The German Secretary of State Sven Giegold together with his Spanish colleague recently announced that a strengthened social economy in Europe would be one of the priorities under the Spanish Presidency:

“Spain will hold the Presidency of the EU Council in the second half of 2023. One of its main objectives will be to promote the approval of a Council Recommendation on social economy, which should be the basis of a much-needed common legal EU framework for the entities of the social economy that will enhance their potential as agents of change and contribute to preserve the European social model.”

ICLEI Europe very much supports this initiative, which is needed in times where social questions challenge the cohesion of our societies and the stability of our democracies. However, we need to ensure that this focus is well combined with a transformational agenda that is accelerating the urgently needed actions and progress in response to climate change, loss of biodiversity and the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.

Therefore, the concept of the social economy has to be in close relation to the economy for the common good in order to leverage its potential to contribute to transformation and social benefits for the people and their communities.

This is why ICLEI will continue and increase its work on these topics particularly connected to the concept of Local Green Deals.

To read the ICLEI’s full take on the Common Good and social economy, read here.