Who we are
RIPESS Europe – Solidarity Economy Europe, was born from the synergy produced by the meetings of the Globalisation of Solidarity organised by the intercontinental network RIPESS Intercontinental, the first of which took place in Lima in 1997. The 4th International Forum of “Globalisation of Solidarity”, Lux’09, which took place in Schifflange in April 2009, led to the launching of a dynamic by establishing trust and shared-knowledge between networks of the social and solidarity economy (SSE) at continental and intercontinental levels. During this meeting, Eric Lavillunière (INEES) and Christine Gent (WFTO) initiated the structuring of a European RIPESS platform.
In Barcelona, in 2011, RIPESS Europe was born. It included representatives of networks from Belgium, Catalonia, France, Spain, Hungary, Italy, Luxembourg, Portugal, Romania and Germany.
News from Europe—
Round table on ‘Food Social Security’ at the GSEF in Bordeaux
Urgenci, as thematic member of the coordination of RIPESS Intercontinental Board of Directors, participated in the Global Social and Solidarity Economy Forum (GSEF) in Bordeaux at the end of October, as well as in the prior Board meeting and meeting with new partners WSM, INSP!R and WIEGO. The main Urgenci contribution to GSEF was a Round Table organized with RIPESS [...]
Change Makers: Change the economic system, change the world
Support this transformative project! Change Makers is an educational and collaborative game that seeks to raise awareness, in a playful way, about topics such as sustainability, agroecology, feminism and the social and solidarity economy. It can be played from the age of 10 and is designed so that each person becomes an agent of change, cooperating and mobilizing resources, knowledge [...]
The Kandy Declaration: A Collective Roadmap for Systemic Transformation
From 6 to 13 September 2025, more than 700 delegates from over 100 countries gathered in Kandy, Sri Lanka, for the 3rd Nyéléni Global Forum for Food Sovereignty. Peasants, Indigenous Peoples, pastoralists, fishers, feminist movements, youth, workers, and activists came together to renew the global struggle for justice, dignity, and life — giving birth to the Kandy Declaration: A Collective [...]



