Remaking the Economy: Building Regional Solidarity Economies

How do we build regional economies rooted in community ownership? As Stacey Sutton wrote to introduce an NPQ article series last fall on “Solidarity Economies—Building Community Power,” the growth of solidarity economy organizations across the country over the last decade has been “somewhat astounding.” In this webinar, cosponsored by the New Economy Coalition, we  build on the contributions from that series and take a deep look at movement growth and ongoing challenges— with participants from New Orleans, Los Angeles, Oakland (CA), Buffalo and Washington DC sharing their perspectives. Our panelists are: 

• Andrew Delmonte is executive director of Cooperation Buffalo.
• Gilda Haas is a senior advisor and cofounder of L.A. Co-op Lab in Los Angeles.
• Gregory Jackson is cofounder and lead steward for Repaired Nations in Oakland, California.
• Maya Pen is an artist and a member of the steering committee of Cooperation New Orleans.
• Bianca Vasquez and Felix Macraeg are co-directors of Beloved Community Incubator in Washington, DC.

This webinar will explore:

• What do we mean by a solidarity economy?
• How do you build a community-owned solidarity economy at the local and regional levels?
• How do solidarity economy businesses develop viable and sustainable business models?
• What does an incubator do and how does that help community-owned businesses generate living wages and earnings?
• What is the ecosystem that is needed to support cooperatives, community land trusts, and other tools of community economic ownership?
• What is the role of culture and the arts in the solidarity economy?
• How can community economic organizing build on African and Indigenous cultural traditions?
• How do solidarity economy activists join forces with labor unions, racial justice groups, and other social movement organizations?
• What can public policy do to support solidarity economy development?

Whether you’re a social movement activist, nonprofit leader, board member, or engaged in community-based organizing, this webinar will provide you with real-life examples and lessons learned that can inform your work in your own community.

Register to learn how nonprofits and movement activists are advancing strategies to address the economic and social inequalities of our time!

The moderator for this webinar is NPQ economic justice senior editor Steve Dubb. Steve has worked with cooperatives and nonprofits for over two decades and has been both a student and practitioner in the field of community economic development.

You can send your questions to webinar@npqmag.org to have them answered during the web event.