Convener: Eric Lavillunière, INEES

In order to achieve our objective of systemic change, we need to reconsider the most fundamental aspects of the economy (meaning the capitalist economy), that is based on individual private enterprise and free, undistorted competition. This system that is supposed to provide people with well-being, is based on unlimited growth (on a planet of limited resources) and produces inequalities (unemployment, important differences in income, poverty…), environmental degradation (climate change, over-use of raw materials, loss of biodiversity…) and fierce competition that produces wars, causes people to withdraw from the community, and an increase in fundamentalism.

Solidarity economy does not wish to repair the damage caused by the system, that is or to be the safety valve that would help stop the system from exploding. Other movements, such as the economy of the Commons, Transition towns and Degrowth movements are also concretely working to implement transition based on this global paradigm change.

The idea of this workshop is to produce a concrete vision on the new economic theories, our practice and methodologies that are under construction.

We plan to consider:

  • The theoretical questions

  • The alliances with other movements

  • The existence of solidarity enterprise through questions of the social market, pricing policy, resource management….

  • Methodological tools for project support and company management

The outcomes are to determine some key ideas on how to work.