Social economy: Involving regions and civil society Pact for Impact for the European Union

European Day of Social Economy Enterprises 2019

27 November 2019, 8.45 a.m. - 7 p.m. Strasbourg, Administrative Centre, 1 Parc de l’Étoile

The European Economic and Social Committee, in collaboration with the French Ministry for Ecological Transition and the Social Economy and the city and Eurometropole area of Strasbourg, is organising the 4th European Day of Social Economy Enterprises on the theme of Social economy: Involving regions and civil society. Pact for Impact for the European Union.

The social economy is a sector that plays an increasingly important role in our countries. It brings together businesses built on a principle of solidarity, social benefit and the reinvestment of profits into the business - including associations, cooperatives, mutual societies and foundations. It has continued to create new jobs following the economic and financial crisis, when traditional businesses were closing down and laying off workers.

Across the EU, the social economy provides 13.6 million paid jobs, accounting for 6.3% of the entire labour force. However, it is not always recognised as a separate economic model, and is too often considered to be marginal.

To unlock the sector's full potential, grassroots actors, local and regional authorities and the institutions will meet at Strasbourg, the European capital for Social Economy 2019, to form a European alliance for recognising and developing a solidarity-based, inclusive and social economy in our transition societies, similar to the global Pact for Impact signed in Paris last July.

Speakers include:

  • Robert Herrmann, President of the Eurometropole area of Strasbourg
  • Christophe Itier, High Commissioner for the French Ministry for Ecological Transition and the Social Economy
  • Luca Jahier, President of the European Economic and Social Committee
  • Nicolas Schmit, MEP and Commissioner-designate for Employment and Social rights in the new Commission proposed by Ursula Von der Leyen.

Three parallel workshops will address the following topics:

  • The EU’s social market economy: the role of social economy enterprises
  • Pact for Impact: Europe’s commitments
  • Social economy, a key driver for helping the green transition in regions: Why is action at European level essential?

The programme also features a Court for Future Generations conference-show in the form of a trial staged by media artists Usbek & Rica, addressing key social issues, echoing a study carried out in 2017 by Nicholas Hulot, in order to tackle the following question:

Should social economy enterprises become the norm?

At the end of the day, a declaration will be adopted, to be submitted to the European institutions, setting out the actions that public and private stakeholders and civil society would like to see from the European Union over the next five years for promoting the development of this future-oriented sector.