The Social Economy : International Perspectives on Economic Solidarity

As the current economic crisis spreads around the globe questions are being asked about what king of capitalist or post-capitalist economy will follow. There is increasing talk of the need for stringent economic regulation, the need to temper greed and individualism, to make the economy work for human and social development. The search is on for a kinder, greener, less unequal and more redistributive economy. This transitional moment, with its pointed questions about the economy to come, provides an opportunity to assess the role and potential of the 'social economy', that is, economic activity in between market and state oriented towards meeting social needs. Until a decade ago, the term was used mainly by the fringe to describe the 'alternative economy'. Typically, organisations providing affordable child-care to low-wage families in a poor neighbourhood, or those making goods from recycled materials for low-income households, were considered to be residual or marginal to a mainstream dominated by markets and states. In the last decade, expectation in both the developed and developing world has changed in quite radical ways. Mainstream opinion is starting to see the social economy as a source of building social capabilities as well as developing new markets in welfare provision. Policymakers around the world have begun to support the social economy, and increasingly on business grounds, jostling with traditional interest on the fringe in the sector as a moral and social alternative to the capitalist economy. It is precisely this emerging but disputed centrality of the social economy that makes this book so timely. The book positions the social economy conceptually and normatively with the help of case evidence from a number of developed and developing countries. Uniquely, it brings together in English the work of leading scholars of the social economy who are also actively engaged in national and international policy formulation. Although it argues a case for seeing the social economy as distinctive from the state and market in terms of aims, values, and actors, it also notes many overlaps and complementarities once the economy is conceptualised as a plural entity responding to needs in diverse organisational combinations. The book also shows that expectations - social and economic - cannot be divorced from local institutional and historical circumstances and legacies. Accordingly, while certain generic policy principles can be shared internationally, interventions on the ground cannot ignore the demands of situated practice and legacy. "The Social Economy is emerging as a topic of considerable research and policy interest, both on its own terms and as a symptom of a changing economy and society. From creches to environmental services, consumer cooperatives to social housing, governments in many countries have begun to introduce legislation to support social enterprises. This book gathers together on the social economy from around the world. Beginning by tracing the relation of the social economy to contemporary capitalism, the book presents the modern economy as a differentiated entity composed of diverse principles of organisation and behaviour, rather than driven by an all defining logic. Taking case studies from Australasia, Europe, North America and Latin America the book outlines the different ways that the social economy takes place according to locally specific factors, and argues that, against critics who would characterize the sector for providing poor quality goods and services and low-paid, low-quality and precarious employment, in many countries the case evidence is plentiful that social enterprise work compares favourably with the best experience in the state and private sector. The book examines the conditions that foster success in the social economy and the complicated and often difficult relationship between it and the imperatives of the global market, examining the context-specific institutional conditions necessary for social enterprises to flourish successfully."--Publisher's website This Book Gathers Together Material On The Social Economy From Around The World. The Social Economy Is A Topic Of Considerable Contemporary Research And Policy Interest. From Creches To Environmental Services, From Consumer Cooperatives To Social Housing, Governments In Many Countries Have Begun To Introduce Legislation To Support Social Enterprises. Taking Case Studies From Australasia, Europe, North America And Latin America, This Book Outlines The Different Ways That The Social Economy Takes Place According To Locally Specific Factors. It Argues That, Against The Low Expectations Of Some Critics In Many Countries The Case Evidence Is Plentiful That Social Enterprise Work Compares Favorably With The Best Experience In The State And Private Sector. List of figures, tables and boxes; Figures; Tables; Boxes; Acknowledgements; Part I: Conceptual dilemmas; 1 Locating the social economy; 2 Social economy: engaging as a third system?; Part II: International evidence; 3 Building community economies in Massachusetts: an emerging model of economic development?; 4 Working for social enterprises: does it make a difference?; 5 Experimenting with economic possibilities: ethical economic decision-making in two Australian community enterprises; 6 Building community-based social enterprises in the Philippines: diverse development pathways