The social and solidarity economy towards greater 'sustainability': learning across contexts and cultures, from Geneva to Manila

Abstract

This article provides a snapshot of social and solidarity economy (SSE) institutions and activities in two differing regions of the world in order to reflect on how the SSE is being conceptualized and practised in varying contexts and cultures. The SSE is a growing social movement that includes a range of activities that share common values, including solidarity and mutual support, with a focus on community level development. We consider the case of Geneva, Switzerland - where the APRES Chamber federates more than 260 SSE enterprises - and that of Metro Manila, the Philippines - where Asia's solidarity economy council is headquartered. Our main findings are that actors in Geneva are more focussed on putting established SSE guiding principles into practice within their organizations at the community level, while actors in Metro Manila are engaged in a broader vision of achieving solidarity across supply chains and throughout the country. We conclude that the SSE has the potential to become the economy of sustainability, working towards more sustainable community development. For this, greater coherence is needed, not only within organizations, but between activities, communities and regions of the world.