Abstract
In response to the deleterious effects of growth-oriented and market-based models promoted by international agencies and national governments, people everywhere are coming up with alternative forms of social organization with a focus on human survival drawing on a variety of sources such as culture, religion, and the indigenous world views. The solidarity economy, which exists in various forms in almost all countries, is trying to cope with crises with greater resilience than the established economies. This was witnessed during the financial crisis of 2008. This chapter will briefly discuss the solidarity economy, its various facets, and how it is bringing a silent revolution in several locales around the world. These changes are based on principles of solidarity, reciprocity, caring, sharing, participatory democracy, harmony with nature, judicious use of the commons, fair trade, and compassion, among others. There is a normative and empirical side to the solidarity economy as an agent of social change. The chapter will begin with a description of the key features of solidarity economy and selected locations in Asia and Latin America where its operation has enabled the local population to address basic needs satisfaction in a participatory manner and weather crises common in capitalism. It will then seek to identify the type of alternative social changes that the solidarity economy seeks to accomplish and the factors responsible for creating the necessary enabling conditions for its flourishing in the form of constitutional provisions, legislation, and recognition of the plurality of economies within the same state. The next section will discuss questions related to social change in the direction of solidarity economy driven from above and change owned and driven from below and explore the possibilities of bridging these two levels. Finally, an attempt will be made to analyze ideas related to solidarity economy in the context of the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
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Nair, N.V., Moolakkattu, J.S. (2022). Solidarity Economy and Social Change: Contesting Liberal Universalism. In: Baikady, R., Sajid, S., Nadesan, V., Przeperski, J., Islam, M.R., Gao, J. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Global Social Change. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-87624-1_188-1
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