SE-SL's Definition of Social Entrepreneurship
Social entrepreneurship is a philosophy of innovation and sustainability. Its goal is to empower those who work on intractable social problems to break the boundaries of discipline and convention in the search for root causes and durable solutions. Social entrepreneurship has no single definition but what its practitioners share in common is what they call "taking an entrepreneurial approach." Entrepreneurial is not narrowly defined as a business approach, but more broadly as a novel approach. Examples range from breaking cycles of criminal behavior through empowering families of high risk individuals, to sustainably linking local artisans to global markets, and to developing community justice centers that integrate adjudication, rehabilitation and community development.
Clearinghouse of social entrepreneurship organizations at Change.org: