This study focuses on identity and (un)employment among Coloured born-frees from the Cape Flats in Cape Town. Coloured adolescents could be classified as vulnerable because their living conditions are characterized by unemployment, crime, gangsterism and a lack of positive role models. In conjunction with digital exclusion and poor quality education; these circumstances restrict youth from participating fairly in socio-economic activities – effectively limiting their growth potential. Personalization theory states that growth is not solely dictated by environmental conditions but in part dependent on how an individual respond to these external experiences. Most members of the Cape Flats are not criminals or gangsters. However, most research utilizes a deficit paradigm; exclusively emphasizing the negative conditions in these disadvantaged districts. A qualitative Grounded Theory methodology was employed to address this gap by incorporating corporate and creatively employed youth as research participants. Moreover, male and female born-frees, aged 18-28, were interviewed. 10 individuals from each employment sector (corporate, creative and criminal) were given the same set of questions in order to establish reasons why certain careers were chosen. Cognitive and behavioural characteristics, both distinct and shared, across the 3 groups were identified. Personal Potential is derived from Self-actualization and Self-efficacy – this contributes to new knowledge as these theories have not previously been applied to the Cape Flats context. The most destructive influence limiting potential was found to be the behaviour witnessed by others in their neighbourhoods. The findings indicate that communication is the most practical learning tool among youth. However, youth do not want to be told what to do, rather, they want to be like those they see. The innovative praxis model aiding this connection is the digital network Question Mark Kaffy. This platform broadens the outlook of youth beyond what is merely observed in their physical setting, displaying the diversity of South Africa's creatives. This research project sheds light on youth who have maximized their Personal Potential and shares insights as to how others may do the same. Thus, it empowers Cape Flat's creatives to become constructive citizens by serving as new role models to aspiring artists, which contributes to the creation of a Collective Creative Cultural identity amongst Capetonians.

Financial inclusion in the world is improving, as many countries and financial institutions are focusing on including lower-income individuals and households. This research discusses a number of tools, mechanisms and the intricacies related to pertinent conceptual frameworks to support the promotion of financial inclusion at the various stakeholder levels, and many opportunities to promote financial inclusion. One such tool in South Africa; Co-operative banks (CB's), proactively focuses on inclusive innovation opportunities and the inclusion of mixed-income communities. This is done through continuous review in order to continuously align with its initial objectives of social development and lower-income community participation promotion. Capturing women and young individuals, among other marginalised groups, by; creating accounts for them at a young age, via educational literacy initiatives, and supported by various internal capability support measures, and further reinforced by government and financial institutional inclusion policy and framework promotion (including co-operative banking institutions), holds a lot of promise and opens up a world of opportunities to investigate and explore to progress the financial inclusion agenda. Other literature and themes discussed, include definitions of what financial inclusion is, why many individuals remain unbanked, pre-conditions for successful financial inclusion, alternate financial service providers being used by lower-income individuals and households successfully which we can learn from, and a few measurement tools and mechanisms which exist in order for governments and financial institutions to identify, implement, drive, and track progress. Aforementioned is discussed, and the theory, borrowed from, in order to promote sustainable financial inclusion. *The creation of bank accounts for individuals is seen as a facilitator of, as well as a measure of the level of, financial inclusion.

Little is known about responsible investment (RI) opportunities for retail investors in South Africa. Disconnect between RI demand and RI supply seems evident, undermining the growth of RI in this country, which in turn frustrates opportunities for economic growth and social well-being. “Over the past decade, environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations have been among the most important factors responsible for shifting the axes of the financial industry”. This research examines retail investor demand for RI and supply of RI opportunities for the same market segment, in South Africa, observing inclusionary investment practice via the application of co-production. The paper reflects a survey of retail investor demand, from which 14 indicators are developed. The indicators are utilised to assess the dynamic between RI demand and available RI supply across three investment subsectors (commercial banks, asset managers, and alternative investment platforms). The paper leverages industry perspective to support its interpretations of existent demand for RI and accessible RI supply, circa 2019 to 2022. It intones the importance of using co-production to create investment context, to find equilibrium between supply and demand, and to enable resilient RI practice at the retail level. Methods of enabling inclusivity within nascent but pertinent RI practice for retail investors are reified. Deeper understanding of retail investor demand and methods of leveraging RI supply are required in future iterations of this type of research.

The aim of this study was to develop a stakeholder accepted tool to monitor and measure service delivery. The question underlying this research was what drives service delivery and its related protests and what makes it so problematic? The need for this study arose out of continued reports of these protests in South Africa. Evidence suggests that there may be a disconnect between the real experiences of communities on the ground and the causes cited by politicians and often reported in the media. The study used a mixed method approach to examine where the disconnect lies and built on the data to develop an audit tool. The study used primary and secondary data to understand the nature of service delivery and its related protests. The primary and secondary data provided both qualitative and quantitative data that highlighted the nature of service delivery landscape in South Africa. The quantitative data was instrumental in shaping and informing data collection protocol and shaping the draft tool for monitoring and measuring service delivery protest. Qualitative methods (i.e. interviews) were used to collect data in a purposive manner and to gather information from knowledgeable respondents and who are directly involved in service delivery. The findings showed that there is a disconnect in information sharing and knowledge between officials to the communities. The information was either not available at all or did not reach the intended recipients in order for them to make informed decisions. Furthermore, fake news from various sources clouded the communities from making sound judgments about their livelihoods. This disconnect may be regarded as a one of many fundamental reasons for the nature of service delivery protests in South Africa. The study also generated helpful insights and guided the development of a ‘service-delivery tool' for organisations and practitioners aiming to introduce and improve on their monitoring and evaluation framework for service delivery and its related protests.

The alleged universality of entrepreneurship as a neutral, meritocratic, and accessible means through which individuals are free to realise their socioeconomic potential has been challenged. The entrepreneurship literature is dominated by a narrow stereotype of the entrepreneur (white, neoliberal, Western, male, heteronormative) but the interest in entrepreneurship as a mechanism for economic and social value creation is driving demand for more inclusive, diverse, and pluralist knowledge on entrepreneurship that is representative of marginalised populations' lived experiences. Many have already introduced alternative constructions of entrepreneurship; however, the literature on LGBT and queer entrepreneurs is still limited. This paper aims to help address this gap by queering entrepreneurship through a ‘de- and re-construction' of the norm. Drawing from both post-structural feminism and queer theory, this study problematises ‘normativity' both in entrepreneurship and in the methodologies used to study it. This study asked seven self-identified queer entrepreneurs in South Africa to develop and explain a queer-inclusive construction of entrepreneurship through collage. Collages were analysed through a visual grounded theory methodology and supplemented with interview data analysed through a constructivist grounded theory methodology. The findings confirm the pervasiveness of a normative construction of entrepreneurship and indicate the need to queer it by both including queer individuals and destabilising normative identities and methodologies in the entrepreneurship field. This study contributes to a more inclusive, diverse, and representative entrepreneurial discourse by illuminating specifically the lived experience of queer African entrepreneurs, highlighting the pressure they face to conform to both a Western stereotype of the entrepreneur and to being the ‘right' kind of queer as a product of queernormativity. This research also illustrates how fresh ontologies can inject the entrepreneurship literature with new perspectives that challenge normative, positivist hierarchies. Recommendations for practical interventions for inclusivity are discussed and future directions for research are suggested.

Levels of indebtedness amongst South African consumers are increasing year on year and the formal lending system is not structured or incentivised to reverse this. In lieu of fundamental change in regulation and to current institutionalised lending and debt collection practices, the best way to reverse the negative cycle of ever-increasing indebtedness is by shifting control to the consumer themselves. Industry collection mechanisms are functional and blunt, treating any arrear debt as ‘bad' and by association all indebted consumers are labelled ‘bad' with no recognition of the circumstance an individual might find themselves in. Covid has had a devastating effect on consumer psychology and the ability for individuals and households to meet their financial obligations. A more empathy-led approach to supporting indebted consumers is necessary. The aim of this study is to establish the most important factors within credit self-efficacy that enable certain consumers to make better credit decisions and reverse the downward, self-reinforcing spiral to greater indebtedness, It has supported the development of a business model aimed at making it attractive and profitable for the lenders to actively support the enablement of consumer capability in relation to credit. Using an online survey, a quota-controlled sample of n=874 consumers was achieved, adequately representing the adult population active in the formal South African credit market. Through the development of a structured equation model using n=794 of the collected data records, the study has found that the typical treatment of the indebted is ineffectual in helping consumers return to a healthier financial state. The perception that consumer desire of material goods alone drives poor credit behaviour and therefore greater levels of indebtedness is unfounded, as is the idea of profligate spending and its impact on credit behaviour. Living a good lifestyle is important to consumers and does affect credit behaviour but this does not translate into a significant effect on financial state. Rather, it is the combination of financial credit self-efficacy, financial confidence and financial management, as composite credit self-efficacy, that has a significant and strong influence on credit behaviour. In turn, credit behaviour as a mediating variable significantly and strongly influences financial state, more so than the direct effect of composite credit self-efficacy. Financial state also has a significant and extremely strong influence on composite credit self-efficacy, proving that a healthier financial state actually empowers greater consumer self-efficacy in relation to credit and financial matters. It is therefore incumbent on lenders of credit to have a more sensitive appreciation of consumer context and support consumers along their whole credit journey, by better understanding their personal circumstances, related psychosocial factors and how this affects their level of composite credit self-efficacy and credit behaviour. Future studies should concentrate on how credit self-efficacy can be instilled and tracked from an early age, especially amongst consumers who are new to the credit market, as data suggests that a single event can trigger a life-long journey down a ladder of increasing indebtedness.

One of the biggest challenges facing leaders and policymakers is successfully transitioning young people from education into gainful livelihoods. Reputable bodies such as the International Labour Organisation (ILO) have argued that promoting financial inclusion among young people is an important aspect of promoting their entry into the labour markets (Friedline & Rauktis, 2014). Rather than compare the experiences of the included against those who are excluded, this research explored the experiences of young people who are already included in the financial system to understand which broader social dynamics contribute towards young people's financial and social outcomes. The research took the form of a field study based on a qualitative research approach using an contextual social constructionism lens to conduct a thematic analysis to understand the experiences of young people using the South African financial system. The sample was drawn from the population of young people between the ages of 23 – 35, an age range that falls within the South African definition of youth. The 30 participants who volunteered for the study were from different cities within the Gauteng province. The research results demonstrated the increasingly large role played by the financial sector in the transition from childhood to adulthood. Through the experiences of the included youths, financial outcomes were found to result from complex interconnections between the structural, social, household, and personal attributes. The study results suggest that six interrelated dynamics contribute to young people's financial system experiences. These dynamics are parents' financial capacity, education, income/cash transfers, expectations on young people, and the social policy context. This suggests that the financial system is a social construct, impacted by public policy, global and local economic trends, and the context in which its users find themselves. Despite this, young people are not socialised within the home to deal with the realities of early and sustained usage of increasingly complex financial products. Prevailing definitions of financial inclusion are largely confined to the functioning of financial institutions. This disconnect was found to lead to incomplete recommendations from policy makers on what might improve the experiences and social outcomes of youth from lower income backgrounds. The study's findings suggestions are that programs to build people's financial skills should pay attention to the whole situation in which young people learn about money. Parents should be able to teach their kids about debt and insurance, as well as other financial products. Policies for financial inclusion need to be aware of how regressive welfare policies make it so that younger people have to carry more complicated products like student loans earlier in their lives. Financial institutions are making products that are good for young people, and regulators should pay more attention to market conduct reform to strengthen the consumer protection parts of youth-specific financial sector rules. Keywords: Youth Transitions, Financial Inclusion, Social Constructionism

Waste reclaimers create a significant impact through their role in the recycling industry. Yet, the majority perform their role undignifiedly and with little or no support. Over the past few years, this impact has been researched, acknowledged and publicised by the government and private sector. As a result, the Waste Picker Integration Guideline for South Africa was developed to assist organisations working with waste reclaimers. However, these guidelines were mainly derived from case studies where waste reclaimers were more organised than most South African waste reclaimers and none based in the Western Cape. The difference in organisation, location and demographics is significant as it alters the process used to integrate waste reclaimers. This research sought to understand better the processes used to integrate unorganised waste reclaimers into formal recycling operations or projects in the Western Cape. The case studies were selected based on an existing integration process between a formal entity, either public or private, and an informal waste entity, a group of unorganised waste reclaimers. Five case study projects were chosen. The case study analysis resulted in a process model that highlighted the central finding, the role of the “key broker”, who can build trust among the waste reclaimers and successfully integrate unorganised waste reclaimers. The findings show characteristics to play such a role and how crucial such trust-building is because waste reclaimers have a deep-seated distrust of actors in the formal sector. This research contributes to prior work by exploring what makes such integration processes successful even in the absence of large associations or intermediating NGOs.

We live in an age where our most significant 'story' is becoming that of a growing population living on a resource scarce planet. The need for us to do things differently is clear, increasing our awareness of the importance for social innovation around the world, yet the overriding narrative of our time remains embedded in a value system that maintains things just as they are. By looking at the stories we tell and the ways we tell them this study seeks to understand the role that 'narrative' plays in shaping our world, the power it has to influence an alternative reality, and its significance in creating conditions that are conducive for social innovation to occur. This paper gains a deeper understanding of the value systems in which our storytelling behaviour seems to be fundamentally entrenched by exploring the differences between how we understand and make sense of stories of commercial, as opposed to social, interest. In doing so, it has tried to gain insight into how we have successfully managed to sustain and fuel the growth of a global culture that rooted in an extrinsic value system, while we have failed to engender a sense of social responsibility, justice and equality. By conducting a series of participatory action research workshops across four different case study contexts, the research sought to challenge three core elements identified in the literature as occurring in narrative patterns: (1) narratives appear to be framed within either a negative or a positive framework; therefore, reflecting only a 'partial story', and perpetuating stereotypes or incomplete truths; (2) they are generally told by a single, external storyteller, with a very clear agenda; and (3) they are constructed to appeal to extrinsic values. The study set out to understand how we might unlock fixed narratives in the pursuit of social innovation - reconstructing new narratives that could in turn influence and perpetuate alternative realities. The workshop approach drew on influences from three practice-based methods: Theory U, human-centred design and elements of mindfulness practices. They were designed to prioritise story creation by multiple storytellers from inside the case study context, encourage the exploration of both negative and positive aspects of an experienced truth, and appeal to intrinsic values by creating the space for emergence and honesty. The workshops took place at a non-profit organisation, a private ii company, a public sector community health centre, and with an independent group of individuals from the same area. The core finding of this research was that by gaining a sense of 'agency' over their own capacity to identify, shape and share their own story, participants appeared able to identify and deconstruct 'fixed narratives' and move towards reconstructing a 'new, shared narrative' that was more inclusive of everyone's lived experience. A series of common factors appeared to play a consistently significant role in creating the conditions for this to take place. Some form of mindfulness, or body-based, practice was effective in encouraging participants to connect to 'experienced truths'. The use of different media to identify and create their stories increased participants' capacity to connect with their sense of control over shaping their own narrative, and the quality of listening within each group affected the quality of the story and the storyteller's own level of engagement. This appeared to lead to what is referred to in this paper as 'narrative agency'. The above factors also appeared to contribute to a common 'journey' or eight-stage experience. This consisted of fully entering the narrative workshop space (grounding), witnessing their authentic personal story (activating), articulating and sharing with a group honestly (connecting), embodying the emergent personal narrative (consolidating), gaining a sense of ownership and control over their own story (agency), integrating their own story with the experiences and stories of others allowing a new shared narrative to emerge (integrating), and demonstrating a desire to co-create a new narrative to inform new authentic actions (co-creating). This research demonstrated that it can be challenging to separate ourselves from the 'fixed stories' we have come to claim as our own and truly create the space and time to connect with our deepest needs, thoughts and desires. Consequently, we often have no real 'agency' over our stories. The study indicated that a deeper understanding of how to create conditions that generate a sense of 'narrative agency' could contribute to emerging practices in the field of social innovation, such as human-centred design and Theory U, and potentially inform new products, processes and systems.

Young people, emerging out of the foster care system, often struggle to become productive and self-sustainable adults in society. They are at high risk of being trapped in poverty and unemployment for their entire adult life because they are unable to make a successful transition out of the foster care system to adulthood. The purpose of this study was to explore how social entrepreneurship can be utilised to establish a developmental transitional service to facilitate the successful transition to adulthood of youth in foster care. The research participants were purposefully selected and comprised social workers and foster youths based in the township and the former homelands of the Free State. Data was collected using in-depth interviews and focus groups and was analysed using content analysis. The study found that the current model of the foster care system is not designed to facilitate and support foster youth to make a successful transition to adulthood. This may be ascribed to the following: ● The legislative requirements imposed on this population group, ● The lack of preparatory transition services and ● The limited capacity of social workers to address the needs and challenges of foster youth. The study concludes that intervention is needed in the foster care system to prepare, equip and support foster youth to become productive and self-sustainable citizens. Through the application of the social entrepreneurship framework, this study demonstrates how existing resources and new actors can be leveraged to provide a developmental transitional service that will serve to promote the resilience of youth in foster care and assist them to break the cycle of poverty.