Sunday 8 January 2012

Conference Organisers

Pete North is Senior Lecturer in Geography at the University of Liverpool. He has a long standing research interest in alternative economies in the global north and south, with a particular interest in alternative currencies and what a socially inclusive, economically vibrant and co-operative low carbon future would look like. He is a founder member of Transition South Liverpool. Pete has spent time travelling in Latin America and studying its currencies. He has written widely on the subject of local money including most recently Local Money: How to Make it Happen in Your Community (Green Books, 2010).

Molly Scott Cato is Professor of Strategy and Sustainability at the University of Roehampton. She is an expert in the social economy and director of the Responsible Capitalism research centre. She has a longstanding interest in Latin America since studying the politics of the region for her first degree. Ideas about common wealth feature strongly in her view of Green Economics (Earthscan, 2009) and she is now developing the theory of a bioregional economy, closely embedded in place and where local resources are shared equally within self-reliant local economies.

Marcelo Lopes de Souza is a professor at the Department of Geography of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro in Rio de Janeiro. He pioneered the study of spatiality and social production of space from an 'autonomist' perspective. Marcelo Lopes de Souza has published nine books and more than 80 articles and book chapters covering spatial theory, popular participation in urban planning, social movements theory, urban ‘utopias’/alternative visions, urban problems, and the ‘spatiality of libertarian thought’.

Saturday 7 January 2012

Conference Outline

The first of the two conferences will be held in Liverpool between 13th and 15th March 2012. The following Latin American experts in the social economy have confirmed their attendance:

Professor Marcelo Lopes de Souza, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (expert on urban social movements and informal economies in cities – co organiser)

Professor Jose Luis Coraggio, University of General Sarmiento, Buenos Aires, and co-ordinator of the Latin American Research Network on the solidarity economy

Professor Heloisa Primavera, University of Buenos Aires and co-ordinator of the Solidarity Barter Network in Argentina: engaged academic with grounded experience of a range of solidarity economy initiatitives in Latin America

Day One: 14th March 2012, Foresight Centre, University of Liverpool.
1 Brownlow St Liverpool L69 3GL

9.00 – 9.30 Arrival, registration, tea and coffee
9-30-10.00 Introduction and aims of the seminar: Peter North,
10.00-11.00 Jose Luis Coraggio, University of General Sarmiento, Argentina: The Solidarity Economy: Conceptual Overview
11.00-11.15 morning coffee
11.15-12.15 Heloisa Primavera, University of Buenos Aires: The Solidarity Economy: the view from Civil Society
12.15-1.15 Dario Azzellini (University of Linz) and Diana Raby (University of Liverpool). Lessons and experiences from Venezuela’s solidarity economy.
1.15-1.45 Lunch
1.45-2.15 Paul Chatterton (University of Leeds): Latin American influences on UK academic and activist practise
2.15-3.15 John Barry (Queen’s University Belfast): Political Economy of Climate Change.
3.15-3.30 Tea and Coffee
3.30-4.45 Adrian Smith (University of Sussex) and Andy Cumbers (University of Glasgow). Civil Society engagement in renewable energy.
4.45-5.30 Response: Panel of our Latin American Visitors, followed by discussion led by team
5.30pm Close

Day Two: 15th March 2012, Blackburne House, Liverpool.
Blackburne Place, Liverpool, Merseyside L8 7PE

9.00 – 9.15 Arrival, registration, tea and coffee
9-15-9.30 Welcome: Rosie Jolly, Socail Enterprise Network
Introduction and aims of day two: Molly Scott Cato (University of Roehampton)

9.30:9.50 Robbie Davison – Can Cook Films
A visual presentation of Merseyside social enterprises
9.50-10.20 Short presentations from social enterprises (2),
10.20-11.30 Andrew Simms, New Economic Foundation
The Big Society, the new mutualism: opportunities and threats in the UK
11.00-11.15 Response from our visitors
11.15-11.30 Tea and coffee
11.30-11.40 Cllr Patrick Hurley – Liverpool City Council
Co-operative councils
11.40-12.30 Colin Crooks – CEO Green Works UK practice overview
Response (5 mins) from our visitors
12.30-1.30 Lunch and networking
1.30-1.45 Introduction to the afternoon: Pete North, Molly Scott Cato
1.45-3.30 World CafĂ© Section- – tea and coffee available
3.30-4.00 Marcelo, Dario and Heloisa – response from Latin America: SEN response: (5-10 min each), what are the issues?
4.00-5.00 participatory process/discussion led by Pete, Molly and Marcelo: where are we going from here?
5.00pm Close