Social Solidarity Economy

Do the municipalities belong to the citizens? Is this first tier of government really close to the citizens? Are there relationships of trust and cooperation between municipalities and citizens? These questions were addressed in the workshop organized in Ioannina on 1 April 2024 by the project “Ioannina is planning”, in cooperation with the participatory process platform Localwatch and with the support of the Heinrich Böll Foundation.

Yannis Charchantis conveys his experience from participating in the event “The Contribution of the Social Solidarity Economy to the creative economy,” which took place on Monday, April 22, 2024, at the Municipal Library of Komotini, as part of the National Youth Capital 2024 initiative. The event was organized by the Municipality of Komotini’s Youth and Volunteering Center “exagono”, the Department of Social Policy of Democritus University of Thrace, and the Municipality of Komotini, with the support of the Heinrich Böll Foundation – Thessaloniki Office.

How does technology shape people’s everyday lives? Does it contribute (if at all) to social development? Does it promote democracy? Does it break down social and cultural stereotypes, or does it conform to them? These and many more questions are brought to light in the publication “In front of the technological mirror – Analyzing the social reflections of technology”. The book, a project by the Sociality team in collaboration with Open Lab Athens and published by the Heinrich Böll Foundation – Thessaloniki Office, was presented on November 5, 2024, at the packed “Komprai” bookstore in Athens.

The Social Solidarity Economy (SSE) initiatives, which came as a response to the persistent crisis by people with a cooperative spirit, are not going through an easy path. On 13 December 2024, more than 25 people from all over the country who are active in SSE initiatives made an appointment for a participatory workshop to reflect on their past, present and future.

“Why are our cities unbearable?” This was the question that the Heinrich Böll Foundation – Thessaloniki Office sought to answer during the event it organized on December 14, 2024, in Athens, with keynote speaker David J. Madden, Associate Professor of Sociology at the London School of Economics and an expert on contemporary urban issues. The event also aimed to explore the conditions for a different, sustainable urban daily life, especially in Greece, through a panel discussion featuring Eva Grigoriadou, Alexandros Kioupkiolis, Petros Kokkalis, Loukas Triantis, and Sofia Tsadari.

Intergenerational solidarity is the closeness and support between different generations. It is not only about cohesion between relatives but, generally, extends to broader social cohesion, how people of different generations relate to one another, support each other, and depend on one another in daily life. A framework such as cooperative housing could play a key role in such a practice.

What are urban voids, how did they become vacant, and how can local communities transform them from voids into commons, that is, into spaces full of life and memory? These were some of the key questions but also the motivation behind an event addressing the issue of abandoned spaces and buildings, organized by the Heinrich Böll Foundation, Thessaloniki Office, on June 15, 2024, combining academic knowledge and journalistic research with a tour of iconic such spaces in the Municipality of Pavlos Melas.

For over three decades, the area of the former dairy company AGNO in Stavroupoli, Thessaloniki, has been a parenthesis of almost 17.000 square meters in the urban fabric, filled with abandoned buildings and ruins. This article follows the labyrinth route of this area, which was originally owned by the Greek state, granted for public benefit purposes and ultimately ended up being used as a private asset. Alongside the changes in the ownership status, the article maps all the spatial planning actions taken by the Municipality, as well as the claim for the area using urban planning and legal means for the creation of green space.

The exclusion of people from Greek forests in order to preserve them doesn’t seem to offer a viable perspective. On the contrary, the answer to the environmental challenges of the 21st century can be provided by the multifunctional use of forests, their combination with the economic activity, especially of rural people, and the upgrading of state services.

The sacred forests of Epirus are an example of effective collective management of “commons”. These are natural forests, usually near settlements, which are preserved as important for the functioning and the survival of the communities and protected through supernatural beliefs. Can their preservation and management be adapted to present-day conditions?