Students of the master’s course on Cooperatives participate in the Global Social and Solidarity Economy Forum 2025
In October 2025, five students from the master course “Cooperation and Cooperative Organizations” took part in the Global Social and Solidarity Economy Forum (GSEF) in Bordeaux, France. This initiative was organized in collaboration with the Centre for Social Economy at HEC Liège and the Institute for Training and Support to Development Initiatives (IFAID Bordeaux) as part of a Blended Intensive Program (BIP).
Bringing together over 10,000 participants from 100 countries, the GSEF created a vibrant space for dialogue between local governments, civil society networks, and social economy actors. The event reaffirmed the social and solidarity economy as a driving force for inclusive, sustainable, and locally rooted development.
One participating student stated that “this event gave me the chance to use French in a professional context and to engage with a diverse range of actors from across the world. I was especially inspired by the combination of creative community initiatives and the shared sense of urgency across the field. Moreover, we were interviewed about our research on German energy cooperatives, which led to a lively exchange of ideas. The forum reminded us that there’s no one-size-fits-all solution — local context is crucial, which lies at the heart of the social and solidarity economy. Yet, the need for dialogue, networking, and cooperation across different levels remains essential. How these connections take shape will probably influence the movement’s future.”
Another student emphasized on the variety of topics in the forum, “for me, the forum thrived on informal exchanges with committed people from all over the world. Hearing first-hand accounts of labour rights disputes in the mining sector in Congo, or the collective organization of small vendors in Togo, was very inspiring.”
Concerning the topic of cooperatives, a student stated “it became very clear to me that other countries rely on cooperatives to a much greater extent than Germany” As particularly innovative experiences, a student expressed “I was particularly impressed by the Food Social Security experiment in Geneva, which proposes a “Right to Food” bill and introduces an income-based contribution system that provides all residents with equal purchasing power in a local food currency.”
Besides the multiple contacts and learnings that the GSEF enabled, one student summarised a shared feeling: “It was inspiring to see so many people actively working for values that I also share.”