Alliance of Social Enterprise Networks Australia
Established in early 2020, ASENA is the national body for Australia’s State and Territory social enterprise networks.
Our vision
A just, inclusive and regenerative society that harnesses local strengths and collaborates to multiply our impact.
ASENA exists to
- Create a space for leaders of State and Territory networks to collaborate so that they can amplify their impact, and reduce duplication and inefficiencies
- Give credibility to the local State and Territory based networks
- Provide a voice for practitioners in the social enterprise sector
- Support engagement with national intermediaries and reduce fragmentation and duplication at the national level
- Elevate the national social enterprise community by focussing on support for emerging jurisdictions
- Understand and communicate the needs of social enterprises from across the nation, and work with Social Enterprise Australia to advocate for national awareness and support of social enterprise
Our principles
- Collaboration: Working together, we are greater than the sum of our parts
- Awareness: This is a place for community and social entrepreneurship and equity, not for old structures, hidden agendas hierarchies, parochialism or self-interest
- Diversity and symbiosis: Local strengths drive the national and global movement, and we respect the independence and autonomy of our parts
- Intention-oriented: We identify specific national opportunities that will achieve our goals, then empower those with capacity to drive results
- Commons: We identify, share and cultivate the commons as the base of the whole ecosystem
- Promotion in partnership: Giving legitimacy and active support to each State/Territory’s initiatives through a national public platform, building awareness and a united presence.
- Inclusion: We recognise that people in our community may be at different stages in the social enterprise journey and welcome them into our spaces.
ASENA will
- Bring together the leaders of Australia’s State and Territory networks in regular forums
- Identify and initiate opportunities for collaboration and pursue those with collective agreement and support (see Collab Committees below), including, but not limited to;
- Collective learning and sharing
- Advocacy (with a focus on practitioner-led consultation)
- Connection and events
- Policy & Research exchange
- Develop collab committees in order to conduct collaboration work together
- Support State and Territory networks to grow their membership, enhance member value proposition and engage with members more deeply on a wider variety of interests/needs.
- Mobilise resources at the national level to enable the emerging networks to stand as equals.
Who does ASENA represent?
Social Enterprise Network Victoria (SENVIC) | Social Enterprise Council of NSW and ACT (SECNA) | Queensland Social Enterprise Council (QSEC) | South Australian Social Enterprise Council (SASEC) | Western Australia Social Enterprise Council (WASEC) | Social Enterprise Network of Northern Territory (Impact North) | Social Enterprise Network of Tasmania (SENTAS)