UNRISD Podcasts

In this episode, Riccardo Bodini and Gianluca Salvatori introduce the European Research Institute on Cooperative and Social Enterprises (EURICSE), its activities, and what the Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) means to them. They explore why SSE is relevant in today’s world and the evolution of the SSE movement, moving from the margins to the mainstream. In their entries in the SSE Encyclopedia, Gianluca highlights the importance of “social” in social finance for addressing SSE needs and finance sector dynamics, while Riccardo discusses the positive impacts of SSE finance entities in meeting the needs of both SSE organizations and individuals, offering an alternative to conventional financing.Read the encyclopedia’s entries on financing the SSE and the finance sector.

In this episode, Davorka Vidović, a sociologist from the University of Zagreb, defines respect toward people and nature as both a key value of the Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) and as an enabler of a human-centred economy. She shares that SSE can be attractive for youth because it can provide them with the space for creativity and the opportunity to participate and be engaged in decision making on aspects that matter in their life. Contrary to the mainstream model, which they may feel increasingly disconnected from, the SSE can provide youth with a sense of belonging and help build long-lasting and meaningful connections in their transition to adulthood.Read the Encyclopedia’s entry on youth.

In this episode, Judith Hitchman, a seasoned activist, shares her experiences on the relationship between food sovereignty and the Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE). For Hitchman, the SSE provides the impetus toward system change necessary to achieve food sovereignty. She identifies the need for policy change to enable the SSE to further drive system change, including the empowerment of communities at the local level and within the water, health, finance and food systems. She emphasizes the promotion of indigenous systems, the SSE, and social movements within the food and agriculture system as levers for change to reduce poverty and hunger. Read the eencyclopedia’s entries on reduction of hunger and poverty and food and agriculture.

In this episode, Denison Jayasooria, a sociologist by training who is currently active in social and community work at the grassroots level, shares his concerns regarding questions of justice and exploitation. He gives prominence to the Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) as an alternative solution for addressing these concerns and shares how the SSE entities work toward self-reliance and resilience. He emphasizes the importance of the income generation model of the SSE entities as a key aspect of the SSE to ensure it is self-sustaining and elaborates on how the SSE entities at the grassroots and community levels can help achieve the SDGs. Read the encyclopedia’s entry on the SDGs and the SSE. 

In this episode, Professor of Sociology Christina Clamp, shares invaluable insights and wisdom gleaned from over 40 years of experience in cooperative movements across Central America, South America, North America and Asia. With a wealth of first-hand knowledge, Professor Clamp provides a comprehensive exploration of cooperative movements, rooted in her concerns about educational inequalities in deeply divided societies. As the co-author of an Encyclopedia entry on Education and the Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE), she adeptly guides us through diverse forms of cooperative-led primary and secondary education, with examples from Brazil, Korea, East Africa, Germany and beyond, highlighting SSE’s profound importance for addressing failures within public education and engendering sustainable development. Read the encyclopedia’s entry on the education sector.

In this episode, Professor Marthe Nyssens, a distinguished economist at the University of Louvain in Belgium, delves into her journey of interest in the Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE). She sheds light on the pivotal role of social enterprises as a core activity in work integration and further elucidates why the SSE holds immense significance for individuals on the fringes of the labour market, offering insights into its impact and relevance for social and sustainable development. Read the encyclopedia’s entries on social enterprises and work integration.

In this episode, David Hiez, Professor of Law at the University of Luxembourg, gives an overview of why it is important to recognize the Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) through legislation and laws. For Hiez, alternative economies such as SSE can tell a different story and become a new model for economic and productive activities as well as for the ways in which we build societies and relate to each other. Even though legislation is important to find a common understanding across practices and to consolidate SSE on a larger scale, a cautionary tale must also be told so that international instruments such as legislation and legal frameworks do not risk curtailing the potential for change of SSE initiatives and enterprises by imposing parameters and technicalities too strict or limiting.To read the encyclopaedia’s entry on legal frameworks and laws of SSE, click here.

This episode explores Marguerite—Margie—Mendell’s work at the Karl Polanyi Institute around the Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE), as a camp and practice recently recognized by the United Nations in a 2023 General Assembly resolution. We hear from Margie herself about alternative economies as an ever-evolving field, key academic influences in her remarkable trajectory as well as stories of transformation of communities in Montreal and paradigmatic examples of local economic development. The author then introduces three urgent challenges to realize the vision and promises of the SSE as a transformative force, intellectually and on the ground.To read the encyclopedia’s entry on partnership and co-construction, click here.