RESEARCH GROUP IT1711-22

Research Group  “Gizarte Ekonomia eta bere Zuzenbidea”, IT1711-22, Basque Government (2022-2025)

MEMBERS: Aitziber Etxezarreta Etxarri / Angel Elías Ortega / Artitzar Erauskin Tolosa / Maria Jesus Luengo Valderrey / Anjel Errasti Amozarrain / Enekoitz Etxezarreta Etxarri / Jon Morandeira Arca / Julen Izagirre Olaizola / Aratz Soto Gorrotxategi / Eusebio Lasa Altuna / Jon Las Heras Cuenca

As its name indicates, the common line of research of the eleven members is the social economy and its law. Our lines of research are those addressed by GEZKI (www.gezki.eus): Democracy and workers' participation in the enterprise; Social and solidarity economy and social innovation; Governance and law of social economy institutions; Public policies for the promotion of social economy; Globalization and internationalization of cooperatives; and Sustainable urban development and social economy.

In addition, in this call we want to expand our team to another five people with whom we are currently working. With these four proposals we intend to broaden the scope, since Xabier Itçaina is at the University of Bordeaux, Ignacio Bretos at the University of Zaragoza, Orestes Rodríguez at the University of Pinar del Río in Cuba (specialist in cooperative law), Unai del Burgo at the Udako Euskal Unibertsitatea and Jorge Torres at the USACH University in Santiago de Chile.

The social economy, as we do within GEZKI, we want to approach it from different angles, law and economics in particular. That is why we present ourselves as an interdisciplinary research group, convinced that this brings added value to our research work. We observe the characteristics that the organization of the social economy separates from the capitalist business model. It focuses mainly on the analysis of the characteristic elements of democratic organizations based on participation and self-formation. We analyze the three sections of participation: capital, decisions and profits. From the legal point of view, we analyze how to associate the principle of self-formation made possible by cooperative law to the concept of "decent work" in the International Labor Organization.

With regard to the external dynamics of social economy organizations, it is a question of how they are integrated into the local development of their territory. Thus, from the point of view of social innovation, we focus on the innovative models of governance and entrepreneurship that these organizations generate in the territory. Secondly, an analysis of the public policies used by public institutions to promote social economy experiences is carried out. And thirdly, at a more global level, we carry out a critical analysis of how social economy institutions have carried out their internationalization processes. At the same time, we analyze the body of law specific to this economic model. The law appropriate to the promotion and development of the social economy. From the legal point of view, the Social Economy Law of the Spanish State (5/2011, March 29) has been a milestone worldwide. This Law, for the first time, defines the characteristics of the social economy and lists the entities that make up this economic sector.

Although cooperative law has a long tradition, although the cooperative is a fundamental component of the social economy, we are going to analyze other figures (those of Law 5/2011): labor companies, mutual benefit societies, special employment centers, insertion companies, associations and foundations. The framework of collaboration of this interdisciplinary group is, therefore, determined by the object of research itself, the social economy. But at the same time, as all members of the research team are members of GEZKI, we participate jointly in various initiatives that are developed within the activity of the Institute. For example, within the framework of the Official Master in Social Economy and Solidarity Economy of the UPV/EHU, developed by the GEZKI Institute, we have jointly written countless publications and communications, and we have collaborated in numerous research projects and contracts.

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