Physics Teachers and Students Level of Awareness on Energy and Society Concepts in Nigeria Secondary Schools: Implication for Energy Efficiency and Environmental Sustainability
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.64348/zije.2026445Abstract
Sustainability-oriented entrepreneurship (SOE) has emerged as a critical pathway for addressing intertwined social, environmental, and economic challenges in low-income contexts characterised by institutional fragility, resource scarcity, and persistent developmental deficits. Despite its growing relevance, existing literature remains fragmented, conceptually ambiguous, and largely skewed towards high-income environments, thereby limiting a comprehensive understanding of how SOE manifests and generates impact under conditions of constraint. This study synthesises interdisciplinary insights to conceptualise sustainability-oriented entrepreneurship within low-income contexts, examine the mechanisms through which it operates across individual, institutional, and environmental levels, and identify key barriers and pathways for enhancing its effectiveness and scalability. Adopting a conceptual review methodology, the study integrates perspectives from entrepreneurship, sustainability, and development scholarship to advance a multi-level framework linking entrepreneurial agency, innovation strategies, institutional dynamics, and socio-environmental outcomes. The analysis reveals that sustainability-oriented entrepreneurs in low-income settings employ adaptive strategies such as frugal innovation, bricolage, and collaborative arrangements to navigate resource limitations and institutional voids, while contributing to inclusive development, environmental stewardship, and local value creation. However, their transformative potential is constrained by persistent challenges, including limited access to finance, weak market structures, regulatory inconsistencies, and socio-cultural inequalities. The study further concludes that while SOE offers a viable and contextually embedded mechanism for addressing complex development challenges, its long-term impact depends on supportive institutional frameworks, coherent policy alignment, and scalable innovation pathways among others.
References
Acs, Z. J., Estrin, S., Mickiewicz, T., & Szerb, L. (2018). Entrepreneurship, institutional economics, and economic growth: An ecosystem perspective. Small Business Economics,51(2),501–514. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-018-0013-9
Banerjee, S. B. (2008). Corporate social responsibility: The good, the bad and the ugly. Critical Sociology, 34(1), 51–79. https://doi.org/10.1177/0896920507084623 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0896920507084623
Bansal, P., Grewatsch, S., & Sharma, G. (2021). How COVID-19 informs business sustainability research: It’s time for a systems perspective. Journal of Management Studies, 58(2), 602–606. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/joms.12669
Battilana, J., & Lee, M. (2014). Advancing research on hybrid organizing: Insights from the study of social enterprises. Academy of Management Annals, 8(1), 397–441. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5465/19416520.2014.893615
Bhatti, Y., Basu, R., Barron, D., & Ventresca, M. (2018). Emerging concepts in innovation: Frugal innovation. Academy of Management Annals, 12(1), 1–36. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316986783
Brush, C. G., de Bruin, A., & Welter, F. (2009). A gender-aware framework for women’s entrepreneurship. International Journal of Gender and Entrepreneurship, 1(1), 8–24. https://doi.org/10.1108/17566260910942318 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/17566260910942318
Dean, T. J., & McMullen, J. S. (2007). Toward a theory of sustainable entrepreneurship: Reducing environmental degradation through entrepreneurial action. Journal of Business Venturing, 22(1), 50–76. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2005.09.003
Easterly, W. (2006). The white man’s burden: Why the West’s efforts to aid the rest have done so much ill and so little good. Penguin Press.
George, G., McGahan, A. M., & Prabhu, J. (2016). Innovation for inclusive growth: Towards a theoretical framework and research agenda. Journal of Management Studies, 49(4), 661–683. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6486.2012.01048.x
Kistruck, G. M., Webb, J. W., Sutter, C. J., & Bailey, A. V. G. (2015). The double-edged sword of legitimacy in base-of-the-pyramid markets. Journal of Business Venturing, 30(3), 436–451. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2014.06.004
Mair, J., & Marti, I. (2009). Entrepreneurship in and around institutional voids: A case study from Bangladesh. Journal of Business Venturing, 24(5), 419–435. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2008.04.006
Mair, J., Marti, I., & Ventresca, M. J. (2012). Building inclusive markets in rural Bangladesh: How intermediaries work institutional voids. Academy of Management Journal, 55(4), 819–850. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2010.0627
OECD. (2022). Entrepreneurship policies for sustainable development. OECD Publishing.
Pacheco, D. F., Dean, T. J., & Payne, D. S. (2018). Escaping the green prison: Entrepreneurship and the creation of opportunities for sustainable development. Journal of Business Venturing, 33(1), 95–111.
Pacheco, D. F., York, J. G., Dean, T. J., & Sarasvathy, S. D. (2010). The coevolution of institutional entrepreneurship: A tale of two theories. Journal of Management, 36(4), 974–1010. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206309360280 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206309360280
Schaltegger, S., Hansen, E. G., & Lüdeke-Freund, F. (2016).Business models for sustainability: Origins, present research, and future avenues. Organization & Environment, 29(1), 3–10. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1086026615599806
Senyard, J. M., Baker, T., Steffens, P. R., & Davidsson, P. (2014). Bricolage as a path to innovativeness for resource-constrained new firms. Journal of Product Innovation Management, 31(2), 211–230. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/jpim.12091
Shepherd, D. A., & Patzelt, H. (2011). The new field of sustainable entrepreneurship: Studying entrepreneurial action linking “what is to be sustained” with “what is to be developed.” Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 35(1), 137–163. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6520.2010.00426.x
Sutter, C., Bruton, G. D., & Chen, J. (2019). Entrepreneurship as a solution to extreme poverty: A review and future research directions. Journal of Business Venturing,34(1),197–214. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2018.06.003 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2018.06.003
UNDP. (2023). Sustainable entrepreneurship for inclusive growth. United Nations Development Programme.
Webb, J. W., Tihanyi, L., Ireland, R. D., & Sirmon, D. G. (2015). You say illegal, I say legitimate: Entrepreneurship in the informal economy. Academy of Management Review, 40(4), 492–510. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2009.40632826



