ENSn4656 Developing an eco-social enterprise

Faculty of Social Studies
Spring 2026
Extent and Intensity
0/0/0. 3 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Teacher(s)
Timothy Howard Crabtree (lecturer), RNDr. Naděžda Vlašín Johanisová, Ph.D. (deputy)
Guaranteed by
doc. Mgr. Karel Stibral, Ph.D.
Department of Environmental Studies – Faculty of Social Studies
Contact Person: Mgr. Klára Dubinová
Supplier department: Department of Environmental Studies – Faculty of Social Studies
Prerequisites
TYP_STUDIA(N)
None
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is also offered to the students of the fields other than those the course is directly associated with.
The capacity limit for the course is 20 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 0/20, only registered: 1/20, only registered with preference (fields directly associated with the programme): 1/20
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives

This module introduces students to eco-social enterprise as a response to the intertwined challenges of environmental degradation, social inequality and the constraints of globalised neo-liberal economic systems. A core focus of the module is group-based project work, through which students design and develop proposals for potential eco-social enterprises. This practical work is grounded in an exploration of the organisational, financial, relational and ethical dimensions of eco-social ventures, as well as their potential to contribute to more equitable and sustainable local and bioregional economies.

To support this project-based learning, the module draws on two complementary theoretical perspectives. First, JK Gibson-Graham’s community economies approach and their politics of economic possibility - which provides a framework for understanding how language, subjectivity and collective action shape the emergence of alternative economic practices. Students will examine how dominant economic narratives restrict the imagination, and how alternative vocabularies and participatory forms of organising can open spaces for new economic identities, relationships and ventures.

Second, the module incorporates Tim Ingold’s relational approach to materials, making and environment, which emphasises how enterprises emerge through ongoing correspondence between people, materials, tools, and ecological processes. Ingold’s ideas support a more embodied and situated understanding of eco-social enterprise development, revealing how new practices arise from working with the flows and affordances of materials, places and communities rather than imposing fixed designs. This perspective complements Gibson-Graham by grounding economic possibility in the lived, material, ecological and affective dimensions of practice.

Throughout the module, students explore examples of eco-social enterprises in areas such as food, energy, housing and textiles – sectors that foreground materiality, ecological interdependence and questions of ownership, localisation and trusteeship. Concepts such as bioregioning, distributed production and the commons are approached not only as economic strategies but as relational, material and political practices that shape how eco-social enterprises come into being.

By the end of the module, students will have both (1) a theoretical understanding of the politics and materialities of eco-social enterprise, and (2) a collaboratively developed, practice-grounded enterprise proposal informed by these perspectives.

Learning outcomes

·       Demonstrate an understanding of eco-social enterprises as responses to environmental and social challenges, including their organisational, financial and ethical characteristics.

·       Explain and apply Gibson-Graham’s politics of language, subjectivity and collective action to the development of eco-social enterprises, recognising how economic possibilities are shaped by discourse, identity and participation.

·       Analyse Ingold’s relational approach to materials, making and environments, and reflect critically on how embodied engagement with materials and ecological processes can inform sustainable enterprise development.

·       Work collaboratively in groups to design and develop a proposal for a potential eco-social enterprise, integrating theoretical insights with practical, context-specific considerations.

·       Evaluate how alternative economic models – including commons-based approaches, democratisation, innovative finance, localisation and bioregioning – may be incorporated into eco-social ventures.

·       Assess the role of materials and place in shaping eco-social enterprises, including issues of sustainability, embodied practice, affect, care and the socio-material relations involved in production.

·       Use systems-thinking tools (such as theory of change and the business canvas) to articulate enterprise proposals, while recognising their limitations in capturing the relational complexity emphasised by both Gibson-Graham and Ingold.

·       Critically reflect on the processes of collective inquiry and enterprise development, understanding them as emergent interactions that involve shifting language, evolving subjectivities, material engagements and collaborative action.


Syllabus

  • Session 1

    This session introduces the concept of eco-social enterprise and explores its role in addressing social inequality and environmental degradation. Students will examine how language and economic narratives shape what is seen as possible, drawing on Gibson-Graham’s politics of economic possibility. Groups will be formed and begin developing initial ideas for potential eco-social enterprises.

  • Session 2

    Students will be introduced to systems-thinking tools for understanding enterprise inputs, activities and impacts. These are complemented by Ingold’s relational and material perspectives, emphasising how enterprise ideas evolve through engagement with materials and place. Students will explore how material affordances and ecological relations shape their emerging enterprise proposals.

  • Session 3

    This session examines governance, financing and operational design for eco-social enterprises, including cooperatives, community finance and commons-based approaches. Students will develop their theory of change and outline key operational elements. These will be evaluated through the lens of Gibson-Graham’s focus on subjectivity and collective action, and Ingold’s approach to the way in which purpose and direction evolves over time in correspondence with many lines of influence. 

  • Session 4

    In this session, localisation, bioregioning and distributed production will be explored as strategies for creating context-responsive eco-social enterprises. Ingold’s emphasis on correspondence with place and environment will inform consideration of local materials, skills and ecological flows. Students will consider how their proposals are situated within specific places and socio-material contexts, and can be understood as an ongoing, relational process.

    Session 5

  • In the final session, groups will present their eco-social enterprise proposals and receive constructive feedback from peers and the tutor. Students will critically reflect on how their proposals integrate systems thinking, material and ecological awareness, and the politics of language, subjectivity and collective action.

Literature
    recommended literature
  • The handbook of diverse economies. Edited by J. K. Gibson-Graham - Kelly Dombroski. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar publishing, 2020, xix, 546. ISBN 9781802208368. info
  • Building sustainable communities :tools and concepts for self-reliant economic change. Edited by Ward Morehouse. 2nd ed. New York: Bootstrap Press, 1997, xiii, 218. ISBN 1-897766-34-3. info
  • The living economy : a new economics in the making. Edited by Paul Ekins. London: Routledge, 1989, xviii, 398. ISBN 0415039371. info
  • Hopkins, R. (2011). The transition companion. Totnes: Transition Books.
  • JACOBS, Jane. The nature of economies. New York: Vintage Books, 2000, x, 190. ISBN 0375702431. info
  • KELLY, Marjorie. Owning our future : the emerging ownership revolution. 1st ed. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 2012, xi, 247. ISBN 9781605093109. info
  • LEWIS, Mike and Pat CONATY. The resilience imperative : cooperative transitions to a steady-state economy. Gabriola: New Society Publishers, 2012, x, 389. ISBN 9780865717077. info
  • Schumacher, E. F. (1981). Small is possible. New York: Harper & Row.
  • Murray R., Caulier-Grice J. Mulgan G. (2010), The Open Book of Social Innovation, [on-line] www.nesta.org.uk
  • OSTERWALDER, A. and Y. PIGNEUR. Business model generation: A handbook for visionaries, game changers, and challengers. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley &Sons, 2010. info
  • Restakis, J. (2010). Humanizing the economy: Co-operatives in the age of capital. Gabriola, B.C: New Society Publishers.
  • Shaw, P. (2002). Changing conversations in organizations. London:
Teaching methods
Learning activities and teaching methods will include presentation-supported lectures, structured class discussions, work in groups and development of individual eco-social enterprise case studies by students. Students will be assessed for their contributions and therefore attendance at this and all sessions is compulsory. The tutor and participants will provide feedback to each group.
Assessment methods
Students will be asked to propose a real or hypothetical eco-social enterprise which they can explore further during the course. They will then be asked to prepare and give a presentation, describing their eco-social enterprise and summarising their learning during the course.
Language of instruction
English
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
The course is taught annually.
The course is taught in blocks.
General note: Předmět určen primárně pro mateřské obory. Pro naplnění kapacity předmětu lze doplnit i studenty jiných oborů.
Teacher's information
Course Tutor
Dr. Tim Crabtree, PhD, MA (Oxon), works with Wessex Community Assets and Dorset Community Energy,  supporting the development of renewable energy, sustainable housing, regenerative textiles and local food initiatives. He has 30 years experience of social economy development, in policy (with the New Economics Foundation), in local economic development agencies, and as a social entrepreneur developing a range of eco-social enterprises.
The course is also listed under the following terms Spring 2021, Spring 2022, Spring 2023, Spring 2024, Spring 2025.
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