The aim of this article is to explore the mechanisms by which indigenous social enterprises contribute to a rural community’s sustainable development and improves the quality of life of its inhabitants. The work follows a qualitative methodology and uses the case study as a research technique. The research suggests that social enterprise uses four main mechanisms to promote rural sustainable development in the community where it operates: labor as a source of quality of life, gender equality, sustainable exploitation of the resources, and the equitable distribution of benefits between the economic, social and environmental dimensions.