Social challenges within sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystems

The formation of sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystems to foster sustainable entrepreneurship in regional and national levels has become an increasing phenomenon. Therefore, the research stream of sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystems is gaining relevance in the sustainable entrepreneurship literature. What has been missing, however, is an empirical analysis of stakeholder collaborations in sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystems and to explore what challenges are there and could be tackled by stakeholders to result in a better functioning of sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystems. This chapter demonstrates that social challenges, in green technology transfer and product development to tackle sustainability issues, originate from the emergence of social uncertainty. Findings suggest that social uncertainty emerges from a process that involves contextual factors, perceptions and behaviors that lead to inefficient collaborations within sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystems. We discovered strategies and counteractions that are useful to diminish social uncertainty and therefore secure the continuity of successful collaborations to support sustainable business strategies.