By Dr. Günther Lorenz, Technet, Berlin.

This European project is run by TechNet in connection with the Social Economy Berlin Network (SEB), it shows that there is some potential for cooperation of the SSE with regional / local governments.

ACCIÓ is the lead partner of the project. It is the public agency for the competetiveness of Catalan enterprise, attached to the Ministry of Business and Employment of the Generalitat (Government) of Catalonia.

RESET (REgions for Social Economy business developmenT) has the general objective of strongly accelerating the development and acknowledgement of support to social economy business development at regional level and enhance its inter-regional dimension. Regions with expertise in the field from different EU Member States, in cooperation with the most relevant stakeholders from each participant region will exchange good practices, with the aim of paving the way towards a future RESET – interregional learning community that is also able to spread its know-how and good practices to other cities/regions and provide, on a regular basis, recommendations to the European Commission and other EU policy-makers. The acronym RESET means “starting again” and is linked with the specific objectives of the project, which are:

  1. Reinforcing collaboration between project partners and social economy stakeholders at the EU and also at the local level.
  2. Rethink, based on a European exchange of good practices and know-how, support policies and programmes for the social economy that would target the whole diversity of ‘older’ and ‘newer’ forms of the social economy.
  3. Reshape social economy support also in the light of the Covid-19 crisis which showed once again the potential, but also the specific needs of the social economy.
  4. Strongly promote through the reshaping of support measures, more structured cooperation (…) between different forms of social economy, but also between social economy and other type of social enterprises.
  5. On the basis of partners experiences, define pathways for deeper cooperation between different cities and regions in the development of more effective EU support programmes for social economy business development.

The partnership proposed, made up of regional public authorities supported by local partnerships of expert stakeholders on social economy business development, covers a broad geographic area and there is an adequate balance amongst the different backgrounds on the matter of the mission:

  • ACCIÓ, the Agency for Business Competitiveness also supporting social enterprises of the Government of Catalonia,
  • Region Östergötland, a regional public authority responsible for healthcare, and regional development in the Östergötland County
  • REVES the European umbrella organisation bringing together local and regional authorities as well as social economy organisations from 14 European Member States
  • Berlin Senate Department for Economy, Energy and Public Enterprises that develops economic policy strategies and concepts to improve the framework conditions for companies in the city
  • Pobal which works on behalf of the Irish Government, and in conjunction with communities and local agencies, to support social inclusion and local and community development.