Table 1. Some indicative rights and how...

Table 1.

Some indicative rights and how they can be positively or negatively affected by social enterprises

Right (short form)	Key official sources	How enjoyment of this right might be enhanced by social enterprises	How the activities of social enterprises might harm access to this right
Right to an adequate standard of living Right to continuous improvement in living conditions	UDHR Article 25; ICESCR Article 11	Social enterprises can positively impact living standards, for example by ensuring that they address poverty alleviation and community development in their mission and activities. Through innovation and empowerment, social enterprises contribute to the continuous improvement of living conditions.	A social enterprise focused on improving living conditions may unintentionally hinder the right to continuous improvement by implementing short-term solutions without addressing long-term needs. For instance, if the enterprise fails to engage communities in sustainable development, it can contribute to a cycle of temporary improvements rather than fostering lasting positive change.
Right to Adequate Housing	ICESCR Article 11; CESCR General Comment No. 4: The Right to Adequate Housing	The right to adequate housing ensures that everyone has access to safe, secure, and habitable living conditions. This right emphasizes the importance of affordable housing, protection from forced eviction, and the right to participate in decisions affecting housing policies.	Social enterprises operating in disaster situations would need to ensure that any housing assistance they might provide would be consistent with the requirements of this right. Disaster interventions frequently fail to consider the human right to housing (Barber, 2008). Another problematic area of activity relates to project-induced displacement and resettlement, which also often leads to human rights harms (van der Ploeg and Vanclay, 2017; Vanclay, 2017b).
Freedom from discrimination	UDHR Article 2; UN Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (1979)	Social enterprises contribute to the elimination of discrimination by promoting gender-inclusive employment, empowering women through training and skills development, and addressing systemic gender inequalities. Their initiatives foster economic independence, challenge discriminatory norms and advance women's rights.	Social enterprises may target only certain groups. This may lead to inequality in a community and create a feeling of discrimination amongst other groups.
Right to participate in cultural life	UDHR Article 27; ICESCR Article 15	Social enterprises can enrich the participation in cultural life by fostering inclusive spaces that celebrate diversity. They can promote cultural preservation, support local artisans and provide platforms for artistic expression. Social enterprises contribute to vibrant and dynamic cultural ecosystems, enhancing the overall cultural experience for communities.	Social enterprises may harm the cultural life of certain communities with the projects they carry out. For example, a social enterprise that provides classical music training potentially may harm the preservation of local musical culture.
Right to education	UDHR Article 26.	Social enterprises can enhance the right to education by creating innovative, accessible learning solutions. They often prioritize marginalized communities, providing scholarships, skill-building programs and access to technology. Through these initiatives, social enterprises contribute to breaking barriers, fostering inclusivity and advancing the right to education for all.	Social enterprises should carefully consider the implications of providing practical skills training for young children. In some contexts, because of their skills, this might lead to the children seeking work and thus not attending or leaving school.
Right to food	UDHR Article 25; UNESCR Article 11; CESCR General Comment No. 12: The Right to Adequate Food (Art. 11)	Social enterprises contribute to the right to food by promoting sustainable agriculture, reducing food waste and addressing food insecurity. They can enhance access to nutritious food and foster food sovereignty.	A potential harm to the right to food could be unintentional environmental degradation by promoting unsustainable agricultural practices. If not mindful, their operations potentially could contribute to soil degradation or water pollution, indirectly impacting food security and hindering the realization of the right to food.
Right to water	A/RES/64 / 292; General Comment No. 15: The Right to Water	Social enterprises support the right to water by implementing sustainable water management practices, developing innovative solutions for water access, and addressing water-related challenges in communities. Through their initiatives, they contribute to ensuring equitable, affordable and sufficient access to clean water, advancing the realization of the right to water for all.	While a water-focused social enterprise aims to provide clean water by planning to improve the quality of water resources in a particular region, it may inadvertently exclude economically disadvantaged communities and create financial barriers to access.
Right to health	CESCR General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health (Art. 12)	The right to health encompasses access to timely, acceptable, and quality healthcare. It emphasizes preventive measures, medical treatment, and the underlying social determinants that impact health. Upholding this right promotes well-being, reduces inequalities and contributes to overall development.	Some social enterprises promote certain health-related behaviors or beliefs that potentially might result in people not seeking medical attention or failing to be aware of any symptoms.
Right to self-determination	ICCPR Article 1; ICESCR Article 1; UNDRIP Article 3	Social enterprises typically empower communities and support the right to self-determination. By fostering economic independence, cultural preservation and local decision-making, they contribute to autonomy and self-governance. They strengthen the ability of communities to shape their own destinies.	A social enterprise engaging in community development might inadvertently undermine the right to self-determination by imposing external solutions without consulting local people. For instance, implementing projects without community input may disrupt traditional practices, thus eroding the autonomy of the community and diminishing their ability to shape their own development trajectory.
Right to seek asylum	UDHR Article 14; UN Global Compact on Refugees (2018)	Social enterprises support the right to seek asylum by providing.	A social enterprise engaged in refugee assistance might unintentionally compromise the right to seek asylum. If its projects lack sensitivity to the complexities of displacement, or if it inadvertently perpetuates stereotypes, it can contribute to an environment that discourages individuals from seeking asylum and accessing protection.
Equality of Rights between Men and Women	General Comment No. 28	The equality of rights between men and women acknowledges that all individuals, regardless of gender, should have the same legal, social, and economic rights. This concept aims to eliminate discrimination, promote gender equity, and create a society where opportunities and responsibilities are shared equally.	Social enterprises may inadvertently reinforce traditional gender roles in their projects, and thus contribute to the persistence of gender disparities rather than promoting gender equality and empowerment.
Right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment	United Nations General Assembly (26 July 2022) UN Document: A/76/L.75	Social enterprises contribute to the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment by adopting eco-friendly practices, promoting conservation and addressing environmental challenges. Through innovative solutions and community engagement, they play a vital role in preserving ecosystems and advancing environmental well-being for all.	A social enterprise that supports farmers might provide agricultural production training. After the training, it might distribute seeds to farmers free of charge. However, these seeds might not be appropriate for the local environmental conditions. For example, they may require excessive water, they may become an invasive species, they may require large amounts of pesticides or fertilizer, or they may be GMOs.

Right(short form)	Key official sources	How enjoyment of this right might be enhanced by social enterprises	How the activities of social enterprises might harm access to this right
Right to an adequate standard of livingRight to continuous improvement in living conditions	UDHR Article 25; ICESCR Article 11	Social enterprises can positively impact living standards, for example by ensuring that they address poverty alleviation and community development in their mission and activities. Through innovation and empowerment, social enterprises contribute to the continuous improvement of living conditions.	A social enterprise focused on improving living conditions may unintentionally hinder the right to continuous improvement by implementing short-term solutions without addressing long-term needs. For instance, if the enterprise fails to engage communities in sustainable development, it can contribute to a cycle of temporary improvements rather than fostering lasting positive change.
Right to Adequate Housing	ICESCR Article 11; CESCR General Comment No. 4: The Right to Adequate Housing	The right to adequate housing ensures that everyone has access to safe, secure, and habitable living conditions. This right emphasizes the importance of affordable housing, protection from forced eviction, and the right to participate in decisions affecting housing policies.	Social enterprises operating in disaster situations would need to ensure that any housing assistance they might provide would be consistent with the requirements of this right. Disaster interventions frequently fail to consider the human right to housing (Barber, 2008). Another problematic area of activity relates to project-induced displacement and resettlement, which also often leads to human rights harms (van der Ploeg and Vanclay, 2017; Vanclay, 2017b).
Freedom from discrimination	UDHR Article 2; UN Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (1979)	Social enterprises contribute to the elimination of discrimination by promoting gender-inclusive employment, empowering women through training and skills development, and addressing systemic gender inequalities. Their initiatives foster economic independence, challenge discriminatory norms and advance women's rights.	Social enterprises may target only certain groups. This may lead to inequality in a community and create a feeling of discrimination amongst other groups.
Right to participate in cultural life	UDHR Article 27; ICESCR Article 15	Social enterprises can enrich the participation in cultural life by fostering inclusive spaces that celebrate diversity. They can promote cultural preservation, support local artisans and provide platforms for artistic expression. Social enterprises contribute to vibrant and dynamic cultural ecosystems, enhancing the overall cultural experience for communities.	Social enterprises may harm the cultural life of certain communities with the projects they carry out. For example, a social enterprise that provides classical music training potentially may harm the preservation of local musical culture.
Right to education	UDHR Article 26.	Social enterprises can enhance the right to education by creating innovative, accessible learning solutions. They often prioritize marginalized communities, providing scholarships, skill-building programs and access to technology. Through these initiatives, social enterprises contribute to breaking barriers, fostering inclusivity and advancing the right to education for all.	Social enterprises should carefully consider the implications of providing practical skills training for young children. In some contexts, because of their skills, this might lead to the children seeking work and thus not attending or leaving school.
Right to food	UDHR Article 25; UNESCR Article 11; CESCR General Comment No. 12: The Right to Adequate Food (Art. 11)	Social enterprises contribute to the right to food by promoting sustainable agriculture, reducing food waste and addressing food insecurity. They can enhance access to nutritious food and foster food sovereignty.	A potential harm to the right to food could be unintentional environmental degradation by promoting unsustainable agricultural practices. If not mindful, their operations potentially could contribute to soil degradation or water pollution, indirectly impacting food security and hindering the realization of the right to food.
Right to water	A/RES/64 / 292; General Comment No. 15: The Right to Water	Social enterprises support the right to water by implementing sustainable water management practices, developing innovative solutions for water access, and addressing water-related challenges in communities. Through their initiatives, they contribute to ensuring equitable, affordable and sufficient access to clean water, advancing the realization of the right to water for all.	While a water-focused social enterprise aims to provide clean water by planning to improve the quality of water resources in a particular region, it may inadvertently exclude economically disadvantaged communities and create financial barriers to access.
Right to health	CESCR General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health (Art. 12)	The right to health encompasses access to timely, acceptable, and quality healthcare. It emphasizes preventive measures, medical treatment, and the underlying social determinants that impact health. Upholding this right promotes well-being, reduces inequalities and contributes to overall development.	Some social enterprises promote certain health-related behaviors or beliefs that potentially might result in people not seeking medical attention or failing to be aware of any symptoms.
Right to self-determination	ICCPR Article 1; ICESCR Article 1; UNDRIP Article 3	Social enterprises typically empower communities and support the right to self-determination. By fostering economic independence, cultural preservation and local decision-making, they contribute to autonomy and self-governance. They strengthen the ability of communities to shape their own destinies.	A social enterprise engaging in community development might inadvertently undermine the right to self-determination by imposing external solutions without consulting local people. For instance, implementing projects without community input may disrupt traditional practices, thus eroding the autonomy of the community and diminishing their ability to shape their own development trajectory.
Right to seek asylum	UDHR Article 14; UN Global Compact on Refugees (2018)	Social enterprises support the right to seek asylum by providing.	A social enterprise engaged in refugee assistance might unintentionally compromise the right to seek asylum. If its projects lack sensitivity to the complexities of displacement, or if it inadvertently perpetuates stereotypes, it can contribute to an environment that discourages individuals from seeking asylum and accessing protection.
Equality of Rights between Men and Women	General Comment No. 28	The equality of rights between men and women acknowledges that all individuals, regardless of gender, should have the same legal, social, and economic rights. This concept aims to eliminate discrimination, promote gender equity, and create a society where opportunities and responsibilities are shared equally.	Social enterprises may inadvertently reinforce traditional gender roles in their projects, and thus contribute to the persistence of gender disparities rather than promoting gender equality and empowerment.
Right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment	United Nations General Assembly (26 July 2022) UN Document: A/76/L.75	Social enterprises contribute to the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment by adopting eco-friendly practices, promoting conservation and addressing environmental challenges. Through innovative solutions and community engagement, they play a vital role in preserving ecosystems and advancing environmental well-being for all.	A social enterprise that supports farmers might provide agricultural production training. After the training, it might distribute seeds to farmers free of charge. However, these seeds might not be appropriate for the local environmental conditions. For example, they may require excessive water, they may become an invasive species, they may require large amounts of pesticides or fertilizer, or they may be GMOs.

Notes:

UDHR = universal declaration on human rights; ICESCR = international covenant on economic, social and cultural rights; CESCR = committee on economic, social and cultural rights; ICCPR = international covenant on civil and political rights; UNDRIP = united nations declaration on the rights of indigenous peoples

Source: Authors’ own work

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