Tamara Stenn

Biography

Dr. Tamara Stenn is an economist, social enterprise developer, author, researcher, and Fulbright Scholar whose work bridges sustainability, entrepreneurship, and inclusive economic development. She is the creator of the Sustainability Lens Game, an interactive and accessible tool designed to help organizations cultivate innovation, resilience, and meaningful engagement.

As a Fulbright Scholar, Tamara conducted a three-year study (2015–2018) on the well-being of women quinoa farmers in Bolivia. In partnership with the producers she worked alongside, she co-founded A Perfect Seed, Inc., a farmer-run cooperative specializing in Royal Quinoa seed varieties. Her research and field experience have informed numerous academic papers and book chapters exploring management, economics, and sustainable development.

Tamara is the author of Social Entrepreneurship as Sustainability (Springer, 2017), which introduces the Sustainability Lens framework and offers entrepreneurs new approaches to building purpose-driven businesses. She also wrote The Cultural and Political Intersection of Fair Trade and Justice: Managing a Global Industry (Palgrave, 2013), a critical examination of Fair Trade systems, handicrafts and coffee markets, women’s leadership, and development economics, complete with classroom exercises for applied learning.

Earlier in her career, Tamara founded and led KUSIKUY, an eco-fashion brand producing hand-knit Bolivian alpaca clothing. Over two decades, the company applied Fair Trade principles to create sustainable livelihoods for Indigenous women artisans.

Honors and Recognitions

• Paul R. Lawrence Fellowship Recipient, Case Research Foundation, 2020
• US Fulbright Grant: 2015-2018

Professional Activities

• Treasurer and grant writer, Windham World Affairs Council
• Chair, Indigenous Peoples Thematic Group, Human Development Capabilities Approach (HDCA)
• Dissertation Committee Member
• Peer Reviewer
  
  • North American Case Research Association (NACRA), 2020 - present
  • Emerald, Springer, and Palgrave Publishing Companies, 2011 - present
  • Human Development Capabilities Approach, 2011 - present
  • Academy of Management, 2007 - present

Recent Intellectual Contributions

Books & Chapters

• Stenn, T. (2026). Sol Organica: Pioneering Purpose in a Profit-Driven World. Case Study Chapter in: Global Entrepreneurship in Practice. Routledge Publishing.
• Stenn, T. (2026) The Profitable Good, a bold playbook for sustainable business growth. Vibrant Publishing.
• Stenn, T., Coplan, J., Lalor, A., & Osterholt, D. (2023). Chapter 15: Managing neurodiversity inclusion in today's entrepreneurial-styled workplace. Managing for Social Justice: Harnessing Management Theory and Practice for Collective Good. Palgrave-Macmillan.
• Stenn, T., Lalor, A., & Osterholt, D. (2023). Chapter: Activating Entrepreneurial Mindsets in Neurodiverse Students through an Integrated Universal Education Pedagogy. Volume 23 of Advances in Entrepreneurship, Firm Emergence and Growth. Emerald Publishing.
• Stenn, T. (2022). Harnessing Andean spirituality and entrepreneurship. In Pavlovich, K. & Markman, G. (Ed.), Vol. 3: Spirituality, entrepreneurship, and social change. World Scientific Encyclopedia of Business Sustainability, Ethics and Entrepreneurship. World Scientific Publishing.
• Stenn, T. (2021). Chapter 11: Andean enterprises - A case study of Bolivia’s Royal Quinoa entrepreneurs. In Colbourne, R. (Ed.), Indigenous Wellbeing and Enterprise; Self- Determination and Sustainable Economic Development. Routledge.
• Stenn, T. (2021). Social, Economic and Environmental Sustainability in the Bolivian Andes, a Quechua/Aymara Perspective from the Royal Quinoa fields. In Spee, J., McMurray, A., & MacMillan, M. (Ed.), The Handbook of Clan and Tribal Perspectives on Social, Economic and Environmental Sustainability. Emerald Publishing.
• Koskoris, J., Lampard Dennis, S., Landin, J., Osterholt, D., & Stenn, T. (2020). Inclusive Business Education: Teaching Appropriate and Relevant Professional Best Practices in Neurodiverse Classrooms and Workplaces. In Innovating in Teaching Enterprise, Business, and Management in Higher Education. Coventry University, UK.
• Stenn, T. (2017). Social Entrepreneurship as Sustainable Development. Palgrave Macmillan Press.

Peer Reviewed Papers

• Stenn T. (2025). Teaching Sustainability One Card at a Time. How a card game can build engagement, commitment, and action. Conference paper. Board Game Academics Journal. BGA.
• Stenn, T, Ballesteros-Sola, M. & Kandade, K. (2022). A Perfect Seed: Developing a Sustainable Quinoa Market for Social Impact. North American Case Research Association (NACRA).Harvard Business Review.Case Study No. NA0718-PDF-ENG.
• Stenn, T., Coplan, J., Landin, J. & Crocker, L. (2021). Building Supportive, Inclusive Workplaces Where Neurodivergent Thinkers Thrive: Approaches in Managing Diversity, Inclusion, and Building Entrepreneurship in the Workplace. SAM Advanced Management Journal.Vol. 86 Edition 1. P. 21-31.
• Stenn, T. (2020). Measuring Sustainability: Using the Capabilities Approach in Sustainable Development Assessment. Journal of Social Sciences. Year 8, No. 15. P. 133-146.
• Coplan, J., Crocker, L., Landin, J. & Stenn, T (2020) Using self-guided, team based, management to create workplaces and organizations that are more democratic and inclusive thus furthering social justice. Society for Advancement of Management Journal.
• Stenn, T. (2019). Building Resilient & Meaningful Enterprises with the Sustainability Lens. Journal of Strategic Innovation and Sustainability. Vo. 14 (3). P. 98 – 110.
• Stenn, T. (January 2014). Examining the Gaps in Justice and Well-Being for Fair Trade Women Across Industries. Global Journal of Human-Social Science. Vol. 14, Issue 6, version 1.0.
• Stenn, T. (December 2013). Comercio Justo and Justice: An examination of Fair Trade. Review of Radical Political Economics. Vol. 45 Issue 4. pp. 489-500.
• Stenn, T. (May 2013). Fair enough? Fair Trade and the quality of life amongst Bolivia’s indigenous women artisans. Development in Practice. Vol. 23, Issue 3, pp. 372-388.