Cooperative/alternative bank strategies for social-economic problem solving: supporting social enterprise

• Autores: Cynthia Giagnocavo, Luis Francisco Fernández-Revuelta Pérez, Giulia Galera, Jacopo Sforzi, Georgina M. Gómez
• Localización: La economía social, pilar de un nuevo modelo de desarrollo económico sostenible / CIRIEC España (dir. congr.), 2011, ISBN 9788495003850
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • This paper contains the initial results of a joint project with the University of Almería, Spain, the European Research Institute in Cooperative and Social Enterprises (EURICSE), Trento, Italy and Erasmus University, The Netherlands. The project investigates the strategies cooperative banks (and other forms of alternative finance) could/do use to address local socio-economic challenges through the financing and promotion of cooperatives and social enterprises. A related second line of inquiry is why such alternative financing entities are particularly suited to meet such challenges. Instead of resorting to a top-down “tools of development” model or “charitable or philanthropic giving” programmes, an approach is used that begins with understanding the socio-economic challenges of people or communities and, thereafter, an assessment of the cooperative or alternative banks’ role in adopting strategies that assist in the successful founding or assisting of cooperatives and social enterprises or the undertaking of initiatives which address specific social-economic issues. We look at the relationship among different types of actors in such process (e.g. cooperative banks as well as other cooperatives, associations, networks, second tier entities, etc.), in order to understand the process of promoting sustainable community development.

    In addition, there is a strong emphasis on cooperatives and social enterprises as community-based and -originated “problem-solvers” (Borzaga and Galera, 2009; Borzaga, Galera and Nogales, 2008; Borzaga and Defourny, 2001). In a global context, this issue is particularly relevant given limited government resources to deal with pressing social and economic issues.