Scaling Up The Convergence of Social Economy and Sustainability

When citizens take collaborative action to meet the needs of their community, they are participating in the social economy. Co-operatives, community-based social services, local non-profit organizations, and charitable foundations are all examples of social economies that emphasize mutual benefit rather than the accumulation of profit. While such groups often participate in market-based activities to achieve their goals, they also pose an alternative to the capitalist market economy. Contributors to Scaling Up investigated innovative social economies in British Columbia and Alberta and discovered that achieving a social good through collective, grassroots enterprise resulted in a sustainable way of satisfying human needs that was also, by extension, environmentally responsible. As these case studies illustrate, organizations that are capable of harnessing the power of a social economy generally demonstrate a commitment to three outcomes: greater social justice, financial self-sufficiency, and environmental sustainability. Within the matrix of these three allied principles lie new strategic directions for the politics of sustainability.

Whether they were examining attainable and affordable housing initiatives, co-operative approaches to the provision of social services, local credit unions, farmers’ markets, or community-owned power companies, the contributors found social economies providing solutions based on reciprocity and an understanding of how parts function within the whole—an understanding that is essential to sustainability. In these locally defined and controlled, democratically operated organizations we see possibilities for a more human economy that is capable of transforming the very social and technical systems that make our current way of life unsustainable.

Contributors: Mary Beckie, Randy Bell, Marena Brinkhurst, Kailey Cannon, Sean Connelly, Mike Gismondi, Lillian Hunt, Noel Keough, Freya Kristensen, Celia Lee, Mike Lewis, Julie L. MacArthur, Terri MacDonald, Sean Markey, Juanita Marois, George Penhold, Stewart Perry, John Restakis, Lauren Rethoret, Mark Roseland, Lynda Ross, Erin Swift-Leppakumpu, and Kelly Vodden.

Flowing from a unique and dynamic Practitioner–Academic partnership, Scaling Up presents fresh theoretical formulations and compelling cases that demonstrate how the social, economic, and ecologic are being innovatively woven together. Useful to practitioners, researchers, and policy makers alike, this book will encourage collaboration and communication between those focused on an ecologically sustainable future and those interested in reinserting social goals into our economic calculus.

Michael Lewis, co-author of The Resilience Imperative: Co-Operative Transitions to a Steady State Economy

An innovative and refreshing book coming at a time when society is seeking a new way of organizing the economy that brings about greater social justice.

Gavin Friddell, Canada Research Chair in International Development Studies

About the Editors

Mike Gismondi is professor of sociology and global studies in the Centre for Social Sciences at Athabasca University, where he also teaches in the Masters of Arts – Integrated Studies program. Sean Connelly is currently lecturer in geography at the University of Otago and a research associate with the Centre for Sustainable Community Development at Simon Fraser University. Mary Beckie is an associate professor in the University of Alberta’s Faculty of Extension, where she teaches and conducts research in sustainability. Sean Markey is an associate professor with the School of Resource and Environmental Management and an associate with the Centre for Sustainable Community Development at Simon Fraser University. Mark Roseland is professor of planning in the Simon Fraser University’s School of Resource and Environmental Management and director of the SFU Centre for Sustainable Community Development.

Reviews

A great read for researchers, practitioners, and policymakers interested in how the social economy is transforming communities today, and what opportunities this holds for the future. The examples detailed in this book demonstrate that the social economy can serve to reinforce the notion that sustainability is a process and not a fixed outcome.

Community Development Journal

Table of Contents

1. List of Tables and Figures
2. Acknowledgements
3. Introduction: Social Economics and Sustainability / Mike Gismondi, Sean Connelly, Mary Beckie, Sean Markey, and Mark Roseland
4. 1. Towards Convergence: An Exploratory Framework / Sean Connelly, Mike Gismondi, Sean Markey, and Mark Roseland
5. 2. The Green Social Economy in British Columbia and Alberta / Mike Gismondi, Lynda Ross, and Juanita Marois
6. 3. The Role of the Social Economy in Scaling Up Alternative Food Initiatives / Mary Beckie and Sean Connelly
7. 4. Human Services and the Caring Society / John Restakis
8. 5. Towards Sustainable Resource Management: Community Energy and Forestry in British Columbia and Alberta / Julie L. MacArthur
9. 6. Evolving Conceptions of the Social Economy: The Arts, Culture, and Tourism in Alert Bay / Kelly Vodden, Lillian Hunt, and Randy Bell
10. 7. Non-Profit and Co-operative Organizations and the Provision of Social Housing / George Penfold, Lauren Rethoret, and Terri MacDonald
11. 8. Land Tenure Innovations for Sustainable Communities / Marena Brinkhurst and Mark Roseland
12. 9. Sustaining Social Democracy Through Heritage-Building Conservation / Noel Keough, Mike Gismondi, and Erin Swift-Leppäkumpu
13. 10. Strong Institutions, Weak Strategies: Credit Unions and the Rural Social Economy / Sean Markey, Freya Kristensen, and Stewart Perry
14. Conclusion: “Social Economizing” Sustainability / Mike Gismondi, Sean Connelly, and Sean Markey
15. List of Contributors

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