The Cultural Context of Sustainability Entrepreneurship

This paper, representing research in progress on cultural influences on sustainability entrepreneurship, builds on recent scholarship concerning the intersection of entrepreneurship with sustainability. Because cultural factors highly influence both sustainability and entrepreneurship, the global impact of sustainability entrepreneurship may depend on its adaptability to a variety of cultures. This paper discusses sustainability entrepreneurship from the perspective of value creation by focusing on the holistic value proposition (HVP) created by a sustainability venture. The HVP delineates the value that a sustainability venture generates for multiple stakeholders across the multiple dimensions of sustainability. An ongoing case study is used to examine cultural influences on sustainability venture creation, operation and evolution. Navajo FlexCrete, a venture of the Navajo Nation (the Nation), the United States' largest Native American tribe, produces green building products by recycling waste materials. Navajo FlexCrete provides a spectrum of economic, social, environmental and cultural value that contributes to overall tribal sustainability.