Beyond Profits: Applying SROI to Inspire Young Entrepreneurs Toward Community-Based Tourism in Thailand

What is SROI (for Young Entrepreneurs)?

Social Return on Investment (SROI) links resources and activities to results and their value for people and the environment, helping CBT founders show impact beyond financial profit (Nicholls et al., 2012; Social Value International, 2019). The method includes identifying stakeholders, defining clear outcome changes like stable income, safer water, or stronger cultural pride, choosing suitable measures, and using financial estimates to calculate social value (GIIN, 2020). Users must adjust for deadweight, attribution, displacement, and drop-off effects, while testing reliability through sensitivity checks (Nicholls et al., 2012; Krlev et al., 2013). Although SROI might produce a headline ratio—for example, 1 THB invested creating 3–5 THB in social value—the main advantage is developing a clear, evidence-based impact story validated by stakeholders (Social Value International, 2022).

Why Use SROI for CBT

SROI enables community-based tourism ventures to measure their full social and environmental impact—including livelihoods, cultural preservation, environmental protection, and social inclusion—beyond simple financial returns (Nicholls et al., 2012; Social Value International, 2019). By capturing benefits that mainstream operators overlook and recognizing prevented harms, SROI creates fairer comparisons with purely financial models and levels the playing field for CBT enterprises (Nicholls et al., 2012; Krlev et al., 2013). This approach aligns with evolving funder expectations for rigorous outcome evidence across grants, CSR budgets, and blended finance instruments (OECD/UNDP, 2021; UNDP, 2020; GIIN, 2020). Furthermore, by converting outcomes into actionable data, SROI strengthens strategic decision-making—from pricing and product development to scaling and partnerships—while improving long-term resilience and investment readiness (Nicholls et al., 2012; Social Value International, 2022).