Development Goals: How a Global Health Project Transformed Into a Social Venture – The Case of HERA App for Refugees

Abstract

In line with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) put forth by the United Nations (UN), social entrepreneurship models in global health are on the rise. While SDG Goal 3: Good Health and Wellbeing is the direct focus of global health sector, the majority of other SDG goals affect and are affected by ‘good health and wellbeing'. While global health interventions create social value by increasing healthcare access in vulnerable populations, the effect is often limited by the timeline and availability of funds. In a social venture model, where value creation is paired with a sustainable financial income, this issue can be alleviated. In addition, innovative intervention models for vulnerable populations can align themselves with the sustainable social value aims in the UN's new Global Goals. This chapter describes a project (HERA) designed to decrease mortality and morbidity due to preventable diseases in refugees. The authors examine how it transformed to a sustainable and collaborative social initiative working to create lasting social value and discuss this process contextualized by the SDGs.