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This chapter presents an overview of social entrepreneurship and social innovation in Colombia and explores its implications in the Pacific Alliance. It is organized into five sections that provide an overview of the fields of social entrepreneurship and social innovation with the aim of sharing experiences that have occurred in the country with the international academic community. It offers a description of the social and economic context of Colombia and then presents the situations that currently serve as the basis of social entrepreneurship and social innovation. It also discusses the main actors that are active in this context. In particular, the chapter emphasizes the experience of the city of Medellín, which is thought to provide an auspicious scenario for the establishment of a business ecosystem based on social entrepreneurship and social innovation. The learnings of Colombia can serve as a relevant example for the countries of the Pacific Alliance that are currently building their social business ecosystems.

To succeed in acquiring appropriate resources, socially innovative firms must develop social capital, by making connections with traditional partners, such as universities and multinational corporations, and nontraditional partners, such as nongovernmental organizations and the communities in which they work. This study is designed to show the application of social capital through the pursuit of bilateral relationships. In addition, it shows that collaborations are possible among partners – pertaining to social innovative firms. This study begins with a conceptual foundation that is included to define key constructs and propositions. The methodology is a qualitative case study of socially innovative firms in the agriculture industry in Mexico and Colombia. Both case studies show the creation of bilateral alliances with traditional and nontraditional partners to obtain resources. Moreover, the findings suggest that a social firm can unite its partners’ objectives toward social value creation. Having a common ground could trigger multilateral collaborations among the socially innovative firm’s partners to combine, integrate, and leverage the business ecosystem. This chapter provides evidence that today’s social entrepreneurs are willing to use hybrid structures that include for-profit and nonprofit elements to provide a solution for a social issue.