Handbook: The social & solidarity economy and rural communities

Identifying and supporting rural social innovations to reinvent the local economy

Are you keen to make a difference in rural communities? To help them stay vibrant and encourage more collaborative, inclusive, eco-friendly practices in rural areas? The social and solidarity economy (SSE) offers a response to these challenges and plays a vital role in local communities’ development and social cohesion.

SSE enterprises develop goods and services that are relevant to residents, create local jobs, and contribute to the movement towards a more socially conscious, eco-friendly, and civic-minded society that increases the appeal of rural communities. Community shops, communal gardens, community currencies, digital inclusion projects, work integration organisations and training services for the disadvantaged, sustainable mobility alternatives, upcycle centres, circular economy and short food supply chain initiatives... The SSE has plenty of innovative solutions on offer!

Whether you are a public- or private-sector stakeholder, you have a multitude of options to boost social innovation in rural areas. Published with the support of the National Rural Network and the European Agricultural Fund for Rural
Development (EAFRD), this Handbook contains the keys to understanding how the SSE benefits local development and how you can support SSE enterprises to amplify their social impact and accelerate the transition to a more resilient, more socially-conscious, more eco-friendly future for your communities.

Contents

• What is it all about?
• The SSE: sustainable local activities and jobs
• The rural SSE is resilient, cooperative, and plugged in to local communities!
• Why support SSE initiatives in rural communities?
• Innovative responses to the challenges facing rural communities
• What development drivers for the SSE?
  • Funding SSE project owners and businesses
  • Providing support for SSE projects
  • Supporting awareness-raising campaigns on the SSE and community involvement
  • Encouraging partnerships to foster the development of the SSE
• Numerous stakeholders involved in developing the SSE in rural communities
• 6 ways to make a difference now