Capitalism incentivizes individuals to act in their own self interest and privileges those with “capital”. Solidarity economy is designed to support individuals caring for themselves within a greater vision for resiliency of the whole and privileges “solidarity”. Often times, solidarity economy initiatives and organizers are carving out a piece of a better world for their communities surrounded by a sea of extractive economic relationships and institutions. Stretching our hands across these oceans and building trust within our movement will determine the scale and ambition of what we can accomplish through collaboration.
Building trust and meaningful relationships take time. Here are a few steps to get you started:
- Check out the Massachusetts Solidarity Economy Map and make a plan to visit one, purchase from one, donate to one and/or volunteer with one of the entities listed. Get creative about making meaningful connections. The more we integrate the solidarity economy into our daily lives, the stronger it will become.
- Consider your own economic relationships (at work, at home, in community, out of community) and how you might shift those towards relationships of solidarity, democracy, equity, sustainability and pluralism. Solidarity economy is as much about culture as it is about models.
- If you’re already a solidarity economy organizer or entrepreneur, check out the Massachusetts Solidarity Economy Map and reach out to another solidarity economy initiative in your region or one doing similar work to yourself in a different region of the state. It’s alright if you don’t have a specific collaboration in mind – reaching out to connect and learn about each other is a perfect starting place. That way, when an opportunity does arise, you’ll have some foundation to build on.
- Use the MASEN Needs and Offers sheet to post and make connections. If connections aren’t made directly first, MASEN organizers will connect the dots and make email introductions periodically.
If you’d like to join our Gatherings Working Group, please reach out to solidarityeconomy.ma [at] gmail.com.
