Sustainability entrepreneurs: could they be the true wealth generators of the future?

This paper presents a model of sustainability entrepreneurship that suggests sustainability entrepreneurs could potentially be the true wealth generators of the future. Entrepreneurship has been linked to wealth creation and economic growth and consequently been promoted and encouraged in modern society. In more recent times, with the increased awareness of environmental and social problems the theory of ecological modernisation has been presented as an explanation for how entrepreneurship can reconcile the twin goals of sustainable development and wealth accumulation. However, the limitations of ecological modernisation theory suggest this may not be the panacea some first thought, thus opening up the debate for an alternative model of entrepreneurship based on the principles of sustainability. This in turn is linked to a broader more radical definition of wealth that goes beyond a narrow financial scope to a more integrated approach that incorporates environmental and social forms of wealth alongside the traditional economic forms.