ABSTRACT
This chapter seeks to examine the role that entrepreneurial ecosystem players (i.e., financial institutions, governments and businesses) play in encouraging or discouraging Indigenous social entrepreneurs. Using stakeholder theory, social entrepreneurship theory and stewardship theory, we argue that mainstream financial institutions, governments and businesses in Western countries often lack mechanisms to assess the value of Indigenous social entrepreneurial projects and suggest why this may be the case. To illustrate our argument, we analyze a case in which competing financial institutions were asked to fund a small hydro project led by a First Nation in British Columbia that respected their waterways, air and fisheries. In the end the project was funded by a British Columbia credit union but rejected by the major banks. Using the lessons learned from this case, we suggest ways in which financial institutions and other organizations can improve their assessment of projects proposed by Indigenous social entrepreneurs.
