News of the European Social Economy
SEN#44October 2025
An alliance to design and democratise local and regional economies at a critical moment in our history
By Marguerite Mendell. Distinguished Professor Emerita, School of Community and Public Affairs and Director, Karl Polanyi Institute of Political Economy, Concordia University. Member, Advisory Board, Global Social Economy Forum GSEF.
"I am especially pleased to contribute to this issue of Social Economy News as a former student of Professor Arthur Lermer at Sir George Williams University, now Concordia University, in Montreal. Professor Lermer founded CIRIEC -Canada, a national section of CIRIEC International in 1966 with George Davidovic, Director of Research, Canadian Cooperative Union at the time and co-founder of CIRIEC International in 1947."
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The European Parliament adopts a resolution on public procurement calling for a shift towards sustainability, innovation, quality, and accessibility for SMEs and social economy enterprises
The Network for Sustainable Development in Public Procurement (NSDPP), a coalition of NGOs, trade unions, and social economy organizations, welcomed the resolution. The group praised the European Parliament’s insistence that public authorities prioritize best value for money and use social and environmental criteria in their award decisions.
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Ten Ibero-American countries call on the UN and its Statistics Division to include a specific chapter on the Social and Solidarity Economy in the upcoming revision of the SNA-2008
Senior representatives — including seven ministers — from ten Ibero-American countries committed to the values and promotion of the Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) have signed a joint letter asking the United Nations Secretariat, and specifically its Statistics Division, to include “a dedicated chapter on the social and solidarity economy in the upcoming update of the SNA-2008, establishing the framework criteria for defining the scope of the SSE.” They also call for the development of a Satellite Account Manual for the Social and Solidarity Economy.
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The UN warns of the need to safeguard global progress in the Social and Solidarity Economy
This was the key message following the 54th meeting of the United Nations Inter-Agency Task Force on Social and Solidarity Economy (UNTFSSE), held on 24 September.
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Monica Fantini succeeds Giuseppe Guerini as the new President of CECOP
The General Assembly of CECOP – the European Confederation of Industrial and Service Cooperatives – met on 16 October in Brussels and elected Monica Fantini as its new President, succeeding Giuseppe Guerini, who had held the position since 2016.
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