Cooperatives

Cooperatives and social enterprises offer an alternative to capitalist profit-seeking in times of ecosocial crisis. Can they escape the growth model?

How can Europe introduce greater autonomy and wellbeing to its energy systems?

Contrary to decades of received wisdom, reversing privatisation can result in more accessible, accountable and cost-effective public services.

With the right support from governments and the EU, communities all over Europe can be at the heart of a sustainable energy system.

Guerrilla gardening and local consumer-producer networks are redefining life in today’s Greek cities. While the crisis has shifted politicians’ attention away from the climate, “transition and recovery movements” work hard to keep the environment on the agenda.

At first glance, sharing initiatives would appear to be important elements for building an economy based on solidarity and sustainability. Yet, these different models of sharing do not generate the same societal and financial return. Some of them, such as Uber, are forms of ‘sharewashing’. In fact, Uber’s business model, financed by Goldman Sachs, is at the polar opposite of sharing.

Food cooperatives are a way of ensuring a supply of local and socially sustainable food. However the barriers to their development should not be underestimated, including opposition from middlemen who have the most to loose. Looking at experiences in Brazil, Poland and the US, Katarzyna S?oboda charts a way forward.

The food revolution is a cultural and social revolution, claims the Editorial Board of the Green European Journal, who introduce its fifth edition.

As the economic crisis continues, many forces are beginning to question whether capitalism can survive in its current form. In this piece, Finnish Green activist Anne Bland asks whether there is a means of changing how capitalism works, in order to make it more inclusive and supportive of green thinking.