FROM DISTANT NEIGHBOURS TO BEDMATES: EXPLORING THE SYNERGIES BETWEEN THE SOCIAL ECONOMY AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Social Economy institutions seek to provide answers to social problems, given that they naturally have a socially responsible mission. This study aims to answer the research question: how sustainable practices, namely environmental behaviour, have been adopted by Portuguese Private Social Solidarity Institutions (IPSS) with the purpose of contributing to Sustainable Development? To achieve this objective, qualitative research was carried out in 31 IPSS, which was framed within the scope of the TFA project (Theoretical framework for promotion of accountability in the social economy sector: the IPSS case). Semi-structured interviews were conducted, with a script based on the literature review, from May to July 2019, with those responsible for the management of these entities. A content analysis was conducted, using the NVivo12 Version 12.6.0 software, which enables data to be coded and categorised, reducing any researcher bias. The results indicate that most entities carry out activities of an environmental nature, related to the reuse of materials, the recycling of waste, the sale of materials for recycling, and user awareness. Several entities expressed financial limitations to the implementation of Environmental Management Systems and their accomplishment. However, the objections presented are not impossible to overcome, according to studies presented in other countries.

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Cooperative Societies and Sustainability: A Spatial Analysis of Andalusia as a Tool for Implementing Territorial Development Policies, Strategies and Initiatives

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su13020609 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (2) ◽

pp. 609

Author(s):

María del Carmen Pérez-González ◽

Lidia Valiente-Palma

Keyword(s):

Sustainable Development ◽

Spatial Analysis ◽

Local Development ◽

Social Economy ◽

Development Strategies ◽

Sustainable Society ◽

Spatial Clusters ◽

Territorial Development ◽

The Social ◽

Development Policies

Local development strategies, policies and initiatives that contribute to sustainable development are gaining increasing prominence. Cooperative societies—the most relevant organisations within the social economy—are widely present in Andalusia and play a key role in boosting sustainable development through their principles and values. On this basis, the article aims to determine whether certain areas in Andalusia are more predisposed to the presence of these enterprises and are more sustainable as a result. The methods used include an adapted shift-share analysis and application of local Moran’s I to obtain spatial clusters allowing the areas most favourable to the presence of this type of organisation to be identified. Therefore, one of the main contributions of the study is that it provides a tool for the application of local development policies, strategies and initiatives involving cooperatives in pursuit of a more sustainable society.

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SOCIAL ENTERPRISES‘ POSITION IN REGIONAL SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Trakia Journal of Sciences ◽

10.15547/tjs.2019.s.01.079 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 17 (Suppl.1) ◽

pp. 488-495

Author(s):

Hristina Blagoycheva

Keyword(s):

Sustainable Development ◽

Regional Development ◽

Social Economy ◽

Point Of View ◽

Social Enterprises ◽

Dominant Form ◽

Economic Point ◽

The Social ◽

Regional Sustainable Development ◽

Development Goals

The purpose of this article is to investigate the possibilities of integrating the activity of social enterprises into the regional sustainable development goals. Traditionally, from an economic point of view, the social enterprises are not a dominant form of business management that contributes to the regional development. But in the article, they are seen as major players within the social economy that can facilitate a sustainable local and regional development. The benefits of the social enterprises are that they manage to combine economic, environmental and social goals in "one basket", thus helping to meet diverse local and regional needs. Based on studied academic discussions and the European Union's experience in building different approaches to developing social entrepreneurship, attempts are being made to address the challenges facing social enterprises at the regional level. Various opportunities are also considered to overcome these challenges.

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Fostering the Sustainable Development Goals from an Ecosystem Conducive to the SE: The Galician’s Case

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su12020500 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (2) ◽

pp. 500 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Maria Bastida ◽

Alberto Vaquero García ◽

Maite Cancelo Márquez ◽

Ana Olveira Blanco

Keyword(s):

Sustainable Development ◽

Sustainable Development Goals ◽

Synergistic Effects ◽

Social Economy ◽

Decent Work ◽

Promotion Strategy ◽

The Sustainable Development ◽

Autonomous Communities ◽

The Social ◽

Development Goals

The special alignment of the principles and effects of the social economy (SE) with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) renders this area especially suitable for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the achievement of these goals, favoring a paradigm shift towards a new economic system that reconciles growth and sustainability. In this context, governments and institutions can moderate or accelerate this path, with the implementation of a series of policies to promote and drive the social economy. In Spain, responsibility for the design and implementation of such policies is transferred to sub-central governments, known as autonomous communities. Galicia is the first Spanish autonomous community to have its own Act on SE. This article explains the promotion strategy established in this region, which has resulted in an ecosystem favorable to the development and consolidation of the Galician SE, based on a combination of public policies with synergistic effects. The outcome of this ecosystem could have a significant impact on the achievement of several of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially the promotion of equal opportunities (SDG 5), the promotion of decent work and economic growth (SDG 8), and the reduction of inequalities (SDG 10).

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The Sustainable Development Goals: A Tipping Point for Impact Measurement?

Canadian journal of nonprofit and social economy research ◽

10.29173/cjnser.2019v10n2a343 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 10 (2) ◽

Author(s):

Laurie Mook

Keyword(s):

Sustainable Development ◽

Sustainable Development Goals ◽

Social Economy ◽

Impact Measurement ◽

Social Accounting ◽

The Sustainable Development ◽

Four Dimensions ◽

The Social ◽

Développement Durable ◽

Development Goals

This article proposes a holistic framework of integrated social accounting that could be adopted by all types of organizations in the social economy, as well as in other sectors. The impetus for this derives from the popularity of the sustainable development goals (SDGs) and the broadening of collective impact thinking. The article advances a model of integrated social accounting that brings together four dimensions: 1) resources/capitals, 2) value creation/destruction, 3) internal systems and processes, and 4) organizational learning, growth, and innovation. Organizations using this model focus on the implications of their activities through the lens of the SDGs, looking both internally and externally.Cet article propose un cadre global de comptabilité sociale intégrée qui pourrait être adopté par les organisations de l’économie sociale, ainsi que dans d’autres secteurs. Cela découle de la popularité des objectifs de développement durable (ODD) et de l’élargissement de la réflexion collective en matière d’impact. L’article avance un modèle de comptabilité sociale intégrée qui regroupe quatre dimensions : 1) ressources / capitaux, 2) création / destruction de valeur, 3) systèmes et processus internes et 4) apprentissage organisationnel, croissance et innovation. Les organisations qui utilisent ce modèle se concentrent sur les implications de leurs activités dans l’optique des ODD, en cherchant à la fois en interne et en externe.

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The Contribution of the Fishermen’s Guilds and the Agrarian Transformation Societies to the Sustainable Development Goals: The Case of the Canary Islands

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su12145635 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (14) ◽

pp. 5635

Author(s):

Javier Mendoza Jiménez ◽

Beatriz Guzmán Pérez ◽

María Victoria Pérez Monteverde ◽

Cándido Román Cervantes

Keyword(s):

Sustainable Development ◽

Canary Islands ◽

Sustainable Development Goals ◽

Common Ground ◽

Social Economy ◽

Third Sector ◽

Social Value ◽

The Sustainable Development ◽

The Social ◽

Development Goals

The Social Economy entities have been recognized as key agents for achieving the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) of the 2030 Agenda. To reach that, indicators are required to guide decision-making and facilitate accountability to citizens. Substantial progress has been made for the economic and environmental dimensions, but not for the social one, which is a particularly serious deficiency to support the social value that the Third Sector entities’ have for the society. The objective of this study is to advance in this line, taking two organizations of the Social Economy that operate in the rural and marine environments of an important international tourist destination in Spain, the Canary Islands. The achieve this goal, the study uses the Social Value Polyhedral Model (SPOLY) of Social Accounting in the framework of the SDG to generate a system of relevant indicators that makes possible to project the particular contribution of these social actors, guide their action towards the global objectives, and render accounts in a transparent and understandable way to their stakeholders. The results show a common ground of contribution for both organizations (goals 8 and 17), but also the influence of the sphere of activity and the connections with the community.

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Transformative Policies for the Social and Solidarity Economy: The New Generation of Public Policies Fostering the Social Economy in Order to Achieve Sustainable Development Goals. The European and Spanish Cases

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su12104059 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (10) ◽

pp. 4059 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Rafael Chaves-Avila ◽

Juan Ramon Gallego-Bono

Keyword(s):

Sustainable Development ◽

Sustainable Development Goals ◽

Social Economy ◽

Transformative Change ◽

Critical Factors ◽

Solidarity Economy ◽

Agenda 2030 ◽

The Social ◽

Development Goals ◽

The Impact

The United Nations Agenda 2030 has recognized that Social Economy (SE) entities play an important role in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). In order to maximize the impact of the SE, governments have recently deployed new policies regarding these entities. The objective is to understand the context of policy change that has allowed these policies to emerge, their main characteristics and the critical factors in their construction and implementation. Successful policy cases in Europe and Spain have been studied. Qualitative data have been collected through key policy documents, experts, and focus groups. As a main finding, the study shows that this new model of policies exhibits the following features: it focuses on transformative change, follows the public-community partnership governance approach and the mainstream approach in the sense of a broader policy context, and finally, it is innovative in terms of means and of complex systematization of strategies. Difficulties in the implementation of the partnership approach, in the deployment of the policy-mainstreaming approach, and in the acceptance of the SE framed by all policymakers, SE representatives, and government staff, and constraints in financial endowment are the main critical factors in the implementation of these policies.

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Sustainable Development of Green Paper Packaging

Environment and Pollution ◽

10.5539/ep.v6n2p1 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 6 (2) ◽

pp. 1 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Jiapeng Huang

Keyword(s):

Sustainable Development ◽

Rapid Development ◽

Social Economy ◽

Green Paper ◽

Packaging Materials ◽

The Sustainable Development ◽

The Social ◽

Green Packaging ◽

Packaging Industry

In recent years, with the rapid development of global industrialization, people’s quality of life has improved, and people are no longer satisfied with the quality of goods and purposes, the majority of people even choose goods based on the packaging of goods which cause the situation of excessive packaging become serious. As an important part of manufacturing, packaging industry should emphasize the development of environmentally friendly packaging. Recognized as one of the most promising green packaging materials, paper packaging materials accounted for more than 40% of packaging materials, however, unsuitable production and recycling of paper packaging pose a threat to the environment and the social economy. For the sustainable development of the paper packaging industry, this essay put forward the concept of "green paper packaging" through literature research. This essay will introduce the proper production and recycling of green paper packaging materials, discuss the structural design of green paper packaging, and looking forward to the development direction of green paper packaging, and come to the conclusion that not only need we use new materials and environmental friendly packaging structures, but also we should attach importance to the production and the recycling of the packaging so as to make sure the entire life cycle of packaging does not harm the human body and the environment.

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